Refacing Kitchen Cabinets Made Easy: Choosing the Right Veneer and Tools

By Rob Sabo
RefacingCabinet.com Columnist

So you've decided your kitchen needs some upgrading before that next big family gathering at your house. Those once nice-looking kitchen cabinets have been banged and battered for years and need refinishing. If you've decided to apply wood veneer over existing cabinet faces. RefinishFurniture.com recommends the following kitchen cabinet refacing tools designed specifically for cutting, applying, and finishing veneer to help you better manage the task.

Popular Cabinet Refacing Veneer

The BobVila.com website discusses the different types of veneer available for your cabinet refacing. Some of the most popular choices include:

• Wood veneer. This veneer is applied with glue, is more costly, and requires some specialized tools and skill to get it applied correctly.
• Plastic laminate. Also requires some special tools to prevent cracking and chipping while cutting material to size.
• Hot melt iron on. You iron on this veneer, much like ironing a decal on a T-shirt.
• RTF (rigid thermofoil). This peel-and-stick or pressure-sensitive veneer is the easiest type of apply. You install it just like applying shelf paper--a job even an "un-handyman" can handle. RTF laminates also are the least-expensive option.

Cabinet Refacing Tools Simplify Your Project

It's hard--if not impossible--to get a high-quality and professional finish on your kitchen cabinet remodeling project without the right tools for cutting and edging.

What you need:

• Veneer or pressure roller. Allows you to place sufficient pressure over a small area, which is important because you want the veneer to adhere to the cabinet face with no bubbling. You can also use a jar or rolling pin to save money, but a roller is the easiest and best tool for this task.
• Veneer smoothing blade. This tool looks like an extra wide putty knife. You can flatten the veneer when you first apply it.
• Veneer saw. Comes in handy to cut larglel pieces of veneer into slightly over-cut but more manageable sizes. You can also cut with a scoring cutter or sharp shears.
• Scoring cutter, shears, curved cut shears. Used to cut the veneer, with the curved cut shears making it easier to cut tight curves.
• Edge trimmer. Correctly trims the veneer on panel edges.

When working with RTF or plastic laminate, these tools are crucial to getting professional-looking and un-scarred edges. Choosing the right type of veneer and tools can take much of the work out of your kitchen cabinet remodeling job.

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