If you’ve dreamed of building a kitchen full of cabinets, stop dreaming and start building. Here’s what you need to know to get custom results for half what stock cabinets cost.
For many home woodworkers,outfitting a kitchen with handcrafted cabinets is the dream project. Who hasn’t looked at stock cabinets built with particleboard, hotmelt glue and staples and thought, “I could build something a whole lot better than this for half the money.”
And they’re right. By building your own cabinets, you can upgrade materials and construction methods. You’re also not locked into “stock” sizes. The style, look, finish, and features are completely up to you. If you think about it, cabinets are just a bunch of boxes. The only real challenge is the size of such a project. And that’s manageable as long as you know where to get started and how to proceed.
On this site, we’ll walk you through how we built these cabinets and how they compare with stock cabinets purchased from a home center. And hopefully inspire you to consider building your own.
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You want to update the look of your kitchen cabinet doors with a nice coat of paint, but you’re afraid that it will look amateurish. After all, you say to yourself, you’re not a professional painter. Well don’t worry. We’re here to show you how you can paint your kitchen cabinets in 5 easy steps.
Step 1: Clean Your Kitchen Cabinet Doors
You want to ensure that your kitchen cabinets are spotless or else you risk trapping dirt under the paint, which could lead to peeling. Because kitchen cabinets are magnets for grease, consider using water and grease cutting dish or laundry detergent. All purpose household cleaners like 409 could also do the job. Even though your next step in painting is sanding, take care to use a non-abrasive sponge while cleaning to prevent deep scratching.
Step 2: Sand
Sand the surface of your cabinets until all the existing paint is taken off. Make sure to sand smoothly and evenly to prevent the creation of small indentations in the wood, which will show through your new coats of paint.
Step 3: Apply Primer
Before painting your kitchen cabinet doors, you need to apply a primer to both prevent the paint from chipping and to ensure a smooth, thick coat that accents your existing kitchen colors. If you plan to use oil based paint, use oil based primer. Alternatively, if you will be using latex based paint, use shellac based primer.
Step 4: Apply the First Coat of Paint
After the primer dries, it’s time to apply the paint smoothly and evenly.
Step 5: Apply Two or Three More Coats of Paint
After the first coat dries, you will need to apply two or three more thin coats of paint to prevent bleed through. You will apply each subsequent coat after the previous coat dries. |
When you want a new look in the kitchen, probably the first thing you think of is re-doing the cabinets. Before you rip out those old cabinets and head down to the DIY warehouse, take a moment to consider your options.
Installing new kitchen cabinets -- whether you arrange for a DIY kitchen cabinet install or have one of the many kitchen cabinet manufacturers do it for you -- will have you spending some serious cash. Probably the biggest mistakes that most homeowners make is spending more than they can afford. Be VERY careful not to overspend on an overpriced product, or buy more kitchen cabinetry than you need.
There always seems to be one fellow in every trade who specializes in ripping off the unsuspecting public. This is true in the kitchen remodeling field as in other fields. So be careful and make informed choices. Seek out some good sources of unbiased information -- such as family and friends who have had kitchen work done on their homes. Don't believe the claims of some fly-by-night operator who is selling some miracle ready-to-install kitchen cabinets - do your homework or you could get stung.
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If replacing your kitchen cabinet is too expensive for your budget, after cabinet refacing, painting kitchen cabinets is the least expensive option and can really transform your kitchen. Plus this kitchen remodeling job can be accomplished over a long weekend or about 3 days with the right kind of preparation and planning. Depending on the area of the country you live in it is probably not a good idea to do this type of job in the winter months because you will need to have windows and doors open because of fumes from the paint and primer.
Kitchen cabinets take up most of the wall space in most kitchens and because of this by making a change in the look of your kitchen cabinets as in painting, you can greatly improve the look of the entire kitchen.
Whether you want to lighten up dark cabinets or brighten them up with bold colors, paint can provide an instant makeover for almost all types of cabinets. Because of problems of paint adhering well to laminate and melamine cabinets, it isn't recommended to paint these types.
Painting your kitchen cabinets can be the fastest and easiest method to update a tired worn-out looking kitchen and increase the value of your home. Painting the cabinets is a simple and low-cost alternative to an expensive kitchen-remodeling job. Painting the kitchen cabinets can give them a fresh new look. Painting kitchen cabinets will save you money while making it look like you spent a lot on remodeling your kitchen.
You can easily change the kitchen cabinet accessories such as the cabinet knobs and handles. You can leave the insides of the kitchen cabinets alone except the insides of the doors to save even more money on the job and the hassle of having to take out everything that is inside the cabinets.
Preparing the Kitchen Cabinetry for Painting
First you can begin by take off the doors removing any screws and all the hardware from the cabinets. Make sure to clean the cabinets thoroughly before starting to paint with a wood cleaner containing orange oil. This type of cleaner is good for removing grease. If there is any grease, oils or even a little dirt the paint may not adhere to the wood surface correctly. Make sure the surface is totally dry before applying the primer.
Now check for any rough areas on the doors and the cabinet base, sand them down, and wipe away any dust or sawdust from the surface.
Apply an even coat of primer-sealer to the cabinet doors, starting in the center and following the grain of the wood. By using primer-sealer you will not have to sand down and degloss the wood before painting it.
Painting the Cabinetry
When it comes to the choice of the type of paint either a high-gloss or a semigloss paint are recommended for cabinets. Some people feel that semigloss can provide a richer finish however. Use a good quality brush for applying the paint. This will insure a more superior finish. As with the application of the primer-sealer you should start in the center and follow the grain. Two or three coats are required to achieve a good quality finish. The paint should be allowed to dry about four hours per coat. Using thin coats make for fewer brushstrokes and less time for drying.
Once you have all the doors painted, start on the bases. Follow the same steps you did for the doors: sand, clean, seal, then paint. You will not have to worry about doing the inside of the cabinets. It will only be necessary to tape off the edges for a clean finish and just leave them as they are. However you might want to start thinking about replacing the hardware for the drawers and doors to totally complete your new kitchen look.
If you proceed carefully and follow all the necessary steps, you should have a like new kitchen with a fresh look to be proud of. |
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Building Kitchen Cabinets
