The cabinet body for hinge installation needs to be of different types: such as ordinary non-damping hinges, slide-in hinges, quick-install damping hinges, rebound hinges, special angle hinges, large angle hinges (135°, 165/175°), corner-cut hinges, embedded hinges, cross hinges, top and bottom hinges, butterfly hinges, no-drill hinges, American hinges, short-arm hinges, and so on, with a wide variety. Generally, the commonly used hinges in home cabinets include damping buffer hinges (full cover, half cover, inner door), large angle hinges, angle hinges needed for corner cabinets, rebound hinges, aluminum door hinges, etc.
Generally speaking, the most commonly used hinges in homes should preferably be damping ones to avoid the noise of slamming doors and to prevent pinching fingers. As for choosing full cover, half cover, or inner door, it depends on the actual design plan of your cabinet designer; generally, for cabinet bodies sharing side panels, half cover, inner door, or full cover each has its preferences.
Different hinges have different applications. The quality of hinges is generally assessed comprehensively based on material, plating layer, structure, and test reports. However, most buyers usually purchase from regular channels, and generally, they can withstand at least 40,000 opening and closing tests according to national standards. Many brands can achieve over 80,000 to 100,000 times. The rust resistance should reach level 9 after 48-96 hours of neutral salt spray testing. Secondly, comparing the appearance and material, hinges are generally made of iron with nickel plating, and some use 304 stainless steel. First, check the plating layer; if you can see black spots on the hinge cup, it indicates poor plating and a thin layer. In China, it is common to first copper plate and then nickel plate. Check for smoothness and whether there are burrs. Finally, check the damping effect; the time from automatic closure to fully closed should be around 7 seconds for the best performance, and the damping should provide a cushioning effect even at small opening angles. Next, check if the buffer has oil leakage; hydraulic dampers made of brass are better. Currently, many brands have other damping components to replace hydraulic dampers to prevent aging, cylinder bursting, oil leakage, etc. Lastly, check if the spring plate and U-shaped pin fit tightly, whether there is two-dimensional or three-dimensional adjustment, and test the installed hinge to see if it can fully close and whether it is stable without shaking.
One misconception is that the heavier the hinge, the better the quality, which is not necessarily true. The weight is largely due to the metal buffer and the material itself, with different iron or low-carbon steel content affecting the weight. Currently, many hinges are moving towards being lighter, easier to install, more aesthetically pleasing in color, more durable, more rust-resistant, and providing more stable performance.
The above is based on my understanding and knowledge of this industry. If there are different opinions, please be tolerant and provide guidance and corrections.
