Advice - Painting Bathroom Vanity

[dfchelbay]

Hi everyone. I was wondering if anyone has painted their builders grade oak bathroom vanity. When we bought our house all the bathrooms were brand new so we couldn't see spending money changing things that were brand new. Now, the time has come to spruce up the vanity. What we have is that oak color. I'm thinking of painting it a dark espresso or a black. Has anyone done this and if so, can you post pictures of yours and tell me what you like or dislike. Do they look as nice as those you buy in that color at a store? Do they look good in natural light, etc. Tell me your thoughts. I'd love to see pictures too.

Here's a picture I found online of the oak color:

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/8a/34/93/8a349357b91b0d29535ecef95394bad2.jpg

 

[mrsabbott]

We also have those awful oak cabinets in our house and I've considered painting them. I've not done it yet, but I've read blogs and SEEN the final results! I think they look really good! It's my understanding that you need to lightly sand them and clean them off first.

 

[jgreco]

Annie Sloan Chalk Paint is amazing for that type of project. I am sure there are other brands out there that work just as well. You don't need to prime, just slap it on and add a coat of wax.

 

[sherry7]

I have those same cabinets in my 3 bathrooms, and I've seriously been thinking about painting the one in the master bath. I really want to put a wall cabinet in there, and I can't find anything to match the existing light oak vanity.

I have painted cabinets before, but they were old circa 1970's kitchen cabinets that were in my previous house. In order to insure a good paint adhesion on a high use item, you need to do a good prep job. First of all, remove the doors and drawers. Using a small piece of tape, label what goes where. Take off the hinges and place them in individual zip-lock bags. Again, label them carefully. Take off the knobs/handles. If there is any chance of grease residue on the cabinets, you should wash them down with TSP. (Not likely for bathroom cabinets.) Next, lightly sand to rough up the finish. If you have a power sander use it, but practice first on a scrap piece of wood until you get a feel for it. You might need to hand sand some of the weird shaped areas. Carefully clean off all sanding dust, trying not to get the wood too wet. Tack cloths work good for this too. Let dry overnight. Prime with a latex based wood primer. If you plan on using a dark color paint, you can get the primer tinted a darker color. Let dry overnight. Follow up with 2 to 3 coats of paint, letting each coat dry overnight. It's much easier to do a better job on the doors by laying them flat. Just be careful of drips traveling to the opposite side. I can't recall the brand, but I used a kitchen/bath cabinet latex paint from Lowe's or Home Depot. I was able to get it tinted to the color that I wanted. (I did my cabinets in a cream shade.) Take the opportunity of changing the knobs/handles to something more contemporary.

Of course, you can take shortcuts (like not sanding or priming), but if it's a high use item you might end up with chipping and scratching. I used my kitchen cabinets for almost 5 years before we sold the house, and they still looked perfect. When the eventual buyers toured the house, they commented to the realtor about the beautiful NEW cabinets. If only they'd saw the awful 1970's cabinets that were hiding behind my great paint job!

 

[disneyfan007]

Check out Rustoleum Cabinet Transformations. Our son used this product in his kitchen and it turned out beautiful. We are in the process of using it in our bathroom, but have not yet completed the project. It is available at any Lowes, Home Depot, or Menards type stores.

 

[PatMcDuck]

Hi everyone. I was wondering if anyone has painted their builders grade oak bathroom vanity. When we bought our house all the bathrooms were brand new so we couldn't see spending money changing things that were brand new. l]

We had builders grade white vanities. In the kids bath we replaced it. There was some water related damage, and we were re-doing the floor too, so that was that. But the master double vanity was in good shape, and it is wedged against the whirlpool tub (which has tile all around it, which we were not re-doing). In both cases, we replaced the vanity tops.

I painted my white vanity, white. I read about all the options, but just went to Sherwin Williams and bought the paint they suggested. I removed the doors first. I did wipe down with TSP. I used a sander as well. Then I used a primer, and 2-3 coats of white paint. (I can't remember if it was gloss or semi-gloss). They told me to use a small foam roller, to prevent drops, which I later realized leaves a small texture, described as a light orange peel.... I think it is fine for a bathroom vanity (not really visible unless you are inches from it, but I may switch to a brush for kitchen cabinets where they are at eye level and light may reflect the light texture).

I will try and post a photo, but this vanity looks completely new. I put on new hardware (it did not have any hardware before, 18 years without it, lol). White is always an option for bathrooms like mine, I have all white fixtures. By saving on the vanity by painting, we were able to get a new frameless glass shower door, that looks amazing. (And the new 72" vanity was a bit pricey too). Sorry photo is so small!