I have oak kitchen cabinets that have a factory finish on them. The color is typical orangey oak and I don’t really care for it. I’d like to color them a fairly dark walnuty brown. Is it possible to do this without taking off the existing finish? I’m concerned about how the new finish will bond to the old.
I’ve tried a gel stain, which didn’t darken very much and was tough to get an even coat on. I also tried Minwax Polyshades, but it didn’t darken much either and had a really high gloss to it.
Anyone have any ideas?
Thanks!
Replies
This project almost requires spray capabilities in order to apply a toned finish evenly. And, even then, the heavy toning needed to achieve "dark walnuty brown" will obscure the naturalness of the wood to some degree.
It would help to know what finish is on the cabinets. How old are they?
You should be able to find finishes that will adhere properly to the cured cabinet finish, though the challenge isn't finish capatibility so much as getting old kitchen cabinets clean enough to accept a new finish. They need to washed with a cleaner like TSP and water to remove watersoluble dirt, and then they need to be thoroughly wiped, using many cloths, with naptha to remove wax, grease and other oily contaminents. Careful scuff sanding AFTER the cleaning will be needed.
Oak wood is such a hard material to treat.
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