How to install Blum hinges on cabinet doors

Follow along as we teach you how to install soft close cabinet hinges.

KJP carries three common styles of cabinet door hinges: 110°, 155°, and +45°.
These are all Blum soft close hinges with Blumotion. If you’ve never assembled cabinet doors before, you may have a few questions. We’ll start off by answering some common questions and then we’ll move on to when you should use each model.

What does overlay, half-overlay, and inset mean?

Full-overlay hinges are used when you want the entire cabinet side to be covered by the door. These are useful if you have single doors to hang.

Inset hinges are used when you want the door to sit inside the opening creating a reveal that is flush with the front of the cabinet.

Half-overlay hinges are used when you want two doors to back on to each other and meet in the centre of the cabinet sides.

How do self-closing cabinet hinges work? Is that what soft close means?

Self closing hinges are fitted with a spring that help pull the door closed all the way. It also aids in keeping the doors closed so that you don’t need a separate catch mechanism.

Soft close is a feature found on Blum hinges that act as a dampener. Essentially this feature slows down the self-closing spring so that the doors don’t slam when you close them.

How to drill holes for cabinet hinges

The hole that you need to drill for the hinge body is 35mm in diameter and needs to be a depth of 13mm. The Famag 35mm forstner bit is a great choice for creating this pocket. A drill press is handy but not necessary to create these holes.

You will also need a self-centering bit like the Amana Centering Bit to bore the pilot holes for the screws that hold the hinge components in place.

Adjusting cabinet hinges: can you do that?

Quite possibly the best feature of these hidden hinges is the ability to make some minor adjustments to how they fit on cabinet.

To adjust the door vertically (illus 1b below), simply turn the screw indicated to move the door to the desired position.

To adjust the door in or out (illus 2b), turn the indicated screw clockwise to push the door away from the cabinet and counterclockwise to pull the door closer to the cabinet.

To adjust the door side to side (illus 3), turn the indicated screw clockwise to move the door left and counterclockwise to move it right.

Now that we’ve described the basics of what comprises a cabinet hinge, let’s chat about how to install the 3 different hinges that KJP carries.

How to install standard kitchen cabinet hinges such as the 110° hinge

These hinges are the most common that you will see because they are useful for almost all applications where hidden hinges are used. The installation of these hinges is fairly simple.

Start with the door:

Locate the hinge body hole with the centre of the hole located 22.5mm from the edge of the door’s edge. You can set them anywhere on the length of the door but 75mm from the top and bottom usually works well. Extend the centre line to the edge.

Drill holes for the hinge body that are 35mm in diameter and no deeper than 13mm.

Pre-drill the securing screws using a self-centering bit and fasten the screws through the hinge boss.

Then move on to the carcass:

The hinge mounting plate is positioned at the same height as the hinge and is set back 37mm from the edge. The mounting plate is attached again with screws. (If you are using inset hinges, be aware that your setback with be 37mm plus the thickness of your door.)

Clip the hinge onto the mounting plate. You will hear an audible click.

The 110° hinges can be purchased in the 3 different types: overlay, half-overlay, and inset.

How to install a 155° Blum cabinet hinge

Installation is the same as the 110° hinges and they are interchangeable. This is handy if you decide to reconfigure a cabinet to include slide out drawers or trays. You can get these hinges in either full or half overlay configurations.

 

How to install corner cabinet hinges using the +45° cabinet hinges by Blum

If the doors you are attaching are to corner cabinet, then these are the hinges of you. The installation is the same as the others with the only different being the shape of the hinge arms.

Blum soft close concealed hinges are a great option for both kitchen cabinetry or furniture making. They are easy to install and adjust and the soft close feature is a joy to experience. Give them a try on your next project with doors.

 

Prefer a video instead? Head on over to our YouTube channel to watch a video on how to install Blum hinges on cabinet doors.