My husband and I chose KraftMaid for all the cabinets in our new home. The kitchen has painted cabinets, while the bathrooms have a wood stain look. Before we even moved in, we noticed the shoe molding around the island (urban gray) was peeling—not chipping, but peeling in large sections. Within a month of living in the house, the paint continued to peel up the island cabinet.
The company rep kept avoiding inspections for a warranty claim. When he finally came, he blamed the issue on other contractors. He filed a claim, but we were denied, with the company claiming it was moisture damage, which is ridiculous in a brand-new house with minimal use. For $30,000, I expected better quality and customer service!
I apologize if this is bothering you. Our experience with Kraftmaid cherry cabinets was very different. Gorgeous stain that is constant on the molding and cabinetry. Would make use of them once more.
Were the cabinets painted when they were manufactured? or painted by your builder on-site?
During the construction, when were the cabinets installed? Did the air conditioner get installed and work? It ought to have been. Or were the cabinets installed too early, leaving them open to the summer’s heat and humidity?
Not a problem with the factory. It appears that some molding was painted and used at your installer site. It’s not painted by a factory. Not even the sheens match.
@Jason The factory painted and mailed me all of my cabinets and trim. All the little bits of it. The option to purchase “naked” cabinets and have them painted after installation was not even available to me. For this reason, I firmly believe that there was some sort of incident during the “extensive” finishing process they mention. This is not how things should be.
@Keller I did things differently with my build. I was able to go where I wanted and not held to specific places/brands that you typically see with builders. He wouldn’t be able to do anything differently than what I am doing with the supply group I bought KM from. The builder would be contacting the same ppl I am currently speaking with as the supply grp works with the brands and their reps. Currently I am working with the president of the supply company as the KM representative for my area is of ZERO help and not willing to do anything. I have his email and phone number and he is still ignorant with communication. Simply washes his hands of situations like this as seen by other comments through the Better Business Bureau.
@Kristen Every Kraftmaid level will have the same level of paint quality.
This is one of the reasons that when painting, I prefer to use recessed toekick at the ends and all the way around the island. If there is wear or tear on the painted finish of the toekick, it is easier to repair. Additionally, the shadows in the recess cover it more.
I’ve never seen KM come off in such large sheets. Makes me question if the priming was applied incorrectly. I’ve seen it happen once in all my years with Medallion. Or, as someone else mentioned, did the installer or contractor use a homemade painted foundation shoe? Due to the high cost of the moldings from cabinet companies, many contractors would undertake this.
It appears very clear that something is getting wet, as the wood swelled and the paint flaked off. Builder withholding information? Ideally, you purchased the cabinets from the contractor, in which case he bears responsibility.
Is it conceivable that the moisture seeped into the base of the single cabinet from the quarter-round molding itself? Is the quarterfinals the main focus?