Some Common Questions & Answers About Purchasing and Installing Knobs

Will My Order Ship With Screws to Install the Knobs?

Yes.  All orders placed with InterKnobs.com will ship with the manufacturer’s screws at no additional charge.  The threading of the screws for your new knobs will typically be either 8/32 (standard American threading) or M4 (European/metric threading). Most orders will ship with screws of customary lengths specified by the manufacturer, usually 1” and/or 1 1/4”.  These standard lengths will work on 99% of doors and drawers.

On occasion, the screws supplied by a manufacturer will be too short to securely fasten your knobs to some of your kitchen drawers or dresser drawer fronts.   In this situation, please call 1-877-820-9224 so we can attempt to resolve the problem either by finding screws of sufficient length in our inventory or by pointing you in the right direction.  If the knobs take a standard 8/32 screw, your local hardware store or home center will also carry various lengths.  Metric screws can be harder to find locally and we will be happy to help you as best we can.

You Have Such a Huge Selection of Knobs. How Do We Limit Our Search?

Shopping for knobs and pulls can be overwhelming.  We try to make the process as easy as possible by offering advanced website search features.  Once you enter InterKnobs.com, you’ll notice various pull-down menus located in the upper right hand corner of your screen. These menus include Manufacturer, Material, Finish, and Hole Distance.

If you are installing new cabinetry, searching knobs by finish is a good place to start.  Try to nail down a specific range of colors to work within, as this will narrow your search from thousands to dozens immediately.  As you navigate within a certain range of finishes and click into detail pages, you should utilize our “View Similar Items” feature that can be found right below any item’s picture.  For instance, if you are viewing a satin nickel knob by Century Hardware, clicking on the “View Similar Items” button will generate related knobs and pulls that may be of interest.

If you have already done some research and have specific model numbers or manufacturers in mind, using our open keyword search to find the right knobs may be the quickest option. The open  keyword search can be found in upper-center portion of most pages on InterKnobs.

You can also reach us toll free at 1-877-820-9224 with any questions.

We’re On a Budget And The Knobs We Like Are Out of Our Price Range.  Can You Help?

As with other home improvement products, the quality and price range of knobs and pulls is broad.  All of the items sold on Interknobs and FunKnobs are competitively discounted off MSRP and we offer free ground shipping on orders over $99. In addition to this, there are other ways to save money on your new cabinet knobs:

• Submit Your Best Offer: On each product detail page, there is an option to submit an offer to us.  You will be given the opportunity to enter the quantity desired and a reasonable price that you are willing to pay.  We will respond as quickly as possible with a coupon code that can be used to discount the knobs as sharply as possible.

• Frequent Sales Promotions: On weekends and holidays, we run sales that typically last 2-3 days and offer storewide savings on purchases exceeding certain dollar amounts.  When a sale is on, details are prominently displayed on all pages in the announcement box.

• Use ‘Sort By Price’ Feature:  When browsing our selection of knobs, please note that there is a ’sort by price’ feature that gives you the option of arranging the items by price from ‘highest to lowest’ or ‘lowest to highest’.  This feature can help you greatly limit your shopping to items in your price range.

• You can always call us to “see what we can do” at 1-877-820-9224!

Little DIY Changes Can Make a Big Difference

Cabinet hardware can serve as an easy and cost effective tool in updating your kitchen cabinets, bath vanities, and dressers. Let’s face it – home improvement projects are expensive, time-consuming, and more often than not, stressful.  If you need to quickly change your scenery, knobs and pulls may be the answer. 

 

There are a few guidelines one should keep in mind when changing the cabinet hardware of existing cabinetry.

 

Start with Measurements

 

First, you’ll need to confirm certain key measurements.  If you will be replacing any handles or pulls (hardware that requires two mounting screws for installation), it is absolutely essential that you measure the spread between the screw holes. This measurement is referred to as the center to center (C-C) dimension, boring size, hole distance, or hole drilling dimension.  The most common C-C dimensions of cabinet pulls are 3’’ (76MM), 3 ½’’ (89MM), 3 ¾’’ (96MM), and 5’’ (128MM). 

 

On occasion, homeowners will discover that there are a limited number of drawer pulls on the market that will accommodate their existing cabinets’ hole drilling measurements.  This circumstance most often arises in the case of older dressers or furniture that may have had custom or oddball hardware installed, like 2 ¾’’ C-C pulls. More often than not, homeowners will be able to find one or two options, but having so few choices when considerations of style and finish are also at play can lead to a frustrating dead-end.  If you find yourself in this situation, we recommend utilizing pull/backplate sets to make life a lot easier! Backplates will allow you to cover the pre-existing holes in your doors or drawers with a decorative piece that matches in style and finish with the selected cabinet pulls.  You’ll need to re-drill to accommodate the borings of your new cabinet pulls and backplates so your project may become more time consuming than originally planned, but hey, this is still a time and budget friendly way to make a huge difference in your home. 

