Planning and Preparation

Planning and preparation are crucial steps when you’re looking to paint laminated doors. Different factors have to be looked into. Are your laminated doors still in good condition? What materials are they made of? Have they been painted before? Is painting them worth the effort and the best solution for your space? What is the most suitable sandpaper grit for the job? Your decisions during the planning and preparation phase largely determine the success of your project.

If the laminated door is cracked, deformed, or peeled, that damage may interfere with how the paint adheres to the cabinet. Before applying paint, ensure the laminate is in good shape by fixing slight laminate damage or by refacing cabinets.

Gather supplies like sugar soap, sponge & gloves, sandpaper, paintbrush and/or roller, screwdriver, primer, paint, fine steel wool or grit sandpaper. New handles are optional.

Whether or not you are planning to use the old door handles again, it’s best to remove them before starting the work. This makes the whole process of sanding and painting much easier.

Because of the powerful fumes released by the primer and paint, and your close proximity to them when painting laminated doors, increase ventilation in the room and keep children and animals out.

How do you clean laminated doors?

Give your laminated doors a good cleaning before doing any painting or sanding work. We recommend sugar soap for cleaning laminated doors before painting them, as it’s great at getting rid of all grease and grime that most of us just hate.

Sanding, Priming & Painting

Sanding really does make the difference between a decent finish and a professional and longer-lasting one. Sanding is not only necessary before putting on the primer – you need to sand right after a paint coating has been applied. Sanding creates a number of small grooves where the paint can stick, making sure that the finish lasts longer. It also removes all imperfections and creates a very clean and professional surface.

There are so many choices in terms of primer and paint that selecting the best one might sound daunting. You'll require a primer with adhesion-promoting properties to paint a smooth laminate. The correct primer should adhere well to the surface, providing an ideal base for the paint finish you want.

When it comes to choosing the right paint, any top-quality paint that is best for wood should be fine. Be sure you don't choose a matte finish because any greasy fingerprint would turn up on it.

It's vital that you use the right products. An adhesion-promoting primer would be a good base for your preferred paint finish. Use high-quality paint to paint the laminated doors because they will be long-lasting and less likely to crack.

The tools you use are just as important as the products you choose. Invest in quality brushes – nothing could be worse than painting with a brush that easily loses its bristles. Also, make sure to use the right brushes for the paint that you are using. There are different brushes for solvent and water-based paints and they really make a difference.

How To Paint Laminated Doors

Clean the laminated doors and ensure they are dirt and dust-free before coating them with your chosen primer. Lightly sand the door with fine sandpaper after the primer has dried. This would remove imperfections and build more grooves for the next paint coating.

Sanding between each paint coating is important. This means that each paint coat adheres well to the preceding one, helping create a completely smooth and flawless finish.

Repeat the cycle of painting, drying, and sanding until you are satisfied with the paint coverage. Applying tons of thin paint coatings instead of one thick layer is highly recommended. This helps you achieve an even and nice finish---no obvious brush strokes to worry about!

Waiting patiently for every layer of paint to dry thoroughly is important before moving on to the next. If you start sanding or painting too soon then your paint finish will be messed up.

Finishing

Once you’re done painting and everything has dried, sand your laminated doors with fine sandpaper or fine wire sponge one more time. Doing so will get rid of minor imperfections for a smoother and more professional finish.

Now, all you need to do is to reattach your door handles. If you want a totally fresh look for your door, might as well get new handles!

It's necessary to be extra cautious after the first few weeks of painting. It takes a few days for the paint to cure fully or achieve maximum hardness, so the surface can get scraped or cracked quickly.

Now stand back, and marvel at your work. This is the best part of any project. Congratulations on all the hard work you did! Now is the time to enjoy your "new" laminated doors.