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Ikea Maximera drawer hack - put a medium front on a high drawer

last year

last modified: last year

I just watched a youtube video where Rogue Remodel was saying he had maximized his drawer depth by putting medium fronts on high Ikea Maximera drawers, rather than on medium drawers. https://youtu.be/8oPLIIJRDK4

At the end of his video, he shows a base cab with 3 medium fronts (with high drawers).

Anyone else ever done this or heard of this? It seems like a great idea to maximize space in a base cabinet. Any risks, other than if you have items that tend to pop up and could interfere with the drawers opening and shutting? (And I don't think this happens much with the kinds of items I'd put in a kitchen drawer.)

Comments (6)

PRO
HALLETT & Co.
last year
How does this change what can go in the drawer? I love ikea, and I’m sure this could work, the shorter sides on the medium allows you to insert a hidden skinny drawer above. I just don’t see how this gets you more storage…
Linda
last year
I saw a reference to it on the reddit ikeahack sub from 2 years ago. Looks like it would work fine, particularly since the front has pre-drilled holes to connect the top bracket.
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Yes it will work. I've done it. You buy one of the 17 3/4" deep sets, whichever one is cheapest, so probably the 24" wide. You also buy a 15" wide drawer set, again, whichever one is cheapest. Take the bottom of the 15" drawer, and cut it to be the same depth as the bottom from the other set. You take the modified bottom you just cut, the 15" wide back, and the sides from the 17 3/4" set. Put them all together. Attach it to a regular 15" drawer front. You throw away the extra parts. It's a very simple hack, much easier than cutting down the metal sides, like you initially requested info on. If it's too daunting, stick with what you've got. But it can definitely be done.
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If the fronts and glides are specifically made for Ikea cabs, there should be no difference in installing them as Ikea's own parts. So, go to the Ikea website and find your drawer, low, medium or high. scroll down to "assembly instructions" and click on the choices. Below two Pdfs for medium drawers. (Look through both booklets from front to back , as everything depends on where in the stack the drawer is going to be installed, if it's going to be an inside drawer or regular outside drawer etc. It helps to understand the system, before starting to assemble. Drawer front attachment https://www.ikea.com/us/en/assembly_instructions/maximera-drawer-medium__AA-1020213-3_pub.pdf Drawer glide schedule https://www.ikea.com/us/en/assembly_instructions/maximera-drawer-medium__AA-1010997-1_pub.pdf Hav fun! And good luck!
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evelynsmom
Original Author
last year
Hi @HALLETT & Co., the drawer on the right in the pic would allow you to store more than the drawer in the middle, because the sides come up much higher. And you can stack 3 high drawers in a base cab if they have medium fronts, whereas you would normally only be able to to stack 2 high drawers if you use high drawer fronts.
PRO
HALLETT & Co.
last year
Unless you are storing potatoes the volume is exactly the same. Plates don’t need drawer sides. Pots don’t need drawer sides. I can’t think of anything in my all drawer kitchen that needs the drawer sides for support. If you do great, this ‘hack’ will work for you.
sheloveslayouts
last year
Interesting. I don't get it.

We didn't do the drawer-in-a-drawer thing, so maybe we did this as the workaround on the 10-10-10s. I'll have to check.

My first impression is that this isn't a revelation. I'd just do whatever is cheapest and frankly the least confusing. I've done a couple Ikea kitchens and there's a learning curve that's more challenging than their furniture. I have all sizes of ikea drawers and nothing has ever fallen out of the side.
sheloveslayouts
last year
In our 10-10-10s we have the low drawer with 10" front in the top position and then the middle and bottom drawer are what you have labeled as medium drawers.

All kinds of things have been in these drawers. I struggle to think what I would put in them that might fall out. My aeropress parts and filters are small, but they are corralled in their own container.

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