A few more basic kitchen install questions-

alukima · Jan 25th, 07, 4:30 pm

I really want to this myself- so I have a lot of questions that may seem a little dumb.. sorry...

Do you order a long piece of rail and then cut it to size? Will the rail stick out on the top at all? If the rail is level will this make the cabs level?

If I am using white cabs do I need the end pieces?

The wood counter tops- are they stained dark like in the picture or do I need to stain them my self?

I know I will have about a million more... thanks for everyones help so far.

dafogle · Jan 25th, 07, 4:40 pm

Hi: Yes - the suspension rail is sold in sections - and you have to cut it to the size you want. If the rail is level your wall cabinets will be level. If you don't want to use cover panels at the end of the runs you don't have to - you can use quarterround or some other means to cover the small gap between the cabinet and the wall.

If you are buying the wood countertops - they are sold unfinished - you don't want to stain them (that's typically not food safe). you can "seal" them with Tung oil - or another method. Many have written about this here at IKEAFANS - search on Tung and you'll probably find the threads very quickly. IKEA have birch, beech and oak solid wood countertops - the OAK is darker than the birch and the beech. If you're using Tung oil to preserve and treat the wood you will need to oil it periodically.

Hope this helps.
Doreen

alukima · Jan 25th, 07, 4:42 pm

WOW!!!!!!!!! Thanks!!! That was all answered in less time then it would have taken me to get a real person at 1-800..... Thank you so much.

dafogle · Jan 25th, 07, 5:04 pm

You're very welcome ... I have learned a ton here ... and learned some more while my own kitchen was being installed ... It's really nice to be able to answer someone elses' questions ... and really is what this site is all about - people helping people...

Doreen

ektorp · Jan 28th, 07, 2:34 pm

To give you a little more re-assurance the fastening hardware that IKEA uses allows for very small adjustment once the cabinets are up on the suspension rail. You can loosen the lock-nut that secures the cabinet to the rail and nudge the cabinets up or down very small amounts. Sometimes this is necessary (as in my case) because of imperfections in the house settling. It's not an inch or anything, but sometimes you need a little bit even if your rail was level.

I'm almost done my renovation and I'm completely unqualified do have done any of it.

I'm pretty handy and know how to use my tools and such but I never dreamed I could gut and completely renovate my own kitchen. I learned so much along the way - AND saved myself $3500 on installation. This board is an excellent resource for you. Even the IKEA team members have been without answers many times I have called, but this board had what I needed from people who have come across the same problems I did. Good luck with your project!!

-Charles

Nova_craft · Jan 30th, 07, 9:20 pm

We found vertical and side to side adjustment went well, however, when we attached our suspension rail to teh wall, it "sucked" in the drywall, making a wow in the rail. We should have shimmed the rail but didn't, and for my sins, one of the cupboards sits proud of the one next to it by about 1/8".

My advice is to mount th erails, then take something with a long, straight edge, and make sure the rail is still true. If it varies from staraight at all, make the adjustment by shimming between the rail and the wall, or you'll regret it later.

alukima · Jan 30th, 07, 11:28 pm

Thank you, our house is so old I am certain it wont sit straight, I hadn't though of it but I am sure I will need shims.

JSantiago · Feb 7th, 07, 10:54 am

One of my walls bows in about 1/4" and I am curious about the shims that I should use. I am putting up a corner wall cabinet along that wall, so obviously it needs to be fixed. What kind of shims should I use? Since I need to shim the wall cabinet, I assume I have to shim the railing for the base cabinet as well? Thanks!

gwen · Feb 7th, 07, 10:59 am

I will try to take a pic of our wall cabinets that are shimmed. We found our packs of wood shims by the doors in our local big box hardware store.

orangecat · Feb 10th, 07, 12:47 pm

Hi all,

I couldn't figure out how to start a new thread so I'm replying with my own question. I'm putting on the runners on my 3 and 4-drawer base cabinets. It looks like all of the instructions that come with the Rationell drawers show where to place the runners if you're putting together a 3-drawer cabinet, but I'm not sure where I should place them for the 4-drawer cabinet. Anyone know? Thanks.

orangecat