As a Vancouver painters we are sometimes asked to paint kitchen cupboards. While time consuming, if done properly the results are amazing and cost effective.

As with most painting, the first and most important step is the preparation. With cabinets you need to disassemble all of the cabinets, label all of the doors and safely store all of the hardware. The next step is sanding down all of the doors starting with 150 grit sandpaper and then wiping down everything to be painted with TSPe, a green tri-sodium phosphate replacement. At this point you need to prime all of the surfaces. Primer selection is critical, for the simple reason that the cabinets will take a lot of abuse and if you don’t use an excellent primer then they will chip. My preference is either UMA or 400W from the XIM corporation. UMA is a urethane modified acrylic, acts as a primer and an adhesive, so you get a tenacious bond and a full cure in 7 days. It is water based so you can clean up with soap and water.

For the actual priming and painting we setup a mobile spray booth. We do this so that we can get an excellent finish and to protect the surfaces while they are drying. We make dust barriers by using Zip poles from Zip Wall and install a zipperered door for access. We then build temporary drying racks using two by fours and metal racking that is used in shelving. This is strong, flexible and easy to setup.

After priming, we wait for the primer to dry, about three hours and then sand with 180 grit sandpaper. We then paint the first coat. By the way, you will want to use a fine finish tip for the best look. We just did a project in Kitsilano at the corner of 6th and Arbutus, and we used a Graco 212 fine finish tip. So after sanding you put the first coat on, wait for it to dry and then put the final coat on. We highly recommend that you use a good quality paint for the top coat. You need something that will be able to handle being touched and washed, so you really need to get a top coat that is scrubbable. Once the final coat is done it is best to wait a couple of days for the paint to dry so that you do not damage it during the re-installation.

As long as your existing cabinets are in good shape and functional it makes sense to paint them rather than throw them out and replace them. It takes less of our resources to essentially recycle the existing cabinets than put them in the landfill.

Make sure that whoever does your painting is insured and that they are current, and that they have experience spraying. Three simple questions to ask if they are going to spray your home or commercial space are:
1. what pressure will you be using?
2. what size tip will you be using?
3. what sort of paint will you be using?

You can then ask the manufacturer what tip size and pressure they recommend for the paint that you were told the painter was going to use. If they don’t know the answer to the above questions, run away. They do not know what they are doing. Or at least make sure that they have really good insurance and know how to clean, because they are likely going to make a mess.

Lastly, ask if they will be backrolling, as this is critical for a quality job.

I hope that you found this helpful.

I recently took on an interior painting job in Vancouver’s Yaletown. My client was mortified when her 8 year old granddaughter entered her condo and said “Gramma, your home looks just like a hospital.” The condo was a pale cool green not unlike something you would have seen in a hospital. So in all fairness you have to hand it to the kid she nailed it.

With her granddaughter having pegged her colour choices, unfavourably, my client went down to the Yaletown Benjamin Moore store to get some of the colours available in the individual swatches. While perusing the colours, she asked Michelle, a colour consultant who works in the store, for a recommendation for a interior painter for her Yaletown condo. Much to my delight Michelle gave my card. And this is where I come into the picture.

Upon arriving at the condo and doing a quick walk about, we start talking about colours. My client has decided to paint her kitchen walls and the cupboards in Benjamin Moores Rose Quartz, which is a red. Upon looking at the colour on the chip, I say “we are going to have to use a deep base primer.” The reason being, I explain, is that certain reds have a lot of magenta in them and magenta is very poor at hiding. To get the proper colour and to do it in only two finish coats we will need to prime all of the surfaces being painted with a tinted deep base primer.

We ended up using Fresh Start Deep Base primer prior to applying Benjamin Moore’s Kitchen and Bath paint in a Pearl finish. Prior to priming we washed all surfaces being painted with TSP and sanded. In the end we have a magnificent red kitchen. We are doing our part in painting the town red.

Ok, so you have finally decided to paint the ceiling, and it is one of those textured ceilings, sometimes referred to as “popcorn” ceiling. Textured ceilings are popular with builders because they hide a multitude of sins, such as poor finishing of the drywall, poor floor or ceiling joists or a combination of these. If they did not texture the ceiling they would have to spend more time making sure the finish of the drywall was perfect, thereby raising the cost.

So, you have the above mentioned textured ceiling and want to paint it. First you need to determine if it has ever been painted before. If it has never been painted it will be chalky and crumbles easily if you poke at it. If it has been painted, then it will be much more rigid and will require a lot more effort to scrape it. If it has been painted then you can proceed with painting it in a good quality water based ceiling paint. Sherwin Williams makes a flat paint called CHB, which is excellent. Benjamin Moore also has an excellent paint called, naturally, Ceiling Paint.

If the ceiling has never been painted then it should be painted with either an alkyd based flat paint or sprayed using one of the above mentioned water based paints. The reason for this is that textured ceilings are made with a water based product, and to cut it in and roll it out for the first time with a water based paint will cause the finish to look uneven. This is because the water based paint absorbs very quickly into the dry, porous water based texture coat. Spraying a water based top coat will fix this uneven finish, rolling or spraying an oil based paint will fix this as well.

If you are not painting the walls you will need to go around the room(s) and tape plastic on the wall right up to the ceiling but not on it. You need to be very thorough and cover all areas and seal all openings shut that paint could get through. If you are rolling you will also need to do this, if you are not painting the walls, as the paint will splatter onto the walls, and everywhere else.

Once you have done two coats on the ceiling you can begin to clean up. Start by carefully pulling plastic and tape off the walls. Pull tape at a 90 degree angle, as this minimizes the possibility of damage to the walls. Also, a good quality painters tape is required such as the blue tape made by 3M. Do not ever use masking tape as it will allow the paint to bleed under neath it and will tear off paint on the walls when you go to remove it.