Remodeling a kitchen is an expensive project. When you start knocking down walls and replacing your appliances, the bill adds up pretty quickly. Reusing your old cabinets in a new way can save you a ton of money. Just because you are altering the layout of your kitchen doesn't mean you have to completely replace your old cabinets. Find spaces where you can use the old cabinets, either in the kitchen or in another room of your house. Moving the cabinets will be simple and easy.
Open the lower cabinets and remove the screws that hold the cabinet to the wall. Slip a pry bar between the wall and the cabinet. Apply firm pressure to remove the cabinet from the wall. Repeat this same process with the upper cabinets.
- Remodeling a kitchen is an expensive project.
- Apply firm pressure to remove the cabinet from the wall.
Find the wall studs in the new location with a stud finder. Mark the studs with a pencil mark.
- Find the wall studs in the new location with a stud finder.
- Mark the studs with a pencil mark.
Move the lower cabinets into their new location. Set a level on top of the cabinet to make sure it will be installed evenly. Slide shims under the base of the cabinet until the surface is perfectly level.
Open the cabinet doors. Drive 3-inch deck screws through the back of the cabinet into the wall studs. Drive a screw at the top and the bottom of the cabinet at every wall stud.
Measure the wall from the top of the cabinet and make a mark at 19 1/2 inches above the cabinet. Draw a line at this point along the wall where any upper cabinets will be hung. Check the line with your level.
- Measure the wall from the top of the cabinet and make a mark at 19 1/2 inches above the cabinet.
- Draw a line at this point along the wall where any upper cabinets will be hung.
Place a piece of 2-by-4 lumber, slightly shorter than the upper cabinet, along the line so the bottom of the wood is sitting on the pencil mark. Attach the wood to the wall with deck screws. Drive screws through the wood and into a wall stud. The 2-by-4 will help support the weight of the upper cabinet temporarily.
Lift the cabinet and rest the bottom edge on the lumber. Open the cabinet doors. Drive screws through the back of the upper cabinet frames into a wall stud. Remove the 2-by-4 lumber and patch the holes in the drywall with spackle.
TIP
If the side of your cabinet was previously installed next to a wall, the edge of the cabinet may not be finished. You can purchase side panels from a home improvement store. Trim the panels to fit, paint or stain them to match your existing cabinets, and glue them to the cabinet with construction adhesive.