A cabinet door that hits the wall once opened isn’t ideal, for various reasons. Firstly, it will gradually chip away at the paint on the wall, and secondly, there is a high chance that the cabinet door will also get defaced in no time. There’s also the small matter of that annoying banging noise.
If you want to stop cabinet doors from hitting the wall, you can try buying and installing concealed European-style hinges, adjusting the door hinges, using bumpers, installing a small chain or cabinet door restraint kit, or installing wall-mounted door stops.
The rest of the article will cover these points above in more detail, so you’ll be able to choose what works best for you.
1. Buy and Install Concealed European-Style Hinges
If your cabinet doesn’t have European-style hinges with limited range, you need to buy and install them on the cabinet doors hitting the wall. This hinge type connects the cabinet door to the box from the inside. It is distinguished by the round inset rectangular boxes, which make it easier for the door to lift out instead of swinging out (as is the case with other hinge types).
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The big advantage of these hinges is that they can be adjusted or limited to reduce how far they can allow the cabinet door to go. Sometimes, getting a hinge that allows the door to open at, for example, 90° instead of 120°, could be all you need to stop the door from hitting the wall. Some excellent types of these European-style hinges include the DecoBasics Full Overlay and the Silverline Lazy Susan.
Related: How Many Hinges to Use Per Cabinet
2. Adjust the Door Hinges
Do you already have European-style hinges on your cabinet? It could be that they are set to open too widely. As you’ve seen above, they can open really wide, depending on the initial configurations. Some of them have been designed to open as wide as 170°. If your cabinet is one of these, you can unscrew the hinges and tweak them to your desired angle.
If you have the right screwdriver, you can follow this tutorial to adjust the hinge to your desired opening width. If you can’t undertake the hinge adjustment on your own, don’t hesitate to get some help. A carpenter adjusting the already existing hinges will, at the very least, save you the cost of hiring a carpenter AND buying a new set of hinges.
3. Use Bumpers
Unlike other recommendations here, bumpers don’t stop the cabinet door by preventing it from swinging too widely. Instead, they help reduce the impact of the door hitting the wall. With these, you have two options:
- Small bumpers fixed behind the cabinet door
- Larger wall-mounted bumpers
With the first option, you have small rubber, adhesive bumpers that go behind your cabinet door. An example of these bumpers is this 100 PCS pack. They are affordable, and the transparent appearance means they won’t change the look of your cabinet doors by much.
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The larger wall-mounted bumpers achieve the same thing, but they go on the wall instead. They are mounted strategically on the part of the wall where the cabinet door lands. When the cabinet door swings open, it is cushioned by the rubber bumper on the wall instead of landing directly on the wall. This way, both your wall and the cabinet won’t get damaged with repeated hits. You’ll also eliminate any bangs when you close the door.
This Pack of 4 is a good example of these bumpers.
Don’t like the transparent appearance on the bumpers? You can find options that have similar colors to your wall or cabinet, or paint over the transparent ones.
4. Install a Small Chain or Use a Cabinet Door Restraint Kit
This method might not be as flashy as buying a sophisticated European hinge, but it works. It’s also relatively straightforward. It involves buying a small chain that will limit the cabinet door’s range.
To install a chain or restraint, you only need to screw on the plates to the cabinet door and box, on the inside. After that is done, connect the chains to the hooks on both ends of the plate. Once you’ve nailed the installation of the chain or door restraint, you can then set your desired opening width.
The chains and restraints are easy to remove and adjust if you need to start opening the cabinet doors a bit wider. This Stainless Steel Restraint Kit is a good option to consider if you choose to go with this approach.
5. Install Wall-Mounted Door Stops
These are similar to wall mounted bumpers but are studier. Most of them have to be screwed into the wall and will break the swing when your cabinet door is about to hit the wall. Some of the options you will find include the Luant Solid, the Inox DSIX14-32, and the Yumore Pack of 5.
However, you need to be mindful of the material on the tip of the door stop. If it is metal or strong plastic, your cabinet door may still get a dent after a few years of constantly hitting the stop. There is also the problem of the noise from the bang never really going away.
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- Can be screwed into baseboard or door.
- Installation guide please refer to picture # 7
Additionally, you need to consider the fact that you have to screw the stop to the wall. How practical is such an approach for you? If using one is not feasible, consider using wall-mounted bumpers as discussed above.
Conclusion
Your cabinet door repeatedly banging on the wall isn’t only a problem for your paint, but also the cabinet door itself. The easiest solution is to limit how wide your cabinet door can go when it opens.
You can achieve this by using hinges with a tighter open-angle or installing chains or restraints on the inside of the cabinet to hold the door when it is opened. Alternatively, you can just protect the wall with bumpers and wall-mounted door stops. Let your preferences guide you!
