Surface mount hinges act exactly as they sound—they sit on top of the surface of the cabinet material and do not require a hole or mortise to be drilled. Mortise hinges however are recessed into the cabinet and require boring a hole to install. 4. Decide if you want motion features Installing whole overlay hinges is easier than you think. If you have the right tools, you can do the job much faster rather than calling and waiting for a carpenter to fix it for you. Before you start assembling your whole overlay hinges and cabinet doors, you need to have the proper equipment: If you’ve ever gone to a hardware store to look for a set of cabinet hinges, you will probably have discovered there are an overwhelming number of choices. To ensure you get the correct hinge for your cabinets, learn about the main types here. Cabinet Hinge Types 1. Butt Hinge

Now, take the door off and draw a straight line on the cabinet with a combination square on the cabinet’s side panel 2 ¼ inches away from its front edge. In this article, we’ll be talking about the different types of hinges and their differences from each other so that you know what to buy for your cabinets and doors. Types of Hinges Half Overlay. When a partial overlay is installed, the cabinet door partially covers the cabinet box when the door is closed, while the wood edge inside the cabinet box is exposed when the door is open. Hidden hinges, as you may have predicted, are those that cannot be seen from the outside of the cabinet. There are various types of hinges that can fit into this category, and the one you need will be decided by your cabinet type. Some hidden hinges will be completely invisible when the door of the cabinet is closed, while some will be low profile and discreet, though not entirely removed from view. C. Heavy Duty It’s essential that the hinge type you use matches the cabinet door style that you are building so that the door is mounted with the proper amount of clearance. There are two main styles of door overlay—inset doors and overlay doors. Overlay doors come in partial overlay and full overlay. Take a look at your cabinet design to determine which you are working with.Exposed hinges, like butt hinges, are visible and often intentionally so. They are extremely common in traditional American styles of cabinets and vintage styles. On the other hand, concealed hinges offer a clean exterior look and more contemporary style. Exposed hinge cabinet front Concealed hinge cabinet front 3. Choose either surface mount or mortised In addition to the most common hinge types, there are many hinges made specifically for restoration projects, more ornate decorative styles, and even hinges just for piano lids. 1. European hinges A full overlay hinge is suitable for a single cabinet door that covers the whole of its individual cabinet frame. These hinges attach to both the inside of the cabinet door and the inside of the cabinet frame. They cannot be seen from the outside of the cabinet. 8. Pivot Hinge Motion features like soft closing hinges are becoming increasingly popular because they reduce noise from slamming and make closing a door as easy as a tap, even with full hands in the kitchen. Here are the most popular motion features:

Face frame cabinets have a frame installed on the face of the cabinets, while a frameless cabinet box is essentially just the bare box. Inset cabinet doors work well with frameless cabinet boxes because they are installed flush with and on the same plane as the cabinet frame. Clip-On: Easy fixing clip in function on the hinge arm and mounting plate allowing doors to be installed/removed without unscrewing. Full overlay cabinet hinges are an excellent choice if you have a furniture cabinet whose front largely covers the front edge of the cabinet's side. This type of furniture hinge will also work when you want to freely open the cabinet door so that it gently slides over the line of the frame. Moreover, the vast majority of full overlay cabinet hinges are known for their durability and reliability. Easy-On - A simple hinge solution that doesn't require a cup hole drilling - used on thin doors and sheet metal. Full Overlay: Also simply called overlay, a full overlay door covers the entire cabinet opening when closed, and the inside wood edge of the cabinet box is exposed when the door is open. For full overlay doors, the most common hinges are full and partial wraparound, flush mount, surface mount, and full overlay European.USD | 1H 58M Preview Course How to choose the right cabinet hinge 1. Consider your door overlay style

