Cabinet Construction

Framed vs. Frameless Cabinet Construction

Framed cabinets are the more traditional cabinet construction type, with rails and stiles forming a "frame" at the front of the cabinet box.

Frameless cabinets, sometimes called "full access" cabinets, do not have a face frame at the front of the cabinet box.

Inset Cabinet Construction

Inset cabinets are a type of cabinet construction that fits the doors and drawers inside the face frame openings, giving full view to the frame with only minimal spacing/gaps between components.

Box Cabinet Construction

• Face Frame – The structural portion of the cabinet to which doors are attached, consisting of both rails and stiles.
• End Panel – The side of the cabinet that is grooved into the face frame and extends back to the wall.
• Bottom – The floor of the cabinet. On a wall and tall cabinet, the same component is used as the top.
• Back – The rear vertical surface used to mount the cabinet to the wall. Some brands have hanger rails behind the back.
• Adjustable Shelves – Horizontally placed storage surfaces that are adjusted by moving clips used to hold the shelf in place.
• Toe Kick – The recessed toe space at the bottom of a base cabinet.

Engineered Wood Materials

Some cabinets utilize various wood materials to provide strength, durability and consistent quality. For example:

• Particleboard – Board made from a mixture of real wood shavings and binding material such as resin, refined and bonded together, and then compressed with high heat and pressure.
• Plywood – A panel made from an odd number of wood veneer layers that are bonded together with the grain of each layer running at right angles to the next.
• MDF – Board formed by breaking down hardwood or softwood residuals into wood fibers. Heat and pressure are used to form a homogenous board excellent for machining and painting.
• Thermofoil – Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) foil pressed onto a medium density fiberboard (MDF) core using a heated, flexible membrane. Thermofoil cabinets are available in high-gloss finishes or high-gloss woodgrain.
• PureStyle – PureStyle uses continuous component wrap technology, which eliminates the potential for de-lamination, peeling or cracking as well as damage from UV light, aging, moisture, heat and staining.
• Eco Veneers – Eco cabinet veneers are thinly sliced sheets of solid wood that are applied to a furniture core panel, providing the warmth and beauty of real wood with more consistent grain and color characteristics.