if all the preparation is done right there should be no fading or wear or chipping. like any painted cabinets even store bought over a period of time naturally there might be chipping and wear from things banging into them cabinets slamming ect.... but as for them chipping on there own you should have no problems the key to a successful cabinet painting project is the prep work and primer.

make sure your painter is a cabinet painter, not a house painter. ask him to explain all the steps he takes for prep work. the main reason for chipping paint is poor adhesion due to poor prep. ask to see his work or get references.

You need to ask what paint he uses and if he sprays on site or takes them back to his shop. Also ask what primer he will be using and if his work is guaranteed.

A lot of regular house painters also paint cabinets. You just need to make sure that they specialize in doing this sort of thing in addition to regular house painting. I always tell people that yes they should hold up, but to not expect them to be as durable as if the cabinets were new. Primer is able to penetrate better on new wood. Also, if your cabinets are stained and you paint them, the nicks and chips just show up more because it's a stain under the paint. Plus, it always depends on the person. If you have 10 kids and 14 dogs splashing water on them every day, they are not going to hold up forever no matter what prep and products you use.

Cabinets shouldn’t be painted with house paint. Conversion varnish by a Pro who specializes in cabinets. 7-9K average kitchen.

Paintguy,,,i said that because a lot of people don't know that there is a diff between house painting and cabinet painting. Can house painters do it? of course. Will they take the hours and hours needed for proper prep? probably not, unless they are cabinet painter specialists. That's why I specified 'cabinet painter'. A lot of house painters will say they can do it, no problem, and not put in the proper amount of prep. It's just too detailed and time consuming if they are used to painting walls. House painters will usually come in w/lower prices which is tempting for homeowners. they come in lower because they don't do all the prep and use the proper paint.

I just want homeowners to be aware of this before they choose.

Get your quotes for the job. Tell the prospective job estimators that you would like the scope of work detailed in their estimate explaining their process and products. I know not everyone lists their scope of details (which is a shame because the homeowner can't really equally compare quotes when this is not listed on all the quotes because they don't know the difference between them when detailed scope of works are not listed.) Compare ask for references from past clients re-finished cupboards work and that should be all you need for a sound decision.

We DIY'd our solid wood flat-faced built-in cabinets, frames, and drawers -- it just wasn't worth the gouge-job from a painting company. The job took a couple weekends of work but overall we were very pleased with the way it turned out and guests seem to love them as well.

Before I describe our process, I acknowledge that this job was much easier to DIY because of our flat doors -- 3D designs on them would have made this much more difficult. We started by sanding down the previous finish to a scuffed surface, then spray primed them with white Zinsser spray primer. After that, we used a high-density foam roller to do 2 coats on the door panels and hand painted (2 Coats) the Cabinets. We sanded with high grit paper between coats. We are pretty happy with the way it came out, and while it isn't the gucci paint-atomizing technique, it does the trick for the price we paid and is holding up just dandy in this high traffic, well-used kitchen complete with counter-surfing dogs.

Hope this helps -- don't break your wallet! You can do it!

My opinion of lacquered finishes is that they look great at first, but become brittle as they age, degrade in UV and are sensitive to humidity (i.e., crack when near windows), and are not as durable in wet/damp areas. Please correct me if I'm wrong here.

Um, yes it will. If you buy the equivalent of the factory finish and spray in a clean room for the doors, and make a tent to do the faceframes on site. That’s a conversion varnish. A good cabinet finisher has the stainless HVLP to be able to handle that.

I recommend if sparying a lacquered that they have to have experience with the product and has a correct shop to spary them at, I do not recommend a dyi for that finish result

All I have to say PPG's Break Through in satin. Wipe up drips, spills, etc. immediately because if you go back for it later, you're going to be scraping it off, not wiping it up.