Painting Kitchen Cabinets

[TB Roye]

Our house was built in 1982 we bought it in 1989. It has the original kitchen except the appliance which were replace 6 years ago. The cabinets are stained Oak no particle board. Since we have decided to stay put LOML want the kitchen and two bathroom remodeled. She want the Kitchen cabinet painted White. The money we save on the cabinets will be used on the counter and floor and sink and maybe newer appliances. We have Lowes and HD besides Kelly Moore and few small paint stores here in Sacrament. I will not use Latex on the Cabinets and hope to spay them with my HVLP sprayer. I will throughly sand and clean them so I need to know a good primer and White Gloss paint to use. I did offer to build new but she want them done NOW and being they are in good shapes she sees no reason to spend the money on a house that isn't going appreciate in our life time. I will be 69 later this year and told here I have no plans of getting into heavy remodeling so no moving of wall, ceilings, door or window. New light in the kitchen fine get rid of the recessed 6ft. fluorescents find but nothig big. Any suggistion on primer and paint will be appriciated. The upper cabinets, door and drawers will be paint in the shop or garage. The lower cabinets will be painted in place, I think.

Thanks

Tom

[dave delo]

I recently did our kitchen with Cabinet Coat by insl-x. New wood doors and drawers with existing boxes and it turned out fantastic. Originally want to spray but it's too thick to spray without diluting it too much. Used foam roller with 4 light coats and couldn't be happier. It's got the primer already in it and is very easy to work with.

[JimD]

Tom,

I like the primer and top coat from Hood finishing. I use their Resisthane tinted white. It is much more durable than latex paint but it doesn't cover things well. You need a good white primer under them which Hood also sells. Both dry quickly and spray well although the primer is pretty thick.

Jim

[Woodwerker]

I used rustoleum cabinet transformations to paint my cabinets and I can't say enough good things about this product. I built the cabinets from maple and birch ply and one day before I could even prep for finish I found my wife in the workshop staining my cabinets with minwax stain... Blotched the maple so bad that I almost cried. Really... The birch panels were stained so deep that sanding would have taken too many layers off of the finish. So painting was the only option. They came out GREAT!!! At $70 per kit it's costly but two kits took care of the whole project. Gave the blotched maple and even tone and the glazing finish they provide rubs off with ease. I will tell you that there is not enough glazing in the kit. Good Luck with your project.

[gordons]

Tom, I had a write up a few years ago on this subject which you can read here.

There are some changes that I have made since writing that article and list these below:

• Sanding can start at 100 to 120 and go up to 180 and 220 grit. Use a ROS, 1/4 sheet sander and mouse sander. I also use a mopping sander to help with the contours
• I have subsequently found a fantastic stripper called Soy Gel made by Franmar Chemicals. Although fairly expensive and a little difficult to find, it is powerful, non-toxic, non-caustic, almost no odor and I haven't found anything yet that it will not strip. Won't damage the contours either. Just use plastic scrapers and follow the instructions.
• I still use Zinsser cover stain oil primer tinted if necessary. I have thinned and sprayed with HVLP and added Penetrol or Xim X-tender as directed.
• Don't use steel wool at any stage. The tiny strands have a way of never leaving and you may have a few unsightly blemishes.

While spraying may ultimately leave a better finish, you have to be careful not to thin too much.

Don't discard the notion of using latex paint for your topcoats. Primed with oil as described a good latex paint topcoat such as Benjamin Moore Regal acrylic in a semi-gloss works exceptionally well. It's sprayable too and far easier to clean up.

I can get near spray quality finish by playing around with the thinning and addition of Floetrol or Xim X-tender to the latex. The trick is to be patient and apply 2 to 4 thinner coats with very light sanding and thorough tacking in between each coat.

Use only top quality materials. I like the Purdey multi purpose 1" brush with bevel for cutting in corners and contours. Use 4" Doors & Cabinets sponge rollers made by Whizz and available from Lowe's. Buy a long roller handle and get the 2 pack rollers - they're made in Germany - multi packs come from China. Draw your own conclusions.

You should be able to do an entire kitchen for under $100 in materials plus your labor which no doubt is priceless.

A few final tips, take off all the doors and scribe a number on the wood under a hinge so that you'll know where to put it back. Some drawers have removable fronts - take them off if you can, otherwise remove the drawers entirely. Clear everything out of the cabinets and sand down the frames with a ROS and 1/4 sheet sander.

If you're going to paint the interior too, clean thoroughly and paint. Alternatively, just paint the front facing edge of each shelf. Paint the undersides of the upper cabinets as well because they may be visible when you are sitting down. If you want to install under cabinet lighting, now's the time to do it.

Hope this helps. Good luck.

Gordon

[TB Roye]

Gordon'

Thanks for article and the current tips. I will probably spray the inside so the look a little better inside. I will start as soon as the weather drys and warms up alittle.

Tom