Kitchen remodeling
Bathroom remodeling
Home additions & ADU
Roofing
Windows & doors
Driveway & pavers
FenceFree written scope consultation - allowances, timeline, and change-order rules on paper before a single trade is scheduled
Why Foster City Homeowners Choose CGI Construction
We provide independent CGI cabinet construction, repair, and refacing service throughout Foster City, from Marlin Cove to the lagoon-front streets off Edgewater Boulevard. Our crew handles the full spectrum: installing new CGI ready-to-assemble lines, replacing failed thermofoil doors, rebuilding racked dovetail drawer boxes, and re-hanging existing cabinets on fresh soft-close hardware. Ashford Contractors is not authorized, sponsored, or endorsed by CGI. We’re an independent contractor that works on these products weekly across CGI in San Mateo and the broader county, so we know exactly how they’re built, where they fail, and what it actually takes to fix them right. Call (877) 752-3868 to schedule a free estimate.
Why Trust Ashford Contractors for Your CGI Construction?
Our crew works on CGI in Foster City cabinetry and finish products every week, so we know how these lines are built, how they fail at the hinges, drawer boxes, and finish edges, and what it actually takes to correct it. We match CGI’s own hinge, slide, and drawer-box hardware where the box is still sound, and step to quality aftermarket soft-close hardware or full door and drawer-front replacement when the thermofoil has already failed. If a box has swollen or delaminated panels, honest refacing won’t hold, that’s a replace case, and we’ll show you the failed core before recommending anything.
Glen Mossier, our owner, grew up in Foster City’s Marlin Cove neighborhood, watching the lagoon-side homes get rebuilt after water damage. He learned early that good construction is what keeps a house standing through decades of Bay Area weather. He trained in construction technology at Skyline College in San Bruno, where he learned framing, mechanical systems, and the kind of materials science that shows up on a job site. Over two decades, he’s built a reputation across Foster City, CGI in Belmont, and throughout San Mateo County for structural remodels and additions done without shortcuts. He’s known for getting the subfloor and framing square before anything else goes in, and that same instinct carries into every cabinet job: diagnosis first, correction second, never a cover-up.
Styles & brands we work with







Common CGI Construction Problems We Fix in Foster City
CGI cabinets are built well for their price point, but Foster City’s specific conditions, high humidity off the lagoon, steam from everyday cooking, and the occasional hidden leak, expose their weak points over time. Here are the failures we see most often on CGI cabinet systems in this area.
- Thermofoil door faces peeling, blistering, or lifting. CGI thermofoil (TF) finished cabinet fronts use a vinyl film bonded over an MDF core. After years of humidity and steam, especially around the sink base and dishwasher bay, the film starts to separate at the edges and around the handle bores. It looks like a plastic skin peeling off, because that’s what it is. Once the bond fails, no regluing holds for long. The honest fix is door-front replacement or refacing.
- Dovetail drawer boxes coming loose or splitting at the joint. The all-plywood dovetail drawer-box series is better than the industry average, but when overloaded with heavy cookware, the joints at the front corners start to rack. The drawer sags, the rails drag, and eventually the front pulls away from the side. This is a box problem, not a hardware problem, and swapping in better slides won’t fix it.
- Soft-close hinges and slides losing dampening or cracking at the mounting plate. CGI’s standard soft-close hardware is fine for normal use, but the mounting plates are the weak link. When a hinge plate cracks, the door slams and misaligns on the frameless box. Slides lose their dampening over time and drawers start closing with a thud. Replacing the hardware is a clean, affordable fix when the boxes are still square.
- Particleboard or MDF box panels swelling at the sink base and dishwasher bay. This is the most common CGI failure we see in Foster City. A slow leak under the sink or condensation from the dishwasher goes unnoticed, the particleboard wicks the moisture, and the panel swells and delaminates. The doors may still look fine, but the box is done. No amount of refacing fixes a swollen core.
- Drawer sag and rail drag on the semi-custom painted and stained collections. These lines use solid wood fronts and plywood boxes, which hold up better than thermofoil, but they’re not immune. Overloaded deep drawers, especially in lower cabinets, put stress on the rail system. We replace the slides with a heavier aftermarket soft-close unit and realign the drawer face, which brings it back to a tight, quiet close.
CGI Parts & Our Repair-vs-Replace Approach
We match CGI’s own hinge, slide, and drawer-box hardware where the box is still sound. Original equipment ensures a consistent fit on frameless boxes and keeps any remaining manufacturer warranty intact. When the hardware has already failed once, stepping to a quality aftermarket soft-close hinge or full-extension slide makes sense, especially on drawers that see heavy daily use. We stock common CGI-compatible hinges, mounting plates, slides, and drawer-box components locally for fast turnaround across Foster City.
