· Michael Blair
Cabinet quality is judged by doors and decided by boxes. In Middle Tennessee humidity, and particularly under a sink, the box material determines how long the kitchen lasts.
Box materials
Plywood boxes resist moisture better, hold fasteners better and survive a leak that would destroy particleboard. They cost more and are the standard mark of better cabinetry.
Particleboard is dimensionally stable and perfectly serviceable dry, and it swells irreversibly when wet. Under a sink that matters.
Door materials
Solid wood doors move with humidity, which is normal and shows as seasonal gaps at panel edges on painted doors. That is not a defect.
MDF doors are dimensionally stable and take paint beautifully, which is why most painted cabinetry uses MDF panels rather than solid wood.
- Plywood boxes, particularly the sink base
- MDF for painted doors, solid wood for stained
- Thermofoil peels in heat — keep away from ovens
- Full-extension soft-close drawer runners
- Adjustable shelves at the very least
Thermofoil and heat
Thermofoil is a vinyl film over MDF. It looks good and delaminates near heat, which is why the door beside a range or above a dishwasher fails first.
Heat deflectors help. Siting it away from heat sources helps more.
What to look at in a showroom
Open a drawer fully and check the runner. Look at the back of the box and whether it is a captured panel or a stapled sheet. Check the shelf thickness by pressing the middle.
Those three tell you more about how the kitchen will age than the door finish does.