Ulti-MATE Garage assembly

Build them all, hang them all, level them all, and only then fit the doors.

Door alignment is measured against a level cabinet and against its neighbors. Hang doors before the run is set and you will do the fiddliest part of the job a second time, once for every cabinet.

Installers near you quote you directly. No account, no obligation.

Flat-pack cabinets, which is the deal you are making

Ulti-MATE cabinets arrive flat-packed and go together with cam locks and dowels, the same system as flat-pack furniture. Owners consistently say that if you have built an IKEA cabinet you can build these, and the tool list is a Phillips screwdriver, a flat screwdriver and a rubber mallet. One owner reported roughly four hours for four cabinets at an unhurried pace.

That is the trade, and it is a deliberate one. Shipping flat takes a fraction of the freight space of assembled cabinets, which is where the price advantage comes from. So unlike a welded steel system that arrives built and simply needs mounting, here you are exchanging your own labor for a lower cost. Worth knowing before you buy, because a six-cabinet set is a genuine day of work rather than an afternoon of hanging.

What people underestimate is not the difficulty but the order of operations. Cabinets are built, then positioned or hung, then leveled, and doors go on at the very end once the whole run is arranged. Doing it in a different order does not fail, it just makes you repeat the most tedious part of the job, and on a multi-cabinet run that adds up fast.

What it actually takes

Ulti-MATE asks for two or more adults, since the cabinets are heavy once built.

ModelTimePeople
Inventorying parts and hardwareHinges may be in a separate box. No spares.20 to 30 minutes1
Assembling cabinetsOwner reported 4 hours for 4 cabinets.about 1 hour each1 to 2
Locating studs and fitting cleatsCabinets are often wider than stud spacing.45 to 90 minutes1 to 2
Hanging and leveling the runLevel everything before any door goes on.1 to 2 hours2
Fitting and adjusting doorsLast step. Do it once.20 to 30 minutes each1
Aligning the thin back panelEasier with a second pair of hands.the finicky bit2

Assembly is straightforward and repetitive. The value of doing it in the right order shows up on the fifth cabinet, not the first.

What to get right, specifically

Doors last, after the whole run is hung and level

This is the ordering tip worth the whole page. Cabinets should be leveled, either standing on their feet or hung on their French cleat, before doors are installed. If you attach doors first you will have to readjust them once the cabinet moves, and on a run of several cabinets the guidance is to build and set all of them up without doors, arrange and adjust the complete set, and only then fit doors as the final step. Door gaps are judged against neighbors as much as against their own cabinet, so aligning them before the neighbors exist is work you are going to redo.

Two of the three mounting options depend entirely on the wall

Cabinets can stand on all four feet, on the two front feet only, or float off the ground with no feet at all. The floating look is the one most people want and it is also the one with no floor support whatsoever. For both the two-feet and the floating installations you must use wall cleats fixed into the wooden studs behind. Decide which look you are going for before you start, because it changes whether the wall is carrying some of the load or all of it.

The screws that hold it to the wall are not in the box

Ulti-MATE states that additional hardware to attach the cabinet to the wall, such as wood stud screws, needs to be purchased separately, and their cleat kits note you may need to buy proper length wood stud screws at your own cost. Separately, French cleats are supplied with base and wall cabinets but not with garage lockers, where the hanging kit is a separate item. So the parts that actually attach your storage to the building are the ones most likely to be missing on the day. Sort them out with the order.

Cabinets are often wider than your stud spacing

A practical problem owners hit repeatedly: a cabinet wide enough to be useful does not conveniently land on two studs at sixteen inch centers. One documented solution is to fix strips of three quarter inch plywood horizontally into the studs across the whole run, then mount the cleats to the plywood with additional screws into studs where they line up. That gives you a continuous mounting surface, keeps a long run of cabinets on one level line, and is far better than compromising on where a cabinet sits because of where a stud happens to be.

Inventory the hardware first, because there are no spares

Owners report hinges and larger hardware packed in a separate box from the main hardware pack, and at least one found themselves a screw short with the cabinet half built. There are no spare fasteners included. Lay everything out and count it against the parts list before you start, work over the packing foam rather than a bare concrete floor, and keep fasteners contained. A single dropped cam lock on a garage floor is a genuinely annoying way to lose twenty minutes.

