Kitchen cabinet installation in CincinnatiLevel, plumb
and built to stay.
Good cabinet installation is mostly careful layout. The boxes have to end up level, plumb and tight to each other on floors and walls that rarely are. Here’s how installers approach it, why some start with the wall cabinets and others with the bases, and how cabinets are fastened. We can install your cabinets or work with your contractor.
Start with a free design consultation to discuss your goals, inspiration, general budget, and whether East Main is the right fit. Detailed design follows under a paid Design Agreement.
How consultation and design work ↗
It starts with layout, not lifting.
Before a cabinet goes up, a good installer finds the highest point of the floor and works from there. A level line is drawn from that point for the top of the base cabinets. Manufacturer instructions commonly put it at 34 1/2 inches, with more lines above for the wall cabinets. The studs are found and marked, because the cabinets will hang from them. Cut-outs for plumbing and wiring are measured and made before a box goes in. Doors, drawers and shelves usually come off first to cut the weight and avoid damage. Your drawings govern the real heights. If the flooring isn’t down yet, its thickness has to be allowed for.
Why some installers hang wall cabinets first.
Many installers start at the top. American Woodmark’s guide recommends hanging the wall cabinets first so the base cabinets aren’t in the way, and IKEA’s guide says the same for most kitchens. Carpenter Aaron Butt, writing in Fine Homebuilding, prefers it because the uppers are easier to lift into position and fasten with nothing below them. The usual helper is a ledger: a straight board screwed to the studs along the layout line. The wall cabinets rest on it while they’re leveled and fastened, and it comes off afterward. Installers who work this way also point out that nobody leans a ladder against finished base cabinets or drops a drill on them.
Why others set base cabinets first.
Other installers start at the floor. Chris Klee, a finish carpenter writing in the Journal of Light Construction, always starts with the base cabinets because their position often drives where the uppers go. Once the bases are level, he sets a plywood support box on top of them and rests each wall cabinet on it while he fastens it. Installers give a practical reason too. The countertop can’t be templated until the bases are in, so setting them early gets the fabricator started. A tall cabinet, or one that sits on the countertop, can also decide the order. MasterBrand’s instructions list base cabinets first and say you can hang the wall cabinets first if you prefer. Neither order is wrong.
How cabinets are attached to the wall.
Cabinets hang from screws, not nails. Each box has a hanging rail across the back. Shiloh uses a solid wood rail, and Eclipse a 3/4-inch-thick one. The installer drives screws through that rail and the cabinet back into the wall studs. MasterBrand specifies 2 1/2-inch round washer head screws and at least four in each wall cabinet, two high and two low. American Woodmark specifies #10 by 2 1/2-inch pan head screws that reach at least 1 inch into the stud. Shims go behind the cabinet wherever the wall dips, so the back isn’t pulled out of flat. Brick, block and tile walls need anchors. Some European systems hang from a steel rail fixed to the wall instead. Always follow the instructions for your cabinet line.
How cabinets are joined to each other.
Neighboring cabinets are clamped together, lined up flush, pre-drilled and screwed. Where the screws go depends on the construction. Framed cabinets are joined through the face frames. MasterBrand calls for 2 1/2-inch wood screws there. American Woodmark calls for #8 trim head screws, which leave a small hole, in pilot holes along the hinge side of the frame. Frameless cabinets have no frame, so they’re joined through the sides of the box with 1 1/8-inch wood screws or connector bolts. The length matters. It’s short enough to stay inside two 3/4-inch panels. MasterBrand allows two to four screws for each pair of cabinets, depending on their height. The cabinets are joined first and then fastened to the wall, which keeps the fronts lined up.
Fillers, scribes and final adjustments.
Walls are rarely straight, so a run of cabinets seldom meets one cleanly. Fillers close that gap. They’re strips finished to match the cabinets, fitted where a cabinet meets a wall, and they also give doors and pulls room to clear. A filler can be scribed, which means trimmed to follow the wall for a tight fit. Frameless cabinets leave less room for this kind of correction, so the fitting has to be planned in the design. We’re preparing a separate guide to fillers and fitment. Once the boxes are fastened, the shelves, doors and drawers go back in and are adjusted before the knobs and pulls go on. Our door and drawer adjustments guide shows how the hinge and runner adjustments work.
Who installs your cabinets.
East Main offers installation along with design, cabinet selection and ordering. If you already have a contractor, we can design the kitchen and order the cabinets while they handle construction. Either way, we’ll talk through who is responsible for measurements, delivery and installation before anything is ordered. It’s worth asking any installer how they’ll check the floor and walls, which order they work in and what fasteners they use. Ask who comes back to adjust the doors and drawers, too. The Wood-Mode and Eclipse warranties both exclude improper installation, so the instructions that come with your cabinets come first.
See the difference
Two orders. The same careful layout.
Step through each order on the same wall. Both begin at the high point of the floor, with level lines and marked studs.
