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Moving built-in wooden drawers?

16 years ago

Hi,

We're very new to woodworking, but are trying to figure out how we might be able to move a set of existing built-in drawers in our kitchen to a new location. Is it possible to do this without completely rebuilding the frame (and without extensive expertise in this area!)?

The basics: We have a set of built-in wooden cabinets and drawers circa 1930---all very well built of solid wood. The drawers are very, very basic--frames with boxes (also all wood) that simply slide in and out. No slides of any sort.

We are installing a dishwasher and for various reasons (nice vintage kitchen idiosyncrasies!) the only feasible place to put it is where the drawers are. (Three large 26" drawers, two smaller 14" top drawers.) Since they are our only drawers, we don't want to lose them--and we don't want to replace them with modern cabinets that won't match the kitchen feel.

We do have a cabinet on the other side of the kitchen that we're prepared to sacrifice, but we're trying to figure out how easy or complex it is to move a built-in drawer set like this. Do we need to rebuild the frame? Can it simply be carved out of the wall and set into the cabinet space on the other side? Will moving it damage the wood? (We're not sure what would be entailed in removing this--whether it is simply nailed to the wall and the nails can be pulled out or whether it is more securely fastened/plastered in, etc.)

Any thoughts or advice from amateur cabinetmakers out there would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

Diana

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Comments (4)

brickeyee
16 years ago
There is no way to tell without actually inspecting the drawers and the supports.
They may have been built as a unit and then installed, or they could have been 'built in place' making removal very difficult.
Are there side panels or are the drawer runners attached directly to the walls?
artemis78
Original Author
16 years ago
No drawer runners to speak of (these are *really* simple drawers--though they work wonderfully!) The drawers slide in and out over a flat wood frame that runs back to the wall the length of the drawer. So when you take the drawers out, it looks almost like a really, really deep shelf unit. We're not sure if this frame is just attached to itself and then anchored to the wall or if each piece is individually attached to the wall.
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Our Sharp drawer is installed on the wall run near the fridge, but also under the countertop. What I'm imagining you asking about is a 24" deep tall cabinet, with the microwave drawer at countertop height or a bit above, but still a drawer, looking built-in. I unfortunately agree with lascatx. At or above counter height it would be easier to slide a hot bowl out horizontally than lift up and over the drawer front. That drawer front is tall! And, for a decade our huge microwave has been on the countertop or 'built-in' on a shelf in a tall 24" deep cabinet. It's worked just fine, esp. when built into the tall cabinet, so it wouldn't take up counter space. As you know an ordinary microwave is also a less expensive solution by $400-600 USD; the only thing you may lose is the even cooking without stirring (assuming that works as well as touted -- we won't know for a month). but those microwaves are also a lot taller. We often stack two bowls of reheatables on top of one another, separated by a covering plate. We won't be able to do that in the microwave drawer, so I've got my fingers crossed that it'll be worth it. Good luck coming up with a decision you like! And feel free to follow up with the various solutions you're considering.
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We had a 1919 built-in in one of our bungalow's bedrooms. We wanted to move it to the back end of our kitchen/family room addition and convert it to the tv cabinet. As we removed nail after nail to "free it" from the space, we discovered that it was not a unit that was built and then moved into the cubbyhole. Instead our built-in was a bunch of pieces of wood that were built directly into the walls of the cubbyhole. It was not movable as one unit. We also could not get all the nails out without damaging the wood (maple). We had already framed the new space so we had to build a new built-in for it. We did match the design, species of wood and finish - we have something that looks like a new built-in - we do like it.
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I think you always want some contrast between the floor and anything resting on the floor, be it cabinets or furniture. If you like the color of the wood trim on the dining furniture it sounds like a good choice. If the amount of wood trim on the DR furniture is minimal, you could probably get away with a less-than-perfect match if you aren't 100% sold on the mahogany (for example, if you wanted to tone down the red tones). Hard to say without pics.
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Jon1270
16 years ago
It is hard to say for sure without pictures (you could post some) but I'd bet this structure was built in place and depends on the walls and floor to help hold it together. If that's the case then it won't be possible to remove it in one piece and set it down somewhere else. It's certainly possible to have someone build something that looks similar and period-appropriate, and it might be feasible to disassemble this one and rebuild it elsewhere. Neither of these would be a beginner's project, so you might look for an especially good handyman or finish carpenter to look the situation over and give you some options.
brickeyee
16 years ago
It sounds like there is really nothing to move except the drawers.
Just count on building some new 'shelves' to match the drawers.

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