Installing
Kitchen Base Cabinets
In This Article:
The basics of installing base cabinets:
Start in a corner, connect adjacent units by screwing the face frames
together, shim and screw to wall. Install filler strips as needed.
While this article follows cabinet installation in a new house, the
installation process is the same for a kitchen remodel, once the old
cabinets have been removed.
EASY KITCHEN TIP: If you can, use chalk or graphite to draw out where your cabinets will
go on the walls and floors so you can visualize your layout, as a double
check of your measurements and make changes easily before you start
bringing in the cabinets.
The
kitchen when I first saw it. Note the strip of floor tiles omitted next to
the wall. This will require some filling and shimming.
Another view.
The
kitchen designer made a nice computer-drawn plan, but as we know with home
construction... Nothing Ever Goes As Planned.
The pipes for the
kitchen sink.
The first step in a base cabinet installation is finding the highest point in
the cabinet layout area.
The highest point is the best point to start, because from there all the other
cabinets will need to be
shimmed higher.
The corner where we will begin.
The "Lazy Susan" corner
unit that will be installed first.
I had to use a few scraps of tile underlayment to build up
the level of the floor.
I checked the levelness of the floor in both
directions, adding shims as necessary.
The sink base cabinet was set in place and the holes cut for
the water supply pipes (holes in bottom) and the drain (in back panel)
The
two base cabinets were connected together with 2-1/2" cabinet mounting
screws.
This is an important concept in cabinet installation. Whenever possible, I
first connect adjacent
cabinets together at the face frame. I clamp the cabinets together,
adjust the face frames so they are
perfectly flush, and drill holes for long screws, such as 2-1/2" deck screws.
The face frames connected tightly together.
Next, the two
units were fastened to the wall. The screws were driven into studs.
The Second Lazy Susan:
The second Lazy Susan went the same as the first: cleats
mounted to the wall, cover panel attached to the side, etc.
This unit had
another base cabinet attached to it's side.
The kitchen so far. The open space between the cabinets
along the right-hand wall is for a dishwasher. Dishwashers fit in a standard
24" cabinet width, so our space is exactly 24" wide.
A filler panel connected to a tall 84" high pantry cabinet.
On one side of the refrigerator the plan showed a tall divider panel... but
the panel landed right in front of an outlet. Did I mention that Nothing
Ever Goes As Planned?
I ended up moving the offending outlet a few inches to the right.
EASY KITCHEN TIP: Always be ready to move and wiggle things an inch or two right and left.
Any gaps created can be filled with filler strips, trim moldings
and panels to give your kitchen that complete and
professionally finished look.
Don't hesitate to use fancy crown molding or chair rail- it can totally
transform your finished kitchen!
