Here’s how I prepare to spray paint plastic laminate Formica cabinets. Removing the doors and reinstalling them is the most difficult part of the project. You are going to need special paint from the store that is designed to adhere to plastic laminate. One brand name that works well is Cabinet Rescue. Here’ a good article with some fast kitchen cabinet remodeling ideas for painting.
Tools & Materials Needed for Painting Plastic Laminate
-Lacquer Thinner
-Spray Gun
-220 Grit Sand Paper
-Rags
-Putty Knife
-Masking Tape
-Protective Paper or Plastic
-Primer
-Paint
-Paint Respirator -Air Filter Mask
Preparing Plastic Laminate Cabinets and Doors for Painting
The first thing that should be done when preparing the cabinets is all of the contents of the cupboards need to be removed. Interior and exterior surfaces should be cleaned using the lacquer thinner; wear your paint respirator. Be sure to open windows and doors for proper ventilation, especially when you start painting. Refer to this article for Painting Raised Panel Cabinet Doors.
*Clean all areas with the lacquer thinner.
*Mask off all areas with the plastic or paper and tape that you don’t want paint to get on.
*Sand all of the Formica surfaces that will be getting painted with the 220 grit sand paper.
*Wipe the plastic laminate off again with the lacquer thinner and allow them to thoroughly dry.
*Mix the paint primer with the recommended thinner so that it sprays smoothly from the painting spray gun. When spraying there should be a nice fan of liquid that lays on the laminate wet and smooth. Do not apply the paint with short motions, but rather long passes from left to right. Refer to this article on using a compressed air spray paint gun.
*Your first coat of primer should be a tack-coat. This is a very light coating of the paint applied to the cabinets and doors first. Then spray the paint thicker after the tack application has been applied.
*Allow to COMPLETLEY dry and then sand the primer paint with 220 sand paper. Then apply another liberal coat with the spray gun. Sand this application of paint after it dries completely.
*Spray paint all of the cabinets and doors with the finish paint. Here again you should apply a tack coat first. Once the first coat is finished drying, apply the final layer of spray paint.
Kitchen or bathroom vanity cabinets should not be painted with anything other than a recommended paint brand for Formica plastic laminate. This is not a project that will work with any type of finish. In order for the cupboards to be durable enough to withstand normal wear and tear, you must only use a product that is designed specifically for painting kitchen or bathroom Formica Plastic laminate cabinetry. If you are applying the substance over gloss laminate be certain to sand all areas of the plastic using 100 grit sand paper and then follow-up with 220 grit before applying the paint to the Formica.
Several years ago I custom manufactured a kitchen recycling center as a roll around cabinet. It provided storage for all of the recyclables and worked as additional countertop space as well. The units should only be manufactured for kitchens that are spacious. The overall dimensions of the unit was thirty six inches high, sixty inches long and twenty one inches deep. read Custom Kitchen Recycling Cabinet Storage Ideas
There are places in kitchen cabinet designs where canned food storage is ideal. These ideas can help you design convenient areas for storing your canned vegetables, fruits or meats. Most people don’t really think about how to arrange their cupboards to accommodate these items. After studying my suggestions you will have some solid design suggestions to offer your cabinetry designer. read Kitchen Cabinet Canned Food Storage Ideas
Purchased a new refrigerator, range or hood and it won’t fit? Need to know how you can cut the surrounding cabinets down to the correct dimensions for the appliances to fit? You may need to alter the countertops as well. Making changes to counters will not be discussed in this article. read How to Cut Cabinets Down
There are two options as to how one can install Formica brand plastic laminate on kitchen or bathroom vanity cabinets. Are you interested in re-surfacing existing cupboards or are you building new ones? This article will teach you how to apply the material onto a new cabinet that you have built or purchased. read How to install Plastic Laminate on Cabinets
I learned how to make a European kitchen self-closing hinge free swinging due to an emergency. I had visited the local supply company and there were no free swinging cupboard hinges available. I needed them for a medicine cabinet that I was making that had a touch door on it. I wanted to use the hidden style or concealed European hinges.
read self closing hinges
If you don’t want to pay for an expensive drill bit, here’s how to drill for the special cabinet door concealed cup hinges. European hinge is the technical name for this piece read How to Drill european Cabinet Hinges
Here is how I fix cupboards that have swollen particleboard areas like cabinet doors. You can repair them if the edges have not expanded to the point of ruining the sides of the door.
You are going to need to get some lacquer thinner and have some type of squirt bottle to put the liquid into. This will be used for separating the glue from the two surfaces. read How to Fix Swollen Cabinet Doors
How you fix a loose area on your cabinet is going to depend upon where the wood joints are that are in need of some glue. Check out this fast drying wood joint glue that will repair many problems with crown molding seams and even face-frame separations. A word of caution though, this glue dries like super glue fast, strong and hard.
read How to Fix Loose Cabinet Wood Joints
Most of the cabinets that people purchase off of the shelves from Home Depot come without having solid backs on them. This of course depends upon the brand and style of cabinet that you are considering to purchase. I would suggest that you ask a sales person if the cupboards that you are looking at come equipped with solid backs on them. Most of the upper cabinetry should have solid pieces of wood in the back so that they can be hung on the wall. read Do Cabinets From Home Depot Come Without Backs
