If the door panels had an interesting grain match (such as a diamond or reverse-diamond match), I might consider leaving the natural wood exposed. However, in this case, I don't feel the random grain pattern is adding any visual interest to the piece. I think it would be far more interesting/fun if it were painted. Maybe add a cornice on top...change the hardware to a pull (instead of a knob). You could even add a layer of moldings within the door panels, or change the upper door panels to glass. Painting it would afford you so many more creative options. Look forward to knowing/seeing what the end result will be!

Another possibility is the wood is Beech. Beech has grain that can be similar to birch and cherry. But beech has characteristic pores in the grain, where birch does not. Figure and color in both can be similar. But I'm confident cabinets are NOT maple.

It really depends on the use of this cabinet. If it's being used for occasional storage, a light sanding, a primer and 2 finish coats will be adequate. However, if the unit will be accessed many times a day, for sure it's best to have it professionally refinished. I suppose it depends on how much time and money you want to invest in this piece.

Ii've discovered gel wood stain. It is very easy to work with and makes anything look fabulous. I highly recommend it.

Ask the previous owner about the cabinets- what brand, wood species and finish, just as if you planned to buy more. They look like birch doors with furniture grade MDF boxes.

I agree with Premier Cabinets of Virginia. Not maple....and probably Birch. It would be a shame to paint over them. The grain and finish are exceptionally beautiful.

I love the cabinets and I wouldn't paint them white, but that is just my preference. Do whatever fits your house and your eye, just be sure to do a good quality job. Don't fall for any shortcuts, they just don't hold up. Dirt and dings show up much more on painted cabinets than on stained finishes so think about future upkeep as well

Maple and Birch are similar colors in their natural state but Birch does have a bit more visible grain to it. Painting would be significantly easier than stripping the clear coat to stain a different color. Shaker has never gone out of style and white painted shaker is 50% of my sales.

Birch for sure....I would not recommend using gel stain. I have tried it for two different items and both chip!

Birch, rotary cut, 1/4" nominal thickness, plywood panels. Hard to tell what the door frames are, could be birch too, but also could be soft maple. Boxes are melamine. As others have mentioned painting over a catalyzed lacquer finish is very tricky and dependent on the product and process being used. Personally, I'm not a fan of any "painted" cabinets that were not manufactured that way. When you order "painted" cabinets from a manufacturer, they are almost always tinted lacquer, not paint.

Birch plywood is often used for kitchen cabinets, my vote is birch.

I believe the doors are ash.

The inside of my cupboards are birch, and it looks exactly like the wood in your photo. It's very smooth, and would be really easy to paint.

That is not wood

Plywood

The grain does not appear to have been
thoughtfully matched for a pleasing pattern, door to door, looks erratic! While I like beautiful wood it is like
piecing a dress or suit, the pattern should be matched. Depending upon the
condition of the cabinets I would recommend a process called NHance.
I have used this process on a full kitchen, a three section floor to
ceiling built-in cabinet/bookcase, a walk-up wet bar, two bathroom vanities and
a dining room table, chairs, server with great success. This is a
proprietary refinishing/painting chemical process. There is no sanding,
no smell and has a hard finish set using UV light (similar to the
ladies no chip nail polish technique). Some of the work is done in the
home and some done in their factory but when they are done the product is dry
no waiting time. The business is run as a distributorship so different owners depending
on where you live. They can be
found on the web NHance.com. I found them through my local Home Depot. Attached
are some before and after pictures. Highly recommend this process as opposed to
having them simply painted even if planning to use a professional painter.

Definitely not Maple.

Forget about staining them. why anyone would even suggest that to a homeowner is ridiculous. Staining raw wood cabinets is hard enough, staining previously varnished birch/plywood cabinets is stupid. People think all you have to do is sand a little bit and wipe on some stain. uh, no. The only type of wood I would even attempt staining is on real, quality oak. (not the cheap, mdf, shiny oak-look). All of the work you would have to do just to get them down to raw wood, would be immense. Painting these cabinets is a ton of work. re-staining them is enough to get yourself committed.

Can you spare the money to reface your boxes? If you want to paint them, prepping them will take longer than actually painting them. you have to strip off that top finish very well, otherwise the paint will not adhere properly. And no, light sanding won't be enough. How much work do you want to put into them? I have painted 3 sets of kitchen cabinets and will never, ever do it again. Unless I had 10 helpers.

Save your money and go for new cabinets or new doors.

I too think it is birch. and if it is a birch plywood then sanding them down far enough to remove all previous stains will probably take you right through the applied birch layer to the under layer. Leave them alone and enjoy the grain or paint them and even if you paint be prepared to do major sanding to clean them up or your paint will not adhere properly.

I would stain them. The wood grain no matter the type is interesting. I do not like painted wood; in fact to me it brings down the value of a home.

