Cabinets should never be caulked! The center panels must be free floating, or they can split.

Show us s pic of what you are unhappy with and we can offer suggestions.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><md>I know this is a very controversial topic in the cabinet world (haha) but I decided to caulk after more than enough research and referring to local professionals. It’s very common where I live. My climate is very mild so there is no shrinking/cracking.
Here’s a link to a guy that lives in my same climate and does great work:

My caulk is uneven in some areas and clumpy in places like the corners. Idk
How I did such a BAAAD job! Haha Can I (try) to remove the caulk then paint over the new caulk?

Here’s a couple pics of what I’m talking about

nasty.

Sorry, but yes that looks bad.

Haha yes- very bad. I’m aware.

Hence why I’m asking for help to remedy it if possible.

Sorry but the paint job look worst than the caulk. That's called no atomization of the paint.

Just live with it. That is a lot of orange peel and so your choices are really embrace the imperfection or get out your wallet.

More caulk never makes it look better. It’s fine. If it looks worse in a few seasons, you can decide what to do then.

Replace the cabinets or live with them. There is no fixing that. Too many issues. Never caulk cabinets. And never spray them without alot more practice to get the nozzle and pressure right.

You can caulk them after the paint is dry to the touch. Curing doesn't matter. It's a good idea to paint over the caulk though or else it will collect dirt and look like a dirty line eventually.

So first, you can caulk cabinets. Typically, you want the caulk to be very tight to the groove between the rail and stile. You really want to get it into the gap rather than proud of the gap so you can minimize the surface area of the caulk, therefore, minimizing the surface area of paint on caulk.

If you have solid wood door panels it is an exercise in futility. Caulk is flexible and door panels are going to move enough to crack the paint that is over the caulk. However, mdf or plywood panels should be OK. You might get a few small cracks but certainly fewer than paint alone.

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I think you have a bad spray job, and fixing it just is not going to be worth the trouble. However, before we know about repainting the caulk, what paint and primers did you use? Also since we are at it, what sprayer and tip did you use?

Professional cabinet companies do not caulk doors. For a reason. It creates more problems than it eliminates. People who want perfect paint jobs with no signs of normal wood movement would do better to buy MDF doors. All wood joins will telegraph through all coatings when the humidity changes. You caulk between a free floating panel and it’s frame, and you get problems, even with high quality paintable caulk. You’re asking the wood to not be wood, and that’s a futile attempt.

Professionally made doors use “space balls” inserts that keep the panels floating free, with minimal physical movement or rattling within the frame during dry times when the gaps are greater. The panel still contracts and expands. As does the stiles and rails. The coatings do not expand and contract at the same rate. The joins between wood pieces will show. That is normal.

Professional cabinet companies do not caulk doors. For a reason.

I agree that production cabinet companies do not caulk doors, I disagree with your stated reasons. Go to the Woodweb, Lumberjocks, or Fine Woodworking boards and search the discussions, there you will find that caulk is looked upon favorably by craftsmen, when conditions are correct.

The OP is not a professional cabinet company. Often the coatings used by production cabinet shops are often those that wouldn't work as well with caulking, and you are just adding an expensive and time consuming step to a production process. If you are spraying a thin coating like conversion varnish then caulking is probably going to crack, as the coating are not flexible enough. However, an alkyd or latex paint should flex quite a bit, and will often not crack, and will certainly reduce cracking.

Furthermore, there is a lot of support for caulking MDF panels to protect against moisture intrusion. I know many people who caulk mdf panels because kitchen cabinets get wet and unless you are assembling with prepainted mdf it is not protected against sitting moisture. There are plenty of wood surfaces in a home that are caulked before painting. A wood baseboard will move more than cabinet rails and stiles do.

Bry, painters like caulk. In situations where you have woodworkers creating products for painters to paint, you may get caulk, because it makes the painters job look good at that moment. Not do much down the road.

Cabinet makers don’t like caulk. Production big or small or garage.. Their whole job product responsibility means they will get the callbacks, not the painter. I’d invite you to join any number of professional cabinet makers and finishers discussion groups to hear the gnashing of teeth over the idea of caulk. There are at least a dozen groups on FB alone. It pretty clearly follows that split. Painters like caulk. Cabinet makers don’t.

Bry- yes, the paint job is terrible. And

the worst thing about it is that the doors looked amazing up until I sprayed them with paint.

My prep was meticulous. Cleaned, degreased, and sanded. Then a few coats of wood filler and multiple coats of BIN shellac primer and they were nice and smooth.

I used a Wagner HVLP gun and sprayed SW waterbased alkyd urethane. I should have rolled/painted instead.

Yes, you should have bought the white foam rollers that say for cabinet painting and a high quality paint brush. I would take the doors off again, and resand, and fix the caulk, and prime where necessary, and then repaint them properly. Dont try to spray again. You will most likely be a lot happier once that is done, and they actually look nicer. Take your time and do it slower. Make sure you are using paint that is meant for cabinets. What is on there now, looks thick and gunky in the grooves where the panels were. I would not have caulked those panels, and that might have helped some. Sorry, that all your hard work turned out, not so great.

Bry, we are going to disagree here.

BTW, the invitation to the cabinet makers groups was for you, not the OP. Theres a lot happening in the world of production and coatings these days.

If I were to repaint them, how aggressive would I need to be with sanding? Enough to get the un even spots smoothed out? Or would I need to take off the new paint?

VERY aggressive. Any coating is only as good as the work underneath. It’s going to take quite a bit of time. And a bit of finesse to not round over any of the edges and to remove that caulk. You seriously might be better off starting from scratch with new doors. It depends on if you have more time than money. Try doing one. See what you feel like then.

A better sanding system might make it easier. https://surfprepsanding.com/

Andi, do one or two of them, and do the frames. Leave the rest of the doors sit until after you have redone two doors. Take your time. Do it when you have time, and want to do it. Dont hurry the process, and take your time painting.. Make sure you use proper dry time between coats.. You will have to do quite a bit of sanding. The finish is very rough, and you need it to be smooth before repainting. Work carefully, and dont put any paint on until you know the door or drawer is ready. A small electric sander (I use a mouse), will help you get a better finish faster. Dont use the electric in those corners where you caulked . That part needs hand sanding. Good Luck.

Live_wire_oak:
I wouldn’t be in the position I’m in If money weren’t an issue. Haha they’d be done professionally.

What level of grit would you use to sand?

start with 150 and move up if you get deep scratches

Way too many variables to say there is one correct way.

Dozens of doors a week are painted here.

White shaker MDF center panels all are caulked. It's done minimally, it's cleaned up and it's sprayed with water based 2K Italian. Never a problem they go all over the county. A factory solvent based finished would never be caulked. Not compatible. I couldn't even tell someone what grit to sand with without experienceing the product they are using under the same conditions. Too aggressive a grit with not cured paint you will have a mess on your hands. Other scenario you could not take it down enough and wont realize it until you respray and it return somewhat.

A good sander will make the job much easier. I would spend the money on a Festool ETS. you would sand all the flat areas with that and the detail (corners, molding) by hand.