Tolerance/new kitchen cabinets and doors

[Deleted User]

I have a new fitted kitchen, which is 100% perfectly aligned, apart from one kitchen door, which is slightly out, admittedly only 2mm at the most, showing at the top on one side. 

Friends and the fitter, who is a reputable person assure me there is always a bit of tolerance.

Why is this? 

If you looked at your units closely, would one door, or a couple be slightly out?

grumbler

Usually hinges allow very big adjustments of the doors position. IMO, if this difference cannot be corrected this means that the unit wasn't installed correctly.

Post a photo showing several doors in a row.

[Deleted User]

As far as I can tell, the unit us correct and level etc. The bottom of this door is nigh on level with the door on the other side of the cabinet. The top of the door, on the hinge side shows a slighly wider gap.

Perhaps it is hinge work to be done. The fitter is visiting in a few days to look.

Bendy_House

Are you saying the door is actually a slightly different size? If so, that would be very surprising - and, I think, unacceptable. I hope it's this, tho', as it would be easy to correct.

Worse would be if the units carcases weren't installed perfectly 'square'.

FreeBear

Bendy_House said: Are you saying the door is actually a slightly different size? If so, that would be very surprising - and, I think, unacceptable.

There is always a manufacturing tolerance when producing anything. For something like a kitchen unit or door, +/- 1mm would be perfectly acceptable. A 2mm difference can be fudged so that it is not noticeable except by the most exacting & critical of eyes.

Hinges have some degree of adjustment vertically, horizontally, and back/forwards. This allows for units that are not quite square and assembly/installation errors. The fitter should be able to tweak the hinges so that the doors line up. Losing the difference at the bottom will be less noticeable than having it at the top (assuming base units). Framed doors, you are better off trying to achieve an even split between bottom & top.

Bendy_House

Of course there's a tolerance in everything manufactured. I suspect +-1mm for a ~700mm door is far too much, tho', as a 699 door adjacent to a 701 size ain't going to look good, regardless of the amount of tweaking.
But, yes, it does depend on just how far out this door is, but mainly whether it IS, or are the units off-square.

Section62

Bendy_House said:

Of course there's a tolerance in everything manufactured. I suspect +-1mm for a ~700mm door is far too much, tho', as a 699 door adjacent to a 701 size ain't going to look good, regardless of the amount of tweaking.

Overall that probably depends whether the person doing the looking is seeing at the kitchen as a whole, or is zooming in on the door.  Different people have different expectations/triggers.  An allowance of +/-1mm in 700mm for a piece of furniture is.... pretty good, unless the client is paying extra to have someone hand pick items that comply with a better standard.

The majority of people just won't notice.