Full Vs Partial Overlay Cabinets

Full overlay is common on frameless construction where.

Full vs partial overlay cabinets.

Available from a few box lines of cabinets and from most every custom cabinet maker the modified full overlay door style is the most popular style of. Full overlay cabinets take less skill to install and are therefore less expensive. Full overlay cabinets a full overlay cabinet door completely covers the face of the cabinet box and is commonly used on frameless or european style cabinets. If your cabinets are designed for full overlay it means that the doors completely overlap the opening on all four sides.

Full overlay hinges are for individual cabinets or the cabinets on either end of a run of cabinets. Single doors have 1 door per opening. With spacing between door panels not as tight as full overlay cabinet doors and not as wide as partial overlay cabinet doors this door style provides a look and a price partway in between. Rockler has a great guide on understanding hinges.

Here are pictures of full overlay cabinet doors. Plus this style means about an extra inch of space inside the cabinets since the doors aren t closing into the cabinet like inset ones do. Full overlay cabinets also present a unified front since the overall look is smooth this is different from the partial overlay cabinets popular a few decades ago which showed the face frame in the spaces between doors and drawer fronts. Partial overlay is a style of cabinet drawer and door that refers to the amount of frame visible on a cabinetry run.

The reveal or the exposed cabinet face is less than 1 8 inches. Actually whether or not there is a stile present between 2 doors has zero to do with it being a partial or full overlay. Partial overlay cabinets are the most common and least expensive option for your kitchen. Half overlay hinges are intended for pairs of doors in the middle of a run of cabinets where two doors have their hinges mounted on opposite sides of a shared middle partition.

Pairs of doors have 2 doors for 1 opening. The door sits on the cabinet face leaving a gap of usually 1 1 inch between the doors allowing the face frame of the cabinet to be seen. The spacing between the doors and drawer fronts of a cabinet run are the most visible and defining detail which is why most generally manufactured cabinets are divided into these two categories. The correct determination for full overlay is typically 3 4 inch on all sides.

The quality of the partial overlay door is equal to a full overlay door but less wood is used in its construction as it does not have to cover the full cabinet. Be wary of partial overlay cabinets marketed as custom made as most custom built cabinets have full overlay doors.