Can base cabinets be installed on top of concrete with shims?
9 months ago
last modified: 9 months ago
Hello!
We recently had our kitchen remodeled. One of the comments I received from my friends, upon seeing the photo, was that there there isn't any board under the cabinet. (I was trying to get some advice on how to block this hole under the dishwasher.)
We live in a condo, and our floor is made of concrete. I do see some shims at the ends of the cabinets, but I don't see any plywood or any other type of board/underlayment.
Is it okay to have cabinets installed directly on top of concrete as long as they are on shims?
Neither the contractor nor the cabinet installer mentioned this matter throughout installation, so I am assuming it is okay?
Here is close look close to the wall once dishwasher is taken out.
We did have big pieces of wood boards materials which were never used throughout remodeling. I asked our contractor said they were for temporary countertop until real countertop is installed, but I am starting to think if these materials are meant to be placed under the cabinets?
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Comments (9)
9 months agoRelated Discussions
Can I install pavers on top of concrete patio and walkway???
Comments (3)The contractor surely is suggesting to lay them in a mortar set over the existing concrete right? If so, it works but better be done properly or else one stone coming loose will be very difficult to repair. The surface joints too would need to be well mortared and sealed to prevent any moisture from entering, and don't forget expansion gaps. Laying a gravel base over concrete is an even worse idea IMO. Doesn't compact and creates an impermeable foundation beneath what little gravel base you may have. Furthermore it leaves your entire patio susceptible to any movement experienced by the concrete slab. Gravel bases are used in our climate in part due to their flexibility. In the end I wouldn't do it for a client and if I did I wouldn't warranty it. All that said though, you do have an opportunity to install what I consider to be one of the nicer and more underrated outdoor ground surfaces- reclaimed red brick turned on edge. One of my favorite designers James Van Sweden is big on this as it creates one of the warmest and most transitional (home to exterior) ground surfaces as well as being very amenable to patterned desings. Would need to work with your home and greater landscape though....See MoreBase cabinet installation, please advise
Comments (1)I generally use two sets of shims per cabinet, setting them a couple of inches in from each side. The shims are loose due to the cabinets moving when the screws fastening them to the wall were installed. That is normal and can be easily fixed by moving a shim----if you are using the wedge shaped kind-----until the shim pack is tight. That will not appreciably alter the position of a single cabinet as long as all the units are screwed together. You can push a shim in too far with a hammer, however, so all you need to do is tighten the shim pack....See MoreShims, Shims Everywhere....Need Major Advice
Comments (36)The corner fillers should be cut to the cabinet frame height and then the toe extends into the corner. Or, you do baseboard molding around them. Which is a much less successful look for a corner. Baseboard is for an end panel or back side of an island. Since the cabinet to floor space varies, what people are telling you about cutting a custom width toekick from a skin panel would also be my suggestion. You have to be able to accurately measure the height in several locations, transfer that to the skin, and then cut it accurately with a good table saw. A table saw is an indispensable piece of equipment when doing cabinets, just as a miter saw is. Then, once the custom piece is cut, you have to be able to square up the one side again as well because it will be going against the level cabinet, then cut another piece of custom toe....See MoreCabinets shimmed up an inch
Comments (31)That would have been a lot more expensive later when the damage became more extensive and the floor would have to be ripped out to get to it. I found a similar thing in a small 20x30 building that came with my shop property. It sat on a slope so the front was level with the ground but the back had crawl space underneath. Decided we better open up the floor when it started to sag in the middle. Idiots who built it not only didn't use treated lumber for the floor joists, but they had a 2x12 untreated main beam not only touching the ground but purposefully buried halfway in dirt! Termites were all up in it and getting up into the subfloor and two wood support posts. I took 20 wheelbarrows of dirt out of there, put in two concrete footers and a new treated double 10x10 beam that didn't touch the ground anymore. Floor is solid as a rock now. People! What are they thinking.......See MoreRelated Professionals
Home Remodeling · Glen Carbon Kitchen & Bathroom Remodelers · Rock Island General Contractors · Des Plaines Flooring Contractors · Montgomery County Flooring Contractors · Whittier Flooring Contractors · Bryan General Contractors · Henderson General Contractors · Syosset General Contractors · Clute Kitchen & Bathroom Designers · Redmond Kitchen & Bathroom Designers · Saint Peters Kitchen & Bathroom Designers · Grain Valley Kitchen & Bathroom Remodelers · Los Altos Cabinets & Cabinetry · Chattanooga Tile and Stone Contractors
PRO9 months agolast modified: 9 months ago
9 months ago
9 months agoI'm in FL on a slab and we had an excellent custom builder. The kitchen cabinets are installed on the slab and the flooring runs to the cabinets and under the range, DW and fridge.
My cabinet maker made baseboards/toekicks for the fridge and DW, with the necessary cut-out to make it work.
PRO9 months ago- 9 months ago
- 9 months ago
PRO9 months ago
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