How hard is it to install cabinets?

[corn18]

DW went and visited Lowes today to plan out a bar area in the basement. I don't mind paying someone to install it, but I have a DIY itch. Need something to do. How hard is it to install something like this? The backside of the wall is bare in the unfinished part of the basement, so I can easily do all the electrical and plumbing. Appreciate your thoughts.

 

[MC Rider]

I have not done this but supervised cabinets and a gut remodel of our kitchen.
I'd say of you feel reasonably handy and have plenty of time, check out some videos. Maybe thisoldhouse or youtube.


You will have to assemble cabinets and attach to the wall studs. And much more.
You will want a helper or 3. And tools. It will take a bunch of time.

 

[Gumby]

Are you talking about the uppers? I have installed uppers. It is not hard, but you do need two people. If you want specifics, I can PM them. The lowers should be easier.

 

[corn18]

Are you talking about the uppers? I have installed uppers. It is not hard, but you do need two people. If you want specifics, I can PM them. The lowers should be easier.

Uppers, lowers, everything. I figure it will cost me $3k to have our guy do it and it will be done right, but then I only get to supervise. Of course, if I do it, I may end up divorced.

 

[RobbieB]

You need to make a strut (or 2) to hold them in place while you screw them into the studs.

 

[street]

Not hard at all to do but like it has been said need a couple people for top cabinets. The right tools will make your life easier also.

 

[Jerry1]

Depends on your skill level. Of course you can get the cabinets attached to the wall, but how it looks afterwards is where your skill will come in. Is the wall smooth and plumb? If not, how are you going to deal with that? Is there moldings. How good are you with trim work? I’ve watched a cabinet guy do two of my kitchens and he’s a craftsman. If you have those skills, go for it. If not, you might want to save money elsewhere.

 

[MissMolly]

I don't think it's hard. My husband and I just installed these in our pool cabana this summer. These were RTA (Ready to Assemble) cabinets that we built and then installed. I couldn't be more pleased with how they turned out.

 

[Davidhelp]

Make sure everything is square and level and you have a plan laid out. This guy knows how to install. I googled: this old house install of cabinets


How to Install a Brand New Kitchen | This Old House

 

[Out-to-Lunch]

I have installed a lot worse by myself. Install a ledger board, and, as Robbie says, prop the cabinets up with a strut.

The over-the-refrigerator cabinet was the most "fun."

 

[Freedom56]

DW went and visited Lowes today to plan out a bar area in the basement. I don't mind paying someone to install it, but I have a DIY itch. Need something to do. How hard is it to install something like this? The backside of the wall is bare in the unfinished part of the basement, so I can easily do all the electrical and plumbing. Appreciate your thoughts.

It's not that difficult. I installed Kraftmaid office cabinets for our home office. Home Depot wanted $4500 for the cabinet installation alone and did not include the cost of installing crown and light rail molding nor the cost of installing the desktop. With the money I saved, I added a granite desktop though and solid wood crown and light rail molding.

Your layout is pretty simple and does not involve corners. It would be a good idea to buy a laser level (inexpensive) that you can tape to the wall as your guide. You will need stud detectors and a good quality power drill/driver. For the molding installation you will need a miter saw and nail gun. If you have all the tools, I would go for it.

 

[tb001]

You might also look at ikea. I’ve installed several ikea kitchen/bath cabinet layouts by myself. I’m reasonably handy, but no super special skills. They all came out great. It’s meant for DIY so it’s easier than many other lines and the cabinets are decent quality for the price.

 

[Ronstar]

OP's layout is about as easy as it gets for installing cabinets. No corners and uppers are free standing without having to be connected to other uppers.

I see more possible difficulty in the plumbing than in anything else. You'll need to figure out how to get the bar sink plumbing done. Drain line to connect to existing drain line, and a vent line to connect to an existing vent line or an alternative that meets code. And the water supply lines. Difficulty depends on proximity and location of existing piping.

