Tried painting my kitchen cabinets without sanding them first... big mistake lol

I figured I could skip the sanding step on my oak cabinets because I used that expensive bonding primer everyone talks about. After two coats of paint and a full weekend of work, the paint started peeling off in sheets like three days later. I was so mad I almost threw the whole brush across the garage. Turns out that glossy factory finish just doesn't let anything stick to it no matter what primer you use. I ended up stripping everything down with a chemical stripper from Home Depot, sanding each door by hand for like 6 hours total, and repainting the whole thing. The second time around it came out super smooth and has held up for 6 months now. Has anyone else tried skipping steps on a big project and regretted it?

2 comments

2 Comments

troymorgan20d ago

Man my buddy did the exact same thing with his bathroom vanity last summer. He was all proud because he found some "no sand needed" primer at the hardware store and just went for it. Three weeks later he opened the cabinet and the paint just slid off like a snake shedding its skin... looked awful. He had to take every door off and spend two whole weekends fixing it. Said his wife almost made him hire a pro after that mess. Lesson learned I guess, you just can't cheat the prep work no matter what the can says.

adams.troy20d ago

Is it really that big of a deal though? I've used that same primer on a couple of projects and it held up fine for years, maybe your buddy just got a bad batch or didn't clean the surface right first. Seems like people love to blow these horror stories out of proportion, @troymorgan.