Kitchen Cabinet Makeover | Installing Cabinet Glass

August 28, 2016

Installing Cabinet Glass in the solid doors of your old kitchen cabinets can revive an old kitchen. If your budget is such that new kitchen cupboards are out of the question; installing cabinet glass is an inexpensive alternative that will completely change the look of your existing kitchen.

Step by Step Instructions for Installing Cabinet Glass

The first step for this project is to measure the existing kitchen cabinet doors so that you can order your custom cut glass. Measure the flat portion of the cabinet door and subtract at least 2 inches from the height and width of the panel. This would leave a 1-inch frame around the entire perimeter of the glass. For larger panels, subtract 3 inches from the overall height and width which would leave about 1-1/2” around the glass for support.

Once your glass panels have arrived, remove the cabinet doors from their mounts and remove all of the hardware including hinges, latches, and handles. Lay the cabinet door face down on your workbench. Be sure to place a soft mat on the bench first so you don’t mar the surface of your door.

Place a 2” wide strip of painters masking tape on the backside of the door adjacent to all 4 edges of the panel. The tape servers 2 purposes, first you won’t be drawing on the panel itself, and secondly the tape will protect the door surface from the jig-saw you use in the next step. Place the glass panel on the door and be sure to center it top to bottom and side to side. Use a pencil to draw a line on the tape by carefully following the perimeter of the glass.

Use a hand drill to drill a hole in each of the 4 corners of the panel on the inside corners of the lines you just scribed. Insert the blade of your jig-saw into the hole and cut along the line. Repeat this for all four sides of the cutout.

Flip the cabinet door over so you can attach a decorative molding to the face of the door. Assuming a 2-inch-wide molding, you would cut the molding 2 inches longer than the dimensions of the cutout. Miter each end of the molding at 45 degrees. Use a nail gun or a drill and small finishing nails to attach the molding to the door.

Flip the cabinet door over so you can place the glass inside the cutout. Use 4 strips of quarter round molding to secure the glass. Again, you should drill small holes and use finishing nails to secure the molding. Be very careful to avoid breaking the glass.

Fill all nail holes with wood filler and let it fully dry before painting the door. Wipe off the entire door with a tack cloth and apply a finish coat of paint.

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Contact Us:

If you plan on installing cabinet glass as your next do-it-yourself project and need custom cut glass for your project, contact One Source Renovation, LLC at WindowRepairGuy.com or give us a call at (815)-634-8922.