Hinges play an important role in many pieces of furniture. Cabinets, dressers, chests of drawers and nightstands often feature hinges. These mechanical bearings allow their respective doors to swing open.
Rather than using standard hinges, though, some furniture pieces feature concealed hinges. Concealed hinges provide a limited range of rotation like all other hinges, but they are hidden from plain sight.
Overview of Concealed Hinges
Concealed hinges are mechanical bearings that are completely concealed when the door or surface on which they are installed is closed. You will only see them after opening the door or surface. Also known as hidden hinges, you can’t see concealed hinges when the door or surface is closed.
How Concealed Hinges Work
You might be wondering how concealed hinges work. They don’t feature the same leaf-and-knuckle design as standard hinges. Instead, most concealed hinges feature a cup, arm and mounting frame.
The cup is the part of a concealed hinge that’s installed on the door. The arm is the long lever-like part. And the mounting frame is the part that secures the concealed hinge to the frame. There are different types of concealed hinges, but most of them feature a cup, arm and mounting frame. All of these parts are installed so that they remain hidden when the door is closed.
Benefits of Using Concealed Hinges
Concealed hinges are a popular choice for furniture. While other types of hinges may remain visible when furniture doors are open, this isn’t an issue with concealed hinges. Concealed hinges are characterized by their ability to conceal themselves when the door is closed.
You can easily install concealed hinges. Many of them require nothing more than a set of small screws to install. You can install them by driving a couple of screws through the appropriate hole and into the door and frame.
There are concealed hinges available that offer wide opening angles. They are commonly found on cabinets. If you want a cabinet door to open wide, you may want to use this type of concealed hinge. Wide-angle concealed hinges are still hidden when the door is closed, but they are able to swing open at a wider angle than that of other concealed hinges.
In Conclusion
You can find hinges in different styles. Most of these styles feature a pair of leafs and a pin-joined knuckle. Concealed hinges, though, feature a different design. They feature a cup, arm and mounting frame, which allows them to remain hidden when the door is closed.