Read This Before You Paint Kitchen Cabinets

You may have read that painting your cabinets is a cost-efficient way to renovate your kitchen. While your wallet will be thankful, your nerves might not. Make sure you read this before you paint kitchen cabinets.

Exile the out of date look of your cabinets with a new color to bring out their inner beauty. If your cabinets are in good shape, there is no reason to replace the entirety of the kitchen. The dramatic change will go far in your kitchen.

Here are a few tips you should know before starting to paint kitchen cabinets.

1. Don’t paint dirt.

It really should go without saying, but alas it doesn’t. Kitchens are notorious for grime and grease. It’s important to remove all traces of it before you begin painting, or you’ll end up with less than stellar results. Use a degreaser to make sure the kitchen grease comes off lickety split. Allow the pieces to dry fully before you move on in your project.

2. Take the doors and hardware off.

The amount of time it will take to tape and carefully paint around hardware and around door edges, you could have removed the doors twice over. Plus, you’ll get a better overall result. Hardware with dabs and drips on it is a telltale sign of a homemade project. TO get a truly professional result (without a professional price tag, remove the hardware before the paint can opens. Save yourself time in reassembly by labeling the doors as they come off. A marker and masking tape with work to keep everything in order.

3. Cover up

Nothing ruins a day of painting like an unexpected paint splatter. Use drop cloths or flattened cardboard to protect floors, counters and furniture in the room. Remove as many appliances and extras as possible to give you the cleanest possible space to work in.

4. Tools of the trade

Because kitchens are notoriously full of nooks and crannies that can be hard to get a roller in, a few tools in your arsenal will make the job easier. Invest in mini rollers, smaller brushes and edgers to help the work flow easier. Invest in a sponge for help smoothing out buildup around door edges or corners. Brushes will be important for edges, and rollers for doors and cabinet fronts.

5. Sand for good stick

Standard paints will not adhere to finished cabinets. Scuffing the current finish will give your new paint a good surface to stick to. It’s a time consuming but important step in the refinishing process. You don’t need to remove the entire finish, just scrape into it. Best recommendation is a 120-grit sandpaper or sponge to start.

6. See through tricks

Before you move forward with any painting, decide if you’ll want the wood grain of your cabinets to show through. Builder grade and particle board pieces will not have this option. To completely remove the grain from showing, you’ll need to prime your cabinets first. Talk to your paint store or big box paint department. They may suggest a primer tinted with the color you are finishing with. This creates a solid base coat and helps prevents holidays from showing up later.

7. Inside out

If you’re new to painting in general, use the insides of the cabinet doors as your practice space. They need painted anyway and give you the opportunity to get a feel for your tools you’ve purchased. Leave the edges bare, otherwise you won’t be able to pick them up to move them.