Concealed European Cabinet Hinges: Simple and Stylish

It's time to remodel your kitchen or bath! All of the details can be overwhelming, but a crucial element you don't want to skip out on is the hinges for your cabinet doors. Make the perfect complement to your custom, made-to-order cabinet doors with concealed European cabinet hinges to truly transform your space.

When you're planning to replace or upgrade your cabinet doors, it's essential to also install new hinges to go along with them. New hinges, a relatively cheap and simple update, will make a night and day difference to your kitchen or bathroom. These concealed cabinet hinges ensure your beautiful new cabinet doors don't sag, are aligned correctly and have a smooth opening and closing every time, no matter how often you use them. 

WHEN TO CONSIDER NEW CABINET DOOR HINGES

Before you learn about what hinges are right for your cabinetry, you'll need to know when it's time for an upgrade. So when is a good time to replace your cabinet door hinges? Here are a few scenarios that are a perfect time to consider your new update:

• Looking for an inexpensive home upgrade:Consider updating your outdated cabinet hinges to European concealed hinges when you just want something new and fresh in your home but also want to be kind to your budget. If you're not in the market yet for a complete room overhaul, this relatively quick home upgrade will freshen up your kitchen or bathroom look and won't hurt your wallet.
• Updating style:If you recently changed your decor style, let's say from traditional to contemporary, change out your hinges, too. Every detail matters, and updating your hinges to a contemporary finish will complete your new decor look. Complete your new custom cabinet doors with quality hinges to finish off your space. Concealed hinges for cabinets are the perfect touch for a modern-style home because they are sleek and minimalistic.
• Replacing for quality:Tired of your cabinets always being slightly misaligned? Then it's time for a hinge update. An amazing benefit of concealed cabinet hinges is that they are very easy to align even after installation. With a simple turn of the screwdriver, your cabinets and hinges are perfectly realigned in seconds. Replacing your old hinges with high-quality ones is a quick fix that will last a long time and ease your alignment headaches.
• Replacing broken hinges: It's about time to replace your old, broken hinges with high-quality European concealed hinges. These hinges are a simple upgrade that will leave you pleased, with your cabinet doors opening and closing perfectly every time.

HOW CONCEALED HINGES WORK

Concealed European hinges are the most common and popular hinge available today. They're also easier to install than a knife or butt hinge and can be easily adjusted even after installation. 

If you're looking for hidden hinges for cabinet doors, concealed hinges are just that. These hardware options aren't visible from the outside once you shut the cabinet door. The result is a clean and modern appearance with minimal distraction. These sleek-designed hidden hinges for cabinets truly allow your beautiful cabinet doors to shine on their own. There's no need to worry about clashing colors or matching up your hinges with the rest of your hardware, either, since everything is tucked away neatly in your cabinet.

Concealed hinges work with the following framed cabinet door types:

• Partial overlay, where the most common is 1/2"
• Full overlay, where the most common is 1 1/4"
• Inset doors

The concealed European hinges feature a mounting plate that secures to the cabinet frame and a "cup" that sits in the back of the cabinet door.

CONSIDERATIONS TO MAKE FOR YOUR CABINET DOORS AND HINGES

If it's time to update your cabinetry's hinges and doors, you have a few considerations to make. Take these factors into account to select the right cabinetry hinges and doors:

HINGE BORING OPTIONS

When ordering your replacement cabinet doors, choose the hinge boring option so the cabinet doors are pre-bored with the correct boring hole. Most cabinet doors are bored with a 35 mm round mortise boring to slide the "cup" side of the hinge perfectly in the cabinet door.

Note the distance of the hinge boring, as well. Standard hinge boring for some cabinets is 3" from the top and bottom of the cabinet door. Hinge boring for other cabinets is 3 3/4" from the top and bottom of each cabinet door.

With arch or cathedral top profile cabinet doors, be sure to pick which side of the cabinet door to bore, either the left or right. The boring side is not interchangeable once the boring holes are made. Square panel cabinet doors can be flipped to be used on either side.

For any cabinet doors that are not pre-bored for hinges, you'll need to bore the cabinet doors first before attaching the hardware. You'll need to buy a 35 mm concealed hinge jig bit and follow the recommended instructions to ensure a proper fit for your new concealed hinges.

SIZE

To accommodate concealed hinges, ensure your cabinet doors are at least 1/2" in thickness. Most standard cabinet doors are 3/4" thick, so you shouldn't have trouble finding the right door. Still, it's best to double-check if you're getting new doors that they're the correct thickness for your hinges.

