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Additional structural support
Hello,
When a wall cabinet run ends in a wall, in this case a cabinet above the refrigerator, a finished filler is used between the wall and the front edge of the cabinet. Is additional structural support needed along the side wall and rear edge of the cabinet or would it get sufficient support when screwed to the rear wall and TFE, preceding cabinet run?
Thank you
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3 Replies
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Usually, you do not need additional support on the side that touches the wall where your filler is, as there is plenty of support on the opposite side where the tall finished end panel attaches to a wall cabinet and potentially a base cabinet as well. These cabinets are very rigid since they are built from 3/4″ plywood.
If you feel you need more support along the front edge where it meets the wall, you can add a cleat at the nearest stud, positioned close to the front of the cabinet case on the adjacent wall. This cleat can also help support the filler, especially if you plan to run the filler full height from the floor to the top of your cabinet run.
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Ok. After reading you explanation, I don’t think I will need additional support. However, I just want to have a better understanding of the cleat approach. What exactly is a cleat here? Would you be having any diagrams or pictures?
Thank you
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I believe I used a cleat on the refrigerator cabinet at my home, but the fridge is installed and I can’t pull it out to get a good photo—which would be helpful. I looked around and didn’t find a simple, clear example that illustrates it well, so I created a 3D drawing to show what I mean:
