Light Box (Cabinet Sign) Re-Face vs a New Cabinet: Which Do You Need?
You have taken over a unit with an old light box above the door, or your own sign has started to look tired. The obvious question is whether you need a whole new sign, or whether the box you already have can be given a new life.
Very often it can, and that can save a significant part of the budget. This guide explains the three ways to update a light box, how to tell which one your cabinet needs, and what to check with the landlord and the City.
- Free site visit & measurement
- Design included
- 2-year warranty
- Own workshop in Calgary
Three Ways to Update a Light Box
Every light box has the same parts: a cabinet (the box), the lighting inside and a translucent face carrying the graphics. Depending on which parts are still good, there are three options. If the light inside is dim or patchy, new LED modules can be fitted in the same cabinet together with either of the first two:
Replace the graphics only
The cabinet and the acrylic face are sound; only the printed design changes. Removal and reinstallation are included.
New acrylic face and graphics
The cabinet is sound but the face is cracked, yellowed or warped. A new face with new graphics goes into the existing box. Removal and reinstallation are included.
New light box
The cabinet itself is failing, or you need a different size or shape. A complete new cabinet with LED lighting and a printed face.
How to Tell What Your Cabinet Needs
You can do a first check yourself, from the ground and at night. Look for:
- Cracks, holes or chips in the face
- A face that has turned yellow, brittle or warped
- Faded or peeling graphics
- Dark patches, stripes of light or a dim corner when the sign is on
- Flickering, or sections that no longer light at all
- Rust, dents or loose seams on the cabinet
- Water marks or dirt inside the face
- A sign that is the wrong size for your new branding or the landlord’s criteria
The first three point to a new face or new graphics. Lighting problems are usually solved with new LED modules in the same cabinet. Cabinet damage and water inside need a closer look: they may be repairable, or they may mean the cabinet has reached the end of its life. On a free site visit we open the sign, check the cabinet, the fixings and the lighting, and tell you which option makes sense.
When Replacing the Graphics Is Enough
If the face is clean, uncracked and still translucent, and the sign lights evenly, the cheapest way to a new-looking sign is new graphics. This is the classic case when a new tenant moves into a unit with a good cabinet, or when a business refreshes its logo.
The graphics are UV-printed, either directly on the acrylic face or on translucent film applied to it. Professional UV printing reproduces detailed logos, gradients and photos, so you are not limited to a simple name.
It is also the fastest way to put your name on a newly leased unit: the cabinet is already on the wall, already connected and usually already approved as a sign for that unit, so the work is focused on the design and the print.
The price includes taking the face out, applying the new graphics and putting the face back in: you do not pay separately for removal and reinstallation.
When You Need a New Face
Acrylic faces live outdoors in sun, cold and wind for years. Over time some crack, turn yellow or go brittle, and a yellowed face makes even new graphics look dull and uneven when lit.
A new 3 mm milky acrylic face restores a clean, bright, even glow. The new design can be UV-printed directly on the milky acrylic, or applied as translucent film. Removal of the old face and reinstallation are again included.
This is often the best value of all: the result looks like a new sign, while the cabinet, the fixings on the wall and the electrical connection stay as they are.
When a New Cabinet Is the Better Investment
Re-facing is not always the right answer. A new light box is usually the better investment when:
- The cabinet is rusted, dented or no longer sealed against weather
- The lighting is failing and the cabinet itself is worn out too
- Your new branding needs a different size, shape or a double-sided sign
- The landlord’s criteria require a different type or size of sign
- You want the sign to last for many years at this location
A new cabinet is built with LED modules fitted with optical lenses, which spread light evenly across the face without dark patches. Every light box is switched on and checked in the workshop before installation. A new cabinet is also the moment to get the size right for your current branding and the landlord’s criteria, rather than fitting a new design into an old box. Single-sided cabinets suit walls and sign bands; double-sided light boxes project from the wall and are seen from both directions.
Permits and Landlords
Re-facing has a practical advantage on the permit side too. According to the City’s sign permits page, “a development permit is not required to: maintain or repair a legally existing sign; change or reduce the copy area of a legally existing sign” (checked 2026-10-28). New graphics in a legally existing cabinet often fall into this category.
A new cabinet is a new sign, and many new exterior signs need a development permit. We handle all the sign permit paperwork: we prepare the drawings, specifications and documents and submit the application on your behalf. If you prefer to apply yourself, you get the complete package from us, ready to submit. See how to get a sign permit in Calgary.
In leased buildings, the landlord usually wants to approve any change to the sign, including new graphics. Check who owns the existing cabinet as well. Some leases treat it as part of the building. The guide landlord sign criteria lists what to ask.
The Options Compared
Here is how the three options compare on the points owners ask about most often.
| Graphics only | New face + graphics | New light box | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What changes | The printed design | The acrylic face and design | The whole sign |
| What stays | Cabinet, face, lighting, fixings | Cabinet, lighting, fixings | Nothing: a new build |
| Removal and reinstallation | Included | Included | New installation quoted separately, at about CAD $100 per hour plus GST |
| Typical permit position | Often no development permit for a copy change | Often treated as a copy change; check | Often a new development permit |
| Price | CAD $450 plus CAD $20 per square foot, plus GST | CAD $450 plus CAD $30 per square foot, plus GST | CAD $350 plus CAD $65 per square foot of the face, plus GST (single-sided) |
Production of a new face, new graphics or a new cabinet takes about two weeks. The written quote for your sign states the exact price and timeline.
Re-Face vs New Cabinet Questions
The 2-year warranty covers the new face and its installation. The existing cabinet, LED lighting and power supply are not part of that warranty, so we point out any problems with them at the site visit.
New graphics in an existing cabinet involve the least work, because the box, the lighting and the fixings stay in place. The quote states the exact timeline for each option.
Yes, each face of a double-sided light box can be treated separately, though both sides usually look best with matching graphics.
Yes. For a new face or new graphics in an existing light box, removal and reinstallation are included in the price.
Send a photo of the sign. On the site visit we check the cabinet and measure it; if it is sound, the new face is made to the size of your existing cabinet.
According to calgary.ca, a development permit is not required to change or reduce the copy area of a legally existing sign. A new cabinet is a new sign and often needs a permit.
Not by itself. Dark spots usually come from the lighting inside. We can replace it with new LED modules in the same cabinet, and removal and reinstallation are included. On the site visit we check whether the cabinet is worth keeping.
If your existing cabinet is double-sided, both faces can be replaced. Turning a single-sided cabinet into a double-sided one means a new cabinet.
Sources
- City of Calgary: Sign permits, accessed 2026-10-28
- Creon Design: light box options (new cabinet, new face, graphics replacement), accessed 2026-10-28