Older kitchen cabinets can drastically impact the look of your kitchen, causing it to appear shabby, beat up, or out of date. Knowing that replacing kitchen cabinets can be prohibitively expensive in many cases, a lot of homeowners wonder about painting or refinishing them. Is one option better than the other? Painting kitchen cabinets is a very different process than refinishing them, and they lead to drastically different results, so let’s take some time to make a comparison. That way, you can make an informed decision for the future of your cabinets!
Painting versus Refinishing Cabinets: What is the Goal?
Refinishing kitchen cabinets means taking wooden cabinets that look worn or out of date, and renewing the finish so that they look fresh, new, and stylish. In some cases, this can involve changing the color of the wood stain for a completely new look. Other homeowners want to keep the color of their wooden cabinets, but they want the cabinets to look renewed and to be protected. Most of the time, refinishing means that the end product will still be stained wood, where you can see the natural grain and characteristics of the wood to some degree.
Painting kitchen cabinets, on the other hand, involves covering over the natural color and texture of the wood with a solid layer of paint. This provides a uniform appearance to all the surfaces, and it allows you to use many colors that are simply not available in stained wood.
Is Painting Cabinets Cheaper than Refinishing Them?
A cost analysis is always a helpful step, though it should not be the only factor in your decision process as you make a plan for your kitchen cabinets. If you end up less happy with the cheaper option, you really have not made a good investment.
The products involved in painting or refinishing cabinets will impact the price somewhat, but the real difference is always in the amount of labor required. It will usually be the more labor-intensive option that costs more, regardless of the paints or stains you need.
In most cases, the process of refinishing wooden cabinets requires more hours of work than painting them. That is because the prior coatings need to be stripped off until the wood is like new, then the new stains can be applied, and a final protective coat is added. That initial stripping procedure can require a great deal of sanding and clean up.
If you want to refresh the current stain but not change the color, this will sometimes reduce the labor required for refinishing kitchen cabinets, making it more similar to the cost of painting. Also, certain gel stains have become available that can be applied over prior colors, reducing (but not eliminating) some of the preparatory phases.
Painting kitchen cabinets also requires cleaning and sanding glossy surfaces to get them ready to receive paint. Primer must be applied, followed by several coats of special interior paint. Finally, a protecting layer is applied here as well. The process may be faster than refinishing, but it still involves several important steps if you want to achieve good results.
Is Painting or Refinishing Kitchen Cabinets More Popular?
While wooden cabinets that are in good shape have a timeless, natural appeal, painted cabinets are undoubtedly more popular today. White is by far the most sought-after cabinet color, though gray is also common. Black, navy blue, and sage/mint green are also not uncommon options for kitchen cabinet painting. You just need to make sure you choose a paint color that works with the rest of the colors, patterns, and textures in your kitchen.
Cherry Hill Painting
Whether you want to refinish your kitchen cabinets, or you think painting them is the better option for you, Cherry Hill Painting would love to help! We have been serving the people of New Jersey and the Philadelphia area since 1968, earning a reputation for excellent craftsmanship and attentive customer service.
In addition to cabinet painting and refinishing, we also offer wallpaper removal, interior painting, exterior painting, and even commercial painting for New Jersey businesses. Contact our office for a free estimate for your next painting project; we look forward to meeting you!