Why We Don't (And You Shouldn't) Paint Cabinets In Two Days!

‘There are cabinet painting companies that are saying they can paint my cabinets in one or two days. Why can’t Ottawa Cabinet Painting do the same?’

Your kitchen cabinets are the single most expensive item in your home. They can have the value of a car and should be treated as a very expensive asset. Here is a breakdown of why we don't (and you shouldn't) paint your cabinets in two days...

One or Two Day Painted Cabinets?

This is a question I get asked several times a week. Well, there is a short and a long answer. The short answer is we could paint your cabinets in a day. The long answer is why we don’t (and won’t). This is our business, and we believe that what we do is not a temporary solution to your cabinet upgrade needs but a long-term solution.

This means that the steps we take to get to a finished product that is going to look spectacular and last for years are many. And they take time.

Here is a step-by-step breakdown of what you should be insisting be done to your cabinets, why it should be done and how long it takes. After reading this it will be obvious why we can’t possibly paint your cabinets in a day and why you shouldn’t allow that to happen to the most expensive single item in your home (most cabinet sets are worth more than a car!!).

- Day One – Cleaning - We wash your cabinet doors/ drawer fronts thoroughly with water and a degreaser. We allow the cabinet doors, which are usually porous, to completely dry overnight. I mean, shouldn't they at least dry overnight? The last thing you want to do is trap moisture under the paint, a recipe for disaster.

- Day Two – Sanding - We continue with the prep work. Sanding is very important to allow for proper adhesion of the primer we use. The cabinets need to be wiped down again with a damp cloth after sanding and be allowed to dry for the remainder of the day.

- Day Three – Caulking the Middle Panels - Many companies skip this step, but it is key for a beautiful, seamless, factory finished look. Who wants a big, dark, square lines in the middle of a newly painted white door? Water, dirt and debris can also now find its way into that seam if left uncaulked and that is just not sanitary, especially in a kitchen or bathroom.

- Day Four (and Five) – Priming - Probably one of the most important steps of cabinet painting is the primer stage. The primer is what ensures proper and absolute adhesion of the finish coats. This step can take one or two days depending on how porous the cabinet is. The primer we use is a top-of-the-line shellac-based primer called BIN. It needs to be sprayed in a professional spray booth, not in your kitchen, basement or garage!

- Day Six – Sanding and Repairs - To really achieve that super smooth factory finish, sanding in between the primer and finish coats is absolutely key. This is also the stage when we can really see the imperfections, dings, dents and scratches that need to be fixed prior to applying the finish coat. If any patching is required, it again needs to dry, be sanded and be damp wiped.

- Day Seven – Hardware Changes - One of the services we offer is the ability for you to change your handles to an updated style. Why update the paint and colour then reuse your 20-year-old hardware? This hardware change may require new holes to be drilled and old holes to be filled.

- Day Eight – Finish Coat #1 – We now finally feel we have your doors to a point where we can confidently apply the first of 2 finish coats. When our product (and most quality paint) is sprayed on to the proper thickness, it needs to dry overnight and well into the next day. The manufacturer usually won’t honour warranty if done any other way. Spraying also requires much longer dry time than that of a brush and roller technique.

- Day Nine (and Ten) – Finish Coat #2 – Depending on the temperature and humidity, we will judge whether to apply the second finish coat. The finish coat steps almost always overlap into a third day.

- Day Eleven – Drying Day - Absolutely nothing happens as we allow your doors to dry.

- Day Twelve – Wrapping for Transport – Each door is inspected one last time and wrapped in 40 lb. butcher paper, carefully stacked between moving blankets and loaded on a palette for transportation to your home.

Cabinets painted in two days? I don't think so... Is it worth rushing an important job and maybe saving 10% if your cabinets need to be redone in a year or two? None of these steps should or can be skipped if you want to have a long lasting, quality job.