Phoenix area Cabinet Refacing plus remodel/quartzite countertops? (Goodyear, Florence: real estate, how much)

[Montanama]

Well, I'm going to do it. I'm going to flush a bunch of money away purely for my own enjoyment with no hope of gaining equity, lol. (I have never done this in the context of a real estate investment.) I want a beautiful kitchen, but I still want it on a budget!

So I am going to reface (this means re-veneer or paint the boxes and replace the doors only) the base cabinets and replace the hopeless 30" cabinets some builder threw in (may he rot in hell ) because they are just unworkable; I will be getting 36-42" cabinets in a custom layout. The layout of the kitchen will stay the same and the base cabinets are fine as they are, just ugly, so I really don't want to rip out the base.

So I need to get estimates from contractors or cabinet shops that sell both kitchen cabinets (wall) AND will also order and sell doors only (base). I have had a really hard time finding anyone who does this, after several web searches, but of course I am not familiar with the area so I'm hoping someone here might have the answer to my rather obscure need.

I'm in the west valley so would need someone who could come and give me an estimate in Goodyear.

I'm going to contact Stone Creek Furniture today as their website indicates that they do refinishing and refacing as well as remodeling. Please PM for any negatives, or share positives for Stone Creek or other contractors you know of who can do this odd thing!

I know I'm making it difficult on myself, I just can't bring myself to spend anymore than absolutely necessary. But I can't leave the kitchen as is, either. One of the huge drawbacks to this "open concept" everyone loves is that you are always looking at your kitchen, lol!

I do plan to splurge on the countertops. I'm determined to find someone who carries the natural quartzite. Anyone know off the top of their heads who might have it? I've started calling around and so far haven't found anyone who regularly carries it. It will cost even more to special order, and I'm not paying that kind of money for a slab I haven't seen. Two of the shops I contacted refused to acknowledge that quartzite is even a thing, and insisted I had to be talking about the engineered quartz products. I'm not. lol.

I have such a limited time in town whenever I'm there that any direction I can get here on C-D will help me immensely. TIA!

[Jkgourmet]

The single biggest mistake we ever made in a home was refacing cabinets. They looked beautiful. For awhile. With use, the new facing started to rub off. This may be why you are having a hard time finding companies that do it - they can't really warranty their product all that well. Seriously, if you intend to stay in the house, get new cabinets.

Quartzite is NOT a natural product. It is man made, from ground up natural materials. Asking for "natural quartzite" is sorta like believing a McNugget is natural chicken meat. It is chicken, but it's not found that way in nature. So is the same with quartzite.

It's a personal preference, I know. But I love granite. All natural, real granite.

[DetroitN8V]

Quartzite is actually the natural material that is ground up with resins for the man made quartz counters, such as Cambria, Silestone, etc.

[jmw51882]

I redid my kitchen on a budget about 6 months ago. I kept the original layout so I didn't have to move plumbing or electrical. But otherwise it was a complete gut. I ordered the cabinets from one of those RTA online stores. They are solid wood and beautiful. Even professionals cann't tell they weren't custom.

The most expensive part of the entire project was hiring the plumber to install the sink, faucet, and dishwasher.

[asufan]

Arizona Tile should have Quartzite

[Montanama]

Thank you asufan. They are on my list to call. They have a huge selection but not as many positive reviews as some other sites that were higher on my list. Relying on anonymous online reviews is a little tricky when you don't know the comparative size of the companies and how much business each does. They do seem to have the broadest inventory.

Quartzite is the natural stone. Like some other stones, what's called "quartzite" in the yard might not always have the exact same mineral makeup. There are a lot of less expensive imposters and even the salesman might not actually know that. I would not purchase "Quartzite" without first seeing & testing the slab--not just for looks, but to know exactly what's carrying that label for any given retailer. It can have its issues, but so can certain granites. It just happens that the quartzite I have in mind is exactly, exactly exactly the color/veining I am partial to, with superior stain resistance over carrera. Other quartz products are man-made from resins and ground quartz materials/quartzite.

JKGourmet, I have seen the same thing happen with the veneer refacing. It's crushing!! I will choose either the plywood refacing or just to paint my boxes. With a full overlay door it should be fine.

jmw, I've priced some very beautiful RTA cabinets as well. It's amazing what you can save and I am sorely tempted. In the end, I just think I cannot stand to assemble one. single. more. piece. of. furniture. Lol. I just can't bear the thought. But it's not entirely ruled out. Seriously, though, Allen wrenches give me twitches.

We can get cabinets & doors up here at cost, but then we have to get them to AZ and we'll be left to do the project ourselves. Again. I'm not feeling it but will do it if I have to! We are always working on projects and I'd rather see this done by a professional.

So I'm hoping this patchwork approach will be budget friendly, allow for a little more creativity, and still allow us to have someone else do the work!! We'll see--so far one out of the five cabinet people I contacted have gotten back to me, but it's only day 1!

Remodeling this house has zero potential to add significant value, so I'm very mindful of not getting carried away.

but i want the quartzite...lol

Thanks for all the replies--good to know I'm not the alone in searching for budget options. The old champagne taste, beer budget!

[Montanama]

BTW (for anyone coming across this thread in the future) there are quite a few companies in Phoenix who do the refacing, most with a choice of finishing (veneer, wood overlay, or paint/refinishing) and it hasn't been hard to find them. What's been more difficult is finding someone who will help with the design, order entire matching wall cabinets, AND do the refacing--or even just order the cabinets and doors alone for us to do it ourselves. It's the combination that's been tricky. No one seems to sell just doors unless you're paying them to do the refacing, and the refacers don't seem to be in the business of installing new cabinets! go figure...

But refacing itself would be pretty simple to find a contractor. Home Depot does it, or will facilitate you doing it yourself, though I have read repeated reviews that they are the most expensive--as is generally true of their kitchen cabinet department as well.

jmw5188, who did you use for your RTA cabinets?

[motormaker]

Please do not paint your cabinets without stripping down to bare wood, even then chances are after a couple of years the paint will start to chip.

How about Quartzsite, AZ?

https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&sou...=classic&dg=oo

[Montanama]

Originally Posted by motormaker

Please do not paint your cabinets without stripping down to bare wood, even then chances are after a couple of years the paint will start to chip.

How about Quartzsite, AZ?

https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&sou...=classic&dg=oo

Yep, I got lots of leads that took me there

We would only be painting the frames, if we did. Several of the refacers provide a wood frame, though, rather than press-on veneer (which wears off and bubbles over time), so that's our best option.

If we paint, we will do it right But it can still chip eventually, just much easier to fix when it does than is the veneer.

[jmw51882]

I sent you a PM.

jmw5188, who did you use for your RTA cabinets?[/quote]