Kitchen Fitting Calculator

Standard UK laminate worktops come in 3m and 4m lengths. Divide your total worktop run by the slab length and round up. A mason’s-mitre joint on a standard 600mm-deep worktop uses 3 worktop connector (zip/tie) bolts per joint — worktop jigs cut 3 bolt slots and connector bolts ship in packs of 3. Add colour-matched sealant and allow roughly 50mm extra per joint for the mitre cut. Complex L or U-shaped kitchens may need additional cuts.

Blum’s guidance is based on door weight (and height), not a fixed height cut-off: 2 hinges suit doors of about 4–6 kg, and 3 hinges suit 6–12 kg. Tall, narrow doors are often given 3 hinges for stability even when the weight alone allows 2, and doors wider than 600mm need an extra hinge. Full-height larder doors may need 4–5. This calculator assumes 2 hinges for each base and wall door and 3 hinges for each tall-unit door (tall units usually split into 2 doors) — always check the weight against the manufacturer’s chart. Blum and Hettich are the most common UK brands.

Plinth (kickboard) runs along the FRONTAGE of base units, which is not the same as the worktop run — worktop overhangs unit ends and bridges appliance gaps where there is no plinth. Measure the total base-unit frontage (this calculator estimates it as base units × 0.6m standard width, plus 10% for returns and cutting). Standard plinth height is 150mm. It is held with plinth clips (about 2 per unit) and cut from 2.4m or 3m strips. Include return pieces at each end of the run.

Each standard ≤600mm base unit needs 4 adjustable legs — one at each corner. Tall units (larders and oven housings) also stand on 4 legs each, so this calculator counts legs for both base and tall units. Wider 800mm+ base units may need 6 legs — confirm against your unit spec. The legs allow levelling on uneven floors and create the space behind the plinth for services. Use a laser level to set all units to the same height before fitting worktops.

End panels (decor panels) are needed wherever a unit side is visible — typically at the ends of runs, next to appliances, and where units meet tall fittings. They match the door finish and give a complete look. Standard end panels are 2400mm × 600mm. You may also need filler strips where units meet walls at angles.