- Find the floor’s high point. Mark the base line, the wall-cabinet line and every stud.
- Screw a level ledger board to the studs. Rest each wall cabinet on it, starting in the corner. Level, shim behind, join it to its neighbor and screw through the hanging rail into the studs.
- Remove the ledger. Set the corner base cabinet, shim it up to the base line and screw it to the studs. Clamp, pre-drill and join the others along the run.
- Fit fillers, panels and toe kick, and the bases are ready for the countertop template. Rehang the doors and drawers and adjust them.
- Find the floor’s high point. Mark the base line, the wall-cabinet line and every stud.
- Set the corner base cabinet, shim it up to the base line and screw through the back rail into the studs. Clamp, pre-drill and join each neighbor along the run.
- Protect the bases and stand a support box on them. Rest each wall cabinet on it, level it, join it to its neighbor and screw through the hanging rail into the studs.
- Fit fillers, panels and toe kick. Rehang the doors and drawers and adjust them.
Two accepted orders for cabinet installation, and the reasons installers and manufacturers give for each.
| Wall cabinets first | Base cabinets first | |
|---|---|---|
| Main reason | Nothing below to reach over. Uppers are easier to lift and fasten | The bases set the level line and often decide where the uppers go |
| How the uppers are held | On a ledger board screwed to the studs, or on a cabinet lift | On a support box or props resting on the installed bases |
| What to watch | Layout lines for both runs must be right before anything is hung | Finished bases need protecting while you work above them |
| Countertops | Template waits until the bases follow | Bases are ready for the countertop template sooner |
| When it’s the natural choice | Open walls with good access and a helper or a lift | Tall cabinets, cabinets that sit on the counter, or a tight countertop schedule |
| Who describes it | American Woodmark and IKEA guides; Aaron Butt in Fine Homebuilding | MasterBrand’s instructions (either order allowed); Chris Klee in JLC |
Sources, reviewed November 10, 2026: MasterBrand Cabinets · Installation Instructions for Framed and Full Access Cabinetry (PDF, 2018) ↗; American Woodmark · Cabinet Installation Guide (PDF, 2021) ↗; Fine Homebuilding · Installing Frameless Kitchen Cabinets, Aaron Butt (2020) ↗; Journal of Light Construction · Foolproof Kitchen Cabinet Installation, Chris Klee (2021) ↗; WOODWEB · Installing Cabinets: Uppers or Lowers First? (installers’ forum) ↗; IKEA · Kitchen installation guide (PDF, March 2026) ↗; Shiloh Cabinetry · Brochure 2-2026 (PDF) ↗; Eclipse Cabinetry · Product Brochure 7-2026 (PDF) ↗; Eclipse Cabinetry · Limited Warranty (PDF, 2022) ↗; Wood-Mode · Warranty ↗; W.W. Wood Products · FAQ ↗; KCMA · Cabinets Certified to Last (A161.1 tests) ↗; East Main · Door and drawer adjustments guide ↗. The guidance is East Main’s; confirm specifications for your order with your designer.
A few questions, answered.
- Should wall cabinets or base cabinets be installed first?
- Either order works. Hanging the wall cabinets first keeps the base cabinets out of the way while you lift, and American Woodmark’s guide recommends it. Setting the base cabinets first gives a level reference to work up from and lets the countertop be templated sooner. MasterBrand’s instructions allow both. Careful layout lines matter more than the order.
- What screws are used to hang kitchen cabinets?
- Use the screws your cabinet manufacturer specifies, driven into the wall studs. As examples, MasterBrand calls for 2 1/2-inch round washer head screws, and American Woodmark for #10 by 2 1/2-inch pan head screws that reach at least 1 inch into the stud. MasterBrand warns that using nails instead of screws voids its warranty. Masonry walls need anchors.
- How are frameless cabinets fastened together?
- Through the sides of the box. With no face frame to screw through, the installer clamps two frameless cabinets flush and joins the side panels with short screws or connector bolts. MasterBrand specifies 1 1/8-inch wood screws or connector bolts for its full-access cabinets, two to four for each pair depending on height. Framed cabinets are joined through the face frame with longer screws.
- Can East Main install my cabinets, or work with my contractor?
- Yes to both. We offer kitchen design, cabinet and countertop selection, ordering and installation. If you have a contractor, we can design the kitchen and order the materials while they handle construction. We’ll agree on who is responsible for measurements, delivery and installation before anything is ordered.
- My new cabinet doors look uneven. Was the installation done wrong?
- Usually not. Doors and drawers are adjusted as the last step of an installation, and most hinges and drawer guides can be adjusted again later with a screwdriver. Our door and drawer adjustments guide walks through it for Blum hinges and drawer runners. If a door or drawer runs out of adjustment, tell us and we’ll take a look.
Let’s make a plan
Your kitchen starts with a conversation.
Start with a free design consultation to discuss your goals, inspiration, general budget, and whether East Main is the right fit. Detailed kitchen design follows under a paid Design Agreement.