It’s easy to go online and find scores of pictures of the kitchen of your dreams. Many of these pictures may even have examples of homeowners who had great luck painting their kitchen cabinets as opposed to replacing them. While painting your cabinets may be possible in some circumstances, it’s important to go through a fairly detailed checklist to ensure your cabinets are able to stand up to another coat of paint, as well as additional wear and tear.
At Prince & Sons, we’ve worked on a variety of different kitchen remodeling projects and are always open to a homeowner’s decision about painting instead of replacing their kitchen cabinets. We just always want to make sure our clients are properly educated about the positives and negatives of either decision.
Things to Watch Out for When Painting Kitchen Cabinets
Below are just a few of the reasons why it may make more sense both practically and financially to replace your existing kitchen cabinets instead of painting them.
- Cost and Labor – Painting kitchen cabinets is not an easy task. It takes extensive prep work and a keen eye for detail to produce a satisfactory finished product. Because of this, painting cabinets can be more expensive than you may expect. Typically all of the doors will need to come off as well as the hinges and hardware. Next, the complicated process of stripping, cleaning, sanding and priming. Once that is completed to perfection, then the painting process can begin. It doesn’t end there, once the painting work is completed, then comes resetting and aligning all of the doors perfectly.
- Examine the Condition of Your Cabinets – Are your cabinets solid wood? If so, painting them may be a viable option. If they’re not, or if they’re in poor condition, it may be a much better option to replace them. You really need to ask yourself whether your current kitchen cabinets can stand up to an additional 10-15 years of wear and tear. If not, it’s likely better to go ahead and replace your cabinets.
- Do You Want More Out of Your Cabinets? – If you’re painting your existing cabinets, you’re going to be sticking with the same footprint, which limits your options when modernizing your kitchen. If you decide to replace your cabinets, you will then be able to take advantage of some of the newer technology, such as larger appliances, while also being able to redesign the entire cabinet layout to fit your exact needs.
Interested in Learning First Hand About Your Kitchen Cabinet Options
At Prince & Sons, we’re not only a fully licensed general contractor, but we’re also a dealer for a number of cabinet lines including Jim Bishop, Plain & Fancy Cabinets, J&K Cabinets, and Candlelight Cabinetry. Despite our relationships with these manufacturers, we will always be completely honest with you about whether we think it makes sense to paint or replace your existing cabinets. To set up a time to speak with one of our team members, feel free to give us a call at 919-383-0888, or fill out our online intake form where we’ll gather a bit of information about your upcoming renovation project.
