# Kitchen cabinets



## Epoxy Pro (Oct 7, 2012)

We are getting ready to spray some Cherry kitchen cabinets. Currently the have a clear semi-gloss. 

Should I de-gloss or what primer will bond to a clear coat? This is a 4 million dollar home so I want it to come out great obviously with the least amount of money we have to spend on materials.


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## squid (Dec 25, 2012)

With all the information posted about kitchen cabinets on this forum, you really have no idea how to go about this?

4 million dollar home and your concerned about material costs?

IMO, they hired the wrong company for this job.


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## Epoxy Pro (Oct 7, 2012)

squid said:


> With all the information posted about kitchen cabinets on this forum, you really have no idea how to go about this?
> 
> 4 million dollar home and your concerned about material costs?
> 
> IMO, they hired the wrong company for this job.


This isn't our first time spraying cabinets, it is our first going over a clear. This kitchen is massive. Over 50 doors and 30 draws. try doing a search for cabinets with this search function.

As for wanting to do it the cheapest way, I'm not looking to spend 20 bucks on primer, obviously we want to use the best we can.

IMO they picked the right company to tackle this. And no we were no the lowest big, actually over 6 grand higher than every one else.


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## premierpainter (Apr 17, 2007)

Squid says it like it is. 
Great reply and I agree with you


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## Phinnster (Feb 20, 2013)

C d 
We just did a large job with exact scope
We lightly sanded 
Cover stained or enameled under bodied 
Sanded
Two coats oil satin impervo in between
Sanded between coats

Two coats of primer would be ideal but I don't think we do that 

I don't take many pics any more 
Good luck


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## AlphaWolf (Nov 23, 2014)

every 1 seems to have there own method when it comes to cabinets. If the home owner is not home or if smell is not an issue spray it with BIN shellac. Not only will it stick well it also seals out any burn through. Not to mention fast dry time. As far as top coats iI just used Break-Through. Dries very fast and super durable. If that not in your area i Prefer Pre-Cat epoxy my self


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## stelzerpaintinginc. (May 9, 2012)

Dave, what top coat are you using? Might be a perfect opportunity to give Breakthrough a chance, since it sticks like glue. Clean, sand smooth, then breakthrough. Your AAA will put out a sweet finish with it.


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## Mike2coat (Nov 12, 2013)

We used to sand. Spray a good coat of lacquer under oater. Sand then apply lacquer finish. You can get all these lacquers in water-based now.


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## Epoxy Pro (Oct 7, 2012)

stelzerpaintinginc. said:


> Dave, what top coat are you using? Might be a perfect opportunity to give Breakthrough a chance, since it sticks like glue. Clean, sand smooth, then breakthrough. Your AAA will put out a sweet finish with it.


Either Cali Cabinet Coat or Advanced. Both same price and we have sprayed both. I liked the Cali for cabinets over Advance by a slim margin.

I will check out the Breakthrough, I see others here posting about it but never tried it.


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## Epoxy Pro (Oct 7, 2012)

Phinnster said:


> C d
> We just did a large job with exact scope
> We lightly sanded
> Cover stained or enameled under bodied
> ...


Cover stain is/was my plan. We did a few of the doors already with an oil cover stain. Sanded the gloss off. We had our crew help but as for the cabinet boxes only I will be working on them.


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## stelzerpaintinginc. (May 9, 2012)

cdpainting said:


> Either Cali Cabinet Coat or Advanced. Both same price and we have sprayed both. I liked the Cali for cabinets over Advance by a slim margin.
> 
> 
> 
> I will check out the Breakthrough, I see others here posting about it but never tried it.



No primer needed if you use Breakthrough. Something to consider maybe.


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## Epoxy Pro (Oct 7, 2012)

stelzerpaintinginc. said:


> No primer needed if you use Breakthrough. Something to consider maybe.


I will check it out today.


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## Repaint Florida (May 31, 2012)

Break Through is perfect but be cautious is going white, no stain blocking 

all other colors work great, we use it every week

http://www.painttalk.com/f2/kitchen-cabinet-painting-orlando-fl-34377/


.


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## Epoxy Pro (Oct 7, 2012)

Repaint Florida said:


> Break Through is perfect but be cautious is going white, no stain blocking
> 
> all other colors work great, we use it every week
> 
> ...


