Ask Don: Green Cabinets
While the term "green products" has been widely used, specifics about what makes something green are less well understood. With cabinetry, there are four main aspects:
- Wood that is sustainably harvested as certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)
- Plywood (used for the box construction and shelving) made without added formaldehyde
- Finish with virtually no polluting volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
- Local manufacturing to minimize emissions generated from transportation
Boston Building Resources is the only retailer in the city carrying a line of "green" cabinets called Breathe Easy. These high-quality cabinets are made with virtually no VOCs and have the option of sustainably harvested hardwoods.
The plywood used is a formaldehyde-free product with a finish cured by ultraviolet light. The protective finish is water-based (though not all stains are available as water-based), and the cabinets are made in eastern New York. Customers can opt for hardwoods certified by the FSC.
Not only do Breathe Easy cabinets have all these green aspects, but also have the high quality that the Co-op can stand behind. Thicker plywood is used everywhere. Full-extension soft-close drawers are standard, and eleven door styles are available to choose from in bamboo, cherry, maple, and oak.
Another green option is Young Furniture of New Hampshire, longtime Co-op supplier of unfinished cabinets of eastern white pine and poplar, which has received FSC certification for its poplar. The company offers an option for cabinets made of 100% solid lumber where half-inch solid stock is substituted for the plywood normally used for drawer bottoms and back panels. All the wood used is grown in the Northeast and without pesticides, and low-VOC glues are used. For finishing the cabinets yourself, low-VOC finishes are available from most major paint and stain manufacturers.
Breathe Easy is comparable in price to other brands of semi-custom frameless cabinets, and Young Furniture is a good option for those with tighter budgets and the ability to finish the cabinets themselves. Both companies will make custom size cabinets for very reasonable up-charges.
Other cabinet lines carried by Boston Building Resources have green aspects as well. Apple Valley, and Candlelight are both located in the Northeast. Candlelight will either give each customer a tree to plant in his or her own yard or plant two trees on their behalf in a national forest.
Of course, one of the greenest options you can choose is a used cabinet set from the Reuse Center at Boston Building Resources. You will be saving all of the energy required to manufacture a new set of cabinets.
For questions about green cabinets available from BBR, email one of our kitchen designers, Linda Lesyna or Kim Eifrid.
