One hour spent dry-fitting cabinets and verifying dimensions will save many hours later by ensuring that cabinets will fit properly and that doors, drawers, and appliances won’t interfere with one another.
Determine that all appliances and large cabinets will fit through archways or doorways, and that there is enough height in the room to stand up tall cabinets (a 96-inch-tall pantry cabinet 24 inches deep, for instance, needs at least 99 inches of headroom). Check all dimensions where countertops will need to align with room features, such as window sills, door and window trim, and chair rail or wainscoting. (Most appliance width dimensions are finish-opening dimensions for example, a 30-inch range needs exactly 30 inches between cabinets.)Ĭountertop alignment. Check opening width and height, including where wall cabinets are hung above an appliance, such as a refrigerator, microwave, or range.
This is especially important on jobs where the client orders the appliances. Make sure that all appliances will fit into the openings provided by the actual cabinets. A base-cabinet filler usually must be matched by a corresponding wall-cabinet filler.Īppliance openings. Check that base and wall cabinets properly align at inside and outside corners. Check for interference from window or door trim.
CABINET SCRIBE STRIP HOLDER CLAMP WINDOWS
Ensure cabinets align as planned with windows and doors (for instance, that sink bases are centered on a window or that wall cabinets are symmetrical on both sides of a door or window). Cabinets at the end of a run may need an extended finish panel the excess depth allows for scribing to walls that are out-of-square or out-of-plumb (see End Panel illustration).Ĭentering, symmetry, and alignment. Where cabinet sides meet walls, use filler strips to close any gaps at the ends, scribing if necessary where a wall has an irregular surface or is out-of-plumb (see End Wall illustration).įinish end panels. Where a bank of cabinets terminates at a wall next to a window or a door (see Door at End of Run), use a filler strip to prevent interference from a door knob or trim. Where an appliance must be located at a corner, a filler will also prevent interference with doors, drawers, pulls, and handles.ĭoor or window at the end of a run. Where cabinets meet at a corner, use filler strips to provide at least 2 1/2 inches of clearance in each direction to ensure that doors and drawers can open without interference (see Inside Corner-Two Drawers illustration). The entire kitchen doesn't need to be dry-fit at once, but every run of cabinets should be checked for the following:Ĭorner drawers or appliances. After dry-fitting, repack the cabinets in their boxes to prevent damage. This makes it easy to spot any dimensional and alignment problems, as well as potential installation problems, such as missing end panels or filler strips. Next, dry-fit the cabinets by placing them (without fasteners) in relation to one another according to the planned layout. Take each cabinet out of its box and check for damage, then match the cabinet to the plan. This can be done in the kitchen itself or in any space that's large enough. They will also help when it comes time to verify plumbing, electrical, and HVAC rough-in.ĭry-fit the cabinets. Left in place for the remainder of the job, these marks serve double-duty-as a crosscheck for the cabinet package and as a spot check during installation. Draw lines on the tape to designate the left and right sides of each cabinet face, then write the cabinet number from the plan in the space between.
Rather than check dimensions only on the plans, also mark the dimensions and the location of the cabinets on a strip of painter's tape on the wall or floor. Follow these two procedures to uncover mistakes that can derail an installation: The best time to discover that cabinet dimensions don't match up with room dimensions is before you start putting the cabinets together. In this article, we look at the most common problems that cabinet installers face-especially in existing homes-and the methods, tools, and products that help them find solutions. Whether the cabinet installer is involved in this prep work directly or he arrives on site after it has been completed, he's likely to be faced with a variety of conditions that will affect not only the installation process but also the final appearance and functionality of the cabinets. Cabinet installation takes place after most of the other work in a kitchen has been completed, including framing, flooring, drywall, and rough-in for plumbing, electrical, and HVAC systems.
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