How To Replace Glass in Cabinet Doors

This week I created my own problem & then in the repair process thought well, now I can share How To Replace Glass in Cabinet Doors. Always a silver lining right?

I created this problem when I shared a unedited product photos with a friend of mine.

 She refinishes furniture and we often consult on photos & the little details of our work. She suggested I remove the glass from the doors to get rid of the glare in the photos...So I did. Couldn't have her thinking I was an amateur who did not know to take the glass out for photos.

I started removing the glass & sent a quick reply asking, "How do I get the glass back in?"

This really may be step 0 and is removing the existing trim that hold the glass in. There may be wood pieces, or rubber lining you need to remove. Also remove any small nails or staples that may have been left behind from the old trim.

Use your pliers and gently pick the metal bits out. If you follow the method we share here, you will not need them. However if you want to place any trim back in you may want to keep the little nails.

Clean the indented area that the glass was removed from. You can do this with simple vinegar and water mix. (Like we use on everything we clean)

If you are going to replace the glass in cabinet doors on a painted piece, then take this time and paint to match you finish. On both hutches featured here I used Pure Home Paints and Finishes. You can see the yellow one here. And the Blue one here.

Clean your glass! 

50/50 Vinegar and water in a spray bottle. Make sure you do this with lint free rags. This way you won't have lint pieces trapped under the silicone.

Grab your tube of silicone. I uses this one mainly because it said it stuck to almost anything. That sounded like a winning best to me. 

On the nozzle part of the bottle you should see diagonal lines with fraction marks next to them. These are where you will use scissors to cut the tip. Most caulking guns also have a mechanism for cutting the tip of the tube. If you are unsure of how big you want your silicone bead to be, cut small and then go bigger if you need to. You can always go up, but it's impossible to go back to those smaller options.

Just beneath the section of the caulking gun that the silicone tube nozzle sits in there should be a straight piece of metal that can rotate forward. Rotate it forward and insert it into the cut nozzle tip of your silicone. This will puncture the inner seal.

Now drop your silicone into the caulking gun and push the lever on the back side forward. You will want the longest point of the cut tip to be on top. Pull the trigger on your caulking gun a little until you get some of the silicone coming up into the nozzle.

You are ready to replace the glass in your cabinet doors! 

Take your caulking gun and start in one corner. 

Keep the nozzle angled to about 45 degrees and squeeze the trigger moving down the entire line. The bead of silicone you left should be in the area where your glass will sit when centered in the cabinet door. Continue on and do the same thing on all sections. 

I found I ended up with excess silicone in some spaces. You can use your moist lint free cloth to wipe away any gloopy areas. I used Mineral Spirits on the rag to help smooth the silicone. If you end up with some excess you may also be able to clean it up after. 

Silicone can start to dry quickly so make sure you have your glass ready to go.

Do your best to pick up the glass by the edges if it is safe to do so. Some older pieces of glass can be quite sharp. If you have to touch the glass do it in an area that will not touch the silicone, an area that you will be able to clean later.

From one end align your glass so that it will be centered in the space. It it best to have an even gap on all sided rather than snug to the edge on one side and a large gap on the other/s.

The silicone I used said it tried in 30 minutes. I carefully stacked moderately heavy books on the glass to weigh it down while drying. My books were fairly light so I added in a bucket with water. You can use anything you have on hand, just make sure you don't put so much weight that you crack the glass.

You are almost done! So close to becoming a pro How To Replace the Glass in Cabinet Doors!

Grab your silicone and caulking gun again. Now you are going to fill the gap on the side of your glass. That even space we left when placing the glass in the cabinet door.

Just like before you will work your way from one corner, down, and all around your glass piece. You want to squeeze enough out to fill the gap and come up onto the backside of the glass. 

Be cautious and do your best to keep the silicone neat and not let it spread past the lip and onto the part of the glass that will be seen. 

Now take your damp lint free cloth and gently smooth your silicone bead for a clean finish. You can also use mineral spirits on your towel to help smooth the silicone. If you get a little silicone on your glass you will be able to easily clean it off with a razor.

Allow the full dry time and mount your doors back onto the cabinet.

You did it! You now know how to Replace Glass in Cabinet Door. 

Don'f forget to Pin this for later & share with any friends that might find this helpful. Please let me know in the comments if this post was helpful of if you have any additional questions. I try to go back in and answer questions in the post and help all future visitors.

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