This is a detailed explanation of how our cabinet projects are done.
Once you receive the proposal, sign it and send it back to us with a ten percent deposit.
Once we receive the proposal and deposit check, we will schedule your project.
Our cabinet finisher, Edgar, will arrive the first day to begin taking your doors and drawers off-site. Please have all drawers empty and if we are painting the interiors of the cabinets, please have them empty as well.
Remove all contact paper you may have in the drawers or interiors of the cabinets.
The first day involves the removal of doors and drawers. We also begin the masking process this day. This will be a day where most, or all, of the kitchen, may be masked off completely, so access to your kitchen may be entirely lost through this day and the very next day.
The second day involves the spraying of your cabinets. We will usually complete the spraying in one full day.
By the third day, you should have your kitchen back, without doors or drawers. The paint will be dry to the touch, but it will continue to cure and harden for the next few days. Try not to use the newly painted surfaces until they have cured completely. They may be a little soft, so heavy objects could create dents or cavities. This day we will be finishing your doors and drawers off-site.
Once we have completed your doors and drawers (usually 2-4 days depending upon what exactly we are doing to them), we will coordinate a delivery and installation time with you. It is at that time that any touch-ups can be done.
To protect your home, we will do meticulous masking with rosin paper and plastic. We use low tack tape, but it still has a tendency to remove paint or wallpaper. We are extremely careful at protecting your home, but in doing this, we may see paint or paper peeling upon clean-up of our masking materials. We can touch these areas up if you have the same paint, but otherwise, this is considered a normal part of the job, and we do not accept responsibility for paint or paper peeling because of the masking.
The same goes for “bleeding” of the cabinet color onto your walls. Certain borders where the tape meets the wall can tend to have small sections of bleed from the painting process. It is usually minimal, but we have had it happen, and there is nothing we can do about it other than touching it up after we are done. But you must supply the paint.
Most of the above apply to our solid color, pre-catalyzed, pigmented lacquer, sprayed finish process.
If we are stripping your cabinets, we do the same process as above, but the overall time required increases by a few more days. For instance, if it was going to take us three days to mask, sand, caulk, spray two coats of primer and spray two coats of finish on your built-ins, it may take an additional one or two days for a strip and stain job. It all depends upon size.
Cleaning your new cabinet doors: Do not use any harsh solvents, scrubbers, or chemicals. Do not use silicon-based oils or any oils for that matter. Use a soft damp cloth for all cleaning needs. Do not expose your cabinet to excess amounts of water. This will shorten the life of the finish. They can handle being wet just as long as the water is wiped dry from the surface and it is not left standing.
If your doors and drawers do not have handles or pull, you might consider this a good investment towards limiting the amount of actual direct contact from dirty hands. This will lengthen the life and look of the doors significantly.
We will leave touch-up paint for you to use if needed. Store it in a place away from heat or flame. It may expand and pop the lid if it gets too hot, so store it in a cooler place. When trying to touch-up spots, use a very small artist’s brush, and put it on thin with multiple coats. It dries fast, so you can usually re-coat within an hour.
We have access to a cabinet shop that can install euro hinges if desired. This can only be done on compatible doors.
We can also order new doors to be finished from the same cabinet shop. If your doors are lacking in detail, or you want to go to a euro hinge and your existing doors won’t allow for it, please inquire about new door options.
We do interior and exterior painting as well.