If you consider yourself to be somewhat handy with carpentry work, but not so handy as to do a custom kitchen job, then this option is for you. After you’ve decided to go ahead with the ready to install kitchen cabinets, there is still another question to be answered. Do I want unfinished, painted or metal kitchen cabinets? I want to do the painting myself, so I am going with the unfinished option. What do you need: Drill, cabinet jack, drywall screws, finishing washers, jigsaw, clamp, shims, hammer, level and measuring tape. Your cabinets just came in and you want to start right away. Make sure all necessary hardware is in the box hinges and screws… The doors will likely not be attached, so make sure all the doors are accounted for and are not damaged in any way. Let’s begin.
We have now removed the old cabinets and have been very careful not to damage the wall, what do we do now? You will want to use a level, determine the base and the height of the cabinets and draw 2 lines across the wall, one at the bottom about three inches from the floor and the other at the top about 34.5 inches. Measure up again for another 19.5 inches this will determine the bottom of your wall cabinets. Hanging wall cabinets will most likely require a cabinet jack. The cabinet jack will hold everything in place allowing for proper precision with very little strain and without hurrying. Even if you have help this is a good tool to have. Once the jack is in place, the next task is to find a stud and then, using some screws, temporarily hang the wall cabinets. Make sure the cabinets are level and fasten them permanently to the wall.
The hard part is done and now all is needed is to place the bottom (floor) cabinets near the wall, do a final level check, find the stud and fasten them to the wall. That is pretty much it.
