Installing New Kitchen Cabinets

New cabinets can give a tremendous facelift to your kitchen. Once you install the new cabinets, your kitchen gets a completely different look and feel. Installation of kitchen cabinets is not a particularly difficult task; even amateurs can try it, provided they have an eye for precision. To make sure that your cabinets work properly and look right, you need to install them level, plumb, and flush with each other. The best time to put in cabinets if you are redoing your kitchen is after the completion of the installation of rough wiring and plumbing but before the installation of finish flooring. This way, you do not have to use more flooring material than necessary and you won't be in danger of damaging new floors either. It is easier to install wall-mounted cabinets at the start, so the base cabinets won't be in your way as you work.

In case your cabinets do not arrive assembled, you should follow the manufacturer's directions while putting them together. However, make it a point to remove doors, shelves, and drawers or refrain from installing them. In case you remove these parts, label them so you will know where they go.

It is important that the wall behind the cabinets should be smooth, level, and clean. Make sure it is flat by placing a long straightedge against it and mark any bumpy or bulging spots. During the process of installation, tap wood shims--short pieces of wood shingles--beneath or behind the cabinets to make slight adjustments. If the irregularities cannot be adjusted, you can compensate for them by using a scribe rail.

Since upper cabinets are extremely heavy when they are loaded with canned foods or dinnerware, you should make sure that they are fastened very securely to wall studs. It is best to screw through a strong part of the cabinet, especially since most having a support rail that runs across the back for this. See to it that for each cabinet at least three screws should penetrate the wall studs by at least 1 1/2 inches.

It is especially important to install the first wall and base cabinets level and plumb, both from side to side and from front to back, because each additional cabinet will be aligned with the first ones. Once you install the first cabinets, repeat the process for each additional one.

Before you install your kitchen cabinets, you should purchase well built, quality products in the first place. You should proceed carefully before making the purchase, because they are most likely going to be a permanent part of your kitchen's decor for years to come. While shopping for cabinetry, you should look first at the top, bottom and back of the cabinets to check if the wood appears damaged, cracked, or split. It's good if the back is solid. Examine how strongly the cabinets are held together. Remember that solid wood doors and drawer fronts are better than a veneer. Check for any warping. Look for solid bottoms that don't bend, when you press on them. Another tip to remember is that side-mounted drawer slides are better. Make sure that door hinges are sturdy and work smoothly. All surfaces likely to be exposed to moisture should be coated with polyurethane, offered by many manufacturers in gloss and satin finish. If you follow these tips, you will purchase and install beautiful kitchen cabinets.