Where to Place Knobs on a Cabinet

Once you decide to change out cabinet hardware you might find the style you pick won't look that great if you try and replace the knobs in the same spots that the old ones were in. Well what to do? You certainly don't want to go back to the same boring old hardware. Instead you need a better understanding of your options for where to place knobs on a cabinet.

Where to Place Knobs on a Cabinet

Where to Place Knobs on a Cabinet

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Where to Place Knobs on a Cabinet

Where to Place Knobs on a Cabinet

The most obvious place to put a knob will be on a side opposite a hinge. The leverage allows you to open the door with almost no effort. This is great for those that might have a disability limiting their grip strength. The only exception to this rule is if you have roll out bottom cabinets, you know, the giant drawer types. Those you'll want to install the knobs centered on the cabinet to keep it from binding up on either side.

Well that gives you a rough idea of where to put the knobs but you probably need something a little bit more exact. Unfortunately there's no magic formula for where to place knobs on a cabinet. It's all going to come down to how the cabinets are designed and the size and shape of them and your kitchen.

There's a trick you can use to figure out where to place the knobs without just randomly drilling a bunch of holes into the cabinet face and hoping for the best. Head out to the hardware store and pick up a small tub of plumber's putty. Plumbers putty is a non-hardening compound that's slightly tacky. You can pull off little dollops of it then use it to just stick the knobs to the cabinet.

Here's what you'll do.

Open up the tub of Plumber's putty.

Pinch off a piece of putty about the size of the tip of your thumb.

Roll it into a ball.

Take the cabinet hardware and press the putty onto the back of it. Now you can just stick the knob onto the cabinet face wherever you think it will look right. Repeat this for a couple of the doors so you can get an overall feel for how the knobs will look sitting in a row. You can reposition the knobs just by popping them off the cabinet face and sticking them back on in a new spot.

Once you've figured out the right look for the cabinet you'll need to measure the knob offsets from the bottom and side edge of the cabinets. You can then use those measurements as a template for knob placement. Mark the offsets on each of the cabinets and double check to make sure they aren't slanting up or down.

The last thing to do is attach the hardware. Just drill the holes in the cabinet and slide a bolt through the hole and tighten the knobs down onto it. It's all a pretty simple job. Where to place knobs on a cabinet is a completely personal choice. You'll know what looks right once you get the knobs in position.

Where to Place Knobs on a Cabinet

How to Replace Your Bathtub Drain

Eventually the drain in your bathtub is going to get old and worn and won't work as it should any longer. This is especially true of drains with built-in stoppers. As time passes you'll start noticing that it's getting harder to operate the stopper, water seems to seep from the tub when the stopper is closed, and it's hard to get the dirty water to drain from the tub when the stopper is open. At this point in time you'll need to buy replacement parts for your drain and then either hire someone to install it or do the job yourself. It really isn't as difficult a job as it may sound. All you'll need are channel locks, a Philips screwdriver, plumbers' putty, and some clean rags.

How to Replace Your Bathtub Drain

How to Replace Your Bathtub Drain

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How to Replace Your Bathtub Drain

How to Replace Your Bathtub Drain

Begin the project by taking out the old drain plug mechanism. There is a cover plate on your tub which is attached with two screws. Take out the screws and remove the cover to reveal the inner workings of your drain. Reach in and pull this mechanism out through the hole in the tub.

If you're unable to remove all of the mechanism because pieces have broken off, you should check to see if you can access the space behind the tub from a wall panel on the other side of the wall. If you find one, you can remove it and easily take out the broken pieces. However, if you don't have one available, you will need to bend a wire hanger or similar piece of wire into a hook shape so that you'll be able to fish them out through the small hole.

Now that you have the original pieces of the drain, you'll be able to replace any damaged ones with your replacement parts and reassemble the drain. You may find that you don't even need replacement parts. Sometimes all the mechanism needs is to be cleaned and to have the pieces put back together correctly again.

Examine the parts to find the ones that are damaged. Then check to see if the replacement parts you purchased are identical to the ones you're removing. If they don't happen to be the same, it's not a good idea to go ahead and use them. Using the wrong parts in your plumbing could cause leaks that will flood your house.

Once you've reassembled the drain mechanism, check all the parts to be sure they're working properly. Next test the stopper to see that it fits the drain pipe and plugs it the way it should. If all these tests work out, you'll be ready to reinstall the pieces of your drain. Don't attempt to install the stopper until everything is working correctly.

You can use plumbers' putty to seal the joints where the pipes and flanges attach to one another. The mechanism that you use to raise and lower the stopper must also be attached to the overflow plate. Don't seal the overflow plate down, though, without checking to make sure that the stopper is working correctly. Once you know that the tub will hold and drain water when you want it to, go ahead and seal down the plate.

Make sure you have plenty of putty on the overflow plate when you screw it down. Wipe off any excess that might squeeze out, and check to see that you haven't got anything obstructing the overflow vent. Once you've completed these steps, your drain should be as good as new and ready to work for you again.

How to Replace Your Bathtub Drain