The easy response to a wonky run of kitchen doors is to work along the row turning adjuster screws until the gaps look even again. It can work for a while, but if the carcasses themselves are out of level, you're using up the hinge's limited adjustment range to disguise a bigger problem, and it tends to drift back out of true within months.
A repair that holds starts underneath the units, at the levelling legs and the floor they sit on, and treats the hinges as the last, smallest adjustment rather than the whole job.
The sequence a lasting repair follows
Doing it in this order matters because a lot of the visible misalignment often disappears once the carcasses are properly level again — the hinges were never faulty, they were just being asked to compensate for a levelling problem they weren't designed to fix.
- Check levels along the entire run with a spirit level, identifying exactly where the carcasses have dropped or tilted relative to each other.
- Adjust the levelling legs or re-pack the base of the units to bring the whole run back to a true, consistent level, rather than adjusting one unit in isolation.
- Inspect and, where necessary, replace worn hinge plates and their fixing screws into sound carcass material, using larger fixings or repositioned holes where the original ones have stripped.
- Re-set worktop fixings if they've been pulling carcasses forward, checking the worktop is properly supported rather than relying on the fixings to hold it level.
- Only once the carcasses and hinges are sound do the fine hinge adjuster screws get used, to true up the final door gaps.
Where the floor itself is the problem
If an island or a section of run has settled because the floor structure beneath it has deflected — usually under sustained heavy loading, such as a large stone-topped island — re-levelling the units alone treats the symptom, not the cause, and the movement will likely continue. In that situation the floor structure needs investigating before the kitchen units are touched again, and that's a job for a structural assessment rather than a re-pack of the plinths.
What a cosmetic hinge adjustment misses
Turning adjuster screws to correct gaps without checking carcass level treats each door as an isolated problem, when in most misaligned kitchens the whole run has moved together. It also risks running the hinge adjustment to its mechanical limit, which leaves no further margin if the underlying settlement continues — the next stage of movement then has nowhere to be absorbed and the door starts catching outright.
Interfaces with other trades
Where worktop fixings are involved, particularly with stone tops, coordinating with whoever installed the worktop matters — refitting or re-tensioning fixings on a stone top needs the right technique to avoid cracking the material at the fixing points.
If flooring has been relaid since the kitchen was fitted and levels have changed as a result, that's worth flagging early, since packing at the plinths can only take up so much difference before the kickboard line starts looking uneven.
How you know the repair has worked
A properly realigned kitchen shows consistent, parallel gaps along the whole run, doors and drawers close without needing extra force, and — the real test — it stays that way for a reasonable period rather than needing the same doors nudged again within weeks. If misalignment returns quickly after a full realignment, that's a strong signal the floor beneath the units is still moving and needs its own investigation.
Common questions
Do the units need to come out to fix this?+
Not usually. Levelling legs, hinge plates and worktop fixings can generally be accessed and adjusted with the units in place, unless the floor beneath needs structural investigation.
How long should a proper realignment last?+
If the cause was carcass level or worn hinge plates and both are properly corrected, it should hold indefinitely under normal use. If it drifts again quickly, that points to ongoing floor movement rather than a repeat of the original fault.
Can a heavy island always be fixed by re-levelling?+
Only if the floor itself is sound. If the floor structure has genuinely deflected under the island's weight, re-levelling the unit is a temporary measure until the floor is assessed and, if needed, strengthened.
Get a written quote for the repair
We check levels along the whole run before quoting, so the price reflects what's actually needed to stop the doors drifting again.