Kitchen respray in Cambridge: what the job involves
A kitchen respray means spraying new paint onto the units you already have: doors, drawer fronts, end panels, plinths and cornice. Our own decorators do the work with a Graco Ultra cordless airless handheld sprayer, and Graham visits beforehand to check the doors will take paint and to agree the colour and sheen with you.
Most people ask us about kitchen spraying because the kitchen still works but looks dated. A respray changes the colour completely and leaves a thin, even, factory-like coat, without disconnecting the sink or taking out a single cabinet.
If you'd rather have your units brushed and rolled, or a mix of the two, our main kitchen cabinet painting page covers that approach. This page is about spraying.
Respray or hand-painted: how the finish differs
An airless sprayer forces paint through a tiny tip at high pressure, breaking it into a fine mist that settles as a level film. There are no brush marks to sand out and no roller stipple, so smooth slab doors and handleless kitchens come out looking close to new. Edges, mouldings and the inside corners of Shaker doors get the same thickness of paint as the flat faces, which is hard to match by hand.
Hand painting still has its place. A good brush coat leaves a very slight texture that some people prefer on a cottage kitchen, and it needs far less masking. How hard the finish ends up depends on the paint and the preparation, not on how it was applied.
Spraying also shows things up. It won't hide dents, open joints or a swollen edge, so every door has to be right before the first coat.
Masking and preparation before we spray
Spray mist drifts further than most people expect, so the first part of the job is covering everything that isn't being painted. That's the step that takes the time, and it's why spraying pays off best on a larger kitchen.
- Worktops, sink, hob and splashback sheeted and taped
- Floors covered, and walls masked along every unit edge
- Appliances, extractor and windows covered, with ventilation kept open where we can
- Handles and hinges removed, and each door and drawer front marked so it returns to its own place
- Every surface degreased, then keyed with a Mirka dust-free sander
- Chips and dents filled, and a primer chosen for the surface underneath
Between coats
Whether the doors are sprayed on their hinges or laid out in a masked part of the room depends on the kitchen, and Graham will explain the plan at the visit. After each coat the surfaces are checked and any specks of dust are lightly sanded off, so the final coat goes onto something smooth.
Door types that need extra thought
Solid oak and other open-grain timber
Oak has a deep grain that paint follows rather than fills. Sprayed straight over, the grain still shows as a texture under the colour, which some people like. If you want a completely flat look, the grain is filled first, and that adds time to the quotation.
Laminate and vinyl-wrapped doors
Laminate can be sprayed after careful keying and a primer made for shiny surfaces. Vinyl-wrapped doors are different: if the wrap is lifting or bubbling near the oven, paint over it will lift with it, so those doors usually need replacing.
Water-damaged MDF
Doors and panels beside the dishwasher or sink sometimes swell where steam has got into an edge. Swollen MDF can't be sprayed back to flat, so it's better to replace that door or panel and spray the new one to match.
When spraying isn't the right choice
We won't push a respray where it isn't the best option. In a small galley kitchen with a handful of doors, masking the whole room can take longer than painting it by hand, and a brush finish will look just as good. If you can't spare the kitchen at all, painting one run at a time with a brush is often easier to plan around family life.
Spraying is also the wrong answer when the problem is the kitchen itself. Carcasses that are swollen or sagging, drawers that no longer run, or a layout that doesn't work for you won't be fixed by new paint, and Graham will say so plainly.
Kitchen respray or a new kitchen?
A respray keeps everything that is still sound: the carcasses, worktops, plumbing, appliances and tiling. A new kitchen means taking all of that out, usually with a fitter, an electrician and a plumber involved, and often new tiling and redecorating afