Maple Vs. Oak Cabinets

The cabinets in your kitchen make the greatest statement about the style of the room that is the heart of your home. Both maple and oak are frequently chosen for cabinets and millwork, especially in kitchens. Not only are they aesthetically pleasing, but they are also durable hardwoods.

Comparison

In cabinetry, maple has an elegant hardwood look, with very little grain. Maple is naturally lighter in color than oak. In maple cabinets, faces, frames and drawer fronts may contain no grain at all. Maple milled trim adds a stylish touch to custom cabinets designed and built by a full-service millwright.

Oak provides a traditional look. The heavy grain of oak brings the outside into your kitchen. In oak cabinets, both the door panels and the face frames will contain dark, predominant grain. Oak casework generally coordinates well with red oak flooring. Most cabinet shops provide color matching of cabinet to floor finishes.

Maple and oak have approximately the same moisture content and perform equally in cabinet work.

Staining

If the desired finish is a gray or pickled effect, maple cabinets are the best option. Natural or dark stains also blend well with the tight-grain or grain-free look of maple cabinets. Oak cabinets lend themselves to darker stains. Because the grain in oak cabinets is dark and reflects the red tones in the wood, a hearty, earthy look is easy to obtain.

Painting

Maple is a good choice for a custom color paint finish. Because maple has minimal, if any, detectable grain, it provides a perfect surface for the application of color. Oak cabinets should not be painted. Because of oak's predominant grain, paint applied to oak cabinet face frames, door panels and drawer fronts has a tendency to crack when humidity and moisture in the air is alternated with dry winter heat.

Cost

Real wood cabinets, as opposed to laminate or particle board, dramatically increase the value of your home. Investing in wood cabinetry is a good remodeling or building decision. Maple cabinets are 20 to 25 percent more expensive than oak.

Considerations

Avoid purchasing maple or oak with knots. In maple, the knots may be very small but also very dark. Knots are more undesirable in maple cabinets, as they become visually obtrusive in contrast to a light finish and minimal grain. In quality cabinetry, no matter which wood, the grain matches from piece to piece.

References

• InvitingHome.com
• Direct Kitchen Remodeling
• BobVila.com