# Best way to drywall a "trimless" recessed cabinet



## nuclearnerd (Dec 20, 2010)

Hi all

I am renovating our half-storey attic, and I plan to install shelving and drawers in the space behind the knee-walls. For cost and time reasons I would like to use some pre-built melamine kitchen cabinets for the shelving and drawer units. However I want to maintain a sleek look, so I'm hoping to avoid installing trim between the drywall and the cabinet edges. So far I've thought of three ways I might accomplish this "trimless" opening. I need your help to choose which one.

1) Cut the opening in the drywall the same as the outside of the cabinets. Tape and mud the gap. (don't know if the mud will stick to the melamine)

2) Cut the opening in the drywall a little smaller than the inside of the cabinets. Use vinyl "J-bead" to finish the edges of the drywall

3) Cut the opening in the drywall the same size as the inside of the cabinets. Look for an vinyl outside corner bead with one "finished" leg that won't look so bad overlapping the melamine.

I've attached a sketch of the options. Any thoughts on which one would be the easiest or produce the best results?


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## bjbatlanta (Jul 16, 2008)

The mud will not adhere to the melamine (for very long). You can find almost any sort of "finish" bead you need at Trim-Tex,com, but I believe you'd be better off using some sort of casing. I've done the same type of project you're contemplating for a customer, and I wouldn't have even thought of using drywall "trim". I "inset" the shelves in the knee-wall an cased them out with wood. Looked great....


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## nuclearnerd (Dec 20, 2010)

bjbatlanta said:


> The mud will not adhere to the melamine (for very long).


Thanks, I've come to the same conclusion. For that reason, I've been thinking that option#2 is the best of the three, since it allows the melamine and the drywall to move separately.



bjbatlanta said:


> You can find almost any sort of "finish" bead you need at Trim-Tex,com, but I believe you'd be better off using some sort of casing. I've done the same type of project you're contemplating for a customer, and I wouldn't have even thought of using drywall "trim". I "inset" the shelves in the knee-wall an cased them out with wood. Looked great....


Do you have a photo of your work, or something similar?


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## bjbatlanta (Jul 16, 2008)

Sorry, I don't have any pics. Did the job several years back, before I had a web site...


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