Two adults, and their own advice about hung base cabinets

Ulti-MATE asks for two or more adults when installing, noting the cabinets are very heavy, and their listings go further on one specific case: if you are hanging base cabinets, they recommend seeking a cabinet professional to install them, ensure attachment to wall studs, and reduce the weight load. That is a manufacturer telling you where the risk sits. A base cabinet was designed with the floor taking some of the load, so hanging one puts everything on the cleat and the studs.

Know what the warranty covers, and what it does not

The 10-year warranty is a limited parts warranty. Ulti-MATE states that they will not pay for service calls to install the product, to correct installation problems, or to instruct on how to install or use it. That is normal for the category and it is the same position NewAge take. The practical reading is that a defective panel is their problem and a cabinet installed badly is yours, which is a reasonable argument for getting the cleats and the leveling right first time.

Before you start

Decide whether the cabinets will sit on four feet, two feet or float, since that determines how much the wall is carrying.

Buy wood stud screws of the right length, and cleats for any garage lockers, which do not include them.

Map the studs across the whole run and plan for cabinets being wider than standard stud spacing.

Clear enough floor to build on, ideally over the packing foam rather than bare concrete.

Inventory every fastener against the list, checking the separate hardware box, before opening panels.

Line up a second person for hanging, the back panels and any base cabinet you intend to hang.

Plan to fit all doors at the very end, once the whole run is arranged and level.

Who this is really for

Somebody who wants a finished-looking cabinet run without the price of welded steel, and who is comfortable spending a day building flat-pack. The saving is real and it comes directly from the flat packing, so the labor you put in is the discount you are getting.

It suits people who like modularity. The range is designed to be combined and expanded, with base cabinets, wall cabinets, lockers and countertops that can be added over time, so a garage can be done in stages rather than all at once.

The case for handing it over is mostly time and sequencing. An installer will build a set considerably faster than a first-timer, will solve the stud spacing problem properly rather than compromising the layout, and will do the doors once. It is also the sensible route for hung base cabinets, which is the one case Ulti-MATE itself suggests getting a professional for.

What an installer does

  • Inventories all hardware, including the separate hinge box, before any panel is opened.
  • Assembles cabinets on a protected surface without losing fasteners, since none are spare.
  • Maps studs and creates a continuous mounting surface where cabinets are wider than stud spacing.
  • Fits French cleats into studs and hangs cabinets level across the whole run.
  • Sets feet or floats cabinets as specified, and handles hung base cabinets with the load in mind.
  • Fits and adjusts all doors as the final step, once the run is arranged and level.
  • Supplies the wood stud screws and cleats that do not come in the box.

Get it built by someone who has built one before.

Tell us your ZIP and what you bought. Installers near you will quote you directly, and you deal with them, not with us.

Installers near you quote you directly. No account, no obligation.

Questions people ask

When should I fit the doors?

Last. Level the cabinets first, either on their feet or hung on the French cleat, and with multiple cabinets set the whole run up without doors, arrange and adjust it, then fit doors as the final step. Attaching them earlier means readjusting every one once the cabinets are moved or leveled.

Do they have to be attached to the wall?

It depends how you are installing them. Standing on all four feet, the floor carries the weight. If you use only the two front feet, or float them with no feet at all, you must use wall cleats fixed into the wooden studs behind. Ulti-MATE also advise attaching cabinets to studs generally for added strength and stability.

Are the wall screws included?

No. Ulti-MATE states that additional hardware to attach to the wall, such as wood stud screws, needs to be purchased, and cleat kits note you may need to buy the correct length stud screws yourself. French cleats come with base and wall cabinets but not with garage lockers, which need a separate hanging kit.

How long does assembly take?

Roughly an hour per cabinet for someone working steadily. One owner reported about four hours for four cabinets at a leisurely pace, using only a Phillips screwdriver, a flat screwdriver and a rubber mallet. Hanging and leveling the run is on top of that.

My cabinets are wider than the gap between my studs. What now?

A common situation with wide cabinets and standard sixteen inch stud spacing. A proven approach is to fix plywood strips horizontally into the studs across the run and mount the cleats to that, adding screws into studs where they align. It gives a continuous mounting surface and keeps a long run on one level line.

Should I hang base cabinets myself?

Ulti-MATE suggests seeking a cabinet professional for that specific case, to ensure attachment to wall studs and to reduce the weight load. A base cabinet is designed with the floor supporting part of its weight, so hanging one transfers everything to the cleat and the studs behind it.

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