How to Fix a Kitchen Drawer

Your broken kitchen drawer can feel like a major nuisance - after all, who wants to struggle with opening a drawer when all you want to get is a simple knife or fork? Believe it or not, however, these drawers are put together simply, and fixing them can be just as simple once you take a look inside. If your drawer is broken, you should be able to fix it by setting aside a small block of time and a little persistence. Of course, you'll need a little knowledge, too.

The first step to fixing your broken kitchen drawer is diagnosing the problem you're facing. Usually, the problem is one of two things: a split in the wood itself, or a problem with a mechanical joint that is forcing the drawer to fail. Either way, your job will essentially be to re-build and re-attach either broken part so that your drawer looks like the other (working) drawers in your kitchen.

Pull out the drawer as far as you can and take a look at the problem. Is the drawer not coming out far enough? Then you're probably looking at a potential jam or blockage at some part of the roller. If you have trouble getting to your drawer, be willing to move out some nearby parts in your kitchen, including other drawers.

Since the problem usually arrives either with the wood or the mechanism itself, you'll have two ways to fix your drawer. For problems with the wood - often a wood split - you'll want to purchase some wood glue and re-set the wood so that it is even again. Let the glue dry for a while before testing out the kitchen drawer again.

Problems with mechanical joints in your drawer can be fixed in a similar way, though you'll probably want to be more careful. Make sure that the area is clean first, and make a mental note of where the old glue appears to be. You'll probably want to clear away some of this glue in order to make way for a new, stronger adhesive. Again, let the glue set before you test out the drawer.

If you get lost, try to use your functioning drawers as blueprints for how this drawer should look. Remember, a drawer is not a complicated device. There are only so many things that can go wrong. Once you diagnose the problem, you can set about fixing it right away.

Photo Credits: put that down

This post involves:

blueprints, drawers, job, kitchen drawer, little knowledge, mechanical joints, nuisance, persistence, two ways, wood glue

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Handyman, How to Fix, kitchen

Posted by Fix Handyman on August 5, 2009 in Handyman, How to Fix, kitchen. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.