Refinishing Your Kitchen Cabinets

Refinishing kitchen cabinets is the most affordable solution for those who don’t want to spend time or money on a big remodeling project. All wood and plywood cabinets can be re-finished while metal cabinets and laminate or melamine cabinets can be painted, but it is more difficult for the new finish to bond to the surface and may require special paints.

As long as your cabinets are in good condition, re-painting or re-staining, along with adding new knobs or pulls, is a great way to revitalize your kitchen or bath quickly and cost effectively.

Before source: This Old House

After source: This Old House

Here are some quick DIY tips for refinishing your own kitchen or bath cabinetry:

• Disassemble Cabinets: Remove doors and drawers, as well as shelves from cabinet boxes. Also remove hinges, cabinet knobs and pulls. Label doors and drawers so that you can re-install them in the same place.

• Prep Work: Clean all surfaces to be refinished with mineral spirits or TSP (trisodium phosphate) to remove grease and grime. Allow everything to dry thoroughly before proceeding. This step is very important in order for the new finish to adhere to the surface.

• Sanding: This is the most time consuming step. First use a medium-fine grit sand paper to remove any drips or thick edges, then switch to a 180 grit sand paper for the final sanding to make everything smooth. Finally, use a vacuum and tack rags to remove the sanding dust.

• Final Cleaning: Do one last clean to insure the surface is free of contaminates. Use a de-glosser such as Paso and soft, clean rags. Note if you a re-staining with a new stain color the old finish will have to be entirely removed.

• Apply New Finish: Once the final cleaning is done you are ready to apply your stain or paint. If you are painting, it is best to apply a primer coat first. Whether you are painting or staining you will need to apply multiple coats for the best result as well finish with a protective top coat. Be sure to allow each coat to dry thoroughly before applying the next coat.

Refinishing Web Guide

• Refinishing your Kitchen Cabinets
  Detailed instructions on how to refinish your kitchen cabinets from This Old House.

• How to Paint Old Kitchen Cabinets
  Great tips on revitalizing your old cabinets from the experts at DIY Network.

• The Realities of Refinishing Cabinets
  The folks at Rockler Woodworking and Hardware offer some great insight on how to refinish your kitchen or bath cabinets.