What Grit Sandpaper To Sand Painted Cabinets

Light grit sandpaper such as 120 or 180 grit on an orbital won t remove material fast enough.

What grit sandpaper to sand painted cabinets.

Sandpaper is one of the most common items you will find with professional painters along with all types of construction workers. Fine sandpapers range from 120 to 220 grit. Primary sanding of rough wood and the removal of planning marks on wood is often best done with medium grit sandpaper. If the cabinets are stained or coated with a single layer of clear finish you may not need to use paint stripper.

However this grade will be more useful assuming you ve eliminated most of the paint. Special cabinet paints are available that provide a smooth finish but any high quality paint should work. But you don t need to sand to bare wood. If the surface is rough from a previous paint job or poor varnishing job start with coarser 100 grit paper to remove bumps.

The laminate must be in good condition for best results. A simple product that combines sand or similar abrasive material on a strong backing paper sandpaper is used to smooth surfaces remove rust or paint and can prepare a surface as well. Laminate cabinets require a special bonding primer. Wood cabinets are ideal for painting but any surface that can be scuffed with sandpaper can be painted.

Choose a high quality paint. The higher the grit number is equivalent to a finer abrasive which creates smoother surface finishes. Lower grit numbers represent coarser abrasives that scrape off materials much quicker. If your cabinets have a factory finish sand lightly with 120 grit sandpaper or a sanding sponge.

For surfaces that are to be stained consider a light hand sanding with the grain to remove any and all remaining swirl marks. The grit of sandpapers is a rating of the size of abrasive materials on the sandpaper. Medium grade sandpaper will take the next level of paint and reduce it further by sanding the final layers away. Sand the finish from the cabinets trim and drawers with 120 grit sandpaper.

Heavy grit papers 60 to 80 grit remove material too fast and create scratches that weren t there before. You can sand by hand if you would like but your arms will probably get pretty tired. Equipped with 100 grit sandpaper orbital sanders remove surface material from cabinets and doors without going too deep. This has a higher grit grading of between p180 and p500 and will not be as effective at removing the majority of a painted surface.

Painted cabinets should get a thorough sanding with 120 grit paper but no matter the finish do a final pass with 220 grit.