Door Hinges for Kitchen

[Mike Goetzke]

I'm ready to buy hinges for our kitchen remodel. The more I look the more confused I get. I want to use Euro 35mm cup style hinges. Here are some questions I have (I have face frame construction with 2" wide end stiles & 3" wide center stiles):

1) On doors without opening restriction what hinge opening is used? (I see 105*, 107*, 110*...170*...)

2) On doors with restrictions, like next to a frig surround, the door can only open I'm guessing slightly more than 90* what angle hinges get used here?

3) Overlay. On my many smaller cabinet projects I have used 1/2 overlay. Is it best to stick with this 3/8" overlay or use full (3/4") overlay hinges?

4) One piece hinge versus two. I have been told for custom work like mine the single piece is fine and the two piece was developed for high production work. Looking for pros/cons.

5) Soft close. Of course my wife wanted soft close slides after she saw them in the store but do the soft close add-ons for door hinges work well too?

Thanks,

Mike

[Greg Portland]

I'm not a kitchen expert so I'll let someone else reply on the exact type of hinges to use.

With overlay, my Blum hinges came with templates for no, half, and full overlay options. IMO, the 2-piece hinges are easier / less unwieldy to install + they make cabinet installation easier (just snap the doors in once the cabs are in place). If you have a LOT of hinges to drill then you might want to consider one of those jigs that will drill all 3 holes (cup + 2 screw holes) at once.

[Mike Goetzke]

OK - the wife wants Blumotion door hinges. Problem I see is that they are only a 110 deg hinge. I can get 125 deg hinges and add dampers but they look sort of ugly. A couple of cabinetmakers and hardware suppliers have told me that 110 deg hinges are the norm. I'm worried it's not enough but then again our old cabinets had the exposed hinges that let the door open till it hit something.

Any 110 deg hinge owners out there with feedback appreciated.


Thanks,

Mike

[johnny means]

mike, I'm a professional and I stock 110s for normal use. Never had any complaints. Really, how far past 90 degrees does a door need to open?

[Jamie Buxton]

I generally use the Blum 120 degree hinges. They open wide enough that most people don't run into the stop. Ones that open wider have a more complicated mechanism inside, so they cost more. Worse, they have more play in them, so they don't work well for inset doors or overlay ones with small gaps between the doors.

I use 120 degree hinges even when beside a wall or fridge. If you want, you can use smaller-angle hinges there.

The amount of overlay mostly is an esthetics issue. 3/8" is fine.

I don't know what you mean by one piece versus two. All cup hinges I've ever used are two pieces -- a hinge part, and the mounting plate part.

You can put the soft-close thingy on the hinge, or Blum makes a soft-close cylinder that can go on the latch side of the door opening. http://www.wwhardware.com/blumotion-for-doors-b970.html