Expert: Jamie Yocono - 7/27/2006

Question
I am wondering if it is normal for "new" cabinets to have staples/
screws/nails coming out of them and dime size crackes caused
because or them?

I am scheduled to close on a new home tomorrow and I noticed
that SOME/MOST of my "new" cabinets have staples/nails/large
screws that come out on the inside? Of course it is not visible
unless you open the cabintes and look. However, the ones in my
old and half the price house did not have staples and nails
coming out on the inside.  When I brought it to the attention of
the home builder he told me that is how they are? In order to put
them together the staples and nails have to come out
somewhere?! Yikes! If that is the case, why aren't they ALL like
that and why are my older, cheaper ones not like that too? I am
just afaid that if they are damaged and that is not normal what
they will look like 3 years down the line?  I loof forward to any
comments or feedback you can offer! Thank you very much for
reviewing my question. ;-)

Answer
Diana,

What a crock! I nearly fell off my stool when I read your question.

No, it's not normal for there to be anything like you described, on the inside of your cabinets. Not in old cabinets, and certainly not in new ones. Period.

What that is coming from in a combination of things- staples popping through from when the cabinet was assembled, and screws coming out on the inside from shoddy installation. Your cabinets are basically boxes. When they're assembled,  they often get nailed and/or stapled, and glued. If there is a nail or staple popping out, then the person who built it either used fasteners that were too long, or he had the pressure turned up on his air compressor too high. At a high pressure, you can darn near shoot a nail or staple all the way through the wood. So it's one of those two things.

As far as the screws go- when someone is installing your cabinet "boxes", they generally screw them into each other and hang them up as a group. So if you look at your cupboard layout, you may have a group of 2 or 3 boxes, and then a break where a window might be, and then another group of several boxes. If there are screws coming through on the inside- then I'm sorry to say whoever put them together is a moron and used screws that were too long. Or they simply drove them too deep into the wood.

What to do?

Well, first- I'd let that builder know you're wise to what he was telling you, and you want the screws taken out. The can take out the long screws and put the correct length in there. It's not going to be perfect, but it will work. They might have to put the screws in different holes, as the original holes might be too big from having the screws driven so deeply. Next- to repair the unsightly screw holes, there are these little plastic dots that can be used o cover up the holes. They come in a variety of colors and woods, and really can dress up a messy hole in your cabinet. Fast-cap makes them, and you can buy a sheet of them (50 dots) for about $3.00 or so.  Here is a link to see what I mean:

http://www.fastcap.com/fastcaps.asp

It's not a 100% solution to your problem, but at least it gets rid of the unsightliness.  Those darn builders!

Stick to your guns and demand the cabinets be fixed. I'm sure you have a valid complaint, and they sound like they're trying to BS you.  I hope this helps. Please feel free to write back if you have any further questions after reading this.

Jamie Yocono
Wood It Is! Custom Cabinetry
Las Vegas, NV
www.wooditis.com