Any cabinet installers?

[Stratosman]

I have a question in regards to installing a wall to wall vanity base that has the filler strips installed. Whats the best way to scribe this to fit perfectly. I was thinking about scribing the wall to a piece of scrap 1x6 at the location of the cabinet, then transferring that cut over to the side of the cabinet without the extra wide applied filler, then do the same for the side with the applied filler, measure exactly the width of the space, then transfer the second scibe to the filler and cut with jig saw or plane to fit...

Does this sound like it'll work or is there a better method?

Does this even make sense?

Thanks!

[Surface Tension]

Take the fillers off the vanity. Then you set the vanity which is another topic all together.

Use dividers(compass) to scribe the profile of the wall to the filler.

Say your widest point it 2". On the filler measure over 2 1/16th then clamp that to style of the vanity plumb(or parallel to the style). Spread your divider from wall to 2 1/16th mark and transfer the profile of the wall to the filler.

When you go to cut it out leave the line and back cut. Use a plane of belt sander to clean up your cut to the line.

[reddog]

I just remove the fillers, measure top and bottom,(if the same, I just set the fence on the table saw +1/8 and rip it, If its different, I lay it out with a straightedge and marker +1/8 and free hand it on the table saw.

The key is, that I tilt the blade about 25 degrees to the back side so I dont have to take as much material off of the face when I'm fitting it with the hand planer.

I will typically make my cut and attach one side back to the vanity, and then secure it to both the back and side wall. Then I fit the opposite side.

[Stratosman]

That's the issue, It's not really a "filler" (stated it wrong in the initial post...) it's just the stile on one side of the vanity is wider than the other, which I assume was made to allow for size adjustment...Can't take it off as it would require dismantling the cabinet alltogether. SO need to find a way to make this cab. fit the opening as it sits.

Thanks!

[PurpleFloyd]

I guess that I would fit that description.

What you have is a vanity with an extended stile and you need to fit it into the space that is provided.

lots of ways to skin that cat but one thing to keep in mind. If the walls are relatively plumb and the floor is level you can do exactly like you said and everything will work great.

If the walls are out of plumb in different directions this can throw off the geometry and lead to the necessity for scribe moldings to cover the gaps.

One way that I have found to work exceptionally well for scribing between walls that i train my employees to use for built in benches, counter tops etc is to use 2 pieces of 1/4 inch Masonite. I would cut both to the height of the vanity and the width so that when placed into the opening they overlap each other by at least a few inches. I would then mark where the front of the cabinet will fit against the wall on the side with the short stile and scribe it to fit the wall just like Frank described( make sure it is level also). Then I would take the second piece and scribe it to the wall where the extended stile will fit. After that I tape or hot melt glue the pieces together so they now make one piece that fits the opening perfectly . You can then take the doors and drawers off the vanity, lay it on it's back, put a few layers of masking tape along the stiles to allow your pencil line to show up and to keep the wood from splintering, and lay the template on the cabinet so that it is flush with the top of the face frame and over as far as it can go on the side with the narrow stile. Then trace the pattern on both of the stiles and trim them to the pencil marks and the vanity will fit like it grew there.It also helps to back bevel the cuts on the vanity so that it fits the tightest at the face.

[soldoncass]

Is this a custom made cabinet for the space? If so they should have left one side stile removable so you can fit it. If it is just a manufactured vanity(like Menards, Home Depot), you will have to do some carefull measuring to see how(or IF) it fits, see if your walls are plumb(level) and square with the floor....The stiles on both sides should end up very nearly the same size. Measure carefully and cut coservatively....may take several times to get it just right. You know the vanity TOP should be OFF right ? The box should be smaller than the total wall to wall width, so you can twist it into place somewhat.I hope that makes sense to you.

[Surface Tension]

Get some reference lines in the wall. Find the highest point on the floor where he vanity will sit. Measure up the hight of the vanity and mark that on the wall. Draw a level line on the back and both sides of the wall. Measure out the distance of the vanity and make a plumb line just shy of that mark so your not messing up the wall. Find the center of the opening and mark that

Check the wall opposite the side of the vanity that is proud with a level for plumb and straight.

If your good then fine. If not note the difference at top and bottom. Set cardboard against the wall and scribe the profile and cut it out. Transfer that to the filler using the measurements on how far off plumb you were.

Check for plumb and straight on the other wall and transfer the profile to cardboard and cut it out.

