DIY Doctor UK DIY Forums

Dear Sir,

I have a nice Magnet fitted kitchen that is about 18 years old.
Two ‘lengths’ of ‘eye level’ wall units are fitted against a right angle wall. Between the two ‘lengths’ of wall units, in the corner, there is an ‘eye level’ corner unit. The corner unit has a door that is hinged on the right hand side, with concealed hinges. A month ago, the bottom hinge of the door snapped. I live near to Darlington in County Durham and today I visited the Magnet factory, hoping to get a new hinge, but the hinges fitted to my Magnet corner cupboard have been out of production for the past ten years. Magnet cannot help me. The corner cupboard hinges that Magnet uses today cannot be fitted to my cupboard.

The broken hinge was made by Hettich in West Germany. There is a part number. It is either, 0698, or 8690.

The recess hole in the back of the door, for the cup of the hinge, is approximately 25mm x 35mm.

The adjustable sliding arm of the hinge that is secured to the left hand end of the adjoining wall cupboard, is approximately 50mm long.

I do not know the hinge’s angle of degree but I think it is 45 degrees.

I cannot find Hettich hinges when I google.

I need a hinge that is identical to the broken hinge. Screw holes must line up. I have visited reclamation firms and private kitchen fitters who might remove old Magnet kitches. Nobody has been able to help me.

Because I cannot find a hinge that is worth less than a fiver, I am faced with spending thousands on a new kitchen.

Can someone advise me, or point me in the direction of a suitable hinge? I think it will have to be a Hettich.

Yours sincerely, oldsoldier

There must be a way of fitting new hinges rather than spend the rest of your life looking for a replacement. See our project on cupboard door adjustment where, in the tool store below, you can buy easy mount surface (concealed) hinges. These are made to fit into existing screw holes with no need to drill out new hinge recesses. If you are OK with DIY and want to fit new rebated hinges the proprietary drill bits can be bbought there also. We refuse to believe the entire kitchen is obsolete because of one hinge, there is always a way.

Dear Sir,

Thank you. Yes, I am a fairly competent DIYer and can tackle most jobs but this one is a headache. I have bought some concealed hinges, thinking that they will fit, but they have been useless. A hinge for this corner cupboard must be exact. In the closed position, when it is held up against the side of the adjacent cupboard, the part of the hinge that fits into the rebate of the door must be aligned across the front of the cupboard. If the door is fitted to it, the door will fit flush in the closed position.

I have thought about fitting hinges that will allow the door to be opened – up and out. Hinges at the top. I have seen hinges that will allow that but they are fitted onto the sides of a cupboard, ie, sides of a box that are parallel to each other, and the hinges would have to be strong enough to hold up the weight of the door and lock it in the open position.

Fitting hinges at one side will not do, because the door will be fouled by the adjacent door.

So, I will search as you suggest. Thank you very much for replying.

Yours sincerely, oldsoldier

Dear Old Soldier
I have the same problem.
Having looked at a more modern corner cupboard I realise that they contain an additional internal upright, at right angles to the front of the cupboard, which the hinges are fixed to.
I've bought some 170 degree hinges from B&Q and am planning to make an upright to fix them to.
Will this work?
If it does you're welcome to have my remaining old hinge as only one was broken

googling wasnt so hard, first result for hettich showed the maker.

Google hettich.com and then search uk/products

Hi, I think I have the answer to your problem. I also had a hinge break on a Magnet Kitchen corner cupboard unit. I have, today, visited Magnet trade counter in Croydon, taking the remaining good hinge with me. I have obtained two new hinges, which are a perfect fit. The new hinges are of a different design and require the new mounting plates that attach to the inside of the cupboard. They are easier to adjust than the old hinges and form, fit and function are unaltered.

The Magnet part numbers which I am transcribing directly from my invoice is:

HINGE 45D (15) CNR WALL BLUM 79A9658 CLIP

Hope this helps. If you don't live near a Magnet trade counter, you may be able to order the hinge and mounting clip online. However, I would suggest that you remove the remaining good hinge from the cupboard door and take it to a Magnet trade counter if possible, then you will be directly able to compare length/angles etc. The new hinges does look different, due to the method of attachment to the mounting clip.
Regards,

Pocket-Rocket