Can You Paint Over Maple Kitchen Cabinets?
A good way to save money and refresh a kitchen's decor is to paint the kitchen cabinets. Wood kitchen cabinets, including maple, can be painted without much cost, giving your kitchen an updated facelift. Using the proper tools, primer, paint and procedures facilitates professional-looking results. Assess the condition of the kitchen cabinets --- new wood and previously stained or painted or damaged cabinets may require additional preparation and painting steps. Does this Spark an idea?
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Preparation
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Good ventilation is essential before preparing your kitchen cabinets for painting --- open a window. Remove all knobs and handles from drawers and cabinet doors. Tape over hinges or remove cabinet doors for painting if desired. Label cabinet doors before removing them, making it easy to correctly reposition them when painting is completed. Thoroughly clean all cabinet surfaces to ensure optimum paint adhesion. Glue cracked wood, and repair wood dings or holes with wood filler if necessary. Use sandpaper on new and previously stained or painted cabinets, and wipe them down with a damp towel.
Priming and Painting
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Maple is a tight-grained wood and requires a slow-drying, oil-based paint primer. Apply the primer with a paintbrush, making sure there's a strong bond between the cabinet surfaces with the paint you will put on next. Refer to the primer directions regarding drying time before applying paint --- most primers require at least 24 hours. Apply an oil-based paint to ensure a finish that will last for many years and is more durable, since it dries harder than latex paint.
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Tips
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Always pour paint from the paint can into a separate container when painting. This will help to prevent getting dust and particles int your paint. Keep the edge of your paintbrush wet. If it becomes dry, lap marks will show up on your cabinets where the brushing started or stopped. Remember to cover all surfaces below your kitchen cabinets with drop cloths before beginning your project. Apply two coats of paint, allowing adequate drying time between each coat.
Ideas
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Pickle your cabinets by applying a light coat of oil-based paint, wiping it off before it dries completely. This produces an attractive whitewashed or pickled effect. Refresh your kitchen and cabinets at the same time by painting your kitchen walls and cabinets the same color. Replace cabinet doors and drawer fronts with new ones, painting only the cabinet frames and boxes. Add interest and variety to your kitchen by using two coordinating colors; paint drawer fronts and cabinet doors one color and cabinet frames and boxes a coordinating color.
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References
- Photo Credit Thinkstock Images/Comstock/Getty Images
