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Will these concealed hinges work for my cabinets?

3 years ago

Hi there,

I would like to have my dark oak cabinets painted white, as well as switch to concealed hinges. When I had some painters come over to give us a quote, they were not sure if our doors are thick enough to accommodate concealed hinges. I found THESE and THESE hinges online that I think might work. They are not the typical European hinges but they would be concealed, aside from the small notch on the sides of the cabinets which I would be fine with.

Below are pictures of my cabinets. They have a 1/2" lip around the edges of the doors, and the total thickness of the door is just under 3/4 of an inch. There is a 1/4" overlay.

Has anyone used this type of hinge before? Do you think these will work for us? Or do you have any other suggestions?

Thanks in advance!

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Comments (5)

User
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
You have 60 year old 3/8” inset cabinets. They have earned their retirement. There is only 1 pair of soft close hinges made for 3/8” inset. $45 each. Available from Rockler. Add that to the 7-9K cost of a professional coating job, and you have already bought new cabinets, but just kept the old bad ones with the gross interiors and drawers that barely work.

Everything has an expiration date.
Lindsey P
Original Author
3 years ago
Thank you! I didn't realize 3/8" inset was the term for what we have, that's very helpful. In this case, does overlay not matter then?

I found THESE on Rockler's website which seems to be the ones you described but just not soft close, which I'm willing to give up to save some money. The painters quoted us at 3k to paint our cabinets (our kitchen is on the smaller side). Our house is only 35 years old so I'm hoping our cabinets have some life left in them, especially after receiving a quote to have them all refaced ($12k). I'd love to reface them all but not sure it's in the budget for now.
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The link above shows you all of my conceiled hinges, which are the majority of what I have. In our state, we have issues with insets if they dont' have significantly adjustable doors (earthquakes and humidity/dryness). In addition, I'm on pilings, so my house moves even more. So that's why I have mostly hidden hinges, I was also worried about them matching my antique pewter knobs with exposed hinges. I do have one that is exposed. This cabinet is a chalk board and it's only about an inch deep so the hidden hinges wouldn't fit:
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These are the only type I know of that will work. Here is a link that might be useful: hinges
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Thanks for the reply. They are overlay doors, not inset. I appreciate your info.
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Comments (2)
You could but it wouldn't be fun. And I can't imagine why you would want to. Lots of advantages to the butt hinge. It's inexpensive relative to many concealed hinges. Requires a lot less raw material, machining, etc., so it's a greener choice. Opens a full 180 degrees unlike concealed hinges (wider opening ones available but pricier.) The butt hinge is very, very durable. They almost never fail/ break. Butt hinges don't take up space inside of your cabinets, something a lot of concealed (and scarey-looking) hinges do. Aesthetically, I love the subtle touch of the butt hinges. Either plain or a tad fancier w/ tipped finials. That, and I think that traditional inset cabinetry almost requires butt hinges. It's just part of the look, part of the charm. Another bonus because I'm always into reusing material and looking down the road to how what I'm consuming can be reused--no awful large diameter holes drilled into hardwood door frames. So, at some point in the distant future, someone will be better able to reuse those sticks of hardwood. The only downside is that they are difficult to install & difficult to adjust. But once fitted to your cabinetry, there's little likelihood of them ever needing to be adjusted.
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User
3 years ago
3K is way too cheap to be receiving a professional grade cabinet finishing job. As is typical, refacing costs are as much as replacing. You can replace those for 12K. 3/8” inset was a thing in the 60’s. I’m really surprised to hear that your house was built in 1985. Thats like the house being built with gas lamps in the 70’s. 1860’s, sure. 1960’s, Nope. 3/8” inset‘s last gasp was the 70’s, and it was rare then.
Cadyren
3 years ago
Haha, you guys are so funny. I have an 80s house with 3/8 inch lipped cabinets. Many people will NEVER replace their cabinets, but after coming here for help they may feel really bad.
PRO
Joseph Corlett, LLC
3 years ago
"As is typical, refacing costs are as much as replacing."

It depends.

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