Unhinged about a hinge
January 9, 2024 6:02 PM Subscribe
My kitchen cabinet door is falling off its hinge (photo 1, photo 2, video).
I think the problem is the mounting plate has been deformed (photo). The only thing I can find out about the hinge is that the brand is FGV.
Do I need to buy exactly the same hinge? Or can I just buy a new mounting plate?
If I do buy new hinges, will they fit in exactly the same holes?
If not, what do I do, since the cabinets are this cheap particle board material?
If you can find the same hinges for sale somewhere then the strategy of replacing only the broken parts may work, but if you can’t find an exact match then my inclination would be to replace both hinges entirely. It will take some investigation to figure out which hinge model you need. The cup diameter is standardized, but the positions of the various mounting fasteners are not. This style of hinge is always available in several versions, with differences in how far it overlaps the edge of the cabinet (half or full overlay) how far it opens (110 degrees, 120 degrees, etc), and how the parts are fastened to the door and cabinet (screws, expanding dowels, etc.). The manufacturers will have layout diagrams available online in pdf. I’d start by looking for similar hinges from the same brand, to increase the likelihood that the mounting holes will match up.
posted by jon1270 at 6:37 PM on January 9, 2024 [1 favorite]
posted by jon1270 at 6:37 PM on January 9, 2024 [1 favorite]
That looks identical to an Ikea hinge I had in my old place; perhaps check them for replacement parts?
posted by aramaic at 6:57 PM on January 9, 2024
posted by aramaic at 6:57 PM on January 9, 2024
Those are very standard euro-style hinges. In your situation, I would just remove the hinge completely from the door and cabinet and take it with me to a shop that serves cabinet makers, which is typically a lumber store that sells a lot of plywood (around here it would be Windsor Plywood). It's very likely that you can get an exact match for the screw pattern that you have (the part on the door is definitely standard, but the cabinet side looks pretty standard too). Buy a pair and replace both.
Don't bother trying to replace parts of the hinges, they aren't expensive and all it takes to install them is the two screws that you see on either part and then normal adjustment. It will be much harder to find an exact match for the mechanism of your hinges than to find one that fits the same holes.
posted by ssg at 8:23 PM on January 9, 2024
Don't bother trying to replace parts of the hinges, they aren't expensive and all it takes to install them is the two screws that you see on either part and then normal adjustment. It will be much harder to find an exact match for the mechanism of your hinges than to find one that fits the same holes.
posted by ssg at 8:23 PM on January 9, 2024
Best answer: Do I need to buy exactly the same hinge?
Yeah, that would be the easiest route, and not much more expensive than...
Or can I just buy a new mounting plate?
You can, but they're not much cheaper than the full hinge, and far more of a pain in the ass to replace and fix. By a mile.
If I do buy new hinges, will they fit in exactly the same holes?
Possibly to probably; these are fairly standard sized hardware. If the boards are particle-board (or particle-board adjacent) you'll want to probably fill the holes with a light wood filler, even if there are plastic bushings the screws are mounted into.This will just ensure they stay secure.
If not, what do I do, since the cabinets are this cheap particle board material?
Last resort, and a giant pain in the ass, but you asked: Grab your hinges, dowels that are 2+/- times as large as the heads of the screws you are using, and a drill bit to match the width of that dowel, a small drill bit to drill a pilot hole with, and wood glue. You will also need a flush cut saw, (this sounds scary, it is not, something like this would work more than fine). If you have clamps, great! if not, heavy things will work just fine.
Mark out where the new holes need to be. As best you can (you don't need to be perfect here, but the closer the better) and drill out shallow holes for your dowels. Use more glue than you think you will need to secure the dowels in each hole (clean up any excess before it dries). I would insert them and wait for the glue to try before cutting them flush, but you can totally just eyeball it and pre-cut them to fit...regardless, weigh or clamp them, and let the glue dry. Drill pilot holes in the center of each, and then mount the hardware to the dowels that are secure in the door. The dowels will largely be hidden by the hardware.
I have had to do this; it is perfectly serviceable, and functional. It is a giant pain in the ass, and finding identical hardware is highly advised.
posted by furnace.heart at 8:54 PM on January 9, 2024
Yeah, that would be the easiest route, and not much more expensive than...
Or can I just buy a new mounting plate?
You can, but they're not much cheaper than the full hinge, and far more of a pain in the ass to replace and fix. By a mile.
If I do buy new hinges, will they fit in exactly the same holes?
Possibly to probably; these are fairly standard sized hardware. If the boards are particle-board (or particle-board adjacent) you'll want to probably fill the holes with a light wood filler, even if there are plastic bushings the screws are mounted into.This will just ensure they stay secure.
If not, what do I do, since the cabinets are this cheap particle board material?
Last resort, and a giant pain in the ass, but you asked: Grab your hinges, dowels that are 2+/- times as large as the heads of the screws you are using, and a drill bit to match the width of that dowel, a small drill bit to drill a pilot hole with, and wood glue. You will also need a flush cut saw, (this sounds scary, it is not, something like this would work more than fine). If you have clamps, great! if not, heavy things will work just fine.
Mark out where the new holes need to be. As best you can (you don't need to be perfect here, but the closer the better) and drill out shallow holes for your dowels. Use more glue than you think you will need to secure the dowels in each hole (clean up any excess before it dries). I would insert them and wait for the glue to try before cutting them flush, but you can totally just eyeball it and pre-cut them to fit...regardless, weigh or clamp them, and let the glue dry. Drill pilot holes in the center of each, and then mount the hardware to the dowels that are secure in the door. The dowels will largely be hidden by the hardware.
I have had to do this; it is perfectly serviceable, and functional. It is a giant pain in the ass, and finding identical hardware is highly advised.
posted by furnace.heart at 8:54 PM on January 9, 2024
Replace both hinges - and use the good one for your guide for finding a replacement. It's not clear from the busted one what its opening range is- and that might be an issue as you'll want both hinges to open the same. As noted these are 'euro' style and have become an inexpensive peanut part.
These are not from Ikea current catalog - which have several cabinet hinges in the UTRUSTA line including a 95 ° hinge and another that is 45 ° (unlikely). Amazon has many listings for 105 ° hinges that also resemble your hardware. These are often sold in pairs and cost between 5 and 12 in USD. If matching how your other cabinets open is important to you I would suggest getting a couple of different ranges or you can roughly estimate it using graph paper and a protractor.
posted by zenon at 7:55 AM on January 10, 2024
These are not from Ikea current catalog - which have several cabinet hinges in the UTRUSTA line including a 95 ° hinge and another that is 45 ° (unlikely). Amazon has many listings for 105 ° hinges that also resemble your hardware. These are often sold in pairs and cost between 5 and 12 in USD. If matching how your other cabinets open is important to you I would suggest getting a couple of different ranges or you can roughly estimate it using graph paper and a protractor.
posted by zenon at 7:55 AM on January 10, 2024
Response by poster: Yup, just went to the hardward store found a hinge that looked kinda similar, and it fit right in.
thanks!
posted by cacofonie at 5:55 PM on January 11, 2024
thanks!
posted by cacofonie at 5:55 PM on January 11, 2024
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by sudogeek at 6:20 PM on January 9, 2024 [2 favorites]