Drawer slides can be as easy or as hard as you allow them, and it all depends on what type of slide you choose. In this guide we are going to cover the many different types of Drawer slides on the market, the many different ways a slide can be fitted into a cabinet, and then some help tips for you to decide which is the ideal type you need for your application. This is allot to cover especially when you consider that a drawer slide should be a very simple device to buy and install, but the reality is there are allot of external factors you must consider.
Drawer slides, or as they are sometimes called a drawer rollers, are a type of mechanism that allows smooth linear motion in one axis. They are most commonly used in pairs and found in a huge range of applications, mostly kitchen cabinets. Drawer slides generally work by having one component to slide over a slightly larger or smaller component of equal shape with roller bearings between them to create the smooth rolling function, which allows the entire mechanism to extend or retract. Drawer slides are not motorized but can be if a linear actuator is attached to provide the hands free motion for you. Generally, you will use drawer slides on their own and will likely encounter only two main types: Ball-Bearing Slides & Roller Slides.
Usually you wont have much choice on where to install the slide because the cabinet will dictate that for you, however in the event that you are designing this thing from scratch and do have the option of one or the other, it may help to know what your options are.
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Deciding the mount type is important but more than likely it has already been decided for you by the cabinet design. There are three mount types: side mount, center mount, and undermount. When determining the most suitable mount type, you have to consider the space between the cabinet opening and the drawer box.
Side mounting drawer slides or roller slides are the most common way to mount slides in a Drawer. As they come in pairs it makes it obvious this is the ideal place to mound them and also its a space saving method too. In both cases the rails are attached on the lower edge of the drawers so that they carry the weight in a compression loading way.
Telescopic extension slides offer any extension length in many different lengths from 10 to 60 extension. Our heavy duty drawer slides can carry up to 500 lbs of weight with extensions up to a whopping 60 inches.
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Installation of both these types of drawer slides is pretty simple and can be done by anyone with a tape measure, screw driver and wood screws.
Center mount drawer slides are sold individually as they mount under the drawer in the center and lay flat which is not very common in the industry. Its downside of this is that the drawer slide mechanism looses at least 80% of its weight capacity limit when turned horizontally in this orientation.
There is a benefit though, you only need one per drawer and the rail is completly hidden out of sight. This method is ideal if you want to keep the slides hidden and have a low weight capacity. The required clearance will be determined by the slide’s thickness.
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This undermount method takes space available at the sides of the drawer and moves it to under the drawers where these rails are attached. They carry the full weight of a compressive load manner but don't carry much load because these undermount drawer slides are not a telescopic type and they don't always open their full length of the drawer.
This is called step 0 because it is not required or possible depending on the type and style of your drawer slides. All drawer slides will consist of at least two components, the cabinet member and the drawer member. As their names suggest, cabinet members mount to a stable or grounded component, i.e. the cabinet, and the drawer member attaches to the moving component, i.e. the drawer. For roller slides, the two members will most likely be separate when you purchase them. If not, you simply slide the drawer member forward until fully extended and pop the drawer roller over the roller of the cabinet member. For ball-bearing slides, they will have a third intermediate (slide) member that will stay connect to the cabinet member. If there is a release lever, like shown below, between intermediate member and the drawer member, they can be separated by pushing the lever and pulling forward. If the release lever is the on the right-hand side of the cabinet, you will need to push downwards to release, if on the left-hand side, you will need to push upwards to release. Not all ball-bearing slides will have release levers and if not, they cannot be separated.
It is important to separate the cabinet member and the drawer member, if possible, as it will make the rest of the install easier.
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Regardless of the type and style of your drawer slide, you will want to install the cabinet member first. Depending on your mounting configuration, place and align the cabinet member inside your cabinet or stable component. You’ll need to ensure that your set of drawer slides are level and parallel by ensuring that the distance from the edge of the cabinet to the edge of the slide is the same for both drawer slides and by using a level.
If you are planning to have overlay drawer fronts, which are drawers with fronts that overlap the sides of the cabinet, you should align the front of the cabinet member with the front edge of the cabinet. If you want to insert drawer fronts, which are drawers that have their front insert inside of the cabinet, you should setback the front of the cabinet member by the thickness of the drawer front.
Once you have the cabinet member aligned with your cabinet, fasten it to the cabinet by using your fasteners of choice into the recommend holes of the cabinet member. Typically, you want to fasten your cabinet member using at least three holes/slots. If your cabinet member has at least two slotted holes for mounting, like below, there are used to allow for adjustment at the end of the install. For the cabinet, you will usually use the horizonal slots for depth adjustments. If you want to make use of these slots for adjustments later, only fasten the cabinet member using two fasteners at this point.
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If you plan to use bolts to fastener your drawer slide, you will need to pre-drill your bolt holes. You can do this by aligning the cabinet member inside the cabinet, mark the where the mounting slots are, then drilling the holes using the proper size drill bit.
NOTE: If you are using either releasing or non-releasing ball-bearing slides, you will need to slide the intermediate member back and forward to expose the sections of cabinet member for mounting. Once mounted, the intermediate member should slide smoothly over the attached cabinet member.
To install the drawer member for a releasing ball-bearing slide and a roller slide, you simply align the front of the drawer member to the front of the drawer. Again, you will want to ensure that both drawer members are level and parallel, but also that they are properly aligned with your cabinet members to allow for the drawer to fit with your cabinet. Once aligned, fasten it to the cabinet using your fasteners of choice into the recommend slots. Just like the cabinet member, slotted holes are used to allow for adjustments at the end of the process. For the drawer member, you usually will use the vertical slots to allow for a height adjustment.
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For non-releasing ball-bearing slides, it will be recommended to have a second pair of hands or a support in place to hold the drawer in place while you mount it to the drawer slides. As you cannot remove the drawer member, you’ll have to have the slide fully extended to mount the drawer to each slide. Once done, you can simply push your drawer closed.
Once all members are attached, you can insert the drawer into the cabinet. For roller slides, you’ll need to roll the drawer roller over the cabinet roller to position the drawer in place. For releasing ball-bearing slides, simply insert the drawer member into the intermediate member and push close. The release lever will lock as the drawer closes.
If you used slotted mounting holes to begin with, you can now make adjustments to the position of the drawer slide if needed. Typically, the cabinet member will have horizontal slots to adjust the depth of the drawer, while the drawer member will have vertical slots to adjust the height of the draw slide.
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Once all adjustments are made, you will now want to fasten each member using third mounting hole, if not done all ready. You may also want to replace some of your screws and
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