Tips on Spraying Paint on Cabinets

Location and Protection

• Spray as many parts of the cabinets as you can outdoors. If the cabinets are mounted, remove the doors and paint them outside. Make sure you're in a well-ventilated area if you have to spray paint indoors. Open doors, windows or use a fan to ventilate the area, and avoid painting in direct sunlight or in hot, humid weather.

  Overspray occurs when paint gets on a surface that you did not intend it to go on. Prevent overspray by covering your work area and adjacent surfaces, such as your kitchen or bathroom floors and counters, with newspapers, painter's tape, plastic garbage bags or drop cloths.

Preparation and Directions

• Make sure that your cabinets are clean and dry before painting them, especially if you're installing new hardware, and mounting holes are filled with putty that has to dry. If you have a cabinet with glossy paint, make sure to sand the surface with 150-grit sandpaper first so the new paint sticks to the cabinet. Increase paint adhesion and achieve true paint color on your cabinets by preparing them with primer before you begin spray painting.

  Read all the directions on the spray can before using it. The can also has important safety tips, warnings and painting information, such as how many coats of paint your cabinets might need.

Removing Hardware

• Remove all hardware, including screws, hinges, knobs and pulls before you begin painting, and keep them in a safe place if you're reusing them. If your cabinets have drawers above them, empty the drawers and remove them. Number the doors and drawers by placing a piece of paper with a number on it close to each piece while painting. This is useful in remembering which parts belong where when reinstalling them.

Testing and Applying

• Test the paint first. If the paint is dispersing properly and covering a sample surface to your liking, then you can begin spray painting your cabinets. Beginning with the inside, apply several thin coats of paint instead of one thick coat, working your spray pattern in a side-to-side motion. Overlap your spray patterns by about one-third, and remember to stop spraying at the end of each pass. Repeat this process with the front of the cabinets. However, before you begin painting the cabinets, paint the face frames first using a small roller or paintbrush.