To have molding or not to have molding ... 36'' vs 42'' uppers?

16 years ago

I know there used to be a thread about this topic, but now I can't seem to find it ...

We have 8ft ceilings and are trying to decide between these options;

- 36'' uppers with 6'' molding to the ceiling and 18'' gap to the countertop

- 42'' uppers with no molding and 18'' gap to countertop

- 42'' uppers with 2'' molding and 16'' gap to countertop

Which would look best??

Our cabinets will be full-overlay dark brown cherry in Shaker style. We will probably go with Kraftmaid and will not have the option of 39'' cabinets. Our kitchen is quite small (not quite 11' by 9'), but does not feel closed-in. The wall that the sink is on will not have any uppers at all.

FWIW we currently have 16'' gap between countertop and cabinets and functionally this works fine for us. We currently have 42'' uppers, but do not really use the top shelf. So in practical terms, added storage space vs countertop space is not an issue for us. My main concern is what will look best.

We plan to have a mostly light colored granite countertop with lots of movement (if I can ever find a granite I like in my part of the country LOL), and probably a fairly plain tile backsplash. We will have a range with an OTR microwave.

Which option do you think would look best? If you have one of these options, I would love to see pictures. Please include information on how tall your molding and/or gap is if possible, and whether you like it ...

TIA!

Comments (10)

paul_ma
16 years ago
Realistically you can't have "no molding" and have your cabinets go all the way to the ceiling. The ceiling will not be perfectly level, so there will be gaps someplace. If you have a *big* gap (several inches) then the variation won't show. Or you can have molding to the ceiling.

So I think you are really talking about having a small molding or a large molding. With 42" cabs, to leave some room for molding will reduce your cabinet-counter spacing.
pcjs
16 years ago
We love our Kraftmaid - Cherry Ginger Glaze with Gold and Silver Granite. We choose 36 inch cabinets with molding and extra space - I forget how much, but it's nice with the mixer, toaster and other stuff.

Our never to be finished kitchen:
Related Discussions
42' counter depth vs 36' standard french door fridge
Q
Comments (19)
I have what KristianCO has, but without the wine slots in between. At least at the time, that required ordering a panel that goes between them -- an insulation panel, I think? She mentioned the ice -- another reason I liked the Thermador over the SZ. The SZ had the ice down at the bottom, nearly on the floor. That just doesn't work for all the ice we can use here in Texas. Fori, it's not having a second fridge to make up for the failures of the first one. People who spend $3 million on a house as well as the guest who walk into one expect a certain lifestyle to go with it. Even if they don't cook, they probably entertain. If they don't entertain, they want to look like they do -- or at least they could. In my area, people look for a space for a second fridge in homes by the time they hit $250-350K. By $1 mil, they expect a second fridge regardless of how big the one in the main kitchen is. Beverage fridge somewhere in the house or in an outdoor kitchen is probably also desired if not expected. I've seen homes below $1 mil (at the time) that had built-in fridge, second fridge space in the utility, a wine fridge and a small beverage fridge in the master suite. Those homes are probably between $1 mil and $2 mil now, but they give a clue what folks look for when they reach a certain price point. Yes, you can design for change and tear out a pantry, assuming you also left the upper clearance, and maybe it won't make a mess of flooring and cabinets, but in a $3 mil home, I don't think you are going to save a lot of money in the long run. First, you have to plan the layout to include a tall pantry and cabinet above the fridge that would be lost or have a 12" or greater opening and dress that off. That would all be lost when changing the fridge and you could have the cost of cutting down the above fridge cabinet and doors or a new cabinet. All the crown on that wall will probably need to be removed to change the upper cabinet. Your toe kicks will have to be removed and adjusted. Not a big deal, but another detail. And if any of these trim pieces split when being removed, you have to match trim and finish. This won't break the bank for anyone living in a $3 mill plus home, but it is enough that you can see the savings may be negligible or non-existent. Not to mention that after suffering through an entire build out, the last thing you will want to do is any reno any time in the reasonably foreseeable future. Most folks are exhausted well before the build is done. Ok to do it - but be honest with yourself about the cost, especially if you are not a DIYer.
...See More
Change 42" for 36" uppers?
Q
Comments (12)
As for KD...the very first one I worked with ended up leaving the company, and the second one that came in mid stream seemed (my assumption I know) to feel like he was just trying to make the first one's design work, rather than getting creative and doing it his way. In fact my fridge wall upper arrangement came from Sena (01?) here on GW! (thankyou!!!) those two middle upper doors on the fridge wall will be glass. It seems they ordered both solid and glass doors for each door I wanted glass. I just re looked at my renderings, and the lowest piece of crown doesnt show in any of the drawings...only the top 5 inches or so. The clearance issue came up (again) when I saw how low they had the vent hood, they had it at 25" from counter, which made it clear my cabinets were also too low. So they moved everything up, which worked as long as that lower piece of crown wasnt there. I wasnt looking at ceiling crown, I was looking at counter clearance and never noticed they were missing a part of the wall crown.
...See More
Upper cabinets to 8'5" ceiling with crown molding 3" or less?
Q
Comments (2)
I don't know how tall my crown is, but it isn't huge. It looks a little different, because of the vaulted ceiling, but where the window wall meets the ceiling it's 8'. I would rather have a single door than stacked cabinets, to allow more flexibility in shelf placement. I ordered extra shelves for most of my uppers.
...See More
36", 42" or 48" Range hood for 36" range with no uppers
Q
Comments (6)
I won't have uppers, either, and was going for a 42" over my 30" cooktop. I wanted adequate capture if I changed out to a 36" cooktop at some point in the future and for high heat cooking. I ended up with 48" because of a really good deal. The larger capture area will be great to have. With shelves, I'd go for the larger hood to reduce the amount of film that's going to build up on them being so close to the range. I imagine that they'll still need wiped down pretty often.
...See More
berryberry
16 years ago
moding will provide a much more finished look IMO
mavmomma
16 years ago
Does the 18" account for the lite rail (if you are installing one)? If not you could move the cabinets up 1" to account for lite rail.

