Maple Cabinet Color Problems

[fraction]

We have maple cabinets installed in our kitchen when we bought the new home last year. After a while when I tried to clean them and on some of the cabinets the color came off and wood underneath was revealed. First we thought we might have rubbed it too hard but then it happened to almost all the cabinets just by using a soft cloth without any soap or water. It’s a warranty issue which builder refuses to fix because they say it is a manufacturing fault and needs to be fixed by manufacturer. But manufacturer says that it is by homeowner mistake and they are not going to fix it. Anyways I am still trying to get it fixed by the builder. the builder wants me to pay the new home warranty to get them inspected again to figure out if the problem is with the cabinets or we did something wrong with them. Which I am not willing to pay because I feel it is not fair when builder recognized this as an warranty issue now they should fix it and deal with all the related issues.
Question: is it normal with the maple cabinets? or the cabinets i got are really low quality?
Could it be the manufacturing fault or cleaning can cause this type of damage? We don’t clean them too often and after we had this problem we are just very careful.
I am not a trades person so don’t know much about these cabinets.
Anyone has any experience with such issues please share.

[Irae]

It sounds to me like the cabinets were not prepped property before painting...

Is this within the home builder's warranty period? If it is, they should be the ones taking care of it for you.

Who is the builder?

[project240]

What type of finish is it? Stain? Paint?

[UndrgroundRider]

Originally posted by fraction
We have maple cabinets installed in our kitchen when we bought the new home last year. After a while when I tried to clean them and on some of the cabinets the color came off and wood underneath was revealed. First we thought we might have rubbed it too hard but then it happened to almost all the cabinets just by using a soft cloth without any soap or water. It’s a warranty issue which builder refuses to fix because they say it is a manufacturing fault and needs to be fixed by manufacturer. But manufacturer says that it is by homeowner mistake and they are not going to fix it. Anyways I am still trying to get it fixed by the builder. the builder wants me to pay the new home warranty to get them inspected again to figure out if the problem is with the cabinets or we did something wrong with them. Which I am not willing to pay because I feel it is not fair when builder recognized this as an warranty issue now they should fix it and deal with all the related issues.
Question: is it normal with the maple cabinets? or the cabinets i got are really low quality?
Could it be the manufacturing fault or cleaning can cause this type of damage? We don’t clean them too often and after we had this problem we are just very careful.
I am not a trades person so don’t know much about these cabinets.
Anyone has any experience with such issues please share.

A few comments.

First, the stain should never "rub off." This is 100% a manufacturing defect, and don't let anyone convince you otherwise.

Whether you bought cheap or expensive cabinets is totally irrelevant. You paid for cabinets of a certain colour, and the builder warrants the whole house from defect for 1 year. It's their responsibility to fix it, and you should not have to contact their suppliers to try and get them to honour the builder's warranty. That's the builder's job.

Call your builder, be nice but firm, and request they deal with the cabinet manufacturer, since you have been getting nowhere. If they don't, threaten to go through alberta new home warranty. Claims against a builder are tracked, and factored into the ratings and awards they receive each year.

The important thing to understand here is that your warranty is through the builder. You have no direct relationship with the manufacturer. Builders always try to put the home owner and the supplier in direct contact, because it usually resolves issues faster and easier than acting as a middleman. But should that fail, it's the builder's responsibility to deal with the supplier.

[Masked Bandit]

Let me guess, is the issue with the "stain" coming off mostly in the corners & edges, not right in the middle? Who was your builder?

[fraction]

I dont want to mention the name of the builder not because it will damage their image or something but for legal reasons. we may get into a legal battle if they dont resolve this issue. just to let you know they have a relatively better repute in Calgary.

[Masked Bandit]

Originally posted by fraction
I dont want to mention the name of the builder not because it will damage their image or something but for legal reasons. we may get into a legal battle if they dont resolve this issue. just to let you know they have a relatively better repute in Calgary.

FWIW, it's probably an issue with the guys that supplied the cabinets (duh) and your builder doesn't want to get into it with them.

If the issues are in the corners and such as I described I'm pretty sure you got the same thing we did. We built new with Cardel in 2008 and on several of our cabinet doors the stain was completely missing in the corners. I brought this to Cardel's attention so they sent out their cabinet guy to look at it. He acknowledged there was a problem and would get back to us. Keep in mind this was about a week before possession. I come back to the house the next day and everything is fixed? Well how the hell did they do that? After possession I asked our warranty tech about it and he says "Oh, they would have just used one of these" and pulls out what looks like a brown jiffy marker. Sure enough upon close inspection the cabinet guy had basically coloured in the areas that were missing stain...WITH A PHUCKIN' BROWN MARKER! So now if we wash the cabinet doors we have to be careful of the corners!



Edit: As for a builder with a good reputation...that's just a company that the public at large hasn't had any exposure to yet. They're all crap.

