A Project That Is Easier Than It Seems
Installing Medicine Cabinet Can Be Done 'in an Hour'
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Saturday, November 15, 2008
Here's a do-it-yourself job for the bathroom that may appear harder than it actually is: Replacing or adding a medicine cabinet.
You can buy one at a home improvement store for about $100 or go to a specialty store and get a high-end cabinet for more than $1,000.
"Its one of those projects that you say is going to take you all day, and you do it in an hour," said Karen Collins, marketing communications manager for Broan-NuTone.
Medicine cabinets can be affixed to the wall or be recessed a few inches into the wall. Recessed cabinets allow for better movement around the vanity because they don't stick out as much.
Medicine cabinets are generally about 3 1/2 inches deep.
Replacing an existing medicine cabinet involves less work than installing a new one. For replacement jobs, homeowners should make sure that their new cabinet matches the length and width of the rough opening of the old one. The old cabinet usually can be removed by simply removing screws that held it in place and pulling it out.
Find a friend to help you because someone will have to hold the cabinet steady while the other person screws it into the wall.
Mirrored doors can open either to the left or to the right. When you buy a new medicine cabinet, make sure you know which way it swings open to avoid walls and ensure full range of movement.
When installing a new recessed cabinet, the most important step is to make sure there is no plumbing or electrical wires in the wall before you make the hole. If there is plumbing, you will not be able to work in that space unless you move it, which is costly.
"If you don't know what's behind the wall, make a little hole and check in there to see if you are hitting anything," Collins said.
Recessed cabinets are mounted on wall studs, and many of them have mounting screws installed through the inside of the cabinet.
Wall-hung cabinets can easily be screwed into the two-by-fours inside the wall, allowing for stability. Drywall alone will not hold a wall-hung medicine cabinet.
And, of course, if such a project scares you, ask for advice.