Electrical would be simple. Looks like a microwave lower right. So you'll need 3 receptacles for the microwave and beverage centers. And some receptacles above the counter. This new electrical should be done as 1 or 2 new circuits.

Upper cabinets like this are easy. Hopefully you'll have a studded and drywall wall behind this. I would finish the drywall, prime and finish paint before installing the cabinets. Install a temporary board to set the uppers on and have a friend hold the cabinet in place while you screw the cabinet to the studs. Make sure that the screws are installed through the cabinet frame, not thin plywood backing. Make sure that you have screws made for cabinet installs - bigger heads and long enough to get a good bite into the wall. Then install crown molding if desired.

Base cabinets will be easy. Make sure that you get cabinets that add up to a little bit shorter than the wall dimension, when adding in the rough openings required for the beverage centers. This alignment works great because the beverage centers provide spaces where you can adjust things a little to fit if need be. Screw the cabinets to the wall and each other so that the top is level and faces are plumb. Install the top, bar sink, faucet, beverage centers, and microwave. Touch up paint and you're done.

Have fun - looks like a fun project! I've installed a lot of cabinets and cabinet installs are not difficult.

 

[Bamaman]

Putting in cabinets is not difficult if the floor and walls are good and flat/square.

The difficult part would be cutting the crown molding to go around the top of the cabinets. I long ago figured out how to cut crown molding, but I'd have difficulty telling anyone how to do it.

I bought some nice used cabinetry to put into a laundry room. I'm just going to install them without the crown molding.

 

[nphx]

You might also look at ikea. ...

The Ikea i installed had a system where a metal hanger bar with holes can be fastened to the studs where you locate the studs and then the cabinets are "hung" on to that bar.

When i did Lowes cabinets i found my self using plywood scraps in similar method to best fasten the cabinet.

The studs wont perfectly be where you want them so the technique is needed.

With ikea the lower cabinets also use the same system so having that level bar to hang on and then dial in the foot height made that go fast too.

 

[finnski1]

OP's layout is about as easy as it gets for installing cabinets. No corners and uppers are free standing without having to be connected to other uppers.

I see more possible difficulty in the plumbing than in anything else. You'll need to figure out how to get the bar sink plumbing done. Drain line to connect to existing drain line, and a vent line to connect to an existing vent line or an alternative that meets code. And the water supply lines. Difficulty depends on proximity and location of existing piping.

Electrical would be simple. Looks like a microwave lower right. So you'll need 3 receptacles for the microwave and beverage centers. And some receptacles above the counter. This new electrical should be done as 1 or 2 new circuits.

Upper cabinets like this are easy. Hopefully you'll have a studded and drywall wall behind this. I would finish the drywall, prime and finish paint before installing the cabinets. Install a temporary board to set the uppers on and have a friend hold the cabinet in place while you screw the cabinet to the studs. Make sure that the screws are installed through the cabinet frame, not thin plywood backing. Make sure that you have screws made for cabinet installs - bigger heads and long enough to get a good bite into the wall. Then install crown molding if desired.

Base cabinets will be easy. Make sure that you get cabinets that add up to a little bit shorter than the wall dimension, when adding in the rough openings required for the beverage centers. This alignment works great because the beverage centers provide spaces where you can adjust things a little to fit if need be. Screw the cabinets to the wall and each other so that the top is level and faces are plumb. Install the top, bar sink, faucet, beverage centers, and microwave. Touch up paint and you're done.

Have fun - looks like a fun project! I've installed a lot of cabinets and cabinet installs are not difficult.

