How to save money with a cabinet painting co-op:
Cabinet painting is, well, not IN-expensive. And it takes quite a bit of product knowledge and know-how. Most of the industrial materials used by professional refinishers are not available in local stores. And yes, that means Sherwin Williams and Benjamin Moore do not have a quality, KCMA-rated cabinet paint. They will sell you a decent consumer-level product that will work for a while, but not a permanent solution. This creates a conundrum for Just Add Paint, since we don’t want people to cheap out and hire someone who sucks. Or worse yet, a contractor that lacks product and procedure knowledge that will unknowingly wreck your cabinets. Cabinet painting is one area that you definitely do not want to go with the cheap guy. So by popular demand, we have come up with a solution to fit the limited budget…
History of the Just Add Paint cabinet painting customer co-op
Just Add Paint first did a cabinet painting co-op in 2016. We had a carpenter friend that built his own cabinet boxes, but did not own a high quality paint sprayer to spray the doors. We enjoyed the shop work as usual, because spraying becomes the fun part once you get the hang of it. And we proceeded to forget all about “doors only” jobs. Then came March of 2020, and along with it, the COVID shutdown. We were forced to modify processes to meet state requirements to keep our doors open, and this meant getting creative. In addition to the state requirements, we wanted to keep things as safe as possible. We were faced with the new (and strange) problems of customers wanting us to paint their house, but also not wanting us IN their house. It was during a brainstorming session about this that I remembered my carpenter friend Tom and his project.
How does a cabinet painting co-op work?
I will start by mentioning, Just Add Paint prefers to do complete cabinet painting job, including the in-house portion. We have painted over 300 sets of cabinets this way, and like to finish what we started. A sprayed cabinet finish is unquestionably more smooth and more durable than a brush and rolled finish. That being said, sometimes cabinet painting is part of a larger renovation and there simply aren’t funds available for everything. Sometimes customers need their job done NOW. And cabinet doors have a much shorter wait list than complete jobs with in-house spraying. And sometimes customers LOVE the idea of doing their own work, but fine finish spraying is out of their skillset.
Regardless of the reason, we are happy to offer an option where we do the heavy lifting (spraying) portion of the project. Brushing and rolling your own cabinet boxes will save roughly 30-50% of the labor costs of cabinet painting. There will be a noticeable difference in quality on the boxes, but many people do not mind this. The doors cover most of cabinet boxes anyway, so for some this is a great, cost saving solution. This works especially well with oak cabinets since they are an open pore wood with lots of texture to it anyway.
What are the steps?
- We will quote the job for you, so you have the cost upfront. The easiest and fastest way for us to get you a quote is through our free online estimating system. This will put you into our system, and start a digital job jacket for your project. https://www.justaddpaint.net/contact-us
- Next, we will determine the steps for you individual project needs. We always do our cleaning and sanding because this is the only way we can warranty our work. However, we may need to discuss a few other things. Such as figuring out who is removing the doors and drawers. Occasionally, or REALLY dirty doors, we will have you do a preliminary cleaning to avoid additional charges.
- If we are responsible for your doors and drawer removal, we will discuss optional upgrades and/or carpentry. We can change hinge type, and plug/drill for new handles or drawers. Soft close options are available for both. Other options include modifications to the boxes themselves, and even door replacement with a new style. Here are some carpentry examples from recent projects https://www.justaddpaint.net/top-5-kitchen-island-upgrades
- Just Add Paint will work on your doors and drawers at our shop. This is typically a 3-5 day process. It involves degreasing, cleaning with solvent, sanding, priming, and painting. During this time, you will work on your cabinet boxes at home. Some people need more time than a week, and you can technically start this part of the project at your convenience. We just need to make sure we are in synch so we aren’t holding up completion of the project. And you will have detailed on instructions for every step of the process, and we are always just a phone call away.
- While working safely at your own pace, rest assured you will be using top notch products that are far superior to anything available locally. You will have the KCMA-rated, low-VOC industrial products we use in the shop. The only difference is that we will add a hardener to the topcoat of the doors and drawers for extra protection. And the hardener is definitely NOT low VOC.
Still not convinced about co-op cabinet painting?
If you have read this blog and are still not convinced about co-op cabinet painting, that’s OK! This service is not for everybody. The options are to take on the whole project DIY, have Just Add Paint do a complete cabinet refinishing service including the in-house portion, or (boooooo!) find another contractor who better suits your needs. Our only request is to please make sure you are being quoted with all KCMA-rated materials. We get frustrated when painters who don’t know their materials ruin cabinets with Benjamin Moore and Sherwin Williams products. And when house painters don’t understand cabinet painting processes (which vary tremendously from regular painting). Make sure to read all proposals and know if you are comparing apples to apples. And feel free to get in touch at any time with cabinet related questions, even if you do not choose Just Add Paint for your project.
Thank you for reading our blog – Save Money With A Cabinet Painting Co-Op! Please feel free to reach out to us for estimates – and also if you are a DIYer and just have some questions we can answer in an email. We are happy to talk shop about all things painting, even if you are planning to do a job yourself!
Free Online Estimating for cabinets https://www.justaddpaint.net/contact-us
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Related blog post: https://www.justaddpaint.net/painted-cabinets-vs-door-replacement-is-door-replacement-right-for-me