If you have a Kitchenaid pro style mixer (lift arms), it will not fit in a 16" gap toe counter -- just FYI.

Like others said - no ceiling is flat, so you will need some type of moulding up there.
svwillow1
16 years ago
We also have a small 11' x 11' kitchen and an 8' ceiling. Our Schuler cabinets are not Shaker style, but are cherry with a medium brown finish. Granite has movement, but not a tile backsplash.

We used a 36" upper with a 3 1/2" built up crown and a 2" light rail on the bottom. There is an 1/8" gap at the top that is not really visible. The overal measurement for the uppers was 41 1/2", leaving 18" clearance between the light rail and the countertop.

Here is a link that might be useful: 8' Ceiling, crown and light rail
aussies
Original Author
16 years ago
Thank you all for your responses. We're really struggling with this decision, so all advice is really appreciated!

pcjs - Thanks for posting your pic. I remember seeing your kitchen in a previous post. You're the one with the cool idea for attaching filler above the fridge with a hinge and filler under the dishwasher with velcro! Always relieved to hear from someone that loves their Kraftmaid btw :)

svwillow1 - Thanks for posting your pic and dimensions too. That was really helpful. We have been considering whether or not to have a light rail. I hadn't thought about the clearance of 18'' being to the light rail. I had been assuming that it would be 18 to the cabinet, then say 16-17'' gap if you include a light rail.

It seems like several of you either have, or are suggesting, moving the 36'' cabinets up an inch or 2 higher. This seems like a good idea. That way I could have a little less molding at the top - maybe 4-5 inches and 1-2 inches of light rail at the bottom.

Question -- The cabinets in my existing kitchen are only 16'' from the countertop with no light rail, so if I assume the new cabinets would be 36'' with say 2'' light rail, then the actual cabinet would be 20'' above the countertop - i.e. 4'' higher up than now. Do any of you with this amount of clearance consider the cabinets too high up??? I'm kind of average height, so I think it should be ok ... but I'm just wondering if this is a difficult adjustment, especially for shorter people?

Also, is it ok to use filler as a light rail, or is it better to get actual light rail?

Anyone with the opposing viewpoint? i.e. that it would be better to get 42'' cabinets and have a smaller clearance and perhaps no light rail?

Thanks again. Please keep the opinions and pics coming! :o)
pcjs
16 years ago
We used stack molding as our light rail. We were going to use for our upper molding but we DIY cheated and got my mom's cabinet guy to come in for a few days to help us hang the cabinets (what he taught us was worth his weight in gold) - he changed the molding around and we had it and he wanted to use filler instead up top (which made sense). I didn't realize that picture doesn't have the stack molding - I can take a picture for you at some point.

I prefer the 36" as it looks less closed in for 8 foot ceilings (I'd do 42" for 9 foot ceilings) and I like molding as it looks more finished. It took me a few weeks to adjust - at first it was annoying, but now I don't notice it and like it because I can have my 17 inch flat panel with no problem and my mixer with no worries. If I had to do it again, I'd keep the extra space. My mom finds the extra space weird as she isn't used to it, but it becomes normal.

I love my husband's filler for the dishwasher!! I was very impressed with what he did. :) Now if I could only pick a paint color and us finish all the little things (we've moved on to other projects).
brutuses
16 years ago
Here are some photo's of a neighbor's kitchen my DH just remodeled for her. She has 30" cabinets with 8 ft. ceiling and 18" to counter. Hope this helps with your visualization.
raehelen
16 years ago
I'd go 36" with molding. 18" even with a light rail is lots. I'm 5'5" and I really can't reach anything above the second shelf without a stool, and for my dishes cupboard where I have three shelves closer together, I have to stand on tippy-toes to get to that third shelf. So, putting them even an inch higher would make them out of reach.
paul_ma
16 years ago
I used plain 3/4" x 1 1/2" filler as light rail. It is good in my kitchen because I have a very simple style. I don't suppose it would be right for all.

To have molding or not to have molding ... 36'' vs 42'' uppers?

Comments (10)

paul_ma

pcjs

Related Discussions

berryberry

mavmomma

svwillow1

aussies
Original Author

pcjs

brutuses

raehelen

paul_ma

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

To have molding or not to have molding ... 36'' vs 42'' uppers?

Comments (10)

Related Discussions

aussiesOriginal Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

aussies
Original Author