Get green kitchen cabinets by using your existing cabinets for an environmentally-friendly kitchen
By Leslie A.M.RefacingCabinet.com Columnist
Instead of replacing your kitchen cabinets, consider resurfacing kitchen cabinets. Just by deciding to keep your existing kitchen cabinets you have transformed them to green kitchen cabinets. Just by sparing a landfill from the bulk of the cabinets you have made an eco-friendly choice. Cabinets are just one element to constructing a green kitchen.
Other items that you can consider for building a green kitchen are"
• Skylights;
• Recycled glass or tin backsplash;
• Energy efficient appliances;
• Bamboo or other sustainable flooring;
• Vintage door handles or drawer knobs.
Resurfacing Kitchen Cabinets
When you spruce up your green kitchen cabinets, choose materials that are environmentally-friendly. Paint has a volatile organic compound (VOC) number on the can. The lower the better. The Federal limit for flat paint is 250 grams per liter and for other paints it is 380 grams per liter. Many states have tougher regulations to spare you and your family from the noxious fumes that paint often emits.
There are also eco-friendly stains that you can use that will help you achieve the look you want even if you have inexpensive kitchen cabinets.
Remodeling Kitchen Cabinets
Even though you choose to keep your existing cabinets, you can, of course, rearrange the cabinets if they are modular and can be moved. Remodeling kitchen cabinets can bring new functionality to your kitchen. For instance, you can move two large cabinets away from a wall and place them back-to-back and top with a slab of granite to make a new island.
If you can add a skylight, place your cooktop or other prep area under the skylight to maximize the use of light.
There are many things you can do to reuse things in your kitchen in clever ways. Green kitchen cabinets are just the start--in fact, you already have them!
About The Author
Leslie A.M. Smith is a freelance writer and desperately needs a new kitchen. Until she can afford it, she has her eye on refacing her cabinets.
