Cabinet Size Guide for the DIY'er Ready to Redo the Kitchen

Hello World! Welcome Friends! You can do this. You’ve watched enough DIY shows to determine kitchen cabinet replacement is a piece of cake. Your spouse is skeptical, but you’ll prove her wrong. Where to start? Well, size counts in this instance, and while you don’t have to replace your old cabinets with new ones of the exact same size, you do need to install cabinetry that fits properly. Otherwise, you face the dreaded “I told you so.”

Source

To Start…

Carefully measure your old kitchen cabinets and your kitchen’s overall cabinet space if you plan to rework how the cabinets are laid out. You need to measure the old cabinets for height, width, and depth. Understand also that when it comes to standard kitchen cabinets, there are two types. You have the base cabinet which rests on the floor and the wall cabinet which is mounted on – well, you know. How many of each will you need new and what are all of their exact sizes?

Common Base Cabinet Size

Your base cabinets should be standard size unless you had them custom-made. If you did and you don’t plan to change the overall design and storage space, you’ll likely need custom again. For your knowledge, however, according to CabinetSelect.com – standard cabinet sizes for base cabinets depend on whether the cabinet will have a countertop above it, which is usually the case. Base cabinets are 34.5 inches tall if there isn’t a countertop on top and 36 inches if there is.

If you’ve ever kicked the underside of the floor cabinet because your kitchen is too small, you’ve hit what’s called the toe kick. Makes sense, doesn’t it? This is measured on standard at 4.5 inches, and for cabinets with drawers, you’re looking at approximately 6 inches for each drawer. Standard cabinet door height is 24 to 30 inches, depending on cabinet size, and most base cabinets are 12 to 24 inches deep. Finally, width tends to start at 9 inches and extends all the way to 36 inches.

Common Wall Cabinet Sizes

Moving on to your wall cabinets, again, if you had them custom built before, you may have to do so this time as well. This being said, Cabinet Select details the standard measurements for wall units, too. The beauty of wall cabinets is they come in a wider variety of sizes because they don’t need to support a countertop. You can select cabinets that are 30, 36, or 42 inches tall. If you install them at the standard 18 inches over your base cabinets, you’ll have a total of 84, 90, or 96 inches in cabinet height.

When it comes to depth, mounted wall cabinets are less deep than base cabinets. Most are 12 to 24 inches deep, and the depth you choose depends on how far out your countertops run and your storage space needs. Another thing to consider when it comes to depth is where the wall cabinet will hang. You’ll need a deeper cabinet if you want one over your refrigerator, for example, because the refrigerator extends farther out from the wall.

Mounted wall cabinets have the same width as base cabinets. The smallest come 9 inches wide and the largest come 36 inches wide. Hanging them is tricky in that you want uniformity and security. They must be mounted properly to ensure they don’t fall, and any cabinet that doesn’t have something underneath it should be hung in line with the rest of the mounted storage space. Generally, this means 54 inches from your kitchen’s floor.

You can do this. You just need to make certain you understand cabinet sizes first and then design your new kitchen around that. Then, make certain you know exactly how to install both base and wall cabinets properly. Improper installation can lead to damage and that “I told you so” comment your determined to avoid. Prove your spouse wrong. You’ve got this!

Click the links below for any posts you may have missed!

Make it Pretty Monday

Building your Dream Home

Buying a Newly Constructed Home

Simple Fall Porch

I’d love for you to join my email list! You’ll receive a notification straight to your inbox once a week on Monday which will include links to party posts and my home project posts! Simply enter your address below.