Q: Is there a really good reason to pick one over the other when considering Painted or Stained Cabinets?
A: Having built and remodeled a 100 kitchens or more, and visited hundreds of other existing kitchens, we’ve seen differences in colors, finishes and styles.
We’ve seen white kitchens or very dark stained cabinets be the “In Thing” then seen their popularity fade from fashion, in favor of other options, in cycles.
Here is what we’ve learned and our cabinet trade contractors agree is true. Painted cabinets, like their stained brethren, all look great when they’re new, but suffer over time to a much greater degree than stained wood. Paint gets scuffed, scraped and discolored easily and it shows up to a much greater degree on painted ones than those which are stained. A number of times we’ve had a painter touch up a stained kitchen, which is in good condition, and put a new coat of clear finish on it, with very good results. You can Never do this with painted cabinets. They have to be completely repainted. The paint finish on factory cabinets is far superior to what can be done in the field, because of more controlled factory conditions and the ability to use longer lasting, but toxic materials. These finishes produce fumes which can’t be released in the atmosphere but in a factory, where fumes are scrubbed, captured and controlled they can be used. If you ever want to repaint your kitchen later, you certainly can, just don’t expect the new paint finish to last as long as the original.
A medium brown stained cabinet, of which there are hundreds of colors and hues to choose, never goes out of style. Their finishes look better and hold up longer than their darker stained cousins and any shade of painted cabinets.
We want you to be happy the day your cabinets are installed and for years to come, which is why we offer these observations. We shared this with clients over the years, many of which then installed painted cabinets and that’s fine with us, at least they had the benefit of our experience. Sincerely,
Kip Carpenter, 2016 Chairman TBA Remodelers Council
Carpenters Construction Co., Inc., 29th Year
Aurora Award Winner 2013 and
2 Remodeler Showcase Awards 2013, 2014, 2015 & 2016
Since 2004 Leon’s 1st Certified-Aging-in-Place-Specialist
850-878-0010