Melamine, laminate and thermofoil doors are slick from the factory, so their cabinet painting starts with a bonding primer and finishes with hard sprayed enamel, and it holds on any door whose surface is still tight to the board.
Melamine is the standard cabinet in Kingston's condos, student rentals and 1970s to 1990s kitchens, and thermofoil replaced it in the late 1990s. Both fill the bungalows of Lakeland Acres and Hillendale and the apartments along Princess Street. The condo kitchen cabinet painting page covers the small-kitchen side of the same work.
A Bonding Primer Is What Makes Cabinet Painting Stick To Melamine
Melamine and laminate are hard, glossy and sealed, so ordinary cabinet painting primer beads up on them and later lifts off in one sheet. The answer is a waterborne bonding primer built to grip exactly those surfaces. It goes on thin after a thorough degreasing and a scuff sand, needs three or four hours before the first topcoat, and takes three or four days to reach its full grip. After that, the enamel or 2K polyurethane over it is as durable as it is on wood.
Edges are the weak point on melamine. The factory edge banding is prone to chipping, and every chip shows white board underneath. We fill and sand chipped edges before primer and note any that are too far gone for filling.
Thermofoil That Is Peeling Cannot Take Cabinet Painting, And We Say So
Thermofoil is a vinyl skin pressed onto MDF with heat and glue, and the same heat from a dishwasher vent, a kettle or a stove lifts it again. Once the skin has lifted, no paint will glue it back, and the heat keeps working under the paint. There are two honest routes for a peeling door: heat the vinyl off until bare MDF shows, then prime and paint the board, or fit a new door and paint it to match. Cabinet refacing and door replacement prices the second option.
Thermofoil that is still tight everywhere takes cabinet painting well. Each door gets checked during the visit, usually by the dishwasher and over the range first, and the quote lists which doors are painted, stripped or replaced.
Laminate Cabinet Painting Follows The Same Bonding Primer Rule
High-pressure laminate from the 1980s and 1990s, often almond or white with a wood-grain or oak-strip edge, is the same job as melamine. Laminate cabinet painting means bonding primer, thin sprayed coats, and attention to the edges. Ontario market guides put the bonding primer premium at roughly $150 to $400 on a whole kitchen, and the quote states it as its own line.
Rental And Condo Kitchens Get Cabinet Painting Between Tenants
Landlords in the University District and Williamsville paint melamine kitchens between tenants because it costs far less than new cabinets and turns around in under two weeks. A hard sprayed enamel stands up to student use far better than the brushed latex that is often on these kitchens already, and stripping that latex is part of the prep when it is peeling.
Ask About Thermofoil, Melamine Or Laminate Cabinet Painting In Kingston
If the doors are slick, glossy or wrapped, the visit that sorts out what can be painted is free. Send the form or call +1 (613) 706-5129 and tell us where the peeling is, if there is any. The Kingston Cabinet Painting home page covers wood kitchens and everything else we paint.
Thermofoil, Melamine and Laminate Cabinet Painting Questions
Can peeling thermofoil be painted?
No. Paint cannot glue a lifted vinyl skin back down, and the heat keeps working under the paint. The honest routes are stripping the vinyl to bare MDF or fitting a new door painted to match. Tight thermofoil paints well.
What primer goes on melamine and laminate?
A waterborne bonding primer made to grip slick, sealed surfaces. It goes on thin after degreasing and a scuff sand, needs three or four hours before the first topcoat, and reaches its full grip in three or four days.
What happens to chipped melamine edges?
Chipped edges are filled and sanded before primer, because every chip shows white board underneath. If an edge is too far gone to fill, the quote notes it so there are no surprises.