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cefreeman_gw

To those with 36"+ wide drawers...

CEFreeman
9 years ago

I know this is a huge thing to ask, and I do promise pictures.

I'm retrofitting a beaded face frame onto 3 base cabinets. To make the inset drawers fit properly, I have to move the drawer glides back about 1/8". Doesn't sound like much, but the Blum back, plastic brackets aren't depth adjustable like the metal ones. I want to swap them out for metal ones.

My concern is that the weight of these drawers could pull the brackets out of the back of the cabinet if they're just screwed in.

If someone has absolutely nothing in this world to do other than sipping martinis and eating Reese's cups chocolate,
and would like to be known as a true hero, (I'm stalling)
would you mind pulling out a drawer (the top small one would be just fine)
and taking a picture of your back, drawer glide brackets?

In particular, I would like to see the screws or how they're attached to the back of the cabinet.

I want to do this once, correctly. The last thing I need to do is get this all set up, have the weight of the dishes rip the brackets off the back of the cabinet, tearing up the cabinet and smashing not only my dishes, but what's in the drawer below them. I'm sure you understand. Can't you just hear it in your head?

Anyway, thank some kind soul in advance.

Comments (14)

  • bbtrix
    9 years ago

    Here is mine. Holds all my cast iron pans. Hope this helps. {{gwi:2138937}}

  • CEFreeman
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Oh, that gives me some ideas.
    Exactly how deep are your cabinets with such a short glide?
    Or are yours not full extension? That would be another way to make the glide more sturdy. Not to cantilever the giant drawer out into the room.

    I'm cool with the bracket I have on the bottom of the cabinet, for obvious reasons. How far could my crap fall?

    I'm now thinking I could run a 1x2 horizontally along the inside, side of the cabinet, attaching the drawer glide to that. Hmm..

    Or one along the back, horizontally, just under the drawer glides to support them.

    I like the look of whatever it is holding your glide. Very clean.
    Thank you SO much for taking the time to post that picture. I hate taking my giant drawers out, so I think this is a very big deal. I really appreciate it!

  • bbtrix
    9 years ago

    My cabinets are 24" deep and the glides are the full extension Blum for Ikea.

    Here's another shot of a full glide.

  • badgergal
    9 years ago

    I have 36" wide drawers under my cooktop. Since the top drawer has a shortened box so that it will clear the gas line, I was able to get my phone in there for a picture without taking the drawer out. So here is that glide.
    {{gwi:2138938}}

    Just to see if another drawer was the same set up, I pulled out a small drawer and and yes siree they are attached the same way

    {{gwi:2138939}}

    So just two screws in each bracket but I see that the portion of the back cabinet wall that they are screwed into is plywood and whereas the rest of it looks like melamine. I was surprised to see the melamine because all the uppers have plywood backs finished with cherry like the outside of the cabinets.

    I have dishes in one of my 36" drawers and pots and pans in the other. They have been opened and closed many times each day for more than three years now without a problem. They slide effortlessly and there is no sagging.

  • CEFreeman
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Thx bbtrix! The first picture looked shortened. I see how they've done this now. Frameless cabinets, do I see? Now I see how they've done that, too!

    Badgergirl, those are the brackets I have. I have plywood cabinets on all sides, too. Are you sure it's melamine? Mine are hard coated inside and look shiny, but not melamine-y. My cabinets currently have some plastic bracket punched through the factory holes in the back. I am not certain why they'd use that on 36" wide drawers. Plastic does dry out and become brittle someday. I'm replacing them with the metal -- I think so far!

    I also see where they've blocked under the brackets, which is what I was playing around with in the post above. That would make a lot of sense to me.

    My cabinets -- at least the ones I'm face framing are Norcroft. I bought these through DirectBuy before I knew about reuse centers and building my own. Although the people who filled my order (3 times) must have had their heads up their, ah, er, "chimneys," the cabinets have stood the test of my mind changes, moving them around 100 times, installing and uninstalling them, painting, stripping and repainting some of them. They're exceptionally Christine-durable. Gotta give 'em kudos here. Also, those folks with their heads up somewhere managed to screw up my order so badly that instead of 9 cabinets, I got 21. No, I'm not complaining, since it gave me the basis of 2 rooms of cabinetry! :)

    My point in all this is that I don't want to damage them any more than I probably already have!

    Thanks again to both of you! :)
    C.

  • a2gemini
    9 years ago

    CEF - as the owner of 42 inch drawers - just remember the weight of the drawer is part of the maximum weight.
    I had a failure - the company initially would replace the cabinet - but that sounded dangerous - so they replaced with heavy duty brackets and a drawer inside a drawer (similar to Deedles but full width). They also added additional reinforcement screws. So far so good.

  • badgergal
    9 years ago

    Christine, I don't know if the back of my drawer base cabinets are actually melamine. I just assumed they were because it looks and feels different from the cabinet sides. Whatever it is, it is only in the drawer base cabinets not in the other base cabinets or the upper cabinets. My cabinets boxes are 3/4" plywood. I thought the backs were too. I can't call the Amish cabinet maker to ask since he has no phone. And I guess it really doesn't matter because the drawers and glides have been working perfectly for 3 years and the cabinets haven't fallen off the walls.
    Good luck in getting your drawer glides installed. Hope to see some pictures of your kitchen and other home projects soon. Your DIY skills are amazing.

