# Fitted kitchen question



## ollienoclue (Jan 30, 2017)

Does anyone here know how I might go about changing the colour of the doors and various panels of a fitted kitchen, just out of interest? Panels in question aren't painted, they seem to be the usual chipboard/composite build but with the uppermost layer being a solid non-porous colour, black of all things.

Someone at work suggested dismantling them and getting a car pain shop to sand and spray them? Is this workable?:thumb:

Failing that, anyone want to buy a second hand posh fitted kicthen?


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## WHIZZER (Oct 25, 2005)

We are looking at getting new doors for our kitchen - We are going to replace them and dump the old doors - the end panels will be taken off and new ones fitted


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## Deathstar (Jan 13, 2013)

We are just going through the process of replacing our kitchen and we initially looked at just doing the doors and worktops, however the cost began to mount up.
We decided in the end to replace the whole lot, became more cost effective as we changed the design slightly and added in new accessories.
It was +30% to do the lot. 

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk


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## DrEskimo (Jan 7, 2016)

I'm guessing it would depend on how they were installed...?

I recently installed a new kitchen after large renovation to my house and bought the kitchen off DIY-Kitchens and installed it myself. As such, I know exactly how it all went together 

Doors are easy enough to take off at the hinges, but end panels are a different matter. We have a quartz work top sitting on ours, so there is no way you would get them off without taking that up, and then I secured them to the wall with small brackets.

As above, probably wont work out much more expensive to get a whole new kitchen...probably quite dependent on how much you want to do yourself though?


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## Fentum (May 1, 2017)

ollienoclue said:


> Someone at work suggested dismantling them and getting a car pain shop to sand and spray them? Is this workable?:thumb:


I had a neighbour who did a variant of this on a formica kitchen, quite cost effectively, back in the 90s. She got a chippy to copy the doors, drawer fronts and rebates in whatever the marine ply equivalent of mdf is, drill all the holes etc and then have them painted by a specialist painter. She also wanted chamfered edges.

You can look paint specialists up online, but you need not be tied to an automotive shop, who are likely to be more expensive. The other option is to powder coat.

In her case she wanted the sunburst effect you get on electric guitars so it was a bit more expensive than usual. It looked cracking!

The paint shop she used had quite a line in these things. I've not seen her for a decade, sadly, so can't ask who she used.

Peter

BTW - I've used these people to source kitchen units for reforms I've done on a budget - http://www.theusedkitchencompany.com/used-kitchens/ - there are others. But if you choose to sell your posh one (or buy a replacement), Looeze who runs this one is very professional.


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## ollienoclue (Jan 30, 2017)

Thanks very much guys.

Are the units normally fixed into the floor then? It's nicely tiled and I did not look underneath. It's the end panels and various other bits and bobs too, not just the doors. Is it a big job to dismantle these things? How are the worktops generally affixed to the walls?


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## MrMatt (Apr 15, 2011)

I did this fairly effectively with a bottle of owatrol ESP and some egg shell paint in an HVLP sprayer. 3 years on Im still happy with it. ESP is great stuff, wipe on wipe off and then paint.

This isn't mine but heres an example from the tinterweb:


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## ollienoclue (Jan 30, 2017)

Wow, that is amazing.

I am near certain that the panels I am considering are not painted though- it is the colour of the material itself that has been used as the uppermost layer, they are definitely composite panels, with this wipeclean almost plastic feeling shiny and smooth non-porous stuff on top.


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## MrMatt (Apr 15, 2011)

Esp should work on that... you can use it on glass https://www.owatroldirect.co.uk/product/esp-easy-surface-prep/


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## packard (Jun 8, 2009)

We had some custome cupboards made for built in en suite, family member a kitchen fitter by trade made them all, and we took them to specialist paint shop, that's used to doing shop style fitting and custome pain job (non vehicle) 10 years later the cupboards still look like new, and no wear on the doors. 

Worth a hunt..


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## Jue (Aug 1, 2016)

This is the primer you need & 2 coats. You can use a brush or a mini roller.

http://www.diy.com/departments/zinsser-white-primer-undercoat-1l/38767_BQ.prd

Then just a tin of egg shell finish or satin finish the colour you like & then another mini roller.


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## ollienoclue (Jan 30, 2017)

Fantastic, I like the idea of that. Definitely worth a look then.

Thanks


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