Tired of takeout containers piling up on the kitchen counter? Wish you could hide your trash can? Then this project may be the long-awaited way of organizing your kitchen you’ve been looking for.

It’s not that hard to build an in-cabinet station that holds not only your garbage, but also recycling and compost. The convenience will make you wish you did this sooner.

Start by calculating the size of your pull-out. Remove the cabinet doors and measure the inside of the cabinet — height, depth and width.

For the pull-out height, allow at least two inches at the top so the bins will clear. Subtract an inch from the width for the drawer slides. The depth of your pullout should be about 1/4-inch less than the cabinet’s depth.

These don’t have face frames. If you have face frame cabinets, add a build-up strip behind the frames for mounting the drawer slides. Cut these strips to be flush with the inner edge of the face frames.

Figure A

Cutting List

KEY
QTY.
PART
DIMENSIONS

A
1
Front
3/4″ x 17-3/8″ x 27″

B
3
Partition*
3/4″ x 22-1/4″ x 17-3/8″

C
2
Inside Divider
3/4″ x 14-5/8″ x 12-7/16″

D
1
Back
3/4″ x 27″ x 4-1/4″

E
1
Top
3/4″ x 27″ x 23-3/4″

*Angled cut — See Figure A.
Overall dimensions: 18-in. H x 27-in. W x 23-3/4-in. D.