So when and where do you use Chinese cabinetry?  Well, it depends on that Yin and Yang thing.  Do you want more Yin?, or more Yang for your buck?  You can have more Yang, but:

-You will not have many door styles or finishes to choose from.

-The drawer slides are "knock-offs" and may not hold up very well.

-The overall construction may be suspect and there are absolutely no size options.  What they make in 3" increments is what you have to choose from.

With American made cabinetry, the more you pay, the more options you receive, the quality gets better, and the warranty is actually usable should it be necessary.  On the other hand, contacting the local Chinese Embassy when your doors warp will probably not work out for you.  And surprise, surprise, when you get to the point of  "reasonable" features for your cabinetry, there are American manufacturers that are competitive in price.

So I would suggest you use Chinese cabinetry in a basement bar where color does not have to match the rest of your home.  Also a garage, or possibly a laundry where exact sizing is not an issue.  If there is a warranty problem, (which we already discussed) , you could have a cabinet "fixed" locally, even though a perfect match will be impossible, it will likely not be an issue.  A slightly mismatched cabinet staring at you in your kitchen is an entirely different matter.

There is no argument that we are in lean economic times that are unlikely to change in the near future.  Every purchase needs to be researched, and the best LONG TERM cost and value be evaluated.   There is no value in cabinets you have to replace in 3 years,  but it may make sense to minimize the cost of that basement bar.  You will have more cash to stock it appropriately.

Happy remodeling, choose wisely, and always consider American made.

Brian Tarle

International Kitchen and Bath

201 Griffith St.,  Davidson,  NC    28036

704-892-4001

Ok, how about with the perception that all things Chinese are cheap and therefore junk.

That is a very tempting conclusion, especially with all of the recent press and small items that break every day with that little stamp on the bottom,"Made in China".  Pretty soon, their marketing department will have them change the name of the country to escape that perception.  As they say, perception is reality.   Even if they rename the country Valhalla East, it won't change the mentality, economics, or production techniques that are currently the norm.

So is their cabinetry any good?  Yes and No.  I have seen Chinese cabinetry that is hard to tell  if you should  install the cabinet to the wall, or the box it came in.  The container it came in is stronger, but the cabinet has a slightly better finish.  But recently, I put together a "knocked down" cabinet that was surprising.  I will admit that I went well beyond their recommended construction guidelines by using my own screws and glue, (Chinese screws are definitely cheap), but it went together as promised in the paperwork.  The milling of the parts was accurate, the parts were all there, and there was no shipping damage.  Overall, the finished product was "acceptable", considering the price.  The finish was comparable to very inexpensive American made products, and since you can control the construction techniques to assemble it, it ends up stronger than the American counterpart.  It is important to remember that this was a knock down product, so the quality of a cabinet assembled in China may be a different story, but they certainly have the capability to produce a respectable cabinet.  But that does not always happen.  So you have to shop around, and the cheapest price is not usually the best way to go.  Just like American made cabinets, there are vast differences in quality, price and finish.  Let the buyer beware.

Have a good remodel,

Brian Tarle

International Kitchen and Bath

201 Griffith St.,  Davidson, NC

704-892-4001

The manufacturers of the Quartz surfaces such as Ceasarstone,  Silestone,  Cambria and  others have done their best to get you to buy their man made product over the "natural" choices-----mostly notably,  granite.  That's fine, there is a product for almost every need, and quartz surfacing is one of them.   But they tried to make you believe that you were at risk from Radon and unsanitary conditions when you installed granite counter tops.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  Luckily, time has proven those accusations to be false, but time is also showing us some of the issues with quartz surfaces.

One of our customers had their brand new Cambria top crack while using their crock pot, and another brand of quartz had a white ring left on the top after a clorox bottle was set on it for a" couple of minutes", (according to the caller).  I suspect that the crock pot was faulty, and I cannot verify how long the bottle was sitting on the counter top to bleach a ring on it, but it does bring up two important points:

1)  Quartz counter tops have more "chinks" in their armor than they lead you to believe, and

2) READ the instructions that the counter top installers leave with you.  Or make sure you get all of the important info from your sales person, or the manufacturer.

Nothing is indestructible, but man made products are still lagging behind the longevity, beauty and dependability of the counter tops supplied by Mother Nature.  And Mother Nature never makes false claims.

I hope you enjoy your next remodel project.

Brian Tarle

International Kitchen and Bath, Davidson, NC

704-892-4001