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keppie_gw

Cabinet designer screw up??? Crown doesn't cover gap

keppie
13 years ago

We are in the process of a complete kitchen remodel (DIY). We just received our Kraftmaid painted cabinets ordered through Home Depot.

I was nearly finished installing (dry fit plus bracing) the corner cabinet which is a 93" tall microwave/oven cabinet. It was installed (as will all the base cabinets be installed) on top of newly installed Hardie cement board. The 3" gap between the top of the 93" cabinet and the 96" high ceiling looked suspiciously wide for the planned crown molding. We found the box containing the crown, grabbed a piece and held it up against the face of the cabinet next to the ceiling. Our fears were realized as there is a 1 1/2" gap between the top of the crown molding and the ceiling.

During discussions with the HD designer, we stated our requirement that we wanted the upper cabinets plus crown to touch the ceiling - no gap.

The reason this is a big deal is that next to the oven cabinet comes the refrig. There is a 36" wide (21" deep) cabinet that spans from the oven cabinet over the refrig to a Deep Wood Tall End Panel which is 93" tall X 32" deep X 7/8" thick. When finished, the combo of the oven cabinet on the right and the Tall End Panel on the left provides for a "garage" for the refrig such that the front edge of the Tall end panel, the face of the cabinet above the refrig, the face of the refrig, and the face of the oven cabinet are all flush.

We are assessing a variety of solutions. One solution would be to use a horizontal filler at the top of the cabinets (assuming one could be installed that looked proper - paint matches, joint invisible, etc.) that would fill the gap. The problem with this solution is that this section of crown would not match up with the rest of the upper cabinets that can be adjusted upwards by 1 1/2 inch so that the crown would be usable between the top of the cabs and the ceiling. see link.

Another possible solution would be to raise the oven cabinet (above the toe kick base) and the tall end panel by 1 1/2" and use a 1 1/2" wide horizontal filler at the bottom of the cabinet and a 1 1/2" filler at the bottom of the end panel. This would be somewhat easier to implement but still could end up looking tacky if not finished extremely well.

AFAIC, it was an error on the part of the designer. We will be presenting the problem to Home Depot tomorrow for them to offer a solution. (fat chance? - wishful thinking?). The last thing we want is an extended delay waiting for a taller oven cabinet and Tall End Panel.

Has anyone run into this particular problem before? How did you solve it?

Here is a link that might be useful:

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