Clients buy soft-close for the first impression; they keep loving it only if it stays silent. The maintenance is almost nothing — almost.
What actually wears
The hydraulic damper is sealed and unserviceable but rated for decades; what fails early is abuse — slamming against the damper, hanging on doors, drawer overload past runner rating. Client education beats any tune-up.
The two-year pass
Snug hinge plate screws, wipe rails dry (no oil — it collects dust), confirm dampers engage in the last 20°, and re-square any door that drifted. Fifteen minutes per kitchen.
When a damper dies
Individual hinge dampers clip off and replace in seconds on quality hardware; keep two spares from the original order and the fix is trivial forever.
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