 

Style and Finish

Sure, you probably have a soft spot in your heart for those drawer pulls on grandma’s dresser, but there’s no point to getting a face lift if you still look old after the procedure is done! So here is the Knob Talk mantra for those looking to update their cabinetry or furniture: Don’t replace ‘em, completely change ‘em.   If you want to give new life to those doors and drawers, the key is to find something different that is still in keeping with the style and color or finish of the relevant doors and drawer fronts.  

 

You want your new decorative hardware to stand out and highlight other coordinating accents in the home. Homeowners often make the mistake of trying to “match” other fixtures and pieces in a given room.  This goal is almost impossible to accomplish, especially in the instance when you are not doing a full renovation.  Let your knobs and pulls catch the eye and give your space a new personality, but do not get bogged down in trying to perfectly match your new hardware with other accents in your home.

 

Try using our advanced search to narrow your options down by dimensions and finish and then order cabinet hardware samples to see how your selections will coordinate with the other features of your space.

 

 

What’s the Deal with Stainless Steel?

The utilization of stainless steel cabinet hardware has evolved from a mere design trend to the design standard in contemporary kitchens.  In addition to having a finish and sheen that naturally evoke a contemporary aesthetic, stainless steel is a durable and rust-resistant material that will maintain its quality and appearance over time.  Here are some key pointers to keep in mind when selecting stainless steel cabinet hardware.   

 

Solid Stainless Steel vs. Stainless Steel Finish

 

Stainless steel knobs and pulls are often, but not always, fabricated out of true or solid stainless steel.  There is an important and often overlooked distinction between knobs and pulls that are plated in a “stainless steel finish” and those that have a solid or true stainless steel construction.  Be sure to clarify the material construction with your hardware vendor before finalizing your selection of stainless steel cabinet pulls.

 

The use of a stainless steel plated finish on materials like zinc, steel, or brass is a more cost-effective way of achieving the desired look and can be advantageous if you are trying to stay within budget or if a certain design is unavailable with a solid or true construction. Similarly, certain manufacturers offer finishes like “satin nickel” or “brushed nickel” that can be used to coordinate with stainless steel appliances in contemporary kitchens. 

 

How To Select Sizes

 

The most familiar stainless steel hardware applications incorporate “bar pulls” or “post and rail handles” of varying lengths on kitchen cabinet doors and drawers.  There are many options and a few rules when it comes to choosing the right ensemble of pulls.  We outline some popular options below:

 

• Uniformity.  This approach is particularly common in smaller kitchens where the doors and drawers do not vary greatly in size.  Consider using the same size pull on all the doors and drawers or mix it up a little by using one size for all the drawers and another for all the cabinet doors.
• Maximum Length.  Another popular method is to utilize the longest cabinet pull possible per drawer and door. As a general rule, at least 1 ½’’ of clearance should be allowed between the end of the cabinet pull and the end of the drawer on either side.  Be sure to reference the overall length of each pull and not the center to center or boring dimensions when calculating your sizes.
• Parallel Horizontal Look.  The classic contemporary look would call for stainless steel bar pulls to be vertically mounted on kitchen cabinet doors, but mounting your pulls horizontally on cabinet doors to create a parallel effect with your drawers can create another great look.  If you are installing your hardware on flat panel or other minimalist style doors and drawers, many designers recommend mounting the pulls off-center on the doors to give an eclectic twist to your contemporary kitchen. 

 We hope this entry was helpful and welcome your comments and questions!               

It’s Knob Talk – We’re All About Knobs and Pulls, All the Time

So why blog about knobs?

They’re just one of those things in life that homeowners don’t dwell on until those critical, finishing touch decisions are thrust upon us during a kitchen or bath renovation or when we decide to cosmetically update old furniture and cabinetry. These are relatively infrequent moments, but the functional and aesthetic roles that knobs and pulls play in designing spaces merit exploration and discussion.

Well, that all may sound too serious, I guess. After all, we’re not blogging about rocket science here. But there is a certain science to finding cabinet knobs and pulls that will beautify your space while meeting design and budgetary requirements.

Should I use knobs or pulls? What finishes will work with my new cabinetry? What sizes should I use? These are just some of the common questions we’ll be able to help you with at Knob Talk.