  • CEFreeman
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    badgergal, not so much. :) Still haven't learned how to use my router and can't stand the noise of the table saw. Things would be much easier if I had those two skills!

    My plan is to reinforce under the metal brackets. I have some brack ts that resemble the Blum ones, although I have no idea what there intended use actually is. I just thought they seemed useful. And here they are!

    A2gemini, I thought there was someone out there with really big drawers. Thanks for the reminder. I do remember the horror (and shock) when that drawer/glide/cabinet failed.

    Moral of the story: Never accept the plastic back brackets. Not only do we all know plastic eventually becomes brittle, but with metal, adjustments are possible. Not so with plastic. All I need is 1/8" and for that I have to remove, replace and reinstall. Grrrrr..

    Thanks all!

  • MizLizzie
    9 years ago

    Can I just say -- there are some awesomely nice people here on this board? I never cease to be impressed by the generosity and expertise. About glides, I know nothing. So I will shut up now. Happy Sunday, everyone.

  • romy718
    9 years ago

    I'm guessing this info isn't going to be helpful to CEF at this point but I'm going to try to attach part of the thread "Everything You Wanted to Know About Drawers" that talks about Blum's heavy duty glides. I have 36" drawers & also didn't realize that you need to include the weight of the actual drawer into the 75 lbs (not including the weight of the drawer) their standard glide can handle. I loaded up my drawers to within 75 lbs & the soft close stopped working & the drawer felt too heavy when fully extended. had the hardware switched to Blum's heavy duty glides & no more problems.
    The Blum HD ( heavy duty) 569 can support 135lbs dynamic (drawer open) & 150 lbs static(drawer closed).
    Edit: Their new standard full extension, soft close drawer glide, Blum 563 can handle 90 lbs dynamic & 100 lbs static. Not really sure why they do the dynamic & static rating because all drawers have to open so it seems they should just list the dynamic weight limit.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Blum's Heavy Duty Drawer Glides/Slides

    This post was edited by romy718 on Sun, Jan 18, 15 at 13:46

  • ardcp
    9 years ago

    i didn't even think to ask my kd about plastic vs matal glide construction and unfortunately my medallion silverline have plastic back brackets. i asked what the difference was between silver vs gold in medallion but my kd said there wasn't anything except possibly different glides but she wasn't sure. i wish the cabinet companies would list this somewhere because had i known, i would have upgraded to gold or at least my bracket! seeing white plastic back there is a real disappointment especially since i had this idea that medallion was going to be so much nicer/better than my builder grade aristokraft!

  • CEFreeman
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Romy, thanks. I'm off to read that. I have to figure out what slides Norcroft used.

    I have pictures and will post them when I get home from work, but you guys gotta picture this. Some of you will be scarred for life, so read at your own risk.

    Picture a 16' kitchen counter slid over to the side, onto spare cabinets. Leaving about 12" of space of walkway. Not your ideal kitchen, right?

    Now, imagine me either crawling around on the floor under this thing, or hung over the open base cabinets trying to screw wood braces in. I can't reach the bottom of the cabinet, so these screws are temporary 3rd hands.

    Now, to get to the middle and bottom brackets..
    First I stick my head through the middle hole.
    Then my shoulders and arms, holding the drill and/or screw gun.
    Then I gotta get my boobs over the rail (stile?). Oomph. Thank God I'm not well endowed.
    Now, I gotta get that middle-aged waist over the rail. Ugh, thank GOD ... what? I'm not fatter?
    OK. holding my breath, I place a screw and start to drill, but on my knees, I slide backwards, rather than the screw going in.
    SO... I brace my ever barefoot feet against the cabinets behind me HOLDING UP A 16" BUTCHERBLOCK COUNTERTOP.
    Bzzzzzt goes the screw, and clickclickclickclick goes the cabinet holding up the countertop.
    Needless to say with my parts all draped in between those drawer spaces, a fast, protective getaway would have been impossible and bodily injury certain.

    Ok. I'm safe. I reversed the insertion process and figured out something better to brace myself against. But I have to do this at least 9 more times.

    Rivals my story about installing upper cabinets, standing on the countertop, straddling the stove while also making chicken noodle soup.

    Ok. Off to work.

  • CEFreeman
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Ok.
    Here are some pictures:

    Here is a picture of the new beaded face frame over the old, with the drawer glide moved back 1/8". If those stupid plastic things were front/back, vs. side to side adjustable, this whole conversation would be unnecessary:
    {{gwi:2136399}}

    Here is the top drawer with a retrofitted metal bracket. You can see the (stupid) plastic one that will hold the heaviest drawer. I've reinforced the glides on the side, given downward pressure is the norm, but when fully extended, the upward pull on the back brackets is extreme.

    {{gwi:2136400}}

    And here is a pic of the 3 cabinets I'm joining. All I can say is I'm grateful I practice yoga at 56, because crawling around on the floor, in and out of these cabinets is ridiculous.
    {{gwi:2136398}}

    I appreciate all your help. Got great ideas from each of you guys!

  • a2gemini
    9 years ago

    Wow - you are brave mounting the glides!