We have exposed hinges on our cabinet doors, in the corners and below the sinks, and have not been aware of any noise when we close them. So how necessary is the quiet close?
Lynn

i'm just wondering if the cabinet guy is accurate that you can't do it with the exposed hinges. he also suggests they're hard to open because you have to pull harder since they stay closed with a magnetic device. is this how yours stay closed? thanks.

I'm guessing that your cabinetmaker is saying that soft close cannot be *integrated with the hinges* if you have exposed hinges.

However, I used the below Blum soft close door adapters as a retrofit on my partial overlay doors with exposed hinges. They are *separate* from the hinge and easy to install. I'm not sure how they would work with magnetic catches; it's likely I'm not understanding your cabs :) .

Hope This Helps

Here is a link that might be useful: (Amazon) Blum soft close door adapter

Thanks for that link.
I'm
Not sure why we need magnetic closure on our cabinets, it's not a latch on the outside, but rather a magnet to keep it closed. I'll ask the cabinet guy if we can just do inset without the magnetic element.
Thanks

Threeapples--The magnets are there to keep the door closed. W/O it, some of the doors might not want to stay totally shut. Also, the magnets are quite weak. I'm surprised the cabinetmaker even said anything about it. That is, unless as I suspect, he doesn't want to fiddle with butt hinges or non-Euro overlay hinges and is throwing up a bunch of rather trifle reasons (IMO) to get you to change your mind. If that's the case, it could be an omen of things to come & you might want to keep shopping for cabinetmakers.

The magnets that sit behind the door can vary in strength, some can be a little snug but there is a depth adjustment that can help. The soft close add-on doesn't really work with the exposed hinge/magnet behind the door system.

Some hi-end makers will insert rare earth magnets in the rails of the door and in the rails of the cabinet. They never touch and the door is held closed by the attraction between the two. This effectively gives you a soft close- and a soft open. Very nice system.
I know that Quality Custom Cabinets use it and a few others. Might be a bit fussy for a small shop to get working.

Would this be the case for inset cabinets?

I have old cabs with new full overlay doors. My GC got me concealed hinges without soft-close. What a prince! I bought the Blum add-on closers and they are a marvel. I tried both kinds (with and without the extender) and found I didn't need the extender, which reduces the price. It took me under an hour to do my entire kitchen with the help of my little Dremel stylus, small enough to not need a flex attachment. They took my slammy cab doors to a dignified silent close. It's the first thing I show off in my kitchen, what I'm most proud of.

The Blume type soft close devices whether separate or integrated, require some spring closing force during the last 3-4" of door closing travel. There are some Butt hinges that have springs, but many do not. If you can find some with springs that suit your tates, Blume makes the soft close devices that can be easily added to almost any cabinet.

Door latch magnets typicaly will exert a barely noticeable force at about 1/8" distance. Not enough force and not enough distance to operate a soft close mechanism.

I used a recessed magnet catch in a set of double doors. Two 1" dia X 1" long neodymium magnets set into the frame from the top. and two !/2" x 1" long neodymium magnets set into the top of doors. Nothing is visible. They work great as a latch. They will pull the doors closed from about 1". They do not act as a soft close. as the door swings shut when it gets in range of the magnets the magnetic pull accelerates the door and causes it to slam harder. If I open the door slowly the magnetic pull is noticeable, but if i just yank on the door like I normaly do, it's not noticeable. After closing, the doors are held about 1/8" away from the door stop molding. I wish I had tried this sooner. I would have used this type of latch on several closet doors and the pantry door. But not on the cabinets.
I would compromise on almost anything else if I had to to get the Blume soft close on my cabinets.

qwertyui (if you're still around): what about just adding a Blumotion 970/970A? Looks like what QCCI did.

Raises the question of what strength of magnets to use ... I'm tempted to experiment (or ask my cabinet guy to ...)

Here is a link that might be useful: Earth Magnet