My concern is tanning bleed. These will be some sort of medium gray color.


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## Damon T (Nov 22, 2008)

Repaint Florida said:


> Break Through is perfect but be cautious is going white, no stain blocking
> 
> all other colors work great, we use it every week
> 
> ...



That's fascinating. I didn't realize the tinted breakthrough would block tannins.


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## Epoxy Pro (Oct 7, 2012)

6 months to finalize all painting on this job. We worked this weekend, primed and painted (sprayed) kitchen cabinets. The interior designer then shows up and says oh we are going to paint the inside of the cabinets that have glass doors. 

Ok I wish they told us Saturday when we were priming and not after we finished spraying the final coat.

The joy of working over an hour from home.


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## squid (Dec 25, 2012)

If I were you, I would tell the GC how mad you are at the designer and then give them the bill for the extra T&M. This is BS.


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## I paint paint (May 4, 2014)

cdpainting said:


> 6 months to finalize all painting on this job. We worked this weekend, primed and painted (sprayed) kitchen cabinets. The interior designer then shows up and says oh we are going to paint the inside of the cabinets that have glass doors.
> 
> Ok I wish they told us Saturday when we were priming and not after we finished spraying the final coat.
> 
> *The joy of working over an hour from home.*


That could easily be a 15 mile commute in a big city.

Or a 55 mile commute away from metropolis on clear interstate.

Been in each situation for years at a time, at different points in my life.


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## Surreal Painting (May 10, 2015)

Nvm my p.m. I posted this with just reading the top not realizing this is days old and you already primed.

show us some pics


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## Damon T (Nov 22, 2008)

It seems like they always want to paint inside cabinets when they have glass doors. Makes sense.


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## Epoxy Pro (Oct 7, 2012)

Damon T said:


> It seems like they always want to paint inside cabinets when they have glass doors. Makes sense.


We had gone over and over these details. The man of the house of course wants to spend the least amount, the wife wants to spend all his money. What kills me is the 2 hours to prep all those cabinets, now a color change for the inside. I would have approached this differently. Now they just added 4 more rooms.


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## Surreal Painting (May 10, 2015)

cdpainting said:


> We had gone over and over these details. The man of the house of course wants to spend the least amount, the wife wants to spend all his money. What kills me is the 2 hours to prep all those cabinets, now a color change for the inside. I would have approached this differently. Now they just added 4 more rooms.


Sounds like $$$ to money.


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## Damon T (Nov 22, 2008)

Looks like she is still spending his money!


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## I paint paint (May 4, 2014)

cdpainting said:


> We had gone over and over these details. *The man of the house of course wants to spend the least amount, the wife wants to spend all his money.* What kills me is the 2 hours to prep all those cabinets, now a color change for the inside. I would have approached this differently. *Now they just added 4 more rooms.*





Damon T said:


> *Looks like she is still spending his money!*


Well, as long as it doesn't mess up your schedule too bad, these are great clients to have.

And if the add-ons do throw your schedule off, tell them you'll be back in a couple months or during a rainy spell on an exterior project.


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## Epoxy Pro (Oct 7, 2012)

I paint paint said:


> Well, as long as it doesn't mess up your schedule too bad, these are great clients to have.
> 
> And if the add-ons do throw your schedule off, tell them you'll be back in a couple months or during a rainy spell on an exterior project.


We pretty much have the summer to do it but it's messing up the schedule. I don't mind the add-ons at all. It's the last second color changes or additions to a place we did. I don't know the area at all so looking for a paint store last second adds to the stress. I grab supplies at my usual store before heading to there.


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## rich78 (Jul 8, 2015)

It makes sense to paint If you can see trough. I would.


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## Paint Core (May 16, 2015)

cdpainting said:


> 6 months to finalize all painting on this job. We worked this weekend, primed and painted (sprayed) kitchen cabinets. The interior designer then shows up and says oh we are going to paint the inside of the cabinets that have glass doors. Ok I wish they told us Saturday when we were priming and not after we finished spraying the final coat. The joy of working over an hour from home.