Get you total width of the opening using a reference that is common with points of measure. Set your cutout at those points and cut out the filler by back cutting and leaving the line, Use a belt sander of plane to come to the line.

[reddog]

The biggest problem with extended stile cabinets going wall to wall, is that the drywall corners are always less dimension that the walls behind, so by the time you get it to go thru the corners, its short when it gets into place.

[Stratosman]

Okay thanks, that's kinda how I was thinking I would do it, scribe to something that I can then transfer to the cab. stiles...yeah the corner is built out like most are, that's why I was planning on marking the wall where the front edge of the cabinet will sit, which is about 4" back from the corner to get the dimension from wall to wall.

Thanks.

[reddog]

So if youre 1/8 to 1/4 wider 4" back from the corner and thats what youre going to fit to. How do you plan on getting it past the corners?

[Surface Tension]

I picture sure would help. OK we've covered first choices on how to do it. At the end of the day the work needs to be done and it needs to be done.

Time is ticking and your not getting paid to scratch your head. What will you do, what will you do.

Since you can't put something in that is wider then the opening( that is why fillers are used) you'll have two choices.

Actually three choices but that involves taking the vanity back.

So if your too wide you have no choice then to use trim(ish) or a bead of siliconized caulk at the gap. I'd much rather have a nice scribed fit but its not going to happen here. Question is how much to narrow is the opening? I can split a 1/4" in two and caulk it and the eye will never know.

Your still going to take the profile off the wall and keep the that bead even.

[PurpleFloyd]

Being a cabinetmaker I have done hundreds of built in installations over the years and every one can have unique challenges that you have to overcome. I have never once installed a cabinet with a loose stile because the stile is an integral part of the face frame construction and also to the cabinet. If it were attached on site and joined to the rails the joint would not be perfectly flush and you would also see the seam,which would not be very appealing to me.

The first thing I would look at is how much the stile overhangs the cabinet on each side. A trick I learned early on was to leave as much reveal as possible so that you could turn the cabinet at a slight angle until the cabinet cleared the narrow part of the wall. Then you pivot it into place and it will fit tight. Another trick is to put a scrap piece of laminate against the wall to protect it and then use enough force to push it into place. If there is no stud on one of the walls the sheetrock will give a little bit and that can be just enough to clear.

On some of the manufactured cabinets that are assembled with hotmelt glue and staples as opposed to wood glue and clamps like we use you can actually tap the face frame loose from the cabinet without creating any damage, install the box centered in the opening, scribe the loose face frame to fit, then use wood glue and brad nails to re attach the face frame to the cabinet. The face frame will fit onto the box with blind dado's that will realign it perfectly. Not a choice everybody would do but it has been done and can work in the right situation.

[Stratosman]

Got it in, plywood and CBU on the top, tiled the top and the splash this morning. Wasn't really a big deal. The lady had it custom made and measured by HD...so not returnable so I had to deal with it. Not the best way to do one in that situation but it is was it is.

I just scribed the wall of the short stile first onto a 1x4 held plumb at the outer edge of where the cab would be. cut it with a jig saw, taped the stile and removed the doors, placed the 1x on the front so the inside edge was perfectly parallel with the stile, traced the line in the tape and ran the planer on it til it was good, from 0 on the top- 1/8" on the bottom, then scribed the opposite wall to a 1x, cut and placed on the other stile, measured on the wall at the top and at the bottom, marked that on the tape, placed the 1x on the marks, traced and planed to the line.

Still had to worry about the corner, so slid it in to see what I needed to remomove yet, planed until I could force it by the corner w/o damaging it, had to take less than an 1/8 off, but once I slid it in and split the difference left and right, 1/32nd isn't noticeable I can caulk it yet and it'll dissappear.

So thanks or the tips guys.

[PurpleFloyd]

Good deal.

[soldoncass]

The "loose stile" method works great in certain situations. We used pocket hole screws and glue to hold faceframes together,from the back, just don't put any glue on that stile. You have to be able to get to the pocket screws from the inside of the cabinet so they can be backed out. Pop the stile off, fit and fasten the opposite end and box....then scribe and fit the loose stile, glue and replace srews. Fits just like it did before, only this time it is glued in place. Leaving the whole faceframe loose works well also, but then you usually need nails to hold it in place.

Glad the op got it in without too much trouble. Good job.