There are some simple tips that are generally obvious, but which are best to start with. After you have determined the dimensions of the future cabinet and figured out how much you are counting on, keep in mind that now on the market the spread in prices for cabinets (of the same size) from different materials can reach 200%.
So the price of your cabinet will determine the quality, durability, and the presence / absence of harm to health by 70%..
Today we publish a letter from our reader Ilya Novikov. He works in the production of wardrobes. We hope his advice will help our readers – ed..
As a professional in this business, I know that labor costs account for about 60% of the total cost of making a wardrobe. The rental price, salary of employees and taxes are approximately the same for all companies. So the only significant reserve for reducing the cost of your cabinet can only be savings on the materials from which it is made..
Choosing a company
When you choose a manufacturer, I advise you to compare the price of identical products (sliding wardrobes of the same systems) produced by different companies. To do this, ask about the presence (absence) of authorization from the system manufacturer – it makes sense to compare only if there is such authorization.
The presence of a central office is also an important factor. If it is not there, then most often there will be no one and nowhere to make a claim. If he is, his location will tell you a lot..
The price that is called to you by phone may not include installation, delivery, going up the stairs, assembly, warranty – check this separately, since these additional services can take up to 20% of the order value.
The price, after you have named your dimensions, can be quoted for the cheapest system sold.
For example, for a cabinet with minimal filling, for a cabinet without mirrored doors, without additional options such as “brush-shligel” and “stopper” – that is, of course, a cabinet can be made for the declared money, but you hardly want such a cabinet.
It’s ridiculous to talk about this, but at the same time, check the calculation rate of the company – very often on the websites of companies, prices are announced in USD. e., and what is meant by “cu” – not always clear.
Choice of materials
Further. Find out how many years the company has been on the market. Find out if the company has its own production.
If there is production, then ask what edge the chipboard parts are edged with. If you are offered a patch or cut-in edge – refuse such an acquisition.
The use of these materials indicates the low level of the company’s production equipment, and most often – about the “garage” version of production. All normal manufacturers have long since switched to machine-tool rather than manual application of edging material. Moreover, it is not the notorious melamine edge that is applied on the machine (analogues are sold in any household market in coils), but the PVC edge is 0.40 mm or 2-3 mm thick. The quality of sliding wardrobes made using PVC edge differs by an order of magnitude both in terms of service life and reliability.
Find out the thickness of the chipboard panels from which the facade of your cabinet will be made.
Chipboard with a thickness of 8-10 mm is not produced in Russia, but is imported. Therefore, many “craftsmen” mill domestic chipboard 16 mm under a groove of 10 mm and insert doors into the facade.
None of the systems on the market will last more than 2 years in this design: the door weight will be more than 1.7 times higher than the standard.
Find out how thick the side walls of the wardrobe are.
If 18 mm, then the chipboard from which your cabinet will be made is unambiguously imported (in Russia, 18 mm chipboard is not made by any plant) and therefore complies with the E 1 standard adopted in Europe (it is very different from the Russian standard E 1: in 1 , 5-2 times less formaldehyde emission).
If the thickness of the slab from which the cabinets are made is only 16 mm, there is a very high probability that instead of the promised imported slab, you will be swallowed with a domestic one with exactly the same color (with imported film).
Also ask how many measuring engineers there are in the firm. If more than 5 – this indicates a serious approach to the organization of work and coordination of the company’s services, and if less – organizational overlaps are possible due to the imbalance of information flows and the combination of positions: for example, a loader – he is a measuring engineer, a production manager – he is fitter.
Cheating scheme
From practice, I know how unscrupulous firms that manufacture wardrobes most often deceive customers.
The most typical scheme is as follows: on the phone you are announced a “fabulous” price for a proprietary system. You come to the office and see a sample.
Everything is true, the system is “native”, and the price is 15-30% lower than that of other firms. Resolved: you place an order, sign a contract. A week later, they bring you and assemble your closet, you, contented and happy, sign the acceptance certificate. Everything seems to be fine. A neighbor comes to you (a friend, a brother, an expert acquaintance) looks and says: but the doors do not go well, they have some strange skew. You start to examine the cabinet critically: yes, and the color of the frames “floats”, and the door really does not move like in the office when you were shown the sample, and in general it does not ride on casters, but hangs on the upper rail.
The situation is simple, like in a game with a thimble-maker: they showed you the original system, and they brought home a cheap fake.
You open the contract, and the words “original” Commander “or” original “Stanley” do not appear anywhere. So you just bought a wardrobe of not very high quality for a higher price than it actually costs. And it is difficult to make a claim here, since evidence of the type “and they showed me something else and said that everything would be the same for me …” is unlikely to affect the court. There is only one defense here: carefully read the agreement before putting your signature. Well, remember the “golden rule” of the buyer: cheap cheese is only in a mousetrap.
I’m intrigued to know more about deceptive practices related to wardrobe sellers. Could you please elaborate on the ways in which these sellers tend to cheat buyers? Are there specific tactics or techniques that we should be cautious of while purchasing wardrobes? Thank you for shedding light on this matter.