How to choose your next basket / internal drawer kit
When it comes to creating the perfect kitchen, you need to be able to first identify what carcass you have to know what size product you need. It isn't a simple case of saying it is a 500mm door, so it must be a 500mm basket or drawer needed. When choosing your next kitchen addition, there really is just 2 things to consider:
- Width of internal space
- Depth of carcass
All kitchens are different. Not all kitchens are built to a standard size. Some bespoke kitchens are built to fit the space the customer has, and can have carcass widths that are not to UK industry standard. Bespoke kitchens can go against the customer when it comes to buying products like soft close baskets and smart boxes, due to the width differences compared to standard kitchen carcasses.
Smart boxes
The first thing to consider is the internal width of the drawer. For a while, most carcass gables in the UK were 15mm thickness making a internal width 30mm smaller than the actual unit size. So in this case if you had a UK standard 600mm carcass, you had a 570mm wide internal space to put your new product into.
Example : 600mm ( Carcass) - 18mm ( Gable 1 ) - 18mm ( Gable 2 ) = 564mm ( Internal space )
In more recent years, 18mm gables have become the industry standard in the United Kingdom and can be found at most kitchen manufacturers now. Using the example of a 600mm smart box., the drawer width itself is 555mm wide and adding the runners brings the overall width of 565mm. The internal width needed in this instance is 565mm
Soft Close Baskets
The only main thing that is to consider with soft close baskets is the internal width of the drawer. While the smart boxes are restricted to 565mm or 415mm ( in the case of a 450mm carcass width), soft close baskets can be adjusted to fit into the space. The runners can be adjusted to make it wider or thinner to fit into the space available. All our baskets come with 450mm depth as standard, so it will fit all standard carcasses with depths of 460mm to 560mm.
Using the 600mm basket as an example, it has adjustable runners that will fit a minimum of 564mm opening (carcass with 18mm gables) to a maximum width of 570mm ( carcass with 15mm gables )
Example 1: 600mm (Carcass) - 18mm (Gable 1) - 18mm (Gable 2) = 564mm ( Internal space )
Example 2: 600mm (Carcass) - 15mm (Gable 1) - 15mm (Gable 2) = 570mm ( Internal space )
Clearance issues with baskets
Will it clear the door when fully open??
Door clearance is a issue that may arise at the early stages of the installation. Luckily for the soft close baskets, the baskets can be pushed to one side of the carcass away from the door, creating clearance when pulling the baskets out when they are in situ. It may work in some instances, but more times than not, it may still clash with the door/hinges when trying to pull the basket out. Factors like door location when in a closed position, could clash with the runners when open. Is It a Insert position, is it half insert or full insert when closed ( See Image above)
One easy solution to this problem is getting a 180 degree hinge. By getting a 180 degree hinge, it will help the door swing out further creating clearance and better accessibility all at the same time.
Depth Issues with Drawer Boxes
Will be deep enough to hold the runners and the drawer slides??
Luckily, We supply a drawer kit for both a 300mm depth Carcass and a 500mm depth Carcass. This way, if there is a issue with the depth of your carcass, and you cant get your new smart box due to your carcass being too narrow, you can now can create your own drawer kit for a fraction of the cost. Another benefit to this, is that if you have a custom kitchen and your carcasses are not a industry standard width, you can build this drawer to the size ideal to your carcass width.
Hope this helps. If you need any help on installing your new baskets, you can visit our blog on installing wire baskets.
