Wintertime is a great time to do any sort of interior painting. When you think about painting the inside of your home, you usually think about painting your walls, trim, doors, etc. Most people, however, overlook painting cabinets whether it’s in the kitchen, bathroom or anywhere else in the home you might have cabinets. We’ve put together a few tips for you when your ready for cabinet painting.
Getting Your Cabinets Ready For Painting
Regular wall paint is not suitable when you paint kitchen cabinets. It can chip easily and doesn’t hold up to being repeatedly cleaned. Using an alkyd enamel paint will last longer and typically leaves a smooth finish.
Choosing your paint color is also very important. You’ll want to choose a color for your cabinets that will flatten your appliances, not make them stand out. Using a paint color that is similar to your appliances is a good rule of thumb for most kitchens.
You’ll need to remove all the hardware from the cabinets. Hinges, knobs, magnets, everything down to the last screw all need to be removed before starting. Make sure you pack them all up neatly so you know where they go when it’s time to put it all back together.
Do not be deceived, you are going to make a mess. Make sure you pack up all the rugs, curtains and clear your countertops so when the paint flies, it doesn’t ruin the rest of your kitchen.
Tools You’ll Need to Paint Your Cabinets
You should probably consider buying a handheld sander. Regardless of the type of cabinets your painting, you’ll need to sand every surface. Having a handheld sander is just going to make the job easier and faster. You’re also going to need a ton of sandpaper. You’ll probably need about 15-20 sheets of 80 grit and 120 grit depending on how many cabinets you have.
Making sure your cabinets are clean prior to painting is also important. You’ll need to remove all the dust from sanding using a tack cloth. You’ll probably need 20 or more for the job and they usually come in packs of 2 or 3. You’ll probably also want to grab some plastic gloves since tack cloth can be sticky.
You’ll need some canvas drop cloths to make sure the floors stay nice and clean. You should also pick up a dozen or so disposable paint trays for easy clean-up.
Oil based paint is not as easy to clean up as enamel paint. You may want to pick up some extra brushes and paint rollers and plan on just trashing them when you’re done. Spending a little extra cash can save you hours of time in clean-up.
Priming the Cabinets
You’ll want to use an oil based primer, not water based, so the cabinets don’t get discolored over time. Wood is known to bleed through and give the paint a weird tint and overall change the color of the paint you use. Oil based primers create a safe, reliable surface to paint on.
You may even want to go as far as having your primer tinted if you are using a dark paint on your cabinets. Tinting your primer usually leads to not having to use multiple coats of paint, saving you time and money.
Painting the Cabinets
It’s time to paint the cabinets! First things first, be sure to get painters tape in all the places that make sense. Using painters tape can make touch ups and clean up a lot easier.
The first areas you should paint are the bases and the backsides of the doors. These are the areas that get the most wear, so you’ll want to make sure they have the longest amount of time to dry.
You’ll want to use light coats of paint at all times. Too much paint will give you drips and a poor finish that will have to be sanded out and redone. Using light coats of paint ensures that you won’t have to come back and redo areas which can be costly and time consuming.
You’ll want to make sure you get the insides of your cabinets too. Especially the areas where your eyes can see every time you open the cabinets, like the bottom sides of the shelves.
Once you’re ready, you may want to finish it off with a polyurethane topcoat. It protects the paint from overall use and wear over time.
Finishing Up
Since you have all the hardware off, now is a great time for a deep clean on your hinges, handles and knobs. You’ll thank yourself for taking a few extra minutes to get everything nice and shiny to go with your fresh new paint job.
Be sure to put all the hardware on the cabinets before you install them. It’s a simple step that makes installation a much easier process.
When you’re ready to put the cabinets back up, make sure you have an extra set of hands. It would be a real bummer to drop them and ruin all the hard work you just did to make them nice and pretty.
We know better than anyone that painting your cabinets can be a lot of work. If you’re cabinets are ready for new coat of paint, and you don’t want to do all the work, call us right away. Greenwood Painting offers super competitive pricing on cabinet painting, and we get the job done right.
