Refinishing Cabinets in a Fixer Upper House

Veterans Day my wife and I, as veterans of many fixer upper house battles,  refinished the hall cabinets and painted bathroom and bedroom doors.

The permanent hall cabinets had been scratched up in the fixer-upper house that we are living in and repairing, to ultimately turn into a rental house .

Steps in refinishing wood cabinets:

Step 1: Take off the cabinet doors.

Step 2: Remove the old paint or stain. I used 150 grit sandpaper.

Step 3: Apply stain. I used Watco Danish Oil, which is applied with a rag and is used to both protect wood as well as to stain it. Make sure you apply test patches of your stain to an inconspicuous area of the piece to be stained. Most stains dry a shade or two darker than the color you see.

You control the color by the length of time you let the stain penetrate the wood. If it gets too dark, moisten a clothe with the recommended thinner and wipe again to dilute and wash away some of the pigment. Since this stain is oil-based, make sure you either work outside or have plenty of ventilation.

If the wood is thirsty, it may take more than one coat to get a smooth finish. Wipe in the direction of the grain.

Step 4: I’ll apply polyurethane after the last coat dries, for extra protection.

Angy expertly painting a bedroom door. She’s using Behr’s Ultra Pure White, Semi-Gloss Enamel (Wait, I’m not ready!).

For more info on converting a house to a rental, see my new book (due out September 2012) entitled “How to Turn Your Home into a Rental Property, Instead of Selling It!

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