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How to get a factory paint finish on kitchen cupboards?

Hi , I am wanting to paint my kitchen cabinets. I have previously painted my cabinets with Dulux renovation range using a roller . The finish product turned out terrible. I am just wondering how cabinet makers paint their cupboards and get a factory finish . There are no imperfections whatsoever it looks like it hasn’t even been painted . My cupboards you can tell that there is a layer of paint and that they have been painted but with factory finish you just cannot tell it’s that perfect . For example kaboodle how do they get their cabinets perfectly painted like a factory finish . I am wanting to repaint them and I want to get a factory finish . Does anybody know what cabinet makers use to make their paint finish so perfect . Thanks

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MitchellMc

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @kayoparata. It's wonderful to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about painting cabinetry.

It's important to understand that a D.I.Y. painted cabinet will always look like a painted cabinet. It's a wonderful way to cover dated cabinetry, especially if you need a quick fix to hold out until a future renovation. It sounds like you haven't had a great experience with the Dulux Renovation range, but the finish achieved with it should be far from terrible, so I'm a bit concerned that there might have been an issue. I'd be happy to troubleshoot that with you, and some images of the finish achieved would be helpful. Let me know if you need assistance uploading some.

Many of our members who have used the Renovation range have achieved great results that they are very happy with. As mentioned, though, a D.I.Y. painted cabinet will never be comparable to a factory finish. Factory paint finishes are sprays uniformly applied by a machine. Then, of course, you have laminate and vacuum-formed vinyl, which our Kaboodle cabinets feature. The vacuum-formed vinyl is like a thick contact paper that is stretched over the surface of the cabinet door by a machine; it's not a painted coating.

Cabinet makers typically spray with a two-pack paint product. This finish is comparable to a factory finish, but it's not considered a D.I.Y. application. The closest you'd get to a professional finish with an off-the-shelf product would be spraying the Renovation range with a spray gun and then coating it with the Renovation range clearcoat. This will eliminate any brushstrokes or roller marks, which are normally the key identifiers of a hand-painted cabinet.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

kayoparata

Hi . Thanks for your response. How can I tell the difference between my cupboards if they’re mdf of laminate . I can’t tell

MitchellMc

That's a bit of a tricky question, @kayoparata, as you'll have MDF cupboards that are covered in laminate. Laminate is a coating, whereas MDF is the substrate the doors are made from.

What was the context of your question? If it concerns what the paint is being applied to, then bare MDF will be a brown/orange colour that looks like this, and laminate is typically white (or sometimes other colours) and looks like this.

Mitchell

kayoparata

It’s abit of both I recon , the bottom of the cabinet shows and it looks like mdf . So I’m gonna assume it’s covered in laminate . Also would a air compressor spray gun be my best bet?

kayoparata

If I sand it down to bare mdf. What steps would I take to priming it and painting it?

Jason

Hi @kayoparata,

Let me also extend a very warm welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community.

Just thought I'd chime in and suggest you have a look at some of the examples of what Bunnings Workshop members have been able to achieve in our collection of 20 kitchens transformed with paint.

Jason

MitchellMc

You couldn't sand through the laminate to bear MDF @kayoparata. Well, you could, but it would take an immense amount of work and wouldn't be feasible. Also, the Renovation range, which is a hard-wearing paint, can only be used on laminate and not MDF. So, for MDF, you could only use a standard enamel paint, which is softer. Before applying it, you'd need to prime the MDF.

I can't see any advantage of removing the laminate to expose the MDF. That wouldn't help you achieve a better finish as the laminate is smoother than what the MDF will be.

An air spray gun that runs off an air compressor would be your best bet. However, I need to warn you that spraying also has a learning curve. While you won't have an issue with brush strokes or roller marks, you'll need to deal with things like splatter and adjusting settings for correct flow to get a consistent spray and to avoid runs.

Mitchell

kayoparata

thankyou for you expertise. What steps would I take prepping the cupboard for the paint to ensure the best finishe possible . Like what grit would I use to prep the cupboards to make sure they’re smooth before painting . I heard the preparation is the most important thing to achieving a good finish

MitchellMc

If we are talking about the Dulux Renovation range @kayoparata, then essentially cleaning involves scrubbing the laminate with Sugar Soap until the water runs clear. You'll find plenty of tips, advice and troubleshooting in this guide.

If it's laminate, you shouldn't need to sand, as it will already be a smooth surface. If this is the paint that you previously coated with, it would likely be best to use 240-grit to sand the surface back to the laminate.

Mitchell

kayoparata

Thanks for that . What would I use to dilute the primer and the actual paint?

EricL

Hello @kayoparata

Depending on the paint that you use each product has a specific rule printed at the back of the container. It will specifically tell you if the product needs to be diluted or what percent it can be diluted to. When you've decided what product to use, have a quick look at the back of the tin for more details.

For example, some water-based paints can be diluted with more water, some oil-based paints need paint thinner.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

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