Hi guys
Just noticed this thread. We do lots of cabinet jobs. Actually all we do is cabinets and furniture. I don't want to sound like a punk but 6 grand above everyone else sounds crazy to me. And if your charging that much more then everyone else you should have noticed the interior cabinets where the glass doors are needed to match everything else. I mean wouldn't that be common sense? If I was the home owner I would expect at least that level of awareness towards my project. Imo I don't think you should worry about going back to spray that out. If my clients were willing to pay me 6 grand more then everyone else! Dude I would wake up in the middle of the night so make sure I retained those clients for life. Just saying. 

2 hours to prep off a 50 door 30 drawer kitchen. Wow!! Your system must be on some next level ish! We do between 20-30 kitchens a month. And I have never seen anything close to that. 

In terms of the primer/top coat what did you end up using I'm curious.


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## Epoxy Pro (Oct 7, 2012)

Paint Core said:


> Hi guys
> Just noticed this thread. We do lots of cabinet jobs. Actually all we do is cabinets and furniture. I don't want to sound like a punk but 6 grand above everyone else sounds crazy to me. And if your charging that much more then everyone else you should have noticed the interior cabinets where the glass doors are needed to match everything else. I mean wouldn't that be common sense? If I was the home owner I would expect at least that level of awareness towards my project. Imo I don't think you should worry about going back to spray that out. If my clients were willing to pay me 6 grand more then everyone else! Dude I would wake up in the middle of the night so make sure I retained those clients for life. Just saying.
> 
> 2 hours to prep off a 50 door 30 drawer kitchen. Wow!! Your system must be on some next level ish! We do between 20-30 kitchens a month. And I have never seen anything close to that.
> ...


From day 1 I talked with the HO about the insides, half are Cherry, other half are Birch. The interior designer said not to paint the insides, the HO over ruled her after we sprayed the outside.

Prepping the cabinets there were 3 of us, not big cabinets just a bunch of small sections. De-glossed, covered all openings.

We used Zinzer cover stain oil based. 3 coats sanded between coats, 3 finish coats again light sanding between coats. We went with Advanced for the top coat.

We are also driving an hour each way so a chunk is travel time for the crew.


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## I paint paint (May 4, 2014)

cdpainting said:


> We used Zinzer cover stain oil based. 3 coats sanded between coats, 3 finish coats again light sanding between coats. We went with Advanced for the top coat.
> 
> We are also driving an hour each way so a chunk is travel time for the crew.


6 total coats seems high; isn't the Breakthrough crowd doing two coats with no separate primer? Repaint Florida comes to mind, but I could be wrong.

An hour commute or more, one way, is the norm for many contractors and non-contractors alike.


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## ExcelPaintingCo (Apr 16, 2011)

cdpainting said:


> From day 1 I talked with the HO about the insides, half are Cherry, other half are Birch. The interior designer said not to paint the insides, the HO over ruled her after we sprayed the outside. Prepping the cabinets there were 3 of us, not big cabinets just a bunch of small sections. De-glossed, covered all openings. We used Zinzer cover stain oil based. 3 coats sanded between coats, 3 finish coats again light sanding between coats. We went with Advanced for the top coat. We are also driving an hour each way so a chunk is travel time for the crew.


 I used to love coverstain because of the price. That is until I tried BM 217. It levels like a dream, drastically reducing your sanding time. I haven't used coverstain since.


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## kdpaint (Aug 14, 2010)

To clarify: 3 coats Cover Stain then 2 top coats of something, then a final coat of Advance?


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## Surreal Painting (May 10, 2015)

Sounds like this is coming along. Ouch if you had to put on 6 coats. Gotta do what you gotta do.

Usually mine are 3 coats per side. 1 prime, 2 top. Some times if Tannin is really bleeding and I'm unsure ill put 2 prime coats on the top. Makes 4. Most of the time that was not needed but was a precaution.

After having tested breakthrough. Prob could have just 2 coated on each side and been done with it. Unless a primer was needed then 3 at most per side. Break Through is a cabinet paint all should experience....made a believer out of me it did. Buy a gallon and test it at home....well worth it.


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## kdpaint (Aug 14, 2010)

Breakthrough is changing the way I approach jobs in a big way.


