[Greenbuilding] Cabinetry

[Alan Abrams]

<Hi,
  I'd really appreciate any ideas folks have on cabinetry choices for the
kitchen and the bathroom..all I can think of is particleboard and I'm not
very excited about this.  FSC wood is out of the question because of costs.
If not, IKEA is my final resort.>


We wrestle this on almost every project.  one "solution" we came up with was
to do the following:

1. Admit defeat; there is NO competitive, stock cabinet manufacturer out
there yet.  (I'd be delighted to be proven wrong...)

2. minimize the number of cabinets needed.  In this case (my own kitchen) I
used only base cabinets, and used open shelving (using lots of reclaimed
lumber) and horizontal rods and hooks (cheap, from Ikea) for pots and pans.

3. use cabinets with plywood carcases instead of particle board (sigh, there

goes the money use saved on open shelves)

4. get cabinets from a local manufacturer, to reduce energy embodied in
transport.  

Alan Abrams