If you plan to do kitchen renovations by yourself, you might be overwhelmed with numerous choices of kitchen cabinets on the market. I did my own research and found out the 2 decent choices, Hampton Bay Avondale and IKEA SEKTION system. Finally, I bought the Hampton Bay from Home Depot and here is my initial review after installing the cabinets.
Materials
The primary advantage of the Avondale series is its cabinet box. This is the exact reason why I bought their cabinets. Unlike many competitors, Avondale cabinets feature plywood construction; I’ve used plywood for many renovations and I’m very impressed with its superior strength, screw-holding power, and resistance to moisture. I even left some plywood pieces outdoors on the ground for months and they are still in a very good shape. On the other hand, my old sink cabinets used MDF and they had to be replaced after 5 years due to water damages.
Most kitchen cabinets on the market are using particleboard or MDF because of their lower costs. The Avondale cabinet boxes are made from 1/2-inch plywood which can easily last 10-20 years, or longer. I also love other details such as premium hardwood drawer boxes constructed with strong dovetail joints, paired with full-extension, soft-close undermount slides. The shelves are a substantial 3/4-inch thick adjustable plywood, so it can hold significant weight without bowing.
The doors and drawer fronts feature a classic Shaker design, but note that these are constructed from MDF. While this may seem contradictory to the “plywood construction” marketing, it is a deliberate and sound engineering choice. MDF provides a dimensionally stable substrate for a painted finish, preventing the hairline cracks that can appear at the joints of solid wood doors as they expand and contract with humidity changes.
The Assembly and Installation Experience
I bought 10 Avondale cabinets and they all are packaged very carefully. There are just a few dings and scratches but they are minor and totally acceptable.
Hampton Bay features a Quick Assemble technology that claims to make assembly up to 1.5 times faster than competing systems. I hate assembling furniture because sometimes the process could take hours and the pieces might not be properly aligned. The system uses pre-installed plastic posts and corner locks that click together, so it is a much more pleasurable experience putting all the parts together. I could assemble a whole cabinet in approximately 15 minutes with just a screwdriver. This straightforward, tool-minimal process is a significant advantage.
The installation process is traditional as you need to find the high point of the floor, establish a level line, locate wall studs, and then lift, level, and shim each individual base cabinet into place before securing it to the wall and adjacent cabinets. The process is not complicated but still it takes more time than the suspension rail system used by IKEA, which allows cabinets to be hung on a pre-leveled rail and adjusted with simple legs.
I haven’t used the Avondale cabinets long enough to really evaluate their quality. At this time, I’m very happy with the look and build quality of the cabinet. Now I am just waiting for the Quartz countertop to complete this kitchen renovation.
Final Verdict
The Hampton Bay Avondale kitchen cabinets seem to be more expensive than IKEA SEKTION but if you buy them on sale or buy at least 10 cabinets for an extra 10% discount, the price difference is minimal. They might not look as modern or not be easy to install, but you get a structurally superior plywood box for long-term durability. So, the decision between the 2 systems is actually easy. If it is your first DIY project and you plan to replace cabinets every 5-10 years, the IKEA SEKTION is an ideal choice. And if you plan to stay in your house for a long term (like 10-20 years) and just want to do some cosmetic enhancements like painting or refacing on the cabinets later, the Avondale is the choice.
