Why Painting Your Cabinets Beats Replacing Them

A full kitchen replacement can easily run into five figures, and that's before you've factored in the disruption of a fortnight without a working hob. Painting your existing cabinets, by contrast, costs a fraction of that and can be tackled over a couple of weekends. If your carcasses are solid and the doors still close squarely, there's no real reason to rip them out. A fresh coat of properly applied cabinet paint will give you a finish that looks factory-applied, provided you're willing to put in the preparation.

The catch is that kitchens are uniquely hostile environments for paint. Steam, grease, and near-constant handling mean a slapdash job will start peeling within months. Do it properly, though, and you'll get a hard-wearing surface that lasts a decade or more.

What You'll Need Before You Start

Gather everything in advance so you're not dashing to the shed mid-job with tacky hands. For a typical kitchen you'll want:

• A good quality cabinet or furniture paint — water-based eggshell or a dedicated melamine-friendly formula works well in British kitchens
• Fine sandpaper (around 180 to 240 grit) and sanding sponges for mouldings
• A degreaser or sugar soap solution
• A small foam roller — 4 inches is ideal — plus a 2-inch synthetic brush for edges
• Painter's tape, dust sheets, and a couple of small props or tins to rest doors on
• Fine surface filler for any dents or old screw holes

It's worth spending a little more on the paint itself. Cheap gloss from a bargain bin will yellow, drag under the brush, and show every roller mark. Look for something labelled as suitable for melamine, MDF, or laminate, and check the drying times so you can plan your coats sensibly.

Step One: Remove Doors, Drawers and Hardware

Take the doors and drawer fronts off their hinges and lay them flat on a workbench or dust sheet. Label each one with a piece of masking tape on the inside face — it's astonishing how quickly a kitchen's worth of doors becomes an anonymous pile. Remove handles, knobs, and any bumpers or soft-close fittings. Bag the screws so nothing goes missing.

Lay the doors flat rather than propping them upright. Flat surfaces let the paint level out naturally, which means fewer drips and a smoother finish. If you're painting the carcasses as well, tape off the inside edges and any areas you don't want painted. Work in a well-ventilated space — a garage or conservatory is ideal, though you'll want to bring the doors back into the house before the final coat so the paint cures at room temperature.

Step Two: Degrease Like You Mean It

This is the step most people rush, and it's the one that determines whether your paint stays put. Kitchen cabinets accumulate a fine film of cooking grease that you often can't see or feel, particularly on the doors nearest the hob and extractor. Paint simply will not adhere to it.

Wash every surface with a warm sugar soap solution or a dedicated degreaser, working in small sections and paying extra attention to the bottom edges of wall cabinets and the area around handles. Rinse with clean water and let everything dry completely. If the cabinets are especially grimy, go over them twice. Once dry, run a clean cloth over the surface — if it comes away even slightly tacky, wash again.

Step Three: Sand Lightly and Fill Any Defects

You don't need to strip the old finish back to bare wood. The goal is to dull the surface and give the new paint something to grip. A light going-over with 180-grit paper is usually enough, followed by a finer pass with 240-grit. On gloss or satin finishes, you'll notice the sheen disappearing — that's exactly what you want.

Use a sanding sponge to get into mouldings, panel edges, and any routed detail. Don't scrub at the corners until the shape softens; just enough to key the surface. Wipe away all dust with a damp cloth, then a tack cloth.

Now is the moment to deal with dents, chipped edges, and old screw holes from previous handles. A little fine surface filler, sanded flush once dry, will disappear under paint. If you're changing handle positions, fill the old holes now rather than trying to hide them later.

Step Four: Prime for a Lasting Finish

If your cabinets are bare wood, MDF, or a previously unpainted laminate, a bonding primer is essential. It seals the surface, blocks stains, and gives the topcoat a uniform base. Even on previously painted cabinets, a primer can help if you're making a dramatic colour change — going from dark oak to pale grey, for instance — because it stops the old colour bleeding through.

Apply the primer thinly with a small roller, then lay off with a brush in the direction of the grain or the panel lines. Two thin coats beat one thick one every time. Let it dry fully according to the tin before you move on.

Step Five: Apply the Topcoats with a Small Roller

Here's the technique that separates a professional-looking job from an obviously DIY one. Use a small foam roller for the flat panels and a synthetic brush for the edges, mouldings, and any recessed detail. Roll in one direction, then lightly lay off in the other to knock back the orange-peel texture that foam rollers can leave.

• Apply two to three thin coats rather than one heavy one
• Work in good light so you can spot runs and misses
• Sand very lightly with 320-grit between coats once fully dry, then wipe clean
• Keep the coats even at the edges, where paint tends to pool and drip

Water-based cabinet paints generally touch-dry in an hour or two but need several days to harden properly. Leave the doors off for as long as you reasonably can — ideally a week — before refitting the hardware and hanging them. Once they're back up, clean with a soft damp cloth rather than anything abrasive, and your kitchen will look transformed for years to come.