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Installing Soft Close Fittings In The Kitchen - Part 1 - Dampers

| Kitchen Knowledge

Installing Soft Close Fittings In The Kitchen - Part 1 - Dampers

 

Drawer and door dampers are a great addition to your home, and ideal for use in your kitchen, helping to make your cabinets safer and quieter. In addition to protecting your fingers, drawer and door will also help to protect your kitchen units, preventing impact damage and extending their lifespan significantly. Perfect for homes with small children, drawer and door dampers are cost effective and very easy to fit. Find out how you can do it in this quick DIY guide.  

 

Installing Door Dampers

Difficulty: Easy

Duration: 5 minutes per damper 

 

Installing door dampers is a really quick, easy and affordable DIY job that anyone can do, and it only takes a few minutes. There are two methods you can use, depending on whether you want to use universal dampers or clip on dampers. Both do the same job, but if you’re going for clip on, you’ll need to make sure they match your door hinges. At Eurofit, you’ll find both universal dampers, and clip on dampers designed to work with our range of Ferrari cupboard hinges.  

 

Fitting a Universal Door Damper

 

You’ll need:

  • Door dampers
  • Screws
  • Screwdriver
  • Bradawl
 First, you’ll want to think about how many dampers you need. For standard doors, a single damper will usually be enough, although you may want to fit two to heavier doors. Start by working out where you’re going to position your dampers. You need to place them flush to the inside edge of the cabinet, so it can compress into the housing as the door closes. Place the adapter to the inside edge, and mark where you’re going to make your holes. Now, using your bradawl, make your pilot holes in the cabinet. Finally, screw the housing of the damper to the cabinet, making sure you choose fairly short screws that won’t go completely through the cabinet. Finally, clip the damper into the housing, and you’re finished! At Eurofit, our Ferrari Air Dampers are designed to work with a full range of cupboard doors, and in conjunction with all types and makes of hinges.  

 

Fitting a Clip On Door Damper

 

You’ll need: Clip on door damper Before you start, you’ll need to make sure you purchase the right clip on door damper for your hinges. Take a look at your hinges, and make a note of the make and style (At Eurofit, we supply Ferrari Clip On Door Dampers, designed to work with Ferrari hinges), then use this info to ensure you get the right product. Fitting clip on door dampers couldn’t be simpler – they simply clip directly onto your existing hinges. Generally, they also feature a screw on the reverse of the unit. This will allow you to change the tension to provide the right level of soft close for your cupboards.

 

Installing Drawer Dampers

Difficulty: Easy

Duration: 15 Minutes Per Drawer 

 

Installing drawer dampers is another quick and easy job, that doesn’t require any special tools or skills. If you’re buying a new kitchen, it’s worth remembering that doing it yourself can save you a fair amount of money on both parts and installation.

 

You’ll need:

 

 

How To Fit Drawer Dampers

 

Drawer dampers come in two parts:

  • The fitting block – which attaches to the drawer
  • The sprung damper – which attaches to the inside of the carcass

 

 

The fitting block houses a small plastic part, which slides into the sprung damper, allowing the drawer to close softly. After measuring and marking up to ensure that the damper will be in the right position (follow the manufacturers instructions to ensure a snug, smooth fit), simply screw the fitting block to the outside edge of the drawer, and then screw the sprung damper to the inside of the carcass. If you’re fitting the dampers to drawers with ball-bearing slides, you’ll also need to remove the rubber stopper before installation. At Eurofit, we stock universal drawer dampers for both wooden and metal drawers. They are designed to work on all drawers with a gap of between 10mm and 13mm between the carcass and the drawer itself.  

 


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