How to adjust the hinges on furniture doors

They say three crossings are like one fire. It is better not to check whether it is true or not. But what we can say with confidence is that the doors on cabinets, bedside tables and lockers suffer from moving in the first place.

First when loading, and then in the back of the truck, every shock and bump is reflected on the furniture. The fasteners of the awnings are loosened and the doors sag and stop closing normally.

After unloading in a new place, in order to return the furniture to its previous appearance, it is necessary to adjust the hinges on the cabinet doors.

What you need to adjust the hinges on furniture doors

Before proceeding with the repair or adjustment of facades on cabinet furniture, you must first understand the essence of the issue, despite its external simplicity.

It takes into account both the materials and the properties of the wooden surface, and the design features, and the method of installing canopies.

But the set of tools is quite simple and accessible to everyone:

• screwdriwer set;
• small hammer;
• electric drill;
• folding rule or tape measure;
• simple pencil;
• building level;
• fixing screws.

The main differences between the hinges:

• constructive;
• the quality of the material;
• design style;
• functional.

The selection of the necessary fastening devices is carried out depending on the size and type of furniture, as well as the materials from which it is made.

For more expensive, design options, canopies with a quick-release mechanism and a door closer are used. Traditionally, hinges with floor attachment or attachment are used.

Most often you can find four-hinged fasteners - "frog". Of the fixing methods, the upper and lower ones prevail, in the case of a heavier door, a middle point is added.

Regulation rules

Adjusting the hinges on the cabinet doors is not a very difficult process, but some recommendations will help you get the job done faster:

1. First of all, make sure that the object (cabinet, bedside table, etc.) is installed or suspended in level, both horizontally and vertically.
2. If a level mismatch is found and it is not possible to align, it is necessary to adjust by increasing the facade gaps. The best option for evenly exposed furniture from 3 to 5 millimeters.
3. You should always start by leveling the vertical gaps along the entire sash and only then move on to adjusting the height relative to the facade. If you act in the reverse order, the settings will constantly go astray.
4. If the first steps do not help to achieve the desired result, then you need to check the accuracy of the fit of the canopy cup in the hole on the facade. In the presence of such a problem, it is unlikely that it will be possible to keep the door setting for a long time, it will constantly go astray. First, you need to fix the fastening of the hinge itself on the sash.

Adjustment methods

There are several ways to adjust the hinges on your kitchen cabinet doors and more. Sash suspension settings are carried out in the direction of three planes:

• vertically;
• horizontally;
• in depth.

The adjustment is carried out in order to eliminate problems with the suspension of the doors that arose during operation or during installation.

Having established in which plane it is necessary to adjust, the fastening screws or self-tapping screws of the canopies are loosened with a screwdriver, the sash is leveled, the fastening fittings are tightened with force.

Vertical

Adjustment of the cabinet hinges in the vertical plane is carried out, when the facade doors sag, violate the general contour, in the closed state one sash is higher than the other.

The step-by-step adjustment technique looks like this:

1. We release the hinges from the plugs.
2. The screws are responsible for the vertical adjustment, which are located farther from the edge of the side walls of the cabinet. We loosen this fastener, set the upper and lower screws in the same position.
3. We close the door and check its position relative to the body. For example, if it is overwhelmed by the upper corner to the right, tighten the bolt of the upper canopy more by hand and release the lower one.
4. Repeat points 2 and 3 sequentially until the optimal variant is reached.

Height adjustment

Two fastening screws, which are installed in the upper and lower outflows of the hinge body for attaching it to the side surface of the cabinet, are also responsible for the departure of the doors in height relative to the body of the furniture element.

Technology:

1. We loosen both screws on all suspension elements of this sash.
2. We raise or lower the door leaf, depending on what is needed, we fix it.
3. We tighten the fasteners with effort, but so as not to disrupt the thread.

On a plane

By adjusting the furniture hinges, you can change the position of the door on the furniture facade in the plane. The need for such an adjustment arises when one of the flaps does not fit tightly to the body or, when closing, springs in the opposite direction.

To eliminate this drawback, you should unscrew or screw in the hinge adjusting screw, which is closer to the edge of the sidewall. Checking the position of the door every time. Continue tuning until the desired result is obtained.

How to properly care for hinges

The ability to regulate furniture awnings does not exempt from their maintenance. An integrated approach will significantly extend the life of the hinges.

Care instructions:

• Compliance with the frequency of adjustment. The first time is carried out after installation, then, depending on the frequency of use and loads, at least once every six months. In the event of distortions, the adjustment should be carried out without postponing indefinitely.
• Regular lubrication of the hinges will prevent squeaks and tight opening. Machine oil is suitable as a lubricant. THAT - once a year.
• Check the setting in all planes, maintaining balance to eliminate uneven loading of the hinges.

Why else the door may not close

Because of what the skew of the swing leaves may appear:

• This disease very often happens with the kitchen door under the sink. This is facilitated, firstly, by frequent opening and closing, possibly with a slam. Secondly, moisture leads to swelling of the door material, its deformation and weakening of the hinges. It is necessary to re-adjust the hinges according to the above method; in a critical situation, the door leaf will have to be replaced.
• Young children can arrange a ride on the locker sash, from which it naturally sags. Supervise the children, explain that such games lead to damage to expensive property.
• The tight fit of furniture cases, for example, wall-mounted, kitchen cabinets, leads to friction between adjacent sashes, which ends in bending of the hinges. In this case, the adjustment may give nothing. To avoid this, when hanging cabinets, you need to leave a small gap between adjacent sides of the enclosures.
• Sash distortions may appear due to unevenness of the surface on which the furniture cabinets are installed. The disadvantage is eliminated by leveling using pads of various thicknesses under the base.

After spending a few minutes adjusting the furniture hinges and fighting the door distortion, you will get the perfect appearance of the facade, the satisfaction of a well-done, independently, work and prolong the life of the awnings for a long time.

Video: how to adjust cabinet and furniture doors