In today’s blog post, we explain the preparation that our teams carry out prior to respraying kitchen cabinets, the spray itself, what we ask our customers to do prior to their spray and we answer some of the questions that we are frequently asked by our customers.
Step 1: Preparation
- When the spray team arrive at your property, their first step is to remove all of the kitchen cupboards and drawers. The items which have been removed are numbered, so that when the kitchen is put back together, nothing goes amiss. Our teams bring special racking so that all of the cupboards can be compactly kept together. The kitchen handles are also removed and numbered.
- Our team then begin masking, creating precise lines and preventing overspray.
- Anti-static plastic sheeting is used to cover large items such as kitchen appliances and sofas. Blue sticky film is used to cover the flooring. Brown paper is put in place to cover all work surfaces, tiles, splashbacks, built in appliances and cooker hoods.
- All items to be sprayed are then scotched using Scotch Brite. This keys the surface and allow our coating to bond. Scotching differs from sanding as it leaves less hazing and scratching.
- Our teams then use panel wipe to clean the items to be sprayed. This is a brilliant cleaner which ensures the final removal of surface contamination.
- This preparation process usually takes around 70% of the time that we have allocated to complete the kitchen spray. Without such thorough preparation, contaminants could remain on the surface, acting as a barrier between the surface and our coating, subsequently causing the coating to flake or peel soon after the spray. Our preparation process allows us to confidently offer our 10 year guarantee.
Step 2: Respraying
- When our teams spray a kitchen, they apply an initial dust coat (this dampens the surface so that the additional coats can grip onto it) before applying at least three additional coats until they achieve an even coverage.
- Our teams leave 10-30 minutes between each coat when they spray indoors. The time is dependent upon factors such as the temperature in the kitchen. As our teams use rapid hardener and rocket, this speeds up the drying process. Our Sprayers ensure that they leave sufficient time in between coats as otherwise, the finish can be lumpy or have runs. If too much time is left, the surface would need to be scotched again before another coat can be applied as otherwise the surface would be too smooth and the next coat would not be able to grip properly. Our Spray Technicians have many years of experience in this industry and they rely upon their experience to assess drying times and to achieve a perfect finish.
- To ensure a smooth finish, our experienced and knowledgeable Sprayers use consistent and steady hand movements. They also use an air pressure to match the paint flow from their spray guns. If they were to use too low pressure, too much paint can flow and that leaves a lumpy, blotchy, orange peel finish. If they were to use too high pressure, not enough paint would flow, leaving a stripy finish. Our Sprayers cover 50% of their previous stroke to ensure a consistent finish, with each stroke matching the last.
- Our teams also use paint filters to ensure a perfect finish.
What Should you do to get Ready for a Respray?
- Please ensure that you are in attendance on the date(s) of the kitchen spray to allow us access to your property.
- Before our spray team arrive, please ensure that you remove everything from the kitchen cupboards, drawers and from the worktop. Please also ensure that all kitchen appliances are moved if you require any side panels beside the appliances to be sprayed.
- Please hoover to ensure that there is no dust in the area that we will be spraying, paying particular attention to on top of the kitchen cabinets. As well as hoovering, please use mild, soapy water to clean your kitchen so that any grease and grime is removed.
- If you plan on changing your handles and the new ones will be a different size to the original handles, please fill the old holes and sand them down and drill the new holes prior to our team’s arrival.
- Please ensure that you have access to food and drink to keep yourself fed and watered, as the kitchen will not be usable whilst the spray is being carried out. There’s no need to worry as having a kitchen sprayed is much quicker than having a kitchen replaced.
- Once your spray has been finished, please do not touch the items that have been sprayed for at least 24 hours, to allow the paint to cure.
Final Touches
- After completing the spray, our team will remove the film that had covered the floor, take down the masking from the ceiling, walls and worktops and reattach your kitchen handles (unless you have instructed us otherwise).
- Please ensure that you are in attendance when the spray has concluded to complete a full and thorough check with the spray team.
Common Questions
- How long does a kitchen spray take? It takes our teams between 1-3 days to complete a kitchen spray. Our teams arrive between 8.30am and 9am and are usually finished each day by around 5.30pm.
- Will my ceiling, floor, walls and worktops be protected? Yes, as mentioned above, our teams apply masking paper to the surrounding ceilings, walls and worktops and blue film to cover the flooring. Please see below an example of the extensive preparation that our spray teams carry out prior to commencing a spray.
- What colours can be sprayed? We have the Farrow and Ball and RAL colours matched and can also match any other colour from any brand so long as you can provide us with a sample of the colour to be sprayed, such as a colour card.
- Can you respray a gloss kitchen? Yes, our spray teams scotch kitchens prior to spraying them. As mentioned above, this keys the surface and allows our coating to adhere.
- Is it safe for children and pets to remain in the house whilst the spray is taking place? The paint that we use does have a strong smell. We would recommend that children and pets are away from the property for the duration of the spray however if this isn’t possible, we recommend that they are kept upstairs, away from the kitchen area.
If you have any queries in relation to the spray process or anything else, please get in touch with our friendly team.
