Designing Kitchens and Bathrooms - Cleaning or Refreshing Milk Wash Cabinets?
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blzrul
05-25-08, 04:41 PM
Help! I have these cabinets in my kitchen, all bathrooms and the laundry room (must have been a sale). I can clean them with Pledge and they look ok but there are chips etc and they're getting that worn look around the knobs. I know how to make finished wood cabinets look good again but I have no idea what to do with these. They are not sealed (shiny) so I guess that's good, but I would really like to know what kind of product I can use to pep them up a bit.
twelvepole
05-25-08, 05:44 PM
If cabinets are wood and are shiney, then there is some type of finish on them. When oils from hands dull and soften finish around knobs and pulls, there is no fix for the sticky finish except for refinishing or painting the cabinets.
If cabinets are wood and 'not shiney,' then they were likely finished with a thin coat matte finish lacquer. It is also possible that they were either left unfinished or stained and no finish coat applied. Oils and soils have likely penetrated the wood and caused discoloration around knobs and pulls.
If cabinets have a contact paper like finish on MDF, then these often chip and the vinyl wrap will wear around knobs and pulls. There is no fix for this. It is doubtful that you would get good paint adhesion, but one could scrub with TSP, prime, and paint.
If cabinets are plastic laminate, the laminate can chip and present wear around knobs and pulls. There is no fix for this either. Some report success painting plastic laminate cabinets. Lightly sand to provide 'tooth' for adhesion, wash with TSP, prime, and paint.
When applying Pledge, you are applying a product that contains silicone. It provides a temporary sheen. Silicone will over time dull and soften finishes as well.
There is a product called Cabinet Magic that many cabinet manufacturers do not frown upon for cleaning lacquer finish on cabinets. It will not, however, address worn finish or chips in cabinetry. If replacing cabinets is not an option, then painting to camouflage defects and update is.
I notice that your title is 'Cleaning or Refreshing Milk Wash Cabinets.' Is the finish a pickled finish? Did someone use Milk Paint? This was traditionally made from milk mixed with pigment to produce subtle mellow colors. Today's milk paint is usually a mix of purified milk protein, lime, natural fillers and pigment. Some contain kaolin clay. It can be used as a paint or a wash and should be sealed.
Some use milk paint when creating a crackle finish, which is supposed to look chipped. To change the finish on a crackle finish would require stripping or sanding smooth and priming and painting. Crackle finish is fragile and requires a sealer coat. If someone crackled the finish and did not seal, this could explain the chipping if you have this type of finish.
You can post photos at www.photobucket.com (http://www.photobucket.com) or other and post links here for further discussion.
http://www.do-it-yourself-help.com/images/crackle_paint.jpg
Crackle Finish
Photo Credit: do-it-yourself-help.com
http://www.summerhousevt.com/files/antiques/Pr_nightstands.jpg
Washed Finish
Photo Credit: Summerhouse
If cabinets are wood and 'not shiney,' then they were likely finished with a thin coat matte finish lacquer. It is also possible that they were either left unfinished or stained and no finish coat applied. Oils and soils have likely penetrated the wood and caused discoloration around knobs and pulls.
If cabinets have a contact paper like finish on MDF, then these often chip and the vinyl wrap will wear around knobs and pulls. There is no fix for this. It is doubtful that you would get good paint adhesion, but one could scrub with TSP, prime, and paint.
If cabinets are plastic laminate, the laminate can chip and present wear around knobs and pulls. There is no fix for this either. Some report success painting plastic laminate cabinets. Lightly sand to provide 'tooth' for adhesion, wash with TSP, prime, and paint.
When applying Pledge, you are applying a product that contains silicone. It provides a temporary sheen. Silicone will over time dull and soften finishes as well.
There is a product called Cabinet Magic that many cabinet manufacturers do not frown upon for cleaning lacquer finish on cabinets. It will not, however, address worn finish or chips in cabinetry. If replacing cabinets is not an option, then painting to camouflage defects and update is.
I notice that your title is 'Cleaning or Refreshing Milk Wash Cabinets.' Is the finish a pickled finish? Did someone use Milk Paint? This was traditionally made from milk mixed with pigment to produce subtle mellow colors. Today's milk paint is usually a mix of purified milk protein, lime, natural fillers and pigment. Some contain kaolin clay. It can be used as a paint or a wash and should be sealed.
Some use milk paint when creating a crackle finish, which is supposed to look chipped. To change the finish on a crackle finish would require stripping or sanding smooth and priming and painting. Crackle finish is fragile and requires a sealer coat. If someone crackled the finish and did not seal, this could explain the chipping if you have this type of finish.
You can post photos at www.photobucket.com (http://www.photobucket.com) or other and post links here for further discussion.
http://www.do-it-yourself-help.com/images/crackle_paint.jpg
Crackle Finish
Photo Credit: do-it-yourself-help.com
http://www.summerhousevt.com/files/antiques/Pr_nightstands.jpg
Washed Finish
Photo Credit: Summerhouse