unfinished cabinet voids?

Mary

5 years ago

Is it normal to have unfinished voids in upper cabinets and blind corners of uppers?

Featured Answer

sandk

5 years ago

I'm a little suprised your question isn't about the cable exposed under the cabinets.

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Comments (19)

User
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
Perfectly normal. . People do not contort themselves into pretzels to peer under your kitchen cabinets.
PRO
Patricia Colwell Consulting
5 years ago
Take a pic from further back . What do you mean by voids and blind corners/
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Lyndee Lee
5 years ago
Yes, it is common to have such voids behind cabinets. Can you see the spaces without twisting your neck or looking up from the floor? I have a couple spots in my own kitchen that are not a finished edge on the under side of a cabinet. Of course, my plan is to pretty up the underside of the cabinets and install some great lighting in some interesting setup where no wires or raw edges are visible. But then reality intervenes and my lengthy project list is still adding more lines.

From my viewpoint, this is a matter of expectations and price point. If you are a lowest price buyer, that might be one of the shortcuts to meet your price point. A higher end kitchen would not be likely to have the blind corners which are used to get cheaper cabinet prices. If you chose the installer based on expected quality, not his low price, then you have a legitimate issue. Covering the spaces is not difficult and does not require expensive materials but it adds to the labor cost
Mid America Mom
5 years ago
Yes. Even the back of the cabinet against the wall might be a void of some kind if they needed to shim the cabinets due to wavy/off square/ etc walls. I guess if it bugs you enough you might be able to get matching veneer and somehow fill that.
Mary
Original Author
5 years ago
Thanks for all the input. They aren’t visible except from underneath. Follow up question... is it typical to have an exposed 2x4 in the void? Just seems rather unfinished to me...
Mary
Original Author
5 years ago
That too... it’s for the under cabinet lighting... so sounds like the open void is ok- exposed cable and butt end of a 2x4 not ok? Contractor doesn’t have a problem with it
Mary
Original Author
5 years ago
I should also add that this is a high end kitchen and the cabinets were not cheap
artistsharonva
5 years ago
It's common to have cabinets unfinished & some gaps in corners.

If it is bothering, the contractor can add a thin matching skin panel to the underneath of the cabinets.
PRO
Kristin Petro Interiors, Inc.
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
Very common, even for high-end cabinetry. However, if I designed a kitchen where there is low seating nearby, and I knew the underside of the cabinet would be visible, I would order a .25” panel to cover it as part of the initial design. You can get these panels for your kitchen, but it would be an additional expense to you.
Sammy
5 years ago
The void behind the corner cabinet seems kind of weird to me. But if Kristin Pietro says it’s usual and customary, I guess it’s okay.

Are your cabinets the wood finish we see underneath?
PRO
The Kitchen Abode Ltd.
5 years ago
Blind cabinets are purposely designed to be 2" - 3" short in width to provide some play for alignment purposes. As mentioned by others, finished panels can be applied to the underside of the upper cabinets if the void(s) are unacceptable.
cat_ky
5 years ago
That wiring exposed like that doesnt look right to me. I would certainly call an electrician to take care of that problem. I would not leave that up to your contractor to take care of. Get a licensed electrician.
PRO
The Kitchen Abode Ltd.
5 years ago
Wiring looks ok, it's a low voltage feed for the LED tape lighting and it is in a location that is unlikely to expose it to mechanical damage.
caligirl5
5 years ago
My kitchen has a void at the end. Though I never looked there until I saw this post, so only realized it today.

Honestly I'd rather not pay for finish work in places no one will ever see.
PRO
Brickwood Builders, Inc.
5 years ago
My guess would be that the 2x4 is there because there is a filler piece of some kind - so that a cabinet door near a wall would open fully. Corner cabinets (base and upper) are made so that they do not go all the way into the corner - prevents installation issues due to corners that are not perfectly square and plumb. Generally in the design process, if a customer has an issue with these things, it is discussed to have a skin made and applied to the under side of all wall cabinets. It is more expensive (both materials and labor) and it changes what type of undercabinet lighting can be used.
tatts
5 years ago
When I pass out on the kitchen floor after a night out with friends, the gaps in my cabinets really bug me when I come to on Sunday morning. Other than that, nope.
Jeff G
5 years ago
Tatts is the night out with friends, you pass out with friends on your floor or both? This is important to know.
Mid America Mom
5 years ago
Ah! I was trying to figure out your corner... I bet you do not have a cabinet in the corner but two uppers 90" to each other with a large void. We have that in this and a previous home. We put the backsplash a little up into that space.