Just had a home appraisal after redoing kitchen to white from the old fashioned "golden oak" once so popular. The agent kept admiring the kitchen especially the cabinets. Kept saying that the home value would be higher due to all the upgraded cabinets. The NHance process was less than 1/3 of the cost of a new kitchen. No smell, no sanding and work completed to finish in 4 days!! Hard finish which I can scrub with no marking or scratching!! I also am a cook, so when the spagetti sauce bubbles up and splashes on cabinets, wipes right off no staining, even after a day or two when I missed seeing it on a side cabinet. This is a wonderful process!!! Highly recommend it if you decide to go with a painted or stain finish. They also do stains and depending on the wood original color can take the color brighter or down (darker) depending on what is desired. It is the same process so you end up with a beautiful hard finish. Worth looking into for a free estimate and they will bring samples and also give recommendations. From the way I rave about this NHance product one would think I was the owner, I am not, nor do I own stock or get anything from doing this. I am so very awestruck by the process that I have used it 4 times. The cabinets I had done 8 years ago look as beautiful and new as those I had done last year!! I did a ton of research and looking at websites on decorating before I finally chose to go with bright white. Now they are showing two color kitchens one for uppers and something else for lowers. I really had FOBI -- fear of better idea. It took me a long time to make up my mind, but I could not be happier! With the white you can change color schemes in your room so easy any time by just picking out new colors!! Good Luck!!

I THINK THE WOOD - IS BEECH

Paint or replace them and don't worry about what kind of wood they are.

I think they are birch. If you really don't like them, don't try to refinish them yourself; either get a professional or reface/replace the doors if the boxes are in good shape and you like the kitchen configuration. If you get pulls you can use the hole for the existing knob and drill another hole closer to the bottom of the top door, That would update the look for small money. I like the light wood look - airy and clean.

Pretty sure they're birch. From the comments, it sounds like people aren't so fond of birch. I prefer a straight grain (vs rotary cut), but I really like birch!

If you decide you'd prefer a painted finish, be prepared for LOTS of prep work. Raw birch takes paint beautifully – but you'll be dealing with a factory finish that's designed to take a beating. Odds are, it won't come off easily. I haven't researched the NHance process, but it sounds interesting. If it fits in your budget, definitely let a pro handle the mess!

They are exactly like my kitchen cabinets that we had built by a local cabinet shop 15 years ago. BIRCH. I love the grain but had considered painting them off white when we put in new countertops this year. A wise salesman stopped me. saying natural wood will come back into style and once you paint them, it's done. Personally, I like them.

Looks like the birch plywood my husband has used on some projects.

Thanks for the help, everybody. I like the natural wood because it ties in really well with the rest of the house (if you're curious, there was a Houzz feature done on our house: https://www.houzz.com/magazine/my-houzz-northwest-couple-make-a-rural-homestead-their-own-stsetivw-vs~46567359 )

We redid the floor tile and backsplash in the kitchen and the cabinets go nicely. I think I'll look into the suggestion of new pulls though. Appreciate the input!!

The doors on these cabinets are definitely BIRCH! I agree with the person from Virginia, I think it was. My dad was a woodworker/cabinet maker. He made all the cupboards in the kitchen of my childhood home and the grain and maple, but lighter color wood is BIRCH! I would leave the natural wood as Birch is expensive and beautiful and if you paint it, you will lose the interest!

They're Birch. Birch is often used in lue of Maple. Birch is more common and has more options as to size of styles / rails etc. The door is Birch plywood and the rails are solid. The boxes are melamine with mdf core ( medium density fiberboard ) common for middle grade cabinets... I'd take the advice of Premier Cabinets or if you do paint pay the price and get a highly skilled painter. Just be ready to pay what it will take to do the job right or you'll be sorry later.

AGeneralContractor.com Best of houzz 2014 & 2016.... So. Ca.

Love your house! I think you made a good decision to keep the birch look. You can always change your mind in the future and there are many sites with repainting info.

Hi, I'm no expert but we have maple floors, a birch wardrobe, & beech kitchen cabinets. Here are pics of all three. Hope it helps! (Of the three, I think your swirly grain looks more like birch)

Beech kitchen cabs:

maple floors:

Birch wardrobe:

It looks like Alder

Hello DDavis427,

One small note on the hardware; you could leave the existing hole and put in pulls/handles. Either a 3" or 96mm hole spacing looks like it would work. That would put the bottom/top of the handle right about where you'd want it for looks.

Just a thought...

Thanks,

Jonathan

The wood grain and light color appears to be birch which has been popular for cabinet making for years. May not be I am no expert but I did grow up with birch cabinets in my parents house. They were and still are beautiful simple cabinets.

Hi, I too think this is Birch. I have Birch cabinets in my Kitchen, and they look very alike. We use lots of Birch in Furniture and cabinets in Scandinavia. I would not paint them, Birch is very beautiful .

The cupboards are Maple.