Attaching new cabinets or replacing your old cabinets after painting them might require significant labor and money. It is also a very technical process that requires different techniques.
While there are numerous expensive and cheap ways to screw cabinets together, the basics remain the same. You must start by selecting the correct screws for your cabinets. Next, align the cabinets together and clamp them. Attach all the cabinets to the wall using screws.
And then adjust the doors and the drawers. If you are screwing kitchen cabinets, you might require extra effort to attach the countertop. To know the full process of screwing cabinets together, you should read further.
Table of Contents
What screws to attach cabinets together?
There are numerous specialty screws available in the woodworking market but selecting the best screws to attach cabinets is still a tough decision to make. This is because non-shear screws like drywall screws cannot be used as they are unable to hold the great amount of tension that cabinet screws are supposed to bear.
Length
The screw length is one factor that is the most important and must be considered during the selection of cabinet screws. A rule of thumb is the screw must penetrate half of the cabinet base.
Diameter
Another important factor is the diameter of the screw—the diameters of screws available on the market range from 2mm to 16mm. If your base material is thick, use screws with large diameters to ensure firm installation. On the other hand, if your base material is thin, you can use screws with small diameters so that there is no need to hide it under a wood plug or cap.
While there are various sizes of screws available to screw cabinets together, the number 8, 1-5/8 inch screw, is used most commonly. But you may go for a higher (12-14) or lower (6) numbered screw, depending on the thickness of your base material.
How To Screw Cabinets together?
Before screwing your cabinets together, you must complete the plumbing, electrical, and painting work. Once everything is done, you can start screwing your cabinets together, which might require some basic carpentry skills. To screw your cabinets together, you must follow the steps listed below.
- Secure the corner cabinet with the wall.
- Adjust and align the face frame of the first cabinet with the next one in the row using C-Clamps. Using hand screw clamps is better since they don’t flex, which means the grip is tighter.
- Use shims to ensure that the adjacent cabinets are on the same level.
- Use a drill machine to drill a 1/8-inch hole near the door hinge position in the face frame.
- Attach the first two cabinets with a number 8, 2.5-inch screw.
- Always ensure that you attach cabinets from the face frames.
- Place the screw head on the cabinet where it would be less noticeable.
How far should the screw go into the stud?
When screwing cabinets together using wooden screws, the rule of thumb is to make sure that your wooden screw is halfway into your wooden cabinet. This would form a secure connection between the two pieces of cabinets or the cabinet and the wall since the vertical stud is 2 inches thick.
For example, if you want to connect two cabinets, each with a thickness of 1 inch, your screw must have a length of 1.5 inches. This would mean that the screw would be 0.5 inches into the second cabinet. Ensuring that the two cabinets have a secure bond will increase the durability of your cabinet set.
This is also important to prevent wood splitting, wood screw breaking, and screw head from stripping. The two important steps before screwing the screw in the stud are:
- Use a stud finder to find the stud in the wall. You can usually find these 16 to 24 inches apart.
- Decide the wooden screw that you want to use. The 1 5/8-inch wood screw is used commonly.
How are kitchen cabinets attached to each other?
When attaching kitchen cabinets, the common method is to screw all the cabinets together.
- Clamp the cabinets together after lining them up.
- Level the base cabinets by using cabinet shims.
- Drill a pivot hole for each anchor.
- Drill in the screws in the pivot holes drilled earlier.
- Secure the cabinets with the wall through the back of the cabinets using plaster or drywall.
How do you screw frameless cabinets together?
Frameless euro-style cabinets have front edges visible. It is harder to install these cabinets since there are no side edges to hide small errors. These cabinets are also heavier, so it is important to screw the cabinets together properly. The steps listed below must be followed to screw frameless cabinets together.
- If the sink cabinet has to be secured under the window, start with it. Or else, start with the corner base cabinet.
- Place the second cabinet next to the first one. You must join all the cabinets together before securing them with the wall. Join and align the two cabinets together using a clamp.
Next, you must drill pilot holes into the cabinets and join the two cabinets using screws or connecting bolts. Ensure that the number of cabinets is screwed together to fulfill the weight capacity to avoid damage.
- Join all the base cabinets in the same way as described above.
- To bring the cabinets on the same level as the walls, use shims to wedge cabinets in place.
- Use a drill machine to drill holes into the cabinets, shims, and wall studs.
- A minimum of 2 screws should be used for each cabinet to secure it with the wall studs. Larger and heavier cabinets might require more screws, but all screws will be attached from the back of the cabinets.
- Check the alignment of all cabinets before securing them with the wall. Secure all the base cabinets with the wall.
- Arrange and adjust all the drawers and doors.
- Use a drill machine to drill a hole in the top stretchers of the cabinets. This will help in attaching the countertop to the cabinets.
How do you hang a cabinet with one stud?
Attaching cabinets to the wall could be high labor and high-cost process, but you can hang your cabinet with one stud to reduce these costs. The installation of hanging cabinets, especially those hanging with one stud, must be done properly to ensure they hold a large amount of weight while also being fully secure to prevent them from falling off.
Before you start hanging your cabinet using a stud, you must leave a drywall gap of 0.5 inches. The brackets used must be half the size of your cabinet’s width to provide a secure cabinet connection with immense stability. Follow the steps below to hang a cabinet or shelf with one stud.
- Mark a hole by lining up the stud with the hole.
- For a drywall anchor, pivot the hole using a chisel.
- Secure the drywall anchor onto the wall.
- Use a screwdriver to attach the bracket (male) with the drywall anchor using a screw.
- Use screws to secure the male bracket with the stud.
- Use a female bracket to install the cabinet.
- To fully secure the cabinets to the wall, the set screws should be tightened.
How much weight can cabinet screws hold?
One of the most important factors when screwing cabinets together is the weight those cabinet screws can hold. Cabinet installers must ensure that the weight of the cabinets is distributed evenly to all studs. The greater the number of studs, the better the support.
There are 3 slides readily available in the market with a 75, 100, or 150 pounds rating. Slides with lesser or more (220 pounds maximum) ratings are also available, but their use is limited. Selecting the correct-sized slides is important when securing heavy-duty applications like pantry drawers.
As the kitchen cabinets are usually installed using #10, 3-inch coarse screws, each screw can hold a maximum of 5 pounds. When attaching wall cabinets using studs, each stud is known to hold between 8- to 100 pounds approximately.
Conclusion
Even though screwing cabinets look like an easy task, it requires professional skills and practice to ensure that the cabinets are attached to the wall firmly. This process also requires in-depth knowledge of the materials to be used, including the correct size of screws for different types of cabinets.
Woodworkers or carpenters must also know the maximum amount of weight that the cabinets would be able to hold. While the basic method of attaching cabinets stays the same, the technique may differ from person to person.
