Replies

1. 
   oxmach | Aug 03, 2022 07:11pm | #1

   I’ve done a couple of kitchens, and used these legs with the clip for the toe kick. Worked out very well and can scribe the kick plat to meet the floor. Bonus is you can pull the kick plate at any time to gain access under the cabinet for low voltage wire, plumbing etc.
   https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca/shop/hardware/feet/levellers/40409-cabinet-levelling-support?item=00S8501

2. 
   johnpendery | Aug 03, 2022 07:17pm | #2

   Hi MJ,

   I agree with your train of thought. I’ve built and installed a bunch of both style. Started out building integral toe kicks, but once I adopted the platform method as you describe I would never go back, especially in areas with obviously uneven floors. I build the base as essentially a mini floor or wall system so I can shim in the “field” if need be without being blocked by a solid surface. Not sure if this is necessary, but quick and easy. The only downside I run into is needing to make a finished end panel if there is one exposed. I don’t think one is right and the other wrong, but in my experience building a separate toe kick unit and leveling it all at once is exponentially faster than dealing with the integral toe kick.

3. 
   eddo234 | Aug 03, 2022 07:32pm | #3

   As johnpenderey said, I too started out with the integral toekick. In general it worked well, until it didn’t. Drastically uneven floors changed our minds. It took us a little time to get used to the end of a base cabinet run having an inset, rather than the top-to-bottom flush plane, but we did. We also didn’t do the same 3” depth for the sides as the fronts.

4. 
   esch5995 | Aug 03, 2022 08:20pm | #4

   As a 40+ year kitchen remodeler I can say while I have done both, I probably prefer traditional American Style integrated toe kicks. I find the additional weight seems to give a more accurate fitment and level condition. In the past I leveled bases only to find when the weight of the cabinet was placed on it things didn't always stay that way.

   If you mark layout lines at the cabinet junctions, then pin nail a common cedar wedge into place and lay a second wedge on top so that the ramps increase the shim height as you tap the top shim in you can shim and level and level a complete set of base cabinets almost as fast as you can put them in place.

5. 
   Rob_Sp | Aug 03, 2022 08:37pm | #5

   With integral toe kicks, find the highpoint of the floor, measure up and scribe a level line around the walls the height of the base cabinets. Cut 3/4 wide wedges and shim the base cabinets up to the plumb line. You can then place wedges between the back and the wall while screwing it in, to level in the vertical plane.
   Be aware, if the walls are out or uneven you may want some excess width and a rabbit on finish ends to allow scribing of the end to the wall, unless you use some molding to hide the gap.

6. 
   DRBWWing | Aug 04, 2022 10:31am | #6

   I'm not a pro, but I've use leveler feet and like them a lot. The toe kick is scribed to the floor and attached with clips. On an end cabinet, the side toe kick is set in, just like the front.

   My second choice would be building a base.

7. 
   eddo234 | Aug 04, 2022 11:00am | #7

   The advantage of using a separate base is very noticeable on remodels where the floor is out of level. Using an integral base/toekick requires lots of trimming or shimming of the cabinet if the floor isn't level. Trimming the sides or back of the cabinet to sit firmly on the floor means being certain you're taking enough off, but not too much, or if you shim them instead it means you have a gap between cabinet and floor (unless the cabinets are in between 2 walls to hide the ends). With a separate base on an uneven floor you shim the base and screw it down. I don't understand the comment above that "In the past I leveled bases only to find when the weight of the cabinet was placed on it things didn't always stay that way." How is a shimmed 2x4 screwed to the floor going to move out of level from the weight of a cabinet? It's not. Fitting a toekick to the separate base is simple and seamless, no worries about integral toes having to be aligned, there's one toekick across multiple cabinets, and you can miter the toe at the corners instead of having a butt joint where the solid toe meets the plywood side. Custom cabinets should look custom, not like a bunch of factory units screwed together. The separate base helps with that.

1. 
   johnpendery | Aug 04, 2022 07:10pm | #9

   I’m with you eddo. I see virtually no downside to a separate base and numerous shortcomings of the factory standard integrated/notched toe kick. If done properly a separate base eliminates any potential for cabinets shifting or sagging. Nothing wrong with others preferring the other way though. One can build and install high quality cabinets with great results in either style.

8. 
   john_c2 | Aug 04, 2022 12:52pm | #8

   For really badly out of level floors I preferred the separate base. Fairly level floors I just shimmed. But I'm hardly an expert.

9. 
   _mj_ | Aug 04, 2022 08:41pm | #10

   Thanks to All for your insight and help. I'm going with the platform. You may recall my last post about cutting the doors out of the cabinet faces...I'm going with that as well. I'll come back with photos of the finished project.

1. 
   eddo234 | Aug 04, 2022 08:42pm | #11

   Good luck, yes, let us know how it goes.

2. 
   john_c2 | Aug 05, 2022 07:49am | #12

   Is this the bamboo, MJ?

10. 
    _mj_ | Aug 05, 2022 12:07pm | #13

    Yeah, the material has finally arrived. More supply chain issues. Not a single sheet on the East coast. I got 10 of the last 22 sheets in the US shipped from CA. Their next shipment was expected "sometime just after mid-September we hope".

1. 
   john_c2 | Aug 05, 2022 06:43pm | #14

   Nice. Pictures, please.