Why Does it Cost so Much to Paint or Stain Cabinets?
Refreshing the paint or stain on the cabinets in your kitchen, bathroom, or other space can completely change the look of the room. This type of project may seem minor because cabinets are relatively small compared to walls in a room or siding on the outside of a home. Since it seems like a small project, people often get sticker shock when they get an estimate for painting or staining cabinets. They may wonder, “Why does it cost so much to paint or stain cabinets?”
Painting and staining cabinets may seem straightforward, but the project takes a lot more time and work compared to some other painting projects, such as painting the walls of a bedroom. Depending on the specifics of the project, it may require some specialized work. The general process for painting and staining cabinets includes the following steps:
- Remove the cabinet doors and fronts of the drawers.
- Clean the cabinets, cabinet doors, and fronts of the drawers.
- Repair imperfections, such as scuffs and nicks.
- Sand the cabinets.
- Apply wood filler or a bonding agent to fill in wood grains.
- Sand the cabinets a second time.
- Repeat steps five and six as necessary to achieve the desired finish.
- Apply primer.
- Sand cabinets to create a final smooth finish.
- Apply paint or stain to the cabinets.
- Reinstall the cabinet doors and the fronts of the drawers.
Each of these steps is important to successfully complete this project. Several of the steps, including cleaning and sanding, tend to take a lot of time to properly complete. If any of the steps are rushed through, the paint or stain won’t adhere to the cabinets as well, and it will begin to fail by peeling or flaking much sooner than it should. The extra time and effort required to complete these steps well is a large contributor to the price of the project. The particular materials used, such as primer and paint or stain, also impact the cost.
If you are considering painting or staining cabinets in your home and would like to learn more about what it might cost to complete the project, JMJ Painters would be honored to work with you. We offer free project estimates, which you can schedule online or by calling us at (612) 255-3351.