Learn how to adjust kitchen cabinet doors with this DIY guide — it's easier than you might think
(Image credit: Emma Downer)
Learning how to adjust kitchen cabinet doors can seem complicated to get right, but it doesn’t need to be. In fact, it's one of the easiest and cheapest fixes you can make in your home.
Kitchen cabinet doors are an important part of your kitchen design, so it can be frustrating when they become loose, misaligned or don't close properly.
With this step-by-step guide, you'll learn how to hang and adjust kitchen cabinet doors for a perfect fit.
How to Adjust Kitchen Cabinet Doors: What You'll Need
The tools list is very straightforward. You'll of course need screws, then you just need a screwdriver.
Step 1: Mounting the Hinge
If you are hanging your doors for the first time, as part of fitting a kitchen on a DIY basis, then start by screwing the cup plate onto the cabinet door, and screw the mounting plate onto the cabinet. There are usually holes already created for the hinge by the manufacturer.
There may be a small guideline on the mounting plate to indicate where the A screws should sit, but if not then aim for the centre of the holes.
Step 2: Hanging the Door
TOP TIP #1
A second pair of hands is always useful, but not essential. Try using a stack of books to hold your door in place whilst you fit it.
The hinge arm will have a hook that neatly catches to one end to the mounting plate. Then push the other end of the hinge arm towards the cabinet until it pops into place.
To remove the door, press the release catch, which is often located on the end of the hinge arm.
Step 3: Adjusting the Door
To ensure that your doors look straight and close properly you’ll need to make minor adjustments to the adjustable screws.
The aim is to have a consistent gap around the doors, for both doors to sit at the same height and to not be standing too proud of the cabinets.
There are three main adjustments that can be made to achieve this, as demonstrated in this image:
(Image credit: Emma Downer)
(Image credit: Emma Downer)
TOP TIP #2
If you need to remove the doors for any reason you may find that they require some slight adjustment when you put them back on.
Screws A: If your door is scuffing under the worktop, or the doors are not at the same height, then loosen and adjust these screws for up and down movement.
Screw B: Turn the screw anti-clockwise to move the door further right and turn the screw clockwise to move the door left. Try this if your door is overlapping and won’t close.
Screw C: Adjust this screw closer or further away from the cabinet: clockwise for closer and anticlockwise for further away.
Once you adjust one of the screws you may find it creates a slight misalignment somewhere else — this is normal; make small adjustments until you find the perfect fit.
Your hinges might come with a small cover plate that is designed to clip over the screws to improve the appearance of the hinge. Once you're happy with how the door sits, then it's time to clip on the cover plate.
My door is falling off, what should I do?
The screws that hold the mounting plate to a cabinet can loosen over time. One solution for this is to fill the holes with toothpicks to make the hole smaller and give the mounting screws something new to grip to.
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Emma is a UK-based DIY educator and director of the social media brand DIY With Emma, whose primary mission is to help more people get into DIY through sharing DIY hacks and how-tos. The DIY influencer, whose videos have received millions of views, has recently renovated her 19th-century cottage on a tight budget, has also created DIY content for Homebuilding & Renovating.
