How to Install Drawer Slides

To install drawer slides, separate each slide into its cabinet part and drawer part, screw the cabinet parts level and parallel inside the cabinet using a spacer board, screw the drawer parts to the box, then slide the drawer in and adjust before adding the final screws. Side-mount ball-bearing slides need 1/2 in (12.7 mm) on each side of the box; undermount slides hide under the drawer and need a box built for them.

Before you start

• Measure the inside depth of the cabinet and buy the longest slide that fits: 12–22 in in 2 in steps (300–550 mm).
• Build the box to suit the slide: see standard drawer dimensions and drawer slide types.
• Make a spacer: a strip of plywood as tall as the bottom of the slide above the cabinet floor, for the bottom drawer; cut it down for each drawer above.

Side-mount ball-bearing slides

Most side-mount ball-bearing slides are full extension: the whole drawer comes out of the cabinet. They are installed the same way as 3/4-extension slides.

1. Separate the slide: push the release lever and pull the drawer member out of the cabinet member.
2. Mount the cabinet members: rest each on the spacer, flush with the front edge of the cabinet (or set back by the drawer front's thickness for inset drawers), and screw through the slotted holes first.
3. Mount the drawer members on the box sides, at the same height on both sides, with the front of the slide at the front of the box.
4. Slide the drawer in: the members click together. Check that it runs smoothly and closes fully.
5. Adjust using the slotted holes, then drive screws into the round holes to lock everything.
6. Fit the drawer front with double-sided tape or a couple of screws from inside, check the gaps, and screw it on for good.

Undermount slides

Undermount (concealed) slides carry the drawer from below and are hidden when it opens. The box must be made for them: sides 1/2–5/8 in thick, the bottom set up about 1/2 in (13 mm) from the lower edge, and a notch and a hole at the back for the slide's hook.

1. Screw the runners to the cabinet sides, about 1/8 in (3 mm) back from the front edge in a frameless cabinet, on the spacer.
2. Screw the locking clips under the front of the drawer box.
3. Lower the drawer onto the extended runners until the back hooks engage and the clips snap shut.
4. Adjust the height and side-to-side play with the clips' dials.

Bottom-mount and face-frame cabinets

Bottom-mount epoxy slides screw to the lower edge of the box and the cabinet side, need about 1/2 in in total and are the cheapest; they open about 3/4 of the way. In face-frame cabinets the frame stands proud of the sides, so screw spacer blocks to the sides flush with the frame, or use rear brackets that hold the back of the slide.