Have you had your kitchen cabinets painted? (counters, paint, sand)

[reebo]

We’re refreshing our kitchen—floor, backsplash, counters. I’d like to paint our maple cabinets. Contractors have warned us off painting. They say it will chip, especially the high use cabinets.

So, if you have had your cabinets painted professionally, how are they holding up and how long ago were they painted? Thanks.

[JT-3]

We're going to do the same thing, so interested in what others say. I was just browsing this site below for inspiration.

https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/Kitchen-Cabinets

[turf3]

Well, my kitchen cabinets were first painted about 80 years ago.

I suppose there are occasional chips.

If you have natural finished wood, that you want to paint, you need to clean all surfaces thoroughly, sand lightly, and use a primer. In other words, normal paint prep work. In painting the prep takes typically more than half the total time if it's done right and it is critical to the success of the final paint job.

[Oldhag1]

In one of my homes we painted the cabinets, in the seven years we had them they never chipped and we got a lot of compliments on them. They make paint specifically for cabinets, and while a little higher than regular paint, it was worth paying for it. At the time we did it Home Depot had kind with a limited number of colors but the Benjamin Moore kind could be tinted to pretty much any color in their formulary. We ended up using Home Depot’s kind because they had a color we liked and it was cheaper. We were told, and I think it’s true, that proper prepping makes a huge difference. We cleaned the cabinets twice with TSP, sanded them, vacuumed off the dust in addition to using a rag, used a good primer, then added two coats of the cabinet paint. There are videos out there worth watching on the topic.

[elan]

A friend's mother told me about marine paint. I used it in our kitchen and never had a chip. Easy to scrub and clean too.

[NoMoreSnowForMe]

I've painted kitchen cabinets myself more than once. I agree with everyone that it's really important to do it right and use good paint. I had good luck with the paint and primer in one from Home Depot (Behr brand). I suggest a satin or semi-gloss for easy wipe-down.

[southernnaturelover]

You’ll need to use a shellac primer like BIN, and a urethane enamel ( I used Emerald urethane from SW). Regular latex paint will not hold up.

I’m not a fan of painted cabinets though. I have painted them if they’re in such bad shape that I have no choice, but I would never paint cabinets that are in good condition.

[luv4horses]

I have only repainted cabinets that had been painted previously or that were solid wood builtins that had been previously “updated” with a stain/polycoat combo that looked awful. Both were repainted by professionals and looked great for the few years I owned the houses.

That said I would never paint light wood like maple or pickled oak. I’m old fashioned and love the look of natural woods. But only if the varnish/poly has stayed clear and not yellowed with time. Dark woods are usually stained though, and dreary, so I don’t feel they need preserving. Paint should only chip if it’s applied too thick and you have door slammers.

[K'ledgeBldr]

Originally Posted by luv4horses

Paint should only chip if it’s applied too thick and you have door slammers.

Say what!???

[ChessieMom]

Originally Posted by reebo

We’re refreshing our kitchen—floor, backsplash, counters. I’d like to paint our maple cabinets. Contractors have warned us off painting. They say it will chip, especially the high use cabinets.

So, if you have had your cabinets painted professionally, how are they holding up and how long ago were they painted? Thanks.

I painted them myself, 2 years ago. They looked awesome then and they still do.