IKEA Cabinets

[Bob Orts]

It was mentioned that some have or are considering shipping over IKEA cabinets. From reading the product descriptions, other than the cabinet fronts, (which may be all wood in some styles) the sides, back, bottom and dividers are all particle or fiberboard. I also read in another post that particle or fiberboard wasn't a good choice for longevity due to humidity. When at HPM's design center in Hilo, I noticed few if any cabinets incorporated that much particle or fiberboard in the products.

So, opinions on how particle or fiberboard holds up on the east side would be appreciated as well as any opinions on IKEA kitchen cabinets overall.

[nanasohana]

We got our cabinets at a place called Hawaii Enterprises up past Hilo I think about mile 8. They are all wood and very nice. You can put them together yourself or I think they will for a charge. Very good prices.

[Carey]

I have seen a lot of particle board failure (both in a couple of cabinets in our house & garage sales etc.) HPM does not sell particle board in cabinets because of the high failure rate. The biggest prblem is that even if the particleboard doesn't crumble, it may swell, making drawers stuck & door not align. Even laminate countertops adhered to particle board will swell & curl (if you want laminate, only get laminate on ply substrates here - we had one particle based counter that had one end almost 1/2 inch above the cabinet & the laminate ends where swelled away from the top piece...)

[Fishboy]

I used IKEA for my kitchen remodel, but I have the huge advantage of living within about ten miles of the Seattle store. While think highly of IKEA, their products, and particularly their computerized design assistance at their web site, I'd be leery of using them without an easy access for spare parts. I AM satisfied with the IKEA products I installed. I found the packages were complete with all parts, and assembly documents use simple illustrations to show you how and where to put everything. Each part is numbered, or coded, and you're provided exactly the number of each that you need. I followed the instructions and didn't have any problems. There was at least one step, however, where I thought it would be very easy to break one of the components. If that had happened to me, I'd just face a couple hours of driving to get a replacement; can't say that for Puna. You can purchase extra parts separate from the packaged cabinets, but how would you know what you need?

Regarding the use of particle board, I think the average homeowner would be less willing to spend the substantial difference in costs for solid wood. Additionally, what I've read and experienced with more recent composites is that these products are not subject to warpage or problems with humidity as has happened in the past. I've installed crown molding in my home and used a composite (MDF) as was recommended, rather than solid wood that is subject to expansion and contraction. The crown runs for more than 20 feet along the walls, so even a minor movement will split at the corners.

One last point on particle board: Nothing, not wood or composite, is going to fair well if subjected to complete immersion. Humidity should not be a significant factor for composites of recent vintage.

Mahalo nui loa,
Brian and Mary
Lynnwood, WA\Discovery Harbour

Edited by - fishboy on 10/07/2007 09:50:46

[Big_Island]

I have installed many kitchens in Puna using partical board cabnets and counter tops (only because the owner insisted).

I havnt seen any of them last longer than 5 years before they start to look like rubbish....

Just My Humble Observation
Beau S.



Edited by - Big_Island on 10/07/2007 06:11:50

[csgray]

we lived in a less than one year old house in Seaview last year that was an HPM kit home and the particle board cabinets were already falling apart, also the laminate flooring was buckling all over the place. IKEA does make some solid wood modules that are open style tables similar to what is used in professional kitchens and bakeries which look like they would work here.

carol

[Brad W]

Even opting for solid wood is no guaranty there won't be problems. Our Thomasville maple cabinet doors from Home Depot started popping and coming apart before they were out of the boxes. Replacement doors did exactly the same thing. We're on our third set with our fingers crossed. Huge hassle. Home Depot was terrible to work with. Had to threaten legal action to get anything done.

[MyrnaUkulele]

Just saw this posting and copied our other posting to insert here.
We are in escrow and as soon as possible hope to become ONE with the Islands - It's Culture and It's People! I read the "PunaWeb", KonaWeb, and City-Data forums everyday. We need all the information we can get. I will now pass some on. We went to Ikea yesterday excited about kitchens and closets. Everything they sell has particleboard in the structure - even if the door and drawer fronts are solid wood/steel the rest has particleboard. The Limited Warranty states " The limited warranties do not apply if products have been placed outdoors or in a humid environment." I am pretty sure Puna qualities as a "humid environment".
J&B

J&B

[emorata]

hey bob,

if you like the ikea style, you might want to just get the faces....they are mostly all wood/glass/metal and are priced very well, they you just get the base cabinets on the island or have them custom made....its hard to get more modern looks like ikea on the island....i'm planning on shipping some of the glass fronts for some of the closet doors which will work very well instead of the typical slider types or the interior louvered type fronts...and it can fit easily into a container.

[janeadams]

Indeed, you cannot count on solid wood either. It "moves" as it absorbs moisture. We order DeWils hickory cabinets for our Maui house. The doors started to come apart within a month or two. DeWils replaced them. Another couple of months, and it was happening again. This time, we went back to the supplier (Container Home supply), and told them we didn't want to go throughit again. There was a good cabinetmaker just down the road, so we asked them to have the doors re-cut, glued and repaired. As they knew there had been problems with some particular types of wood in Hawaii, Dewils and CHS shared the cost, and our cabinets were fine after that. lesson is that wood and glue are no road to perfection if they come from the mainland and don't acclimate before construction of the cabinets. If ya got the $$, go for a local cabinetmaker...

Jane