These hinges are also known as surface mount hinges because they are fixed onto the surface of the cabinetry and don’t require a mortice to be created, making them very easy to fit. They are adjustable, allowing you to alter them to allow a door to open and close at exactly the right angle. They are mounted to the inside of both the cabinet door and frame, making for an invisible hinge once the door is closed. Cabinet Hinge Features A. Decorative If you don’t have these items in your garage, then it’s okay. Call your carpenter and let him do the dirty work for you. But if you do have these items, then it’s time to assemble your whole overlay hinges. Step 1: Place a mark on the door where you will place the hinge base for the cabinet A half overlay cabinet is where two doors sit over the top of a frame and meet in the middle. Behind the closing edge of the two doors, at the point where they meet, will be a central post or partitioning wall. These types of cabinet doors require a half overlay hinge, which is attached to the partitioning wall, and allow both doors to open and close snugly against each other without hitting each other. These hinges need to be small to allow them to both fit on the central partition. The look of these hinges is not considered to be important because they won’t be seen when the doors are closed. 7. Full Overlay Hinge The hinges are pretty self-explanatory and what you choose among them entirely depends on the style you’re going for your cabinets and doors. How Do You Install Full Overlay Hinges? An inset hinge is typically quite decorative. This is because their design means that one half of the hinge gets fitted to the outside of the cabinet, and therefore can be seen when the door is closed. Inset hinges have one narrow side, and it is this part that will be seen. The other side of the hinge is wide and rectangular or square-shaped and fixes to the inside of the cabinet door. This is a more old-fashioned type of hinge that is commonly seen on kitchen cabinets in older homes. If you choose an inset hinge, pay careful attention to the decorative portion of the hinge because it will be on display. 6. Half Overlay HingeInset: The cabinet door is flush with and on the same plane as the cabinet frame, and the frame surrounds the entire cabinet door. For inset doors, the most common hinges are butt hinge or surface mount, and inset European. This hinge is so-called because it looks like a long strap, a little like a bandage that attaches the cabinet door to the frame. These are great for larger cabinets or cabinets made from heavy materials because they are able to support a lot of weight. They have two long wings that are joined in the middle. These are common on garden gates and other large doors due to their ability to hold a lot of weight, but they can also work well on cabinets. They come in various designs to suit different styles, as they can be seen from the outside of the cabinet. 12. Wraparound Hinge However, you must remember that the overlay doors and overlay hinges cover slightly less than half of the side of the furniture. This is the reason why full overlay cabinet hinges are mostly used in single kitchen units. By mounting these hinges to a cabinet that consists of a pair of doors, we may have more difficulty in controlling the vertical gap between the two parts of the furniture fronts. Invisible hinges are sometimes also known as concealed hinges. They tend to be very small and fit on the inside of a cabinet. They are popular for instances where you don’t want a hinge to be visible, and even when the cabinet door is open, this type of hinge is very discreet and will not be easily noticeable. 11. Strap Hinge These hinges are fairly inexpensive and should be easy to find in the hardware section of any home store. Take into consideration that some of this hinge will be visible on your cabinet even when the door is closed, so choose a color and finish of metal that you are happy with. 2. Barrel Hinge

Self-close: Available in some concealed hinges. Similar to soft close hinges and draws the door in with even less effort from the user. From the hinge, take out the mounting plate and make sure that the three screw holes are lined up in the middle of the marks you’ve placed, then drill the holes with a self-centering bit. Full overlay cabinet doors can be used with either face frame or frameless cabinets. These doors cover the entire cabinet box opening, as well as the wood end of the cabinet box. Partial overlay cabinet doors are best with face frame cabinets, though it's not impossible to use partial overlay doors with frameless cabinets. These doors cover the entire cabinet box opening, but the wood edge of the cabinet box is exposed. Soft closing hinges are becoming more popular on kitchen cabinets, especially as a feature in high end or modern kitchens. This type of hinge requires the door to be manually pushed close by the user, but just before the cabinet reaches the fully closed position, the hinge itself will take over and slow down the closing process. This results in a ‘soft close,’ preventing the cabinet door from being slammed close, and inhibiting any sound you might usually hear when closing a cabinet door. F. Self-Closing Professional carpenter Ken DeCost prefers the European type of hinge, which is installed on the interior of the cabinet and concealed when the door is closed. European style hinges (designed for frameless cabinets popular in Europe) come in a range of sizes made to fit inset, partial, and full overlay style doors. They offer greater room for adjustments and can support heavier doors.

Featured Cabinet Hinges

At the bark, create a mark using the combination square by ⅞ inch. Make sure that it is aligned with the door’s hinge-side. Self-open: Simply press the drawer front to pop open the door. Good for modern styles that do not have external cabinet hardware.