Revamping cabinets in your home does not have to be costly. A great way to keep your expenses at bay is to keep your base cabinets and replace the cabinet doors only. You can purchase new hardware or you can replace the hinges only.
Apart from getting rid of crooked and saggy doors, brand new hinges will make your doors function quietly and smoothly. If you are looking for high-quality and affordable cabinet hinges, you may want to check out rmghardware.com.
Love the DIY idea but don’t know how to do it? Don’t worry, installing hinges is quite simple, regardless if it’s your first time or not. Plus, you can refer to this post as it covers all the steps needed to install Euro-style and concealed cabinet door hinges. Ready to install? Let’s start on your kitchen cabinet hinge installations!
Tools You’ll Need
Before we go through the steps, gather first all the tools you will need to install cabinet hinges. Make sure you have the following:
• Pencil
• Tape measure
• Saw
• Clamps
• Cordless screwdriver
• Toothpicks or small dowel
• Wood glue
• Stepladder
• Clamps
• Sandpaper
• Long straightedge board
• Drill and bits
• Wood scrap
• Refinishing supplies or paint
Steps On Installing Cabinet Hinges
When you have prepared all the tools needed, it’s time to get into action. Below are the following steps you need to follow to install cabinet hinges properly.
1. Prepare Doors And Cabinets
• Check the number of hinges you need and the size of each that are currently on the cabinets. Cabinet doors with sizes up to 24 inches tall generally have two hinges each door, with spaces around five inches from the bottom and top edges of the door. Heavy wood and tall cabinet doors found in older houses must have a third hinge placed in the middle of the bottom and top hinges. Purchase new hinges that are the right size for proper support on the cabinet doors.
• Unscrew the hinges from the cabinet and lift the doors off. Then, remove the old hinges from the cabinet doors.
• Fill the holes of the old screws by sticking toothpicks or a small dowel into every hole and cropping the surface flush. Wait for the glue to dry. Once it is completely dry, use sandpaper and smoothen the area. Finish it so that it matches the original. But, if you are painting or refinishing the entire doors and cabinets, then do it now. Filling the old holes and redrilling the new ones ensure a reliable fit during the installation.
Source: RMG
• Temporarily put a hinge on the back or front of the cabinet door, depending on the hinge type. Align it with the edge of the door. Next, use a tape measure and align the bottom and top hinges for proper spacing. Mark the hinges’ position by carving through the holes with a pencil. Measure the middle point and if needed, label the third hinge.
• Use a drill that is smaller than the screw holes and drill guide holes at the marked points. Do not drill fully through the door. Next, screw the hinges to the cabinet doors.
• Use a level across the base of the doors and take the measurement of the door placement positions for horizontal alignment. Clamp a straightedge board adjacent to the level-line as a temporary placement indicator.
• Use a stepladder so you can reach the upper cabinets safely. Let the cabinet doors hang on the side while you label the guide holes and screw the hinges into their position. Secure each door properly and label the positions of the screw holes on the cabinet face using your pencil.
• Put the doors on the sides. Drill the guide holes into the cabinet face at the labeled points. Set the doors again on the clamped straightedge, line up the hinge holes, and screw the cabinet doors into their proper place.
Check out this video on how to install hinges for cabinet doors properly:
