We paint cabinets with a two-part coating instead of the one-part enamels most painters use. This is what the difference is, why we made the switch, and what it doesn't mean.
What most cabinet paint is
Almost everything sold as cabinet paint at a paint store is a one-part product. You open the can, stir, and apply. It hardens as the water or solvent leaves and the resin left behind tightens up. That takes a while. The can says "dry to touch" in an hour or two, but the same makers tell you to let it cure before you put it into service, and full cure on a one-part enamel can run a couple of weeks or more depending on the product and the weather.
The better ones get reasonably hard once they've cured: the urethane and alkyd enamels like Sherwin-Williams Emerald Urethane, and the spray-only cabinet coatings like their Gallery Series. They're decent products. We used them before we switched. Where they fall short is the part of the kitchen that gets used the most: the handles, the drawer fronts, the door by the stove.
What 2K means
2K is short for two components. Part A is the coating. Part B is a hardener. You mix them in a set ratio right before you use them, and the two react with each other chemically. That reaction is what builds the hardness, rather than the slow tightening of a one-part product. It cures into a hard shell that's closer to plastic than to paint, and once it's cured, it doesn't soften back up.
It does not mean two coats. We get asked that a lot. We do put on two finish coats, but that's a separate decision.
Why we switched
What we've seen on our own jobs, and on repainted cabinets that come to us after someone else did them:
- Edges and handles. That's where a soft finish wears first. Fingers and rings hit the same spot fifty times a day. The cured 2K finish has held up better there than the one-part enamels we used before.
- Doors that stick. A one-part enamel can stay slightly tacky for a while, and a door resting on its bumper can stick to it. We've had less of that with 2K because it reaches a hard cure sooner.
- Cleaning. Kitchen grease and degreasers are hard on soft finishes. Cured 2K has held up to normal kitchen cleaning better in our experience.
- The look. We spray it, and it flows out smooth and reads like a factory finish, which makes sense, because two-part polyurethanes are what a lot of cabinet factories spray.
All of that is our experience with the product on our jobs. The product is ILVA PW710, a water-based two-component polyurethane topcoat made for kitchen cabinets, mixed with ILVA's TXW08 hardener at 5 to 10 percent. ILVA is an Italian wood-coatings maker whose products are mostly used in furniture and cabinet factories. We tried other finishes and this is the one we like best. The tested numbers live on the manufacturer's technical data sheet, and we'll give you a copy with your estimate.
The tradeoffs
- Once mixed, it has a pot life. You use it or throw it away.
- It has to be mixed in the right ratio, and applied and ventilated properly. It isn't a weekend DIY product.
- It costs more per gallon than paint-store enamel.
- It's unforgiving of bad prep. Any grease or dust left on a door shows under a hard, smooth finish.
What a complete written scope should include
The coating is the easy part. The reason a cabinet job takes as long as it does is everything before the first coat. For us, an average kitchen runs about five business days: a day of prep, a day of primer, two days of top coats, and a day to put it all back together. Whoever you hire, the written scope should say:
- Cleaning and degreasing, not just a wipe-down
- Repairs: dings, loose pieces, old hardware holes if you're changing hardware
- Sanding, and what grit or method
- Primer, and where
- The finish product by name, and how many coats
- What's included: doors, drawer fronts, exposed boxes, interiors, hardware
- Where doors are finished, and when they go back on
- When you can use and clean the cabinets
If any of that is missing from a quote, ask.
Is it right for your cabinets?
If the boxes are solid and you like the layout, usually yes. Painting usually runs 50 to 75 percent less than replacing, and it's a week instead of a cabinet order. If they're swollen from water or the doors are peeling vinyl, a finish won't save them. There's more on the cabinet painting page, and on whether to paint, reface or replace.