Working out door sizes for Cabinets, Carcasses, Wardrobes and Built in Cupboards etc
Kitchen doors have to be narrower than carcasses to allow for the action of the hinge when opening the door. This is especially important when you have a row of kitchen units. There's no standard formula but making the door 4mm narrower than the carcass works well. This would be a 496mm wide door for a 500mm unit. Doors can be anything from 495mm to 498mm on a 500mm unit.
Door heights are generally 5mm shorter than the carcass, giving a 15.5mm overlap top and bottom. I think this has more to do with 5mm being a tidy number than needing 2.5mm top and bottom.
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Standard carcass/unit 18mm unit single door with standard concealed hinges 100 or 170 degree |
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Subtract the 4mm from the width of the carcass and 5mm from the height Example; a 500mm wide 720mm high carcass will need a door 496mm wide (500 minus 4 = 496) and 715mm high ( 720 minus 5 = 715) This seems to be the most common size for standard units, although a 500mm unit door can be anything from 495mm to 498mm
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Standard carcass/unit double doors with standard concealed hinges 100 or 170 degree |
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For standard Concealed hinges 100 or 170 degree Divide the outside carcass width by two, then subtract 4mm (900mm divide x 2 = 450mm minus 4mm give you 2 doors at 446mm)
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| Built in cupboard with a single door using standard concealed hinges 100 or 170 degree | |
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We recommed calculating the door size from the internal gap then adding 16mm for the hinge and a 16mm overlap for the opposite side. Calculation Internal width plus 32mm equals required door size. Example internal size 390mm + 32mm = 422mm
You need 18mm clearance on the hinge side of the frame if you use standard hinge plates. The example shows an internal frame size of 390mm and an overlap of 16mm on both sides. The side opposite to the hinges can overlap as much or as little as you like. The frame height overlap can be any size to suit your needs. 15mm top and bottom work.
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Built in cupboard with double doors using standard concealed hinges 100 or 170 degree. The frame needs to be at least 60mm deep. |
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It's important to have the two vertical frames parallel and if you can wait it can be a good idea to build your frame then measure for the doors. It is some times easier to fit doors to a frame than build a frame to a door.
Internal width divided by 2 plus 14mm equals required door size. Example Internal size 640mm / 2 = 320 + 14mm = 334mm. This will give you a 4mm gap between the two doors.
The frame height gap can be any size to suit your needs but plus 15.5mm top and bottom works well. |
| Internal or flush fitting doors using standard concealed hinges or 15mm cranked hinges |
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Single door fitted in a frame The verticals needs to be parallel If you do not have parallel sides plain MDF doors can be useful as they can be trimmed before painting. The door needs to be 4mm less than the internal width to allow for the hing action Door/panel should be approx 5mm less than the height. Internal width less 4mm (e.g. 430mm minus 4mm equals 426mm)
You can use a 15mm cranked hinge or a standard concealed hinge and 18mm packing pieces.
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Double doors fitted in a frame Esch door needs to be 4mm less than the internal width to allow for the hing action Door/panel should be approx 5mm less than the height. Internal width divided by 2 less 4mm (e.g. 800mm divided by 2 gives 400mm minus 4mm equals 396mm)
You can use a 15mm cranked hinge or a standard concealed hinges and 18mm packing piece. |
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Standard concealed hinges can be used for internal fitting doors. A 18mm packer with a mininium depth of 60mm is needed to fix the hinge. The 15mm hinges are neater but this will work just as well. Plate screw hole location 37mm from front 32mm centres in the vertical. |
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This guide covers the most popular hinges. The links below take you to three of the major hinge makers/suppliers. Links to hinge suppliers/manufacturers |
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