We replace, not reface, when a box has swollen or delaminated panels. Re-facing over a failed core is throwing money at a problem that will come back within a year. We’ll show you the failed core before recommending a replacement. If you’re unsure whether your CGI cabinets are worth saving, call (877) 752-3868 and we’ll take a look. The estimate is free.
Our CGI Service Process – Step by Step
- 1
Diagnosis. We inspect every hinge, slide, drawer box, and door face. On CGI thermofoil cabinets, we check the sink base and dishwasher bay first, because that’s where hidden swelling starts. We map what’s failed, what’s wearing, and what’s still sound.
- 2
Repair or replace recommendation. We show you the failed core, the racked joint, the cracked hinge plate. If the box is sound, we repair. If the panel has swollen or the thermofoil has lifted, we recommend replacement. You decide with the full picture.
- 3
Repair, reface, or install. We replace drawer boxes, re-hang door fronts on new soft-close hinges, reface where the faces are still sound, or install new CGI cabinets and countertops. Every job is one contract, one project manager, one point of contact.
- 4
Test and align. Every door and drawer gets opened, closed, and adjusted until it’s tight and quiet. We check for square, for bind, for soft-close dampening. If it doesn’t feel right, it’s not done.
- 5
Warranty and follow-up. We stand behind our work with a workmanship warranty. If something moves or fails after we leave, we come back and make it right.
See the difference
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After
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AfterCGI Products We Service & Install in Foster City
We service and install the full CGI cabinet range: the Ready-to-Assemble (RTA) shaker and flat-slab lines, the all-plywood dovetail drawer-box series, thermofoil (TF) finished fronts, and the semi-custom painted and stained collections. We keep common CGI-compatible hinges, mounting plates, slides, and drawer-box components in local stock, and we source doors and panels to match existing finishes when a partial reface makes sense. Beyond cabinets, we install quartz and granite countertops over existing CGI boxes, handle full kitchen remodels, and provide backsplash work to complete the job.
We Also Service These Brands
CGI is one brand in a much wider picture. Our team works across the full spectrum of cabinetry and finishes, so if you’re mixing product lines or upgrading in phases, we can speak to your options: KraftMaid cabinetry, Cambria and Silestone countertops, and Kohler plumbing fixtures. One contractor. Every system. From the roofline to the foundation, inside and out.
FAQs – CGI Construction Service in Foster City
It depends on the core. If the thermofoil film has lifted but the MDF core underneath is still flat and dry, refacing with new doors or a finish-matched replacement works. If the core has swelled from moisture, which we see all the time around Foster City sink bases and dishwasher bays, refacing won’t hold. We’ll show you the failed core before recommending anything. Call (877) 752-3868 and we’ll inspect yours for free.
Usually a box problem. When a dovetail drawer box starts to rack, the joints at the front corners have begun to separate, and the drawer face pulls away from the side. No slide replacement fixes that. We replace the box and often upgrade the slides at the same time. If the box is still square and only the slide is worn, it’s a hardware fix. Call (877) 752-3868 for an exact diagnosis and estimate.
Yes. We match CGI’s door profiles, finish tones, and edge detailing for partial replacements and refacing jobs. For thermofoil lines, matching is straightforward when the original finish is still available. For stained and painted semi-custom collections, we work with finish-matched panels to keep the kitchen visually consistent. The goal is a repair you can’t spot from across the room.
Cabinet installation in Foster City typically runs $4,000 to $13,000, depending on kitchen size and scope. A small kitchen remodel falls between $9,000 and $20,000, while a full kitchen remodel ranges from $14,000 to $45,000. Refacing a thermofoil kitchen generally lands on the lower end because the boxes stay in place. Call (877) 752-3868 for a line-item quote on your specific kitchen. Estimates are free.
Yes, as long as the cabinet boxes are structurally sound. We inspect the boxes before any countertop installation. If the sink base has swollen or the gables are out of square, we fix or replace those boxes first. Countertop installation on CGI cabinets typically runs $2,000 to $6,500 in Foster City, depending on material and square footage. Call (877) 752-3868 to schedule a free estimate.
| Service | Price Range |
|---|---|
| Cabinet Installation | $4,000 – $13,000 |
| Countertop Installation | $2,000 – $6,500 |
| Backsplash Installation | $800 – $2,500 |
| Kitchen Remodel | $14,000 – $45,000 |
| Small Kitchen Remodel | $9,000 – $20,000 |
| Kitchen Island Installation | $3,000 – $10,000 |
Book Your CGI Service in Foster City, CA
If your CGI cabinets are peeling, racking, or dragging in your Foster City home, let’s take a look. Glen Mossier and the Ashford Contractors team will give you an honest diagnosis and a straight answer on repair versus replace. Call (877) 752-3868 to schedule your free estimate today.
Written by Glen Mossier, Owner at Ashford Contractors, serving Foster City and San Mateo County for over two decades. Build it right the first time, and you won’t be rebuilding it in ten years.