DIY Network

Loose Cabinet Hinges From "DIY Weekend" episode DIYW-208

If your wooden cabinets are been around for a while, chances are your cabinet doors will loosen up over time. The reason is that the screws holding the hinges in place lose their grip and start to pull out of the wood. Here is a quick and easy way to give those old cabinet doors a new lease on life.

The first thing you need to do is try to tighten the screws. Use a regular screwdriver to see if the screw still has bite. If it is stripped (keeps turning without tightening) then it needs to be repaired.

Remove the loose screws and take off the door. If the screws are stripped, back them out very slowly or they may not come out at all and then you will have to pull them out with pliers.

Use the thickest part of the toothpick.

If the screw is loose in the hole, there is no wood for it to bite into. You need to build up that hole and to do it you will need some special materials -- toothpicks. You want the thickest part of a toothpick to fill the hole, so cut off the tapered end.

Let the glue dry completely before cutting off the excess toothpick.

Next, squirt a small amount of hot glue into the screw hole and put the toothpick in the hole. You can use wood glue, but hot glue dries a lot faster. Let the glue dry completely, it will take a few minutes.

Cut the toothpick off flush with the cabinet using a Japanese pull saw. Now you are ready to put the door back on. Before you put the screws back in, tap a starter hole into the center of a toothpick using a small nail set. The screw now has plenty of fresh wood to grip onto. Remember, don't over tighten or you could strip it again.