Questions about your future remodel? Use the following as general guidelines, but please call us at 267-228-5494 or e-mail for more specifics.

What will it cost?

Many factors help to determine the overall cost of your kitchen remodel: the size of the kitchen, the style of cabinets chosen, the type of countertops you pick, the type of appliances (if any) you buy, does this installation require moving walls, windows, plumbing, electrical, etc. So it’s difficult to put out a number that means much of anything. That being said, here are some figures you might find useful as guidelines.

The cabinet costs typically run from 33% to 50% of the overall cost of the job. Cabinets are usually the most expensive part of the remodel because they comprise the majority of the materials used. Changing cabinet woods, door styles, and finishes can have an impact on the overall cost of the job.

The typical complete kitchen remodel cost can run anywhere from $20-100,000, depending on your choices of cabinets, countertops, backsplash, appliances, flooring, doors & windows, plumbing & electrical work, design and installation. The average price for a complete bathroom remodel is about $20,125 -- again, dependent on your product choices.

In most cases, we can give you some fairly accurate ballpark figures for your job after just a minimal amount of discussion.

What are my upfront costs on a kitchen remodel?

We will ask for a deposit before ordering cabinets and countertops. Typically this upfront deposit is approximately 50% of the overall job cost.

What can I do to save a little money on my job?

This depends on how handy you are. In many cases, the homeowner can remove their old kitchen and generally prep the area for the remodel. This will save some money. Unless you are experienced at carpentry (and have the right tools), we think installing the new kitchen is best left to the professionals. Another way to save some money is to do any painting or general home maintenance items yourself.

Do I want particleboard or plywood cabinet construction?

The general perception is that plywood is better than particleboard, because most people think of particleboard as cheap. Particleboard does cost about 2/3 of what plywood costs, but particleboard is a very fine product for cabinet case construction. Remember: the front frame, doors and drawer fronts are made of real wood. The plywood versus particleboard debate is for the case (sides, top, bottom) of the cabinet only. That being said, about 25% of the cabinets we sell are plywood or “all-wood” construction.

What should I do before I go see someone about a new kitchen?

We would suggest two important decisions be made before going to see a dealer. 

You should arrive at some form of a budget. This will be one of the first questions asked (or at least it should be) by the designer. If you plan to pay for the job in cash, let the dealer know what you are thinking of spending (easier said than done!). If you are going to get a home equity loan or roll the kitchen cost into a home mortgage, you need to have some idea about payments to determine how much you can afford to spend. We have access to financing institutions, too.

You should take time and look through magazines or trade publications and search the internet to find some kitchen layouts, styles, colors and door styles that you find appealing. Start a scrapbook with these ideas. These pictures can be shown to our designer to help them get some understanding of your tastes and desires.

How do I choose the other kitchen pieces, like paint colors, countertops, accessories and appliances?

Our kitchen designer will help you choose the countertops, flooring, and room colors for your job because these pieces are very dependent on the design and installation. Some will help with decorations and appliances, but these pieces are usually sold by someone other than a kitchen dealer. They can give you great directions and even names to help you choose most anything associated with the kitchen.

How long does a typical job take from start to completion?

There is no such thing as a typical job, just like it's hard to say what a typical kitchen costs. From our end, kitchen cabinets are made and ready to deliver in slightly less than three weeks. Add a couple of weeks on the front end for design and ordering, a week on the back end for installations, and possibly another week or so for countertop measuring and installation, and you could feel pretty confident in the entire process taking from six to nine weeks.

Which leads us to ... how long will I be without a kitchen?

Depending on the complexity of the installations (i.e., construction work, plumbing, electrical, and overall size) and the type of countertops chosen, it is very possible that you will be eating out for one to four weeks.

With housing values in such a flux, is remodeling my kitchen a good way to spend home improvement money?

According to the NKBA, remodeling the kitchen and bath ranks right behind new windows and siding as the second best money spent on home improvement. Typically, you will recoup around 87% of your new kitchen investment if you sell your house in two to four years.

If I were to spend a little extra on my kitchen project, where would that money best be spent?

In our opinion, the best “extras” found in kitchen cabinets would be:

1. Soft-close drawers: they are the most used item in your kitchen.

2. Ergonomic help features for storage, like easy-access sliding shelves, wastebasket cabinets, and pull-out pantries.

3. Soft-close doors features (we hate slamming doors).

But honestly, the best place to spend extra money is on the countertops. Pay a little more and get a nice looking 3-D laminate or go for the granite or solid wood surface. You'll love the finished results, we promise. (Can you tell we're being honest? Selling countertops is not our main focus.) 

Why should I buy kitchens or cabinetry from specialty kitchen dealers like Open Door Cabinetry and not big box stores?

The short answer is: we don’t sell to big box stores. To elaborate a little more, big box stores do a wonderful job of selling many small home improvement pieces because they are open wonderful hours, have a huge supply of products on hand, and generally meet the needs of most homeowners for DIY home improvement projects. However, they are not well-equipped to do large special order projects, like kitchens. Their designers receive minimal training (and a good design is invaluable for your kitchen) and they are typically understaffed in specialty areas. (“Someone from kitchen and bath please pick up line three!”)

The most common complaint in dealing with big box stores on projects is that you are often left feeling like you are on your own. That’s OK if you need a gallon of paint or a new fan, but not when you are trying to decide on a painted or a cherry stained kitchen, a granite or soapstone countertop, and would like to find a good-looking stainless steel undermount sink to tie it all together.

We deal with kitchen and bath professionals. You will usually be talking to the same person from start to finish on your project. You will get to know them and they will get to know you.

Another plus in using dealers like us is that it’s usually cheaper than the big box stores. A much better value. Big public companies can offer good discounts on some things, but this is usually not the case for kitchens.

We know you will have many, many more questions -- and that's why we're here -- to answer them. Call us soon — 267-228-5494 — to discuss your project.