NUMBER

You'll need to know how many hinges you need for your project to ensure you can install every door. Count how many hinges you need per door and how many doors you're upgrading to get the total. Note that heavy cabinet doors may need more hinges for the best support.

Depending on the height and weight of your cabinet door, it might require two to four Euro cabinet hinges. Most cabinet doors below 42" tall only require two hinges. 

Be sure to measure your cabinet doors to get the correct amount of hinges for your project.

HINGE UPGRADE OPTIONAL FEATURES

Since you're adding new hinges to your kitchen or bathroom anyway, you might want to enhance your upgrade with convenient hardware options. Soft-close hinges are a nice upgrade for your home. This hardware features a hydraulics mechanism, which closes the cabinet door slowly and gently on its own. You'll never deal with hearing slammed cabinet doors again!

Soft-close hinges ease the noise of cabinet doors shutting, and they can slow down the wear and tear of your hinges since they don't allow slamming and banging. This hardware can also protect your cabinet doors. Soft-close hinges save your cabinet from the scratching and damage caused by the slamming of doors. Extend the life of your cabinets, from the doors to the hinges, with the soft-close feature.

THE OVERLAY

Door overlay is the position of the cabinet door in relation to how it "overlays" to the cabinet opening. Concealed hinges for face frame cabinets come in varying overlay sizes — 1/2" is the most common. 

You can measure the overlay of your cabinets by measuring from the edge of the cabinet opening to the edge of the door when closed.

Knowing how much your cabinets overlay will help you decide which concealed cabinet hinges to purchase.

• Partial overlay: The cabinet doors still allow you to see the cabinet face frame. 
• Full overlay: The cabinet doors completely cover the cabinet face frame so you only see the door.

COMPARING OTHER STYLES OF CABINET DOOR HINGES

When replacing your cabinet doors, it's useful to know which type of door hinges will be best for you in your new project. Have an idea of the style, functionality and ease of installation you're going for with your project before deciding on a hinge type to complement your new cabinet doors. Here are a few comparisons between some of the common cabinet door hinge styles and types:

CABINET DOOR HINGE STYLES

These different styles of cabinet door hinges all depend upon whether you would like to see the hinge fully, partially or not at all when the cabinet doors are closed:

• Semi-concealed hinge: With this option, you can partially see the hinge on the outside of the cabinet when the door is fully closed. These hinges are mounted on the inside of the cabinet frame and the inside of the cabinet door. But you can see the decorative hinge barrel from the outside of the closed door.
• Exposed hinge: With this option, you can see the entire hinge when the cabinet door is fully closed as it is attached on the outside of the door rather than the inside. These hinges are mounted on the outside of the cabinet frame and the outside of the cabinet door.
• Concealed hinge: With this option, the entire hinge is hidden as all of the details are on the inside of the cabinet. These hinges are mounted on the inside of the cabinet frame and the cabinet door. Hidden cabinet door hinges are the most popular option nowadays because they provide a sleek, minimalistic finish for your modern kitchen or bathroom.

With those hinge styles in mind, you then have two primary categories to consider — concealed European hinges and traditional styles.

1. EUROPEAN HINGES

These European door hinges are known for their cup plates for proper installation with two main parts. The first is the hinge itself, which goes on the inside of the cabinet. The second is the cup mounting plate, which goes on the inside of the cabinet door.

These hinges require the cabinet doors to be bored so the cup fits seamlessly into the cut-out hole. With that, you get advantages like:

• Quick installation:These modern hinges can be installed quickly once the door is bored for the cup. You won't need to measure where to put the mount on the door — just place the cup in its hole.
• Easy adjustments:Concealed hinges like these have an amazing advantage in that they can adjust slightly for a perfect cabinet door alignment even after installation. This functionality is especially useful when your doors need a quick fine-tuning adjustment. All it requires is a quick turn of the screwdriver. With use over time, your doors' alignments may shift, but with concealed hinges, it's a simple fix.
• Sleek functionality:As the name implies, European concealed hinges are virtually invisible — you only see them when the door is open. This feature is key for a clean-looking modern kitchen or bathroom because the hinge is concealed inside the cabinet.

European hinges are an excellent choice for those who don't want to sacrifice ease of installation for a sleek appearance.

