Furniture Medic by MasterCare Experts Restores Wet Kitchen Cabinets

The kitchen is often central to a home as this is where families gather for meals and homeowners entertain guests.  A kitchen also has a major effect on the value of a home as kitchen remodeling is the number one project that increases home value.  While homeowners tend to keep their kitchens neat and clean, there is one element that can cause damage in a kitchen seemingly out of nowhere: water. 

Water leaks and overflows can cause considerable damage to the porous building materials in a kitchen, including the wood cabinets.  Wood easily absorbs water which can cause it to warp and buckle and eventually it can begin to rot.  Mold is another potential issue when dealing with water damage as it can cause additional damage to the affected areas and put your health in danger.  It is very important to address water damage anywhere in your home, including your kitchen, right away because it can cause permanent damage to cabinets, flooring, and other materials.

At Furniture Medic by MasterCare Experts, we recently had a customer reach out to us after her kitchen cabinets experienced major water damage.  She initially called a contractor to deal with the water damage and they needed to get to the wood floor below the cabinets to remove the floor and restore the damage.  Our professionals were called to remove the water damaged cabinets, but we had to make the removal while keeping the countertops in place.  The customer recently had new granite countertops installed and did not want them damaged or replaced.  We were able to successfully remove the water damaged cabinets and support the countertop and sink.  The cabinets were the taken to our facility where we were able to restore them to their original appearance.

Water damaged kitchen cabinets before restoration

Kitchen Cabinet Repair and Restoration

When the contractor called Furniture Medic by MasterCare Experts, we arrived within 24 hours to find that the kitchen cabinets had severe water damage.  They needed to be removed but the customer had several concerns.  First, she did not want to leave her home and she also did not want her new countertops to sustain damage or be replaced.  We needed to not only remove the wet cabinets, but also support the countertops and under-mount sink.  We were successfully able to remove the water damaged cabinets and support the countertop and sink as you can see in the “during” photos.  The granite was not cracked, and the customer was able to continue using her kitchen while the cabinets were restored.

The water damaged cabinets were taken back to the Furniture Medic cabinet shop where the drawers, doors, and hardware were removed from the water damaged boxes.  The water damaged cabinets were part of a larger set and it was important to the customer to have them restored to match the existing upper cabinets.  We fabricated new exact match cabinet boxes and stained them to match the original damaged boxes.  The new cabinet boxes were then attached to the original frames along with the original doors, drawers, and hardware. 

Once the contractor finished the restoration and the kitchen cabinets were ready to be returned, they contacted Furniture Medic by MasterCare Experts and the installation date was set.  The cabinets were delivered and installed by our cabinet install team.  As the cabinets were being installed, the temporary supports were removed.  The restored cabinet boxes were put in place and gently “snuggled” up to the bottom of the counter with new permanent “cabinet lifts.”  Once the cabinets were installed, new custom finished base boards and shoe molding were attached.

As you can see in the “after” pictures, the cabinets fit perfectly underneath the countertops and they were restored to match the upper cabinets.  We are happy that through our cabinet repair and restoration services we were able to repair and restore the original appearance of the damaged cabinets.

Water damaged kitchen cabinets after restoration

Disaster Furniture Repair, Refinishing, and Restoration

Disasters in your home, including fire, smoke, water and flooding, mold, and even vandalism, can cause serious damage to your furniture.  Our furniture restoration experts at Furniture Medic by MasterCare Experts can successfully repair, restore, and refinish all types of wooden furniture that has been damaged by a disaster.

In this case, we were tasked with kitchen cabinet repair following severe water damage to the cabinet boxes.  Our general disaster furniture restoration services consist of the following steps when it comes to water damaged wood furniture:

• Removal of the “white cloud” effect that is caused by moisture under the finish of wood surfaces.
• Stripping and refinishing if excess moisture causes the finish to separate from the wood.
• Repair of cracking, splitting, and delamination caused by moisture.
• Swelled or expanded materials are veneered.
• Water lines are stained to match the existing color and finish of the furniture.

In this case, the cabinet boxes were too severely damaged to be restored and new boxes needed to be fabricated.  Once the new cabinet boxes were built, we were able to match the finish to the original boxes thanks to our color matching services.  Fortunately, the doors, drawers, and hardware were not significantly damaged and were able to be installed into the new cabinet frames.  The damaged cabinets were installed seamlessly back into the kitchen without causing damage to the countertop or surrounding areas.

At Furniture Medic by MasterCare Experts, we can handle just about any wood furniture repair and refinishing project, including cabinet repair and refacing for damaged kitchen cabinets.  If the wood furniture in your home is damaged by water, fire, smoke, or another disaster, make sure you call our experts immediately at (630) 653-3131 or send us your project through our Submit Your Project feature.