Cabinet Painting near you

The three options solve different problems. Painting changes the colour and finish but keeps the door shapes, the boxes and the layout. Refacing keeps the boxes, covers them with a new veneer and adds new doors, drawer fronts and hardware, so the style changes too. Replacement starts over, and it's the only option that fixes a layout that doesn't work, boxes swollen by water or drawers too shallow for the way you cook.

Almost every cabinet finish that fails does so because of prep. Kitchen cabinets carry an invisible film of cooking grease, skin oils and cleaner residue, especially around the handles and above the range, and paint laid over it can look perfect for a few weeks, then come off under a fingernail.

The primer is chosen for what the cabinet is made of, and the topcoat for how much abuse it has to take. Asking a painter which primer they plan to use on your doors, and why, is one of the quickest ways to gauge their experience with cabinets.

A careful painter with a good brush and a fine foam or microfibre roller can leave a very respectable finish, especially with a self-levelling enamel, but some texture usually remains in corners and profiles. Spraying lays down thin, even coats with no brush marks, which is why it's the standard for a factory-like look. It also takes more equipment, more masking and more skill.

Many cabinet painters take the doors and drawer fronts to their shop, where they can spray them in a clean, ventilated booth and let them dry flat, then brush or spray the boxes in your kitchen. Others spray everything on site, which means wrapping the room in plastic and controlling overspray and fumes. Shop-finished doors leave you with open cabinets for a while; on-site spraying keeps everything in one place but turns the kitchen into a spray zone. Ask which method the quote includes and how the boxes will be finished.

Painting is the natural time to deal with hardware, since every door and drawer front is already off and every hole can be filled or drilled before the primer goes on.

Cabinet enamel can be dry enough to handle long before it's hard enough for daily use. Until the coating has cured, it can stick where a door closes against the frame, hold fingerprints and scratch easily. The product label, not a rule of thumb, sets recoat and cure times, and cool or humid conditions slow both. Ask the painter when the doors will go back up and when the kitchen can return to heavy use.

Early on, open and close doors gently, keep tape and harsh cleaners off the new finish, and don't lean heavy pots against drawer fronts. Once cured, most cabinet finishes need nothing more than a soft cloth and mild soap; scouring pads and strong solvents dull the sheen. Keep a labelled container of leftover paint for the chip that will eventually appear near the garbage drawer.

Original cabinets, built-in cupboards and pantries in older houses have often been painted many times over. According to Health Canada, a home built before 1960 probably contains lead-based paint, and sanders or heat guns used on it create toxic dust and fumes. Have those layers tested before anyone sands. If lead is present, the job calls for dust-controlled methods, containment and careful cleanup, unless new doors turn out to be the simpler route.

Primers, enamels and some degreasers give off volatile organic compounds. Health Canada counts paint among the indoor sources of VOCs and recommends more ventilation when using paints and varnishes. Spraying in a closed kitchen concentrates fumes, so ask about low-emission products, how the room will be exhausted to the outdoors, and whether young children and pets should be elsewhere while spraying is under way.