What are these things beneath my cabinet called?
January 20, 2018 10:54 AM Subscribe
I need help identifying these things beneath my upper kitchen cabinets, as one needs replacing.
I have strips of wood underneath my upper kitchen cabinets, that are held up with braces that attach to the cabinets themselves. Here is a picture of the cabinet. You can see the strip of wood beneath the cabinet doors. Here is a picture of the other side of that strip of wood, and you can see that there is a brace that fits into a slot on the wood strip that can then be attached to the cabinet above.
One of these has broken off and I am looking to replace it. But I have no idea what either the strip of wood or the brace is called. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!
I have strips of wood underneath my upper kitchen cabinets, that are held up with braces that attach to the cabinets themselves. Here is a picture of the cabinet. You can see the strip of wood beneath the cabinet doors. Here is a picture of the other side of that strip of wood, and you can see that there is a brace that fits into a slot on the wood strip that can then be attached to the cabinet above.
One of these has broken off and I am looking to replace it. But I have no idea what either the strip of wood or the brace is called. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!
The bracket is a bracket, although it's probably specific to the cabinet. There's probably no reason you couldn't substitute a small angle bracket.
posted by pipeski at 11:11 AM on January 20, 2018
posted by pipeski at 11:11 AM on January 20, 2018
Classic Greek terminology notwithstanding, the strip of wood is a “light rail,” meant to hide undercabinet light fixtures. I’m not familiar with the bracket, and would be inclined to contact the cabinet installer or manufacturer if you can figure out who that is. If that doesn’t pan out then it’s just a stick of wood machined and finished and stuck in place. There are plenty of other ways to attach it without special brackets.
posted by jon1270 at 12:00 PM on January 20, 2018
posted by jon1270 at 12:00 PM on January 20, 2018
I installed an Ikea kitchen around 2001 and these brackets look very familiar. IKEA may be able to provide free replacement hardware.
posted by rtodd at 3:08 PM on January 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by rtodd at 3:08 PM on January 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
I would call this board a 'kick board' or a 'toe plate' (googling both with 'in kitchen' confirms this isn't just me that thinks this :) )
Pelmet, to me, is the frilly bit at the top of a set of curtains.
posted by freethefeet at 3:27 PM on January 20, 2018
Pelmet, to me, is the frilly bit at the top of a set of curtains.
posted by freethefeet at 3:27 PM on January 20, 2018
Ok- if this was a ground living cupboard. Sorry, dud answer above.
posted by freethefeet at 3:28 PM on January 20, 2018
posted by freethefeet at 3:28 PM on January 20, 2018
I have never heard the word "pelmet" before. When I think about what this is, I think of the word "valance" which also applies to the top of a curtain (something which covers the rod) but at least one company calls this an "under cabinet lighting valance" and I found another site that called it simply a "light valance" but "under cabinet" might help you talk to a store about what it is you need.
As for the bracket, you could make do with an L bracket but this one fits into the slot because the particle board is probably not strong enough and will pull out eventually if you just put a screw in there. You might look at the Z bracket and see if you can find one in the same dimensions. If you have a good hardware store, maybe you could pull off one of the other unbroken ones and see if you can find a match.
posted by amanda at 6:00 PM on January 20, 2018
As for the bracket, you could make do with an L bracket but this one fits into the slot because the particle board is probably not strong enough and will pull out eventually if you just put a screw in there. You might look at the Z bracket and see if you can find one in the same dimensions. If you have a good hardware store, maybe you could pull off one of the other unbroken ones and see if you can find a match.
posted by amanda at 6:00 PM on January 20, 2018
On the other hand, maybe you could just use liquid nails? Get a clamp or cut a 2x to be just a little longer than the gap between the valance and your counter, tap it in place to hold the valance flush to the cabinet and then put a bead of adhesive along the backside. Let dry 24 hours? Maybe it'll work!
posted by amanda at 6:11 PM on January 20, 2018
posted by amanda at 6:11 PM on January 20, 2018
IKEA calls this a "deco strip." Unfortunately they change their cabinet door style offerings from time to time and I don't know if there's anything in the current lineup that's a match to the finish on your cabinet doors.
posted by drlith at 6:13 PM on January 20, 2018
posted by drlith at 6:13 PM on January 20, 2018
I would have called it a fascia myself, but this cabinet company calls it a "light rail".
Honestly though, what it is called is less important than finding a good match for the piece. Really the only way to get a perfect match is to physically take the rail and bracket that you DO still have into a store or cabinet shop, show them what you want to match, and ask them for help. If you want to order replacements online or from a big-box store, your only real choice is to replace them all -- you will never get a perfect match like that.
But to be clear - replacing them all is a perfect legitimate solution. As is removing them all -- those were more common trim pieces when you had to install a ginormous fluorescent under-cabinet light fixture, and wanted to be able to cover it up. Nowadays, the LED strip fixture options are remarkably small, and might not be noticeable even without a "light rail" to obscure them.
posted by misterbrandt at 7:14 PM on January 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
Honestly though, what it is called is less important than finding a good match for the piece. Really the only way to get a perfect match is to physically take the rail and bracket that you DO still have into a store or cabinet shop, show them what you want to match, and ask them for help. If you want to order replacements online or from a big-box store, your only real choice is to replace them all -- you will never get a perfect match like that.
But to be clear - replacing them all is a perfect legitimate solution. As is removing them all -- those were more common trim pieces when you had to install a ginormous fluorescent under-cabinet light fixture, and wanted to be able to cover it up. Nowadays, the LED strip fixture options are remarkably small, and might not be noticeable even without a "light rail" to obscure them.
posted by misterbrandt at 7:14 PM on January 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
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posted by pipeski at 11:07 AM on January 20, 2018 [1 favorite]