If your kitchen cabinets are looking dated, replacing them may seem like the obvious solution—until you see the price tag. A full cabinet replacement can easily climb into the tens of thousands of dollars once you include cabinetry, demolition, installation, hardware and those inevitable “while we’re at it…” upgrades.
That’s why refinishing existing cabinets has become such a popular alternative. Professional cabinet refinishing typically costs around $4,000–$8,000 depending on the size and complexity of the kitchen—significantly less than replacement while still dramatically changing the look of the room.
But what if you’re considering painting them yourself? You certainly can. Just know what you’re getting into before you remove that first door.
Prep Is Everything
Painting cabinets is very different from painting a bedroom wall. Years of cooking can leave behind grease, schmutz, and cleaning-product residue, even when cabinets appear clean. Thorough cleaning and degreasing are critical, followed by the proper sanding, surface repair and priming for your particular cabinets.
Rush the prep and even the best-looking paint job can quickly chip or peel. Ironically, the painting itself may be the easiest part.
Know Your Surface—and Your Paint
Wood, MDF, laminate, thermofoil and previously painted cabinets don’t necessarily get treated the same way. Determine what you’re working with before choosing your products.
Cabinets are high-use surfaces. They’re touched, bumped and constantly splattered with foods that can stain paint such as ketchup, coffee, and wine, so this is not the place for leftover wall paint from the garage. Choose a high-quality coating designed for cabinetry and pay close attention to adhesion, durability and cure time.
Spraying Takes Practice and Lots of Space
Those beautifully smooth cabinet finishes you see online are often sprayed using professional equipment and controlled techniques to avoid brush and roller marks. Pressure, distance, product thickness, ventilation and environmental conditions can all affect the result. You’ll need to plan where you will place wet doors to dry so that dust, pet hair or anything else won’t land on the wet paint.
If you plan to spray, practice first. Your first attempt probably shouldn’t be the cabinet door everyone sees when they enter the kitchen. And be sure to mask everything to protect against overspray. Blemishes such as runs or sag lines often stick out on cabinets so understand how to correct these issues which often require re-spraying of the door or drawer where they appear.
Label Everything
Before removing doors, drawers and hardware, develop a numbering system so everything returns to its original location as you won’t remember where everything goes.
DIY or Call a Professional?
DIY cabinet painting can make sense if you’re patient and are willing to carefully follow preparation and application instructions. Professionals typically complete a kitchen with 30 doors and drawers in 2 to 3 days with a crew of two or three people working full-time. For first timers, this is not a Saturday-morning-to-Sunday-night project. It could take weeks.
If you want a highly consistent, factory-like finish using professional equipment and coatings—with a warranty behind the work—professional refinishing may be worth the investment.
Either way, refinishing can be a smart alternative to tearing out a perfectly functional kitchen. Oftentimes you don’t need brand-new cabinets.
You just need to stop looking at those 1997 ones.
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