janny

Hi,

I am a newbie here. I signed along the dotted line and then asked how the cabinets will be installed. It didn't seem right to me so I thought I run it through all the knowledgeable people here.

The cabinet guy said he would connect all the different cabinet boxes together by screwing them together with the next cabinet first, then install them at my home.
In other word, if there is a 36 width cabinet that is along side a corner cabinet, he would put them side by side then attach the two with screws. Then if there is another cabinet that is supposed to be beside the 36 inch one, he would attach them by screws.

Does this sound right?

send_it_all

Well...there is more than one way to skin a cat. Depending on how the cabinets are constructed, I usually attach a ledger board to the wall for the cabinets to rest on. If I have a helper with me, I will attach a few cabinets together first and the attach them to the wall. If I am alone, I will set the cabinet on the ledger and screw it to the wall somewhat loosely, then attach the adjacent cabinets together, then tighten them to the wall. If you screw them to the wall first, it makes it tough to flush up the faces of the cabinets....you need a little moveability.

The issue I have with your question is why don't you let the guy you hired do his thing and not be so concerned with how he gets to the end result? If it doesn't turn out right, withhold final payment until it is corrected. If you have doubts about his ability, find another guy who's ability you don't doubt and then pay him what he asks for. This isn't intended to sound harsh, but I'm a contractor and therefore I'm looking at this from his end. I have been in that situation a couple of times when the homeowner is watching me work and questioning what I am doing. I remember thinking to myself.."if you're an expert, why am I here"?....

AtlanticWBConst.

Tough question to answer, since the actual question is quite ''vague''. You see:

As far as the "attaching" of the cabinets together. Yes, that (attaching) is standard procedure for cabinet installations.
However, as far as what kind/type/arrangement/style/size/height/depth/framing/walls/interior-layout/materials/etc/etc... cabinets your "cabinet guy" is installing....those details can affect the installation procedure.

Is your cabinet guy going about the installation procedure properly...we can't tell you, because we aren't privy to the details of the cabinet designs, their construction, their material, their dimensions, their layout, your home's construction, etc, etc, etc...

__________________
- Build Well -

janny

Hope I can describe it to you better than the last question.
I will be getting a 32 inch undermount stainless steel sink which comes with the kitchen package. He wants the cabinet where the sink is to be 36 inches and on the left side of this cabinet will be 3 inch filler follow by a cabinet. On the right side of this, there will be a 3 inch filler followed by a space for my dishwasher.

It makes more sense to me to have a 42 inch cabinet where the sink will be and not have any filler on both sides (therefore wasted spaces).

What do you think would be best?

36 inch cabinet for 32 inch sink with 3 inch filler on the right and left

or

42 inch cabinet for 32 inch sink with no fillers on the right or left but only the dishwasher or the cabinet

End Grain

Send_it_all's reply was right on the money as far as installation methods and the ability to move the hung cabinets slightly so as to make them flush with each other. Virtually impossible to do if they're driven all the way home onto the walls first. So, attaching a few to each other beforehand is not bizarre or uncommon.

I do agree that you should step back and allow the installers to do their thing first and then withhold final payment if you're dissatisfied. Everybody has a method and it may not always be textbook but it's the end results and overall quality of the job that count. Some guys are simply great at what they do. Others are not, no matter how good the plan or direction is.

__________________
Don't force it. Use a bigger hammer.

send_it_all

Without seeing the complete design I can't tell you which is better. It does sound like a 42" cabinet MIGHT be better there. This is something that should have been worked out on paper before any work started. If it was and it was ok'd by you...I guess that's what is getting installed unless you want to pay to have it redone. At least that would be the case if I were the contractor. However, If I were the contractor, you would have been shown a set of plans and renderings and asked to sign off on them before I ever ordered or built a single cabinet.

PK.

It sounds like he's using an out-of-the-box cabinet. His choice in widths may be limited by this. A 42" wide base cabinet would probably have 20 odd inch wide doors on a framed overlay cabinet. That would look kinda odd to me. If you have tip-outs or false panels above the door then the door is probably around 22" tall.

You don't have to have fillers. There are several pull-outs that you can buy that will fit in that space or they can be made.

michael.skofield

He is probably limited with the cabinet sizes check out www.instockkitchens.com they have a lot of sizes including 42" sink base.
unless he wanted it to be a fluted filler ........those are pretty.

woodman51jfk

modular, or big box store cabinets, including Merrilat, Kent Moore, KraftMaid, etc, are all produced in plants and are all manufactured in 3" increments, necessitating the need for fillers, which are a total waste of space, but save the customer money by allowing use of a smaller cabinet, as in the case of the sink base. In years past, as an installer for KM & Merrilat, in order to satisfy requirements for the warranty, we were required to mull the face frames together, then level the base cabinets as units. The same applied to the wall cabinets, using ledger boards, or kicker sticks/jack stands, and the use of truss head 3" screws to attach to wall studs. If the installer is contracted by the supplier, he will do the install to the specifications of the manufacturer. Don't get under foot asking & looking, but very carefully inspect operation of doors, drawers, fit and finish of joints, plumb and level of each cabinet..........and then sign off on the job..........if it is not to your satisfaction, make a specific list for reference, and then discuss the issues with the sales person that arranged your cabinetry. Don't try to bully the installer, he works for the seller, and will get paid by them, so they need to know if there are problems.
Hopefully this has helped to answer your questions, and give you a widr degree of understanding of the install process.