When organizing your kitchen renovation, selecting the cabinetry material is an essential early step. Reaching a decision at the quoting stage is crucial, as the chosen material is one of the most significant factors influencing the final price of your renovation.
To help you decide, we offer a comprehensive comparison between the two most common renovation materials: 2PAC and Laminate. We will compare the pros and cons of each choice and discuss their visual differences.
Defining the Materials
- 2PAC: This is essentially a hardened, durable paint finish applied to your flat pack kitchen cabinetry.1
- Laminate: This is a synthetic veneer created by compressing plasticized sheets of paper. This laminate is then glued to the surface of the cabinetry, typically MDF board, and finished with edging tape for a clean look.2
Detailed Comparison
| Feature | 2PAC (Hardened Paint Finish) | Laminate (Synthetic Veneer) |
| Colour Options | Provides the most flexibility, allowing you to custom-mix your own paint shade to achieve the precise hue desired. | Hundreds of colours available from leading suppliers, including a wide selection of block colours, woodgrains, stone effects, and marble looks. |
| Finish | Available in levels of shine: satin, semi-gloss, and full gloss. | Available in finishes like matte, textured, semi-gloss, and high-gloss. Fingerprint-resistant options are also available. |
| Profile | Allows for character with different levels of profiling and routing, ideal for achieving styles like the ‘Hamptons’ look. | Always a flat surface, sometimes featuring a slight texture if a woodgrain material is chosen. (Note: Thermo-laminated vinyl can achieve profiling but carries risks, such as bubbling from high heat, and is a lesser-used, mid-range product.) |
| Durability | The surface can be touched up with paint when small nicks or scratches occur. | A very hard-wearing material that resists most nicks and scratches, showing very little wear over time. However, imperfections cannot be repaired once they occur. |
| Price | Significantly more expensive. It costs substantially more than the standard laminate finish, and this price increases further if profiling (like Hamptons style) is selected. | The most cost-effective choice for kitchen material, offering a great balance of cost and aesthetics. |
Conclusion
While Laminate is undoubtedly the most cost-effective choice, providing plenty of colour and finish options, 2PAC cabinetry grants greater design control over both colour and profiling. If you require a ‘Hamptons’ style kitchen, 2PAC will almost certainly be your only feasible option. However, if your preference is for a flat surface, choosing Laminate is a great way to significantly reduce the overall cost of your Flat Pack Kitchen project.