How to choose enclosure hinges
There’s no such thing as any old hinge will do, especially when it comes to designing an outdoor electrical junction box, data center server cabinet or really, any enclosure. Hinges are an integral part of the protective housing, and choosing the correct specification can make all the difference to the performance, longevity and appearance of your enclosure design.
The challenge is in choosing from different types of cabinet hinges, and there are a lot of choices out there. Lift-off hinges, offset hinges, piano hinges and concealed hinges, to name a few. They also come in a wide variety of materials and strengths.
So how do you know which panel hinge type has the right qualities for your enclosure?
To help you decide, here’s a checklist to ask yourself about your design.
|
Ask yourself |
Why it’s important |
|---|---|
| Is the door removable? | This will determine whether the hinge needs to separate into two pieces to allow for the door to be removed from the frame for installation access. You may want to incorporate a lift-off design or a catch/release feature. |
| What is the opening angle? | Think about how the hinge might position the open door. Or maybe the angle of positioning is user controlled. Consider the total range of motion or maximum angle of the hinge opening. |
| What material best suits your application? | Hinges come in a variety of different materials. Stainless steel hinges, for example, resist corrosion, so work well for outdoor applications. Materials can also affect maximum working load and finish options. Heavy duty steel hinges, for example, work well for fire doors. Another example: brass vs steel piano hinge. Brass works well when appearance matters. A heavy duty stainless steel piano hinge is better for strength – plastic works well too, and won’t corrode. |
| How will the hinge be attached to the frame? | Think about whether you need a welded, threaded bolt, through bolt, rivet or screw mounting hardware option. |
| What is the door thickness? | This will determine the size of hinge to choose. |
| How important is appearance? | Concealed door hinges are often driven by the need for a particular industrial appearance, or the importance placed on a vandal resistant design. You may want to consider internally counted hinges, or welded, thread-stud or tapped-holed styles. |
| What level of corrosion protection is required? | Look for hinges with the appropriate level of corrosion resistance. This usually appears as hours of salt-spray exposure per ASTM B-117. |
| Do you need function control? | An embedded hinge is shrouded within the enclosure housing and gives extra functions such as position control. |
| What is your position control feature? | Options to control the position of the hinge and door include detents, constant torque, adjustable torque, self-closing and dampened action. |
| What is your enclosure environment? | You need to consider the level of environmental sealing you need from your hinge (i.e. to prevent dust, water and other contaminants entering the enclosure). Most hinges can achieve a suitable level if properly gasketed. |
| Do you need to maximise interior space? | An external hinge mounts on the outside surface of the enclosure, provides easy installation and makes full use of the space inside the enclosure. |
| Is seismic testing required? | Your enclosure may need to be seismic rated, which will determine whether you need a specialist hinge for your application. |
| Your need |
External |
Concealed |
Embedded |
| Maximise available space inside enclosure |
✔ |
||
| Drop-in replacement that meets most standard panel preps |
✔ |
||
| Holds door open or closed |
✔ |
||
| Heavy duty enclosures |
✔ |
||
| Attach or remove a door without tools |
✔ |
||
| Hinge unseen when door is closed/positioned inside enclosure/hidden mounting |
✔ |
||
| Simple installation |
✔ |
||
| Deploys an object when a latch is released |
✔ |
||
| Moulded-in or concealed with snap on covers |
✔ |
||
| Tilt and swivel mechanism to control rotation in multiple axes |
✔ |
||
| Make heavy objects easier to move |
✔ |
Hinges and applications
Use this table to help you choose the specific solution that best suits your needs.
| Application | Hinge type | Recommendation |
|---|---|---|
| HVAC | External | HVAC hinge |
| Metal enclosures – e.g. outdoor utility cabinet | Concealed | Screw-on concealed hinge |
| Machine covers – e.g. industrial generator parts | Concealed | External metal corner hinge Screw-on concealed hinge |
| Panel doors – e.g. outdoor electrical box enclosure | Embedded | Adjustable torque hinges with leaf screw |
| Flush mounted doors – e.g. data center server cabinet | External | Countersunk mount leaf hinge Leaf hinges, threaded stud mount |
| Truck body, trailers, food equipment | Embedded | Weld-on bullet hinge |
| Large enclosure doors – e.g. outdoor cable box cable enclosures | External | Lift-off screw mount hinge |
| Light-to-medium duty applications such as supporting access panels and parts of HVAC system | External | Continuous hinges - plastic |
| Splice trays for protecting against mishandling of fiber optics | Concealed | Speciality hinge |
Download free CADs and try before you buy
Free CADs are available for most solutions, which you can download. You can also request free samples to make sure you’ve chosen exactly what you need. If you’re not quite sure which solution will work best for your application, our experts are always happy to advise you.
Whatever your requirements, you can depend on fast despatch. Request your free samples or download free CADs now.
Questions?
Email us at sales@essentracomponents.co.uk or speak to one of our experts for further information on the ideal solution for your application 0345 528 0474.