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## Surreal Painting (May 10, 2015)

Paint Core said:


> Hi guys
> Just noticed this thread. We do lots of cabinet jobs. Actually all we do is cabinets and furniture. I don't want to sound like a punk but 6 grand above everyone else sounds crazy to me. And if your charging that much more then everyone else you should have noticed the interior cabinets where the glass doors are needed to match everything else. I mean wouldn't that be common sense? If I was the home owner I would expect at least that level of awareness towards my project. Imo I don't think you should worry about going back to spray that out. If my clients were willing to pay me 6 grand more then everyone else! Dude I would wake up in the middle of the night so make sure I retained those clients for life. Just saying.
> 
> 2 hours to prep off a 50 door 30 drawer kitchen. Wow!! Your system must be on some next level ish! We do between 20-30 kitchens a month. And I have never seen anything close to that.
> ...


 Think he is saying 6 grand over every other bid for the overall project. That really isn't that surprising. It is probably a huge project. I myself have been double or half what others would charge. Some times its not even gouging or underbidding its what one crew can do it for vs another. Usually my bids are Mid-High.


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## PremierPaintingMa (Nov 30, 2014)

ExcelPaintingCo said:


> I used to love coverstain because of the price. That is until I tried BM 217. It levels like a dream, drastically reducing your sanding time. I haven't used coverstain since.


I am with you I love BM 217.


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## Damon T (Nov 22, 2008)

kdpaint said:


> To clarify: 3 coats Cover Stain then 2 top coats of something, then a final coat of Advance?



Sounds like 3 coats primer and 3 coats paint. The paint being Advance


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## Rcon (Nov 19, 2009)

cdpainting said:


> We are getting ready to spray some Cherry kitchen cabinets. Currently the have a clear semi-gloss.
> 
> Should I de-gloss or what primer will bond to a clear coat? This is a 4 million dollar home so I want it to come out great obviously with the least amount of money we have to spend on materials.


Clean well. Sand 180/220/320/(400 if dark colour). Go to a wood finish supply store i.e. chemcraft/ml campbell/valspar wood/mohawk finishing/ICI and pick up their waterbased primer (MLC Agualente primer is good, others have good primers as well) and a compatible topcoat (2K WB very durable, some manufacturers 1K are just as tough as another's 2K). Spray with HVLP/pressure pot. 

The biggest advantages of actual lacquers/CV's over paint for these types of projects (whether waterbased or solvent) are lower film build (looks better) and much faster drying and stack/pack times.


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## Paint Core (May 16, 2015)

Surreal Painting said:


> Think he is saying 6 grand over every other bid for the overall project. That really isn't that surprising. It is probably a huge project. I myself have been double or half what others would charge. Some times its not even gouging or underbidding its what one crew can do it for vs another. Usually my bids are Mid-High.


I get what he meant. I just feel a few things don't add up.


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## Repaint Florida (May 31, 2012)

kdpaint said:


> Breakthrough is changing the way I approach jobs in a big way.


as everyone knows i am a big breakthrough fan

we're painting a toy box & dresser this weekend in our shop

no primmer, BT shot with air assisted sprayer 3 coats :thumbup:

sure 2 coats work great but the prep work is done, it's sitting in place in spray shop so 1 extra coat is easy

and the price can't be beat 

i'll try to post pics


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## Phinnster (Feb 20, 2013)

Hey paint core 
What primer and finishes do u use
Good stuff


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## Paint Core (May 16, 2015)

Phinnster said:


> Hey paint core What primer and finishes do u use Good stuff


We use a ton of kem aqua. I like aqualente primer. The kem Aqua surfacer is ok. I still use bin for oak. Open grain woods can get saturated with geese. Imo there's no substitute for pigmented shellac.


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## thinkpainting/nick (Dec 25, 2012)

Just finished this one used BM Aura satin it went well but blocking as expected sucked. Dry time was very good and once cured very hard substrate. I'm still a huge fan of Advance love spraying and brushing rolling lol that product. I don't get into aaa pumps anymore or hvlp. I can do what I need to do with airless and PS. KA is a great product as are many others. I still like my Advance the semi , satin mix comes out like a thing of beauty when sprayed.

I understand rather upside of breakthrough and what RPF does ( awesome work)
uaing an AAA the way to go if your doing the production he does. :thumbsup:
Kevin was making PB&J sandwhich lol at time of photo.


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