Cutting Corners to Save Money: Builder Grade
All kitchens start as a 3D rendering.Cutting corners to save money. We all know it happens. We all know that on some level, it’s really to be expected. But we never think it’s going to happen to us. Buying a new home can mean nothing but builder grade, the lowest quality in the materials spectrum. As cabinet and millwork builders we do a lot of new build for commercial, and a lot of remodel for residential. We’re the ones that come in and tear out the builder grade to replace with custom or ultra-custom. The crazy thing is the homeowner isn’t paying that much more for the quality and unique buildouts we bring. But builders putting together a new home are going to cut corners any way they can. Here’s a few things we’ve seen:
A multi-million dollar home, new build with 5 bedrooms and 4 ½ baths. That’s a big home made to hold a growing family. And what did the builder put in the kitchen? A dishwasher 18 inches across, a compact, that’s meant for a small apartment. For 5 years with their family of 5, they had to run the dishwasher 3 times a day. When we installed their new custom kitchen cabinets, they put in a 30 inch dishwasher and ran it once a day.
A gorgeous home on a lake with a pool. Their huge office with 16”high double French doors that overlooked the lake and pool, had cabinets with doors that were falling off their hinges and drawers that had been mounted on thin metal guides. We had to replace the entire wall of cabinetry because of the builder grade wood and hardware that had been used. We eventually replaced the kitchen cabinets for the same reason.
A really sad situation was a set of cabinets in the kitchen that hadn’t been built with enough support for the granite countertop and the farm sink. The granite cracked in several locations and the cosmetic fixes hadn’t worked for long. The countertop had to be replaced.
Builder grade cabinets really only last 5 to 7 years. They’re builder grade because they come in with the minimum quality—particle board construction with a plywood veneer and inexpensive hardware. In one recent remodel, the cabinet doors on their 10 year old home were peeling badly. The cabinet boxes were unfinished on the inside. We replaced this frustrating nightmare with ¾” Baltic birch boxes with maple shaker drawer and door fronts all painted with a beautiful pre-catalyzed lacquer. It turned out beautifully. As the homeowner remarked, “Looking at and using them is divine, but just touching these cabinets is a pleasure.”
And that’s how it should be. Your home should be a place of comfort and ease where the next looming problem isn’t waiting for you just around the next cut corner.