If the cabinet doors hang crooked, you can immediately see that something is wrong with the hinges. But a broken hinge doesn’t always have to be so obvious. Because if the cupboard doesn’t open anymore or if it doesn’t stay open after opening, that’s as annoying. It’s a good thing that repairing hinges is not rocket science and that you can easily dare to tackle such a project yourself. A child’s play for gifted DIY enthusiasts! But even if you don’t have years of experience yourself, the repair of broken hinges will succeed with the following instructions.
BROKEN HINGE ON THE BATHROOM CABINET
Broken hinges are not only annoying every day, but they also ensure that the damage increases over time. Therefore it is best to repair or replace broken hinges as soon as possible. So the effort remains manageable in any case.
The broken hinges are always replaced in pairs. Because usually, the second hinge also fails quite soon after the first hinge has broken. And then you didn’t save anything, but you did double the work. If completely different or perhaps even better hinges are used, then all the hinges of the cabinet should be replaced. Because it would be strange if one side of the cupboard closes super gently while the other side slams shut without resistance, right?
In this project, two hinges on a bathroom cabinet that simply no longer stay open are replaced. To do this, the hinges are removed, the old holes filled with dowels and the new hinges reassembled. The instructions are also suitable if the hinges have been torn off.
TOOLS AND MATERIALS
In general, repairing broken hinges doesn’t require a lot of tools and materials. In any case, a screwdriver, possibly a cordless screwdriver, a hammer, pliers and a chisel, are needed.
All that is needed is glue, a few wooden dowels of the right size, and, of course, the new (cup) hinges with the correct stop. The hinges used here are concealed hinges with an inside stop.
REMOVE OLD HINGES
But first, the old hinges have to be removed! This is very easy, however, because the base plates inside the cabinet are simply unscrewed. These are fixed with two screws per hinge. Once these are off, the door can easily be put aside.
After that, of course, the hinges also have to be unscrewed from the cabinet doors. These are also secured there with two screws each.
SEAL OLD HOLES
As soon as the old hinges have been removed, it is time to take care of the holes for the base plates in the body, or rather in the sidewalls of the cabinet. To ensure that the new hinges hold, the holes are filled with wooden dowels beforehand.
To do this, the appropriate wooden dowels are first slightly sharpened. Then the existing drill holes are filled with quick-setting glue. Next, the wooden dowels are tapped into the holes with the help of a hammer and gentle blows. The pointed side is not visible and points towards the hole.
Since the wooden dowels are always too long after being inserted, they are nipped off with a pair of pliers. It takes a bit of strength, but it’s the quickest. The unclean breakpoints are straightened with a chisel. Later it is important that the new base plates of the hinge are absolutely level. Any glue that may have leaked is then wiped off with a damp cloth.
FIT A NEW HINGE
To fix the broken hinges, all you have to do now is to insert the new hinges. For this, it is worth checking the position of the new hinges (base plate) with the enclosed template. If, as in most cases, the screw connection is congruent, not much needs to be considered. The new base plates can easily be screwed into the existing position.
Next, the new pots are inserted into the cabinet doors. To do this, they are inserted into the existing recesses and secured with the two screws provided. That’s it! Now only the cabinet door is brought up to the body and the levers are positioned over the base plate. For assembly, the levers are simply pressed onto the base plate. And the cabinet door is mounted again! Pretty easy, right?
Note: If the lever cannot be pressed onto the base plate, please do not press it down with force! This can be easily remedied by either loosening the base plate or adjusting the height setting of the base plate.
ADJUST NEW HINGES
Once the new hinges have been installed, they also have to be adjusted in most cases. How to do this is shown in our article Adjusting the hinge. Because the hinge screws are the same in most cases, and the adjustment itself does not require more than a little patience. As a little help, however, the screws that are used to adjust the hinges are marked on the picture opposite.
But then it’s already done, and the broken hinges on the bathroom cabinet have been successfully repaired. Not only that, but the new hinges also leave the door open again. No, from now on, the doors will also close softly. What comfort! Just perfect! We wish you good luck too!
