For oak cabinets, since oak is a very grainy, and naturally yellow wood you want to make sure you seal it, and seal it well. Since it has been finished with stain and a top coat, the best primer to use is Zinsser BIN Shellac. Apply 2-3 coats with either a 4″ Mini Foam Roller and brush, or with a sprayer.
Only one coat of primer should do the trick, unless your cabinets are really dark, then I would recommend following up with one more coat of primer when that first coat is dry before moving on. After about two hours of dry time, I primed the fronts of the cabinet doors.
Prime Oak Cabinets With an Oil Primer
Using the right primer is really important when preparing oak cabinets for paint. Latex primer is a bad choice for priming cabinets because it's too soft, and it won't prevent wood tannin from bleeding into the top coat of paint, no matter how many coats of paint are applied.
It's important to use an oil-based primer because of the tannin in the oak. Tannin is an orangey-brown oil that will bleed through if you use a water-based primer.
How Do You Paint Oak Cabinets And Not See The Grain? The use of a putty knife to fill in grain and imperfections with Drydex spackle results in a very smooth sand finish. Sand in 220 grit. Use a dry tack cloth and brush to remove all dust from the cabinets and then use an oil-based primer and mini roller.
However, oak cabinets are currently in the middle of making a comeback. There are several possible reasons for this. First, homeowners are looking for warmth and authenticity in their kitchens. Natural wood checks all the boxes.
Use a quality latex that has been specifically formulated for kitchen cabinetry. These paints will dry extra hard, which keeps doors from feeling sticky against the cabinet. Brushing paint on is OK. But for the smoothest finish, you'll want to spray on paint.
For a kitchen cabinet makeover that is both beautiful and durable, start with KILZ 3™ Premium Primer. This superior sealer-stain blocker provides excellent adhesion and a kitchen-essential mildew resistant primer coating.
Use an untinted, natural oil slurry to achieve an even coloration in the filled wood grain, as on this piece of oak. Jim applies the paste filler to the surface with a small plastic spreader (as shown below), pushing the creamy material across the grain into the pores of the wood.
Note: While you don't have to sand before you prime, you do need to sand lightly after you prime and between each coat of paint. Yeah, it will take a while (probably about an hour and a half for a standard-sized kitchen), but it's necessary to make sure the next coat goes on well.
Sand Lightly Between Coats
Dust can settle in the paint or primer as it dries. For the smoothest final coat, sand between coats of primer or paint with 220-grit sandpaper or an extra-fine sanding sponge. Then vacuum and tack as usual before recoating.
If you don't clean before sanding, contaminates (like cooking grease) will be pressed down into the wood. Contaminates will keep the soon be applied paint for sticking. You can remove the doors here in the process or wait until after you wash them down. It is totally up to you and situational dependent.
Painting cabinets preserves their integrity and provides a fresh new look without the cost of replacement. Once you've painted oak cabinets, consider adding new hardware, a glass tile backsplash, and affordable laminate countertops in modern patterns that replicate stone as a way to transform a kitchen on a budget.
Use a complementary color to neutralize the soft yellow and orange undertones of the wood. A harmonious color palette for oak cabinets ranges from soft greens to purples and oranges. Warm gray and cream shades can balance the intensity of honey oak wood.
Honey would be closest to the natural wood color. The Golden has a yellowish/orange tint but still close to the natural wood color and Red oak is much darker and a brownish red.
If you don't want to sand before you prime, use some mineral spirits and a rough sponge to clean and lightly rough up the cabinet area you're painting. This doesn't open up the wood cabinet material as much as sanding but does get you some additional grippy area for the primer to adhere to.
Ideally, spray painting cabinets is the most sought after method today. The quality of finish you get from using a spray gun is second to none, and it's by far a faster and more efficient method.
Prime the wood with wood primer. Use an oil-based primer if you're using an oil-based filler, and a water-based one otherwise. Besides sealing the wood so it won't absorb the filler, the primer improves adhesion of the filler.