2. TRADITIONAL HINGES

These types of hinges have a barrel or a pin in the middle of two leaves on either side that allow the door to open and close. One leaf attaches to the cabinet while the other leaf attaches to the cabinet door. Compare traditional hinge features to European ones, where classic options come with these considerations:

• Careful installation: Traditional door hinges take more time to install since you have to measure where to install them both on the door and the cabinet.
• Complex realignment:If the cabinet door becomes unaligned after installation, fixing this problem becomes a little trickier and more time-consuming as it requires more tools and patience.
• Visible, decorative functionality:These hinges are typically installed for decorative purposes. The barrel seen on the outside of the cabinet door is often a decorative and functional feature. Because it's visible, some homeowners opt to match the hinges with other hardware in the room. Traditional hinges will show off any deterioration, such as nicks or rust, so you may need to clean them more often or replace them sooner if the appearance becomes a detractor.

STEPS FOR INSTALLING YOUR NEW CONCEALED EUROPEAN CABINET HINGES

Hidden hinges for cabinet doors are a simple and stylish way to update the look of your kitchen or bath cabinets, plus they are simple to install and easy on the budget. Make sure to follow any provided instructions to ensure your doors will be level and open and close properly.

Tools needed include a Phillips screwdriver, a power drill and the screws that came with the hinges. If you need to bore holes into your doors, you'll also need a 35 mm jig bit. With your tools ready, follow the steps below to install your hinges.

STEPS TO FOLLOW IF YOU NEED TO BORE YOUR DOORS

If your cabinet doors aren't bored yet, follow these steps:

1. Follow the recommended instructions from the jig bit to properly drill the hole for your mounting cup. 
2. Ensure you bored the doors on the correct side for proper opening and closing if you're using arched or cathedral tops.
3. Lay your unattached cabinet door face down on a flat, clean surface so the inside of the cabinet where the hole is going is facing you.
4. Count the number of holes you need bored and space them out properly.
5. Measure the same distance from the top of the door to the first hole and from the bottom of the door to the first hole and mark it.
6. Ensure these markings are the same distance from the edge. Getting these measurements correct helps keep cabinet doors level after installation.
7. Mark where the bores should go on the door and begin drilling.
8. Be sure to clean out any lingering wood dust from the hole and surrounding the hole before continuing with the next steps.
9. Follow the steps in the next section to attach your new door hinges to your bored cabinet door.

STEPS TO FOLLOW ONCE YOUR DOORS ARE BORED

If your cabinet doors already have bores or you've added the holes, follow these steps:

1. Fit the cup side of the new hinge flush to the back of the cabinet door. 
2. Drill pilot holes for the screws partly into the cabinet door using a drill bit smaller than the hinge screw, following the screw holes in the mount. Be careful not to drill too far or through the cabinet door.
3. Screw the hinge to the cabinet door after you've created pilot holes.
4. Measure the cabinet door placement positions on the inside of the cabinets across the bottom of the cabinet doors for correct alignment. Hold each cabinet door in place and mark the screw hole positions on the cabinet face. This step ensures your cabinet doors are level and aligned properly.
5. Drill pilot holes for the screws into the cabinet face at the marked points. 
6. Align the hinge holes and screw the cabinet doors into place.
7. Adjust the concealed hinge however you need. Consult the installation instructions to see how to adjust your hinges.

Need some more help on installation? Check out our guide to learn how to measure your cabinet doors properly and ensure proper alignment with your hinges. We are also happy to provide more information on custom cabinet doors and drawer fronts for your next home renovation project. 

ONLY WANT TO CHANGE THE DOOR HINGES? NO PROBLEM

If you're not ready to do a complete overhaul of your kitchen or bathroom just yet, no worries! It is possible to only change out your hinges for a convenient, elegant upgrade to your home. You don't need new cabinet doors to get new cabinet door hinges. And the best part — you can reuse these concealed door hinges when you do decide to replace your doors.

Concealed Euro hinges are a beautiful and stylish accessory to add to your existing cabinets in your kitchen or bathroom. Only changing the hinges to your cabinet doors in your kitchen or bathroom can still have a dramatic effect on your room's new appearance. It revamps the style of your home with a simple upgrade you can easily install on your own.

INSTALLING NEW CONCEALED HINGES ON EXISTING CABINET DOORS

To install new hinges on existing cabinetry, unscrew the existing hinges from the cabinets and lift off the doors. Then, unscrew the old hinges from the cabinet doors. You can then follow the step-by-step instructions listed above, and you're all set with your new hidden cabinet hinges.

With your new concealed hinges on hand, you're ready to enter the market for new cabinet doors any time. These hinges are designed to be easily uninstalled and reinstalled, so you can simply reuse them for your next project without having to worry about ordering new ones.

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We have been helping homeowners and contractors get what they need to transform kitchens and bathrooms for years, making Cabinet Doors 'N' More the No. 1 source for cabinet components. To learn more about our cabinetry solutions and delivery options, contact us today!

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