How to Use Cabinet Overrides in Mozaik – Phill Anton Consulting

To use cabinet overrides in Mozaik, change a cabinet's parameter settings in one of two places depending on how widely you want the change to apply: edit the cabinet inside its library (in the Product Editor) so it always builds that way, or edit the cabinet after you've placed it in a job to change only that one instance. Overrides are best used when the change applies to a single cabinet rather than to every cabinet in your construction method.

Mozaik lets you override the parameter settings on an individual cabinet. Some parameters are exposed through easy-to-reach functions, while others live on the Parameters tab in the Product Editor. The key idea is the same throughout: an override changes how one specific cabinet behaves without rewriting the rules for every cabinet.

This guide follows Mozaik's official walkthrough. Watch the original on Mozaik's channel:

When to Use an Override

Reach for an override when a setting should apply to just one cabinet, not your standard construction. A common example is an appliance base such as a cooktop base. By default, a cabinet in a given construction method may run its top stretchers along the width of the cabinet. For a cooktop, that's a problem because a width-running stretcher can sit where the cooktop needs to drop in. The fix is to override that one cabinet so its top front and back stretchers run front to back (along the depth) instead, keeping the opening clear.

This is the right kind of decision for an override: it's specific to one cabinet and one situation, and you don't want it to change every other cabinet you build.

Two Levels of Override: Library vs. Job

Mozaik gives you two distinct places to apply an override, and knowing which one you're in matters:

Library-level override — Changes how that cabinet is built every time you pull it from the library.
Job-level override — Changes only the cabinet you've already placed in the current job, leaving the library cabinet untouched.

Once you place a cabinet in a job, you are no longer editing the library cabinet — you're editing the copy in the job. That means you can override parameters or configurations on a placed cabinet without affecting your library at all.

How to Override a Cabinet in the Library

Use this when you want a cabinet to always build a certain way.

Open your libraries: Libraries and Products > select the library you want.
With the library open, you're in the Product Editor, and all of that library's items appear for you to edit.
Select the cabinet you want to change (for example, a cooktop base in an appliance-base group).
Open the Parameters tab in the Product Editor.
Override the parameter you need. In the cooktop example, the cabinet's top is overridden so the stretchers run along the depth instead of the width.

You can confirm the result visually — the interior view shows the drawer stretchers, and a 3D view (SketchUp) shows the top front and back stretchers now running front to back, out of the cooktop's way. From then on, that library cabinet carries the override.

Tip: Compare cabinets to see the difference clearly. If you place the overridden cooktop base alongside a standard base cabinet and a drawer bank and view all three in 3D, the stretcher orientation on the cooktop stands out against the standard cabinets.

How to Override a Cabinet Already Placed in a Job

Use this when you want to change one cabinet in one job only.

Pull the cabinet into your job and position it. You can drag it with the mouse, or type a center position to place it exactly — for example, centering it on the wall at 72".
Select the placed cabinet and choose Edit.
Change the parameter for that cabinet. In the example, the cooktop base's top is set so the top components are eliminated entirely.
Place additional cabinets as needed. A second cooktop base added beside the first keeps its own settings, so only the cabinet you edited is modified for this job.

Because you're editing the job copy, your library cabinet is unaffected — the next time you pull that cabinet from the library, it still behaves the way the library defines it.

Why This Matters

These two override levels stack to give you full control:

Your standard construction runs stretchers one way by default.
Your library cabinet can carry a permanent override (cooktop stretchers running front to back).
An individual job cabinet can override even further (removing the top components altogether for that one job).

That layering is what lets you keep a clean, consistent library while still handling the one-off exceptions every real job throws at you.

Related guides

Get it done-for-you

You can set this up yourself using the steps above. If you'd rather skip the setup, PAC's Mozaik training and done-for-you services can help — phillanton.com.

Full disclosure: this guide is published by Phill Anton Consulting.

FAQ

Will overriding a cabinet in a job change my library cabinet?

No. Once a cabinet is placed in a job, you're editing the job copy. You can override its parameters and configurations freely, and the library cabinet stays as it was.

Where do I find the parameters I want to override?

Some parameters are exposed through quick, easy-to-reach functions in Mozaik. Others live on the Parameters tab inside the Product Editor, which you reach by opening the cabinet through Libraries and Products.

Should I override at the library level or the job level?

Override in the library when you want the cabinet to always build that way; override in the job when the change should apply to just that one cabinet in that one project. As a rule, use overrides when the change applies to a single cabinet rather than your whole construction method.