This post pretty much describes it all. for the base cabinets make sure you find any high spot on the floor and use that as your reference to shim all base cabinets up to that level. Then make sure the base cabinets are all level and the tops of all of them are on the same plane when screwing them together and to the wall. If necessary shim the backs of the cabinets before attaching to the wall so that all the faces of the cabinets are flush to each other and plumb. Also determine your upper cabinets dimensions and install those first before any bases. Much easier to get to and the bases are not in the way or susceptible to damage. Use good cabinet screws(larger heads made for this purpose) and maybe even a pair of cabinet clamps when screwing adjacent cabinets to each other. These keep everything flush while screwing together.
https://www.homedepot.com/p/BESSEY-...VGniGCh0Zhg2KEAQYAyABEgJOefD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[NW-Bound]

The Ikea i installed had a system where a metal hanger bar with holes can be fastened to the studs where you locate the studs and then the cabinets are "hung" on to that bar.

When i did Lowes cabinets i found my self using plywood scraps in similar method to best fasten the cabinet.

The studs wont perfectly be where you want them so the technique is needed.

With ikea the lower cabinets also use the same system so having that level bar to hang on and then dial in the foot height made that go fast too.

+1 about Ikea cabinets.

I really like the metal hanger bar approach, because it is solidly mounted onto the studs before you lift up the cabinets to hang them. Nice and painless.

 

[old medic]

With access to the backside I would install Nailer blocks across were the upper cabinets are going to give you something solid to screw in. pre drill your screw holes in the cabinets. simple 2x4 brace set and leveled on your lower cabinets, place your uppers add easy peasey.

 

[corn18]

Thanks everyone for the input! I would love to take this on as it interests me. I just retired and this looked like a great project to take on. I could build something. My weakness is finish work. I am not good at it. And my DW is CDO (that's OCD in alphabetical order). She has a superpower where she can spy the most minor imperfection immediately. And then it bugs her forever. If I put these in, that will be directed at me. If I hire someone else, they can feel her wrath. She has been making offhand comments about how we should hire someone vs. me doing it. So I guess that is decided. Will need to find another project.

 

[sengsational]

You'll definitely want to watch some TOH videos first because there's never been a level floor and straight wall in the history of construction, lol! That is, "cabinet measurement" straight and level. IOW, 1/2 inch is nothing in a wall, but it will blow your cabinet layout out of the water (if it sounds like the voice of experience, that's cuz it is). The TV shows will show you how to accommodate for the imperfections.

 

[foxfirev5]

Uppers, lowers, everything. I figure it will cost me $3k to have our guy do it and it will be done right, but then I only get to supervise. Of course, if I do it, I may end up divorced.

IMHO the cabinet installation is one of the easier parts of the job. I can't imagine it would cost an additional $3k. The plumbing, countertop, electrical are the real savings if you DIY. However in today's world you may wait a long time for someone to install the cabinets when splitting up the whole job. Another reason why all home projects are on hold for now.

 

[Ger0n1mo]

It appears that using French Cleats for mounting upper cabinets is becoming popular and is a good option for a DIY'r. It may be similar to what others posted about IKEA, but I did not investigate.

 

[CardsFan]

And my DW is CDO (that's OCD in alphabetical order).

 

[zinger1457]

I would go with the suggestions to add a temporary ledger board, will help with support and alignment.

 

[WhenIsItTime]

I did this project in my basement. I opened the wall to modify the plumbing (move sink drain and water supply), add electrical for LED lights, fridge, GFCI, and a couple outlets. Put new drywall on, mudded, painted. Also had to extend heat register underneath cabinet and out kick plate.

Wood is beautiful hickory. Wife talked me into dark cabinets that nearly hides the incredible woodgrain. I bought a couple rough sawn hickory boards to make the floating shelves.

I hired out only the countertop and sink install.

Great project. Not my first rodeo. However, very much an amateur.

Why not give your project a go? Be careful with electrical and water. If you decide to throw in towel, hire out the completion.

I recommend going to local cabinet store (kitchen/bath center) for the cabinets and council. If you have exposed ends, make sure its real wood! I also recommend all plywood boxes. If you are after granite or quartz countertops, cheapest to go directly to local supplier. Once I had my cabinets installed, I had them come out to measure. Took 3 more weeks to get it in, but then guaranteed fit.