6 min read
Kitchen cabinet painting in Ireland has become the most popular alternative to a full kitchen replacement, and when it is done properly it looks like a new kitchen for a fraction of the cost. When it is done badly it chips around the handles within three months. The difference is entirely in degreasing, priming and product choice.
Degreasing is the step that gets skipped
Kitchen doors carry years of cooking grease, even when they look clean. Paint applied over that film will not bond, no matter how good the primer. Every door, frame and end panel is degreased, rinsed, dried and then keyed by sanding before anything else happens.
Primer choice depends on the doors
Solid timber, MDF, melamine and vinyl-wrapped doors all need different primers. Melamine and vinyl in particular need a specialist adhesion primer — a standard undercoat will peel. We identify the substrate first, because getting this wrong is the single most common cause of failed cabinet paint jobs.
- —Degrease, rinse and dry every surface
- —Sand to key the existing finish
- —Substrate-specific adhesion primer
- —Two coats of a hard-wearing cabinet or trim paint
- —Full cure time before heavy use
Spray or brush, and how long it takes
Spraying gives the flattest, most factory-like finish and is ideal where doors can be removed and finished off-site or in a protected area. A high-quality brush and roller finish with the right product is more practical in an occupied kitchen and, with modern cabinet paints, is genuinely durable. A typical Dublin kitchen takes three to five days including cure time between coats.
Frequently asked questions
- How long do painted kitchen cabinets last?
- With correct preparation and a proper cabinet paint, five years or more before any touch-up is needed, even around handles and the areas near the hob and sink.
- Can you paint melamine or vinyl-wrapped kitchen doors?
- Yes, with a specialist adhesion primer. Where a vinyl wrap is already lifting, that door usually needs replacing or the wrap fully removed first.