Blum versus Salice Hinges

[curium]

Hi

I've been trawling around the sheds for a kitchen.

I've noticed the B&Q kitchens have Salice hinges and had a separate piston device to dampen the closing action of the doors. This didn't seem to be completely effective as I was able to get a noise out of the doors with a forceful shove. This may be due to the sheer number of times that the doors in a B&Q showroom are opened and closed... (would these be soft-close doors as opposed to soft-close hinges?)

The Wickes kitchens all seemed to have Blum hinges as standard and, despite no visible separate dampening device, all seemed to have a lovely smooth closing action.

Unfortunately I'm not completely comfortable with the way that Wickes have prepared the quote but I'll raise that in a separate thread.

My Question: Is it possible to purchase the Blum hinges separately for the B&Q kitchen (Carisbrooke) and have the installer fit them. The installer is from B&Q (or sub-contracted) but they've already stated that they're happy to fit appliances and fittings purchased elsewhere so I don't see why they would object to fitting hinges purchased elsewhere.

My problem is that I know nothing about hinges so could end up buying a load of hinges which won't work (or work poorly) with my doors and drawers.

Is there anyone here who could advise?

Many thanks.

 

[joinerjohn]

The Blum hinges do have a separate closing device, It clips on to the hinge in such a way that it looks like an integral part of the hinge. I think the Blum should be a straight replacement for the Salice hinges

 

[foxhole]

There are soft close hinges with damping built in.

 

[Jasonb]

As Foxy says the latest Blums have the softclose built into the hinge and there is a small lever that allows you to switch it off, handy for small doors where the damping effect from one hinge is enough.

Make sure you get the correct height mounting plates to suit your carcase as some of the B&Q stuff has 15-16mm sides to the carcases so you need plates with the extra 3mm height. Also get the right type depending on the screw holes as some carcases are drilled 5mm and others just dimpled for a 3.5mm screw.

J