Guide to Soft Close Drawers
Table of Contents
Kitchens are noisy places. A flurry of activity, with tons of moving metal and wooden parts.
As drawers are opened and closed again and again, we need to find a way to reduce their sound.
Enter Soft-close drawers!
Soft close mechanism is also called easy close(different from self-closing mechanism).
How Soft Close Drawers work?
There are 3 moving parts to a soft-close drawer:
1. Hydraulic spring to control open/close mechanism.
2. Piston, which is air-driven and hydraulic.
3. Damper for force/noise reduction.
You can have them with or without handles. Without a handle, a push mechanism is used to trigger its opening. All you do is push, and it opens on its own.
You don’t need to slam it or guide it till it closes shut. It just needs a small push, and then closes on its own the rest of the way.
This is the so-called ‘soft-close’ feature.
The way drawers work is that you have the box moving in and out of the cabinet cavity. To facilitate smooth movement, we traditionally use ball-bearings or wheels as the travel medium. Our hands control the force on the cabinet handles. In soft-close drawers, the dampener absorbs the force and sound. It can also feature a side or bottom mount attached to the drawer.
Soft-Close VS Self-Close Drawers
Addressing this very common point, here are the main differences:
- A drawer will shut itself completely, once it reaches 75% point.
- Softy close means the self-closing drawer does so with minimal sound and pressure.
- Got it! Here’s a fun way to explain it: Think of cabinets like different types of sneaky ninjas. The soft-closing cabinets are like ninjas who can walk and close doors without making a sound, thanks to their special ‘quiet shoes’ (that’s the hydraulic damper). Now, self-closing cabinets are also ninjas, but they might not have those special shoes. So, they can close doors by themselves, but sometimes you can hear them doing it. Remember, all super-quiet ninjas can close doors quietly, but not all door-closing ninjas are super quiet!
Pros of Soft-Close Drawers
1. Increases life of cabinetry, as drawers experience less direct force.
2. Less noise in the kitchen, which makes for quiter mornings and an easier ambience.
3. Increase resale value, due to the added functionality.
4. Long-term enhancement that can function with minimal maintenance for years to come.
Challenges with Soft-Close Drawers:
Size:
They need more space for installing undermouint slide.
Converting existing drawers:
Though they can be a part of a rebuild/reftrofit, that can be a bit more technical and cumbersome. An experienced cabinetry expert can help you here.
Budget:
More expensive, but so much better in lifetime values, as it also adds to resale value. To manage costs, you can prioritise the most used drawers.
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