Cabinets are meant to last for decades. However, there are circumstances that may ruin them long before they are meant to deteriorate. Certain accidents, for example, may greatly damage various parts of the cabinet.
Now, when your cabinet gets broken, you are provided with two choices: to replace the cabinet with a new unit or to repair it. The first choice is definitely easier. Economically speaking, however, fixing a broken cabinet can be a better choice.
There are many ways to fix a broken cabinet, and these basically depend on the actual parts damaged and the level or degree of damage. A slightly damaged cabinet is generally easier to fix than a severely broken one. Damage to the smaller parts of the cabinet is also easier to repair compared to damage on larger parts.
Problems on doors and hinges (inefficient swaying of doors, doors drooping on one side, etc.) are among the easiest to fix. Sometimes, tightening the hinge mounting screws easily solves the problem. If this doesn’t work, you may try replacing the hinge screws with larger and longer ones. If the screw holes or mounting locations are already badly damaged, you may try moving the hinges to a different spot where the wood is stronger.
Broken cabinet drawers are also quite easy to fix, especially if they are simply stuck or jammed. Tapping the drawer slightly is often an effective way to pop the drawer slide back in place. Sometimes, only the runners need to be replaced. If the problem is with the slide, then one must determine whether the problem lies in the screw holding the slide or the slide itself. If one or more screws holding the slide have fallen out, then replacing the screws can solve the problem. But if the slide itself is already broken, you don’t have much choice but to replace the slide with a new one.
A broken cabinet frame or damaged cabinet wood probably requires the most work. If the damage is minor and on a part that is not too exposed, you can just re-assemble the broken pieces and hold them together with wood glue. For more severe damage, one can replace the large piece of wood that is broken with a newly cut piece of the same wood species. An alternative is to use an epoxy wood repair kit to seal the broken area.
So if your kitchen or bathroom cabinet is broken, assess the damage first before replacing the cabinet with a new unit. If the damage is minor, then you can save a lot if you fix it instead of buying a new one.