Kitchen Cab Finish

[Dave Denny]

This may be a simple enough question but as a newbie to finishing I'm at a loss. What would be a really good paint option for finishing kitchen cabinets? What I'm looking for is something that can be sprayed, is relatively easy to cleanup (WB?), and durable. I have an inexpensive Rockler HVLP sprayer and I want the cabinets to be a semi-gloss white. I live in the DC metro area and can't seem to find a good source to purchase such a product and the big box stores are useless. any ideas?

thanks,
Dave

[Larry Fox]

I would look into tinted USL from Target for this task. Although I have never used the already-tinted product I have used the clear quite a bit and it is very easy to apply, clean up after and is durable. There is at least one user here who has used it for a kitchen so perhaps they will chime in.

[Jim Becker]

Target USL or Fuhr International acrylic. Both can be tinted to whatever color you want and spray wonderfully. USL is also "lacquer like" in that each coat burns in to the previous. Very durable. My kitchen is done with the predecessor to USL and it still looks new since 2003.

[Larry Richardson]

I have a similar situation. I have a gallon of tinted USL and a gal of clear USL on the way for doing about 18 lin feet of cabinets (clear for the insides). the doors are raised panel MDF, and I was thinking about using sealcoat (shellac) on the panels because of the "exposed" MDF.

The last doors I did looked ok, but the raised panel edge could have been smoother.

Using USL, do you prime? with what?
Larry

[Jim Becker]

Larry, you'll want to deal with those milled edges on the MDF before you start finishing them. Sanding and a filler...several iterations...will get you a smooth finish. You can then proceed with spraying your USL. You don't need to prime the wood, but I would seal the exposed MDF areas with de-waxed shellac after you smooth them for best results...the finish can be self-priming, but being water borne, will give you a little grain raise. Spraying on some de-waxed shellac will both reduce that as well as seal the MDF as previously mentioned. You'll want to scuff sand with 320 to get rid of any trash and "fuzzies" after sealing.

[Jamie Buxton]

In my experience, it is difficult to HVLP spray inside a cabinet. There's so much air blowing around in there that it blasts back into your face. Also, the finish quality on the bottom is rough. I've found two better procedures. One is to spray the components -- sides, top, bottom, and back -- before you assemble them. It is much easier to spray (and sand if necessary) the pieces while they're out and flat. If spraying first somehow doesn't work for your design, at least leave the back off of the cabinet while you're spraying. You can put the back on later with staples, or you can slide the back into dados from the top, much like traditional drawer bottoms slide into drawers.

[Chris Neville]

What would be a really good paint option for finishing kitchen cabinets? What I'm looking for is something that can be sprayed, is relatively easy to cleanup (WB?), and durable. I have an inexpensive Rockler HVLP sprayer and I want the cabinets to be a semi-gloss white. I live in the DC metro area and can't seem to find a good source to purchase such a product and the big box stores are useless. any ideas?


Dave - have you ever tried the ML Campbell Polystar line of WB lacquers? They are tintable to almost any shade, but I have had great luck with a plain white satin finish. The Polystar gives a very fine and durable finish.

Here is a link:

http://www.mlcampbell.com/pages/starpage.asp?star=POL

You will have to find a local distributor.. I am in Richmond and there is a distributor here in town.

I would also recommend using their primer for 1 or 2 undercoats, before applying the top coat or coats.

I don't know about the power of the Rockler sprayer, but the product is not too thick.