Soft-close hinges vs the cheap spring ones, huge difference on a 40 door job
Just finished a kitchen in Columbus where the builder insisted on the bargain bin hinges to save $3 a door, and after two days of adjustments they still slam shut like a storm door. Next project I'm billing the upgrade upfront because I wasted more time tuning those things than I made on the markup. Anyone else refuse to install the non-soft-close stuff unless the client signs off in writing?
That line about them slamming shut like a storm door got me. I had a pantry job last spring where the guy bought his own hardware off one of those discount sites, swore up and down they were soft close. Turns out they were soft close if you pushed the door within an inch of closing, otherwise boom. His wife came home from work one night, let the pantry door go out of habit, and it woke the baby upstairs. He called me the next morning asking if I could "tune them." I told him the only tuning those hinges needed was a trip to the trash can. He ended up buying the good ones anyway, so we both ate the cost of learning that lesson.