[darkkent]

this builder is obviously not going to just shell out money to have your cabinets fixed unless you can prove its the builders fault and they are not going to just take your word for it. if there's a dispute between you and the builder and you are sure they are at fault then just go through the new home warranty program. thats one of the reasons they are there. i believe the fee they charge is $100 now but at least they'll send an unbiased person to inspect the cabinets and you can go forward from there. hopefully thats all you'll have to spend ....

[fraction]

Originally posted by Masked Bandit


FWIW, it's probably an issue with the guys that supplied the cabinets (duh) and your builder doesn't want to get into it with them.

If the issues are in the corners and such as I described I'm pretty sure you got the same thing we did. We built new with Cardel in 2008 and on several of our cabinet doors the stain was completely missing in the corners. I brought this to Cardel's attention so they sent out their cabinet guy to look at it. He acknowledged there was a problem and would get back to us. Keep in mind this was about a week before possession. I come back to the house the next day and everything is fixed? Well how the hell did they do that? After possession I asked our warranty tech about it and he says "Oh, they would have just used one of these" and pulls out what looks like a brown jiffy marker. Sure enough upon close inspection the cabinet guy had basically coloured in the areas that were missing stain...WITH A PHUCKIN' BROWN MARKER! So now if we wash the cabinet doors we have to be careful of the corners!



Edit: As for a builder with a good reputation...that's just a company that the public at large hasn't had any exposure to yet. They're all crap.

something similar happened to us as well. but not before we took posession. it actually happened about few months after. on the day of warrenty inspection builder was trying to use the same brown marker to get them fixed. but then for some unknown reason they stopped and told me that it cannot be fixed with marker and needs to be replaced or refinished. they told me that they will contact the manufacturer and it will be get fixed. since one after year warrenty inspection nothing happened. rather everytime i contact builder they tell me a story and now they are trying get ANHW involved and get it inspected again. but they want me to pay the fee for the ANHW inspection which i refused to pay because once builder had acknowledged it as a warranty issue why i have to pay to get it inspected again. now builder told me that if i will not pay the fee for the inspection these cabinets will never get fixed and it will be my mistake and they will close the warrenty. That is why I may file a lawsuit against them. it may need a lot of work and energy to do that but at some point someone has to stop builders for bullying homeowners. I just think it is unfair and I have to fight for it.

[UndrgroundRider]

Originally posted by fraction


something similar happened to us as well. but not before we took posession. it actually happened about few months after. on the day of warrenty inspection builder was trying to use the same brown marker to get them fixed. but then for some unknown reason they stopped and told me that it cannot be fixed with marker and needs to be replaced or refinished. they told me that they will contact the manufacturer and it will be get fixed. since one after year warrenty inspection nothing happened. rather everytime i contact builder they tell me a story and now they are trying get ANHW involved and get it inspected again. but they want me to pay the fee for the ANHW inspection which i refused to pay because once builder had acknowledged it as a warranty issue why i have to pay to get it inspected again. now builder told me that if i will not pay the fee for the inspection these cabinets will never get fixed and it will be my mistake and they will close the warrenty. That is why I may file a lawsuit against them. it may need a lot of work and energy to do that but at some point someone has to stop builders for bullying homeowners. I just think it is unfair and I have to fight for it.

I'm beginning to see why you're having trouble getting this resolved. Jumping into a legal battle is the worst idea you could possibly have, and most likely you can't do it anyway. Most builders require you to sign a binding arbitration clause that excludes warranty issues from the courts.

Besides, lawyers and legal fees are expensive. Why would you want to spend more than the cabinets are worth to make your life difficult? The builder won't care, it's just another drop in the bucket for them and they have a big legal staff who deals with this shit all the time.

It's pretty simple. If the builder won't get it fixed, file the claim through new home warranty. If you're not willing to do that, just get them refinished yourself.

[KLCC]

^ He's right, going through court will gain you nothing but headache. You got to realized that unless you build everything with your own hand, not everything is going to fall within your expectation (I learned this the hard way with my builder....).

[masoncgy]

I worked for a major production builder here in Calgary and the only issues that ever came up with the cabinet stain was 'light' and 'dark' spots, as maple takes stain in various fashions... so on the edges or in places were there was thicker grains/etc, the stain would come out darker... that sort of stuff can't be avoided.

Stain rubbing off though... that immediately signals poor prep. Obviously, the cabinets were not wiped down to remove any dust & debris, and the stain has just come off in those areas not properly prepped/cleaned. That is sheer incompetence.

Yeah, the manufacturer is at fault, but your builder is supposed to cover their mistakes with their warranty and correct it. Let the builder & the cabinet company sort out the details...

...wow... what a bunch of BS. I would keep pursuing this with the management at your builder until it's rectified. You did not purchase a house covered by a builder's warranty to have your cabinets fall apart and have no coverage... that's just outrageous treatment on their behalf!

Terrible!