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ecaruso_gw

kitchen cabinets for 9 foot ceilings

ecaruso
12 years ago

Hi I am a new member but have been viewing and receiving great advice from this forum for months. I really need your help! I am in the process of purchasing cabinets for a kitchen with 9 foot ceiling. I really want the cabinets to go to the ceiling. The plan was 48in cabinets and 6 in. of molding. The cabinet company will not give a warranty for 48 in door panels, therefore I decided there must be a good reason and that is not the route we are going to go. Plan B is the company will make a 48 in cabinet but with a 42in door. The upper part of the cabinet will be lost space, I understand that, but again, I think it will be the look I want. Any thought? Anyone ever see this done? I am being pressured to get the cabnets ordered , but am afraid to rush into this new idea. Any advice will be really appreciated.

Comments (9)

  • terrybull
    12 years ago

    doesnt sound like a very confident company that cant warranty a 48 inch door. what kind of doors and where do you live? are there any other cabinet builders in your area?

  • ecaruso
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Sorry, I should have specified that it is a single panel 48in door. I have read about warping issues. I believe that is a concern of many with a 48in single panel door. It is available, with a warranty, with a double panel. I don't want that look. I am comfortable with the cabinets and the quality. I am in doubt about the design and how it will look.

  • doug_gb
    12 years ago

    I would build a soffit.

    A 1/2" - 5/8" thick, real wood, door will 'move' with humidity. There is nothing to stabalize the door, except 2 hinges.

    If the cabinets must go to the ceiling, how about a second set of cabinets (say about 14" to 16"), that rests on top of the lower cabinets?

    I think anything above where you can reach, is really lost space. A space where you put things you are not going to use. Don't forget you will have to get a ladder to reach in the upper part of the cabinet.

    IMO It's a lot more money for space that is seldom used.

  • chisue
    12 years ago

    To-the-ceiling or soffit. Wish I had done so. You have no idea how dirty the tops of kitchen cabinets get!

  • sombreuil_mongrel
    12 years ago

    Hi,
    If you have a custom cabinetmaker, (allowing for 6" of crown/cornice) have him make you 48" tall boxes, but use two doors on each box. There should be a fixed horizontal shelf divider between the doors to make a division between upper and way-upper cabinets. One door 36", the other 12", or one door 33", the other 15". The idea is to get away from stacking a small box on top of a bigger one; it is much more expensive because of the extra material needed, and more labor to install, and you end up with less space than if a single, tall box. The smaller doors will also reduce the problems from warping of a taller door.
    Might I suggest glass doors above in some cases, with backlighting?
    Casey

  • woodbutcher_ca
    12 years ago

    Hi, Just an idea. Don't run the cabinets to the ceiling but rather bring the ceiling to the cabinets. This is hard to explain but you won't drop the whole ceiling. Say you run a 2x6 on the ceiling about a foot from the cabinet so you now you have dropped the ceiling about 6 inches.Sheetrock the face of the 2x6 and the bottom of the 2x6 to the cabinet.Maybe a trip to model homes or a upscale store will give you some ideas.
    Good Luck Woodbutcher

  • la_koala
    12 years ago

    In my initial kitchen dreams, I had stacked cabinets for my 9 foot ceiling. Then, after talking with one of the designers at Crownpoint, they advised Casey's idea (one cabinet box, two doors to make it look like stacked, with glass in the top door). They advised that to save on the cost of the materials--because if you have real stacked cabinets, you've got two full "boxes", and a double width at the bottom of the upper cabinet (its bottom panel and the top panel of the one it is above).

    Then, I ended up not going with Crownpoint, and with a local KD. My KD recommended not doing the cabinets to the ceiling because of doug_gb's point about not really using them without a ladder, and because she didn't think 12" above was a usable height for storage. I dislike soffits, so the final design ended up to have 39 inch upper cabinets, an open space above, with rope lights to cast a glow on the ceiling. My husband loved that idea, so it was easy for me to say sure, and not have to argue with the KD about the tall cabinets. (My DH has been so good about giving in on other things I wanted, that I'm trying to pick my battles. :-)

    My cabinets aren't in yet, so I can't see if I'm going to miss my original dream of the stacked cabinet look. I still love it in pictures though. My advice is if you love the look, go with Casey's idea. If you don't, consider putting rope lights above for the glow.

  • la_koala
    12 years ago

    There's a thread on the Kitchens forum about this very topic of cabinets to the ceiling:
    http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg1018044712528.html?12