What Determines the Weight Rating of Drawer Glides?

Drawer glides are an inherent part of a piece of furniture, fully responsible for the smooth opening and closing all drawers. 

They must also bear the weight of all that are housed within them. Ever wonder why drawer glides are rated for a certain weight? Drawer glide material composition and thickness will greatly determine how much weight your drawer can hold. Drawer Glides — Drawer glides are typically made out of metal or some form of plastic. Metal : Metal drawer glides are strongest and least likely to warp over time. Standard Material Thickness Used In Making Drawer Glides But thicker materials tend to support more weight.

Drawer glides are rated for how much weight their length and width can support. 

Having more surface area on the longer and wider drawer glides spreads the weight over a larger part of that glide. This will allow the cabinet drawer glides to hold a lot of weight as opposed to the smaller drawer glides. Therefore, consider the length and width of drawer glide when choosing drawer glides for heavy items. Drawer glides themselves have a certain weight rating based on the type of mounting system they use. 

Types of drawer slides include side-mount, under-mount, and center-mount. 

The selection of the mounting system could determine how much weight the drawer glides can hold up. The same mounting system can handle more weight, because some simply are better at keeping their position safely. When it reaches to the weight capacity to store any item more, installing and maintaining drawer glides properly goes a long way. In order for your drawer glides to function properly and to support the weight intended, you need to follow manufacturer instructions when mounting them. Proper care and service like the cleaning and oiling of drawer guides can also help them last as long as they should be able to go.

Look at things like how the weight is distributed and the size of your drawer when choosing heavy duty slides for heavy objects. 

Weighted (where, in the drawer, the weight is placed on each glide) versus distributed (the way that weight distributes within the glide and throughout it). This keeps the drawer from being over-loaded to one side. In conjuction to that, the drawer has its only weight cap encase too. However, larger drawers may need heavy-duty drawer glides for the support of bulky items.