Twelve Questions to Ask When Buying Kitchen Cabinets
The first question: the thickness of the cabinet board.
At present, there are 16mm, 18mm and other thickness specifications on the market, and the cost of different thicknesses varies greatly. The cost of the 18mm thick plate alone is 7% higher than that of the 16mm thick plate. The service life of the kitchen cabinet made of 18mm thick plate can be more than doubled, ensuring that the door panel is not deformed, and the countertop is not cracked.
The second question: is it an independent cabinet.
The whole set of kitchen cabinets will affect the firmness, so consumers should ask clearly when purchasing the whole kitchen cabinet, the difference in service life and stability between the two is 2-3 times, and the cost difference is 5%. Consumers can identify by packaging and installed cabinets. If the independent cabinet is assembled into a single cabinet, each cabinet should have an independent packaging; consumers can also observe when the cabinet is installed and the countertop is not installed.
The third question: the color of the cabinet board.
There are various colors of cabinets on the market. The most important ones are warm white, gray white, cool white, etc. The cost of different colors is different. Among them, the cost of warm white board is the highest, which is 4% higher than other finishing colors. The warm white finish is soft, full, and beautiful. It is an internationally popular cabinet color, and it greatly surpasses the monotonous and whitish domestic gray white and cool white in terms of environmental protection, stain resistance, mildew resistance, discoloration resistance and many other physical properties. The finish is cleaner and safer to use. Of course, due to price reasons, some consumers will choose gray or cool white cabinets.
The fourth question: whether the back panel is single-sided or double-sided.
In order to save costs, some manufacturers cut corners and only cover the back panel on one side, and the invisible side is exposed. After single-sided sealing, the back panel is prone to moisture and mildew, and it is also easy to release formaldehyde, causing pollution, so it must be double-sided sealing.
The fifth question: whether there is anti-cockroach silent edge sealing.
Using the cabinet with anti-cockroach silent edge sealing, the impact force when the cabinet door is closed is alleviated, noise is eliminated, and insects such as cockroaches are prevented from entering. It is also necessary to check whether the table top, door panel, box body, sealing strip, and anti-collision strip are processed by machine molding, and whether the front and back sides are pressed at one time. If the sealing strip is not tightly closed, soot, dust and insects will enter.
The sixth question: brand of edge sealing glue.
Imported glue does not contain or rarely contains formaldehyde, so it will not cause processing pollution, and in terms of durability, it can also ensure that it will not be degummed for a longer time and prevent formaldehyde leakage.
The seventh question: the composition of artificial stone.
Materials suitable for kitchen countertops include fireproof boards, artificial stone, natural marble, granite, stainless steel, etc. Among them, artificial stone countertops have the best performance-price ratio. Inexpensive countertop calcium carbonate has a high composition and is prone to cracking. At present, the most commonly used in the market are composite acrylic and pure acrylic. The acrylic composition in composite acrylic is generally about 20% as the best ratio.
The eighth question: whether the artificial stone can be installed without dust.
In the past, many manufacturers would carry out artificial stone grinding at the installation site, causing environmental pollution in the living room, which consumers did not expect. If the kitchen cabinet manufacturer you choose is dusty, you must choose to install the countertop before the floor and paint come in, otherwise you will have to spend money for secondary cleaning.
The ninth question: whether to provide guarantee of origin of materials.
A set of kitchen cabinets is composed of a series of components such as door panels, cabinets, artificial stone, and hardware accessories. There is a big price difference between imported materials and domestic materials. Both are domestic materials, and the prices of branded and unbranded ones are also very different. Therefore, it is necessary to ask about the origin, and write the guarantee of origin in the contract according to its publicity.
The tenth question: whether the finished product can provide a test report.
Kitchen cabinets are also furniture products. The state clearly stipulates that a finished product test report should be issued and the formaldehyde content should be clearly stated. Some manufacturers can only provide raw material inspection reports, but the environmental protection of raw materials does not mean that the finished products are environmentally friendly. Only qualified finished products can prove that their products are qualified.
The eleventh question: how long is the warranty period.
Don’t only care about the price and style of the product, whether it can provide high-quality after-sales service is the performance of the manufacturer’s strength. For example, the warranty period is one year for some manufacturers, two years for some manufacturers, and five years for others. Manufacturers who dare to guarantee five years will definitely have higher requirements in terms of materials and manufacturing, and are also the most affordable for consumers. Many small factories are very cheap, but the warranty is very short or there is no warranty. Once there is a problem, it is difficult to get a reasonable solution, so consumers must ask questions such as product warranty when ordering kitchen cabinets. Regular manufacturers should have written warranty instructions, and consumers should make decisions after reading them carefully.
The twelfth question: Can I visit the factory? A beautiful exhibition hall does not mean strong strength. Kitchen cabinets are a complete industrialized industry that requires an industrial foundation. The factory photos and machinery and equipment on the promotional materials of some companies are all virtual or “taken”, but in fact it is likely to be a small workshop-style factory. Machinery and equipment have a great impact on production capacity and workpiece quality. Almost all major foreign brand enterprises are equipped with heavy machinery production lines. Even if you don’t really want to go, throw this question and see if the other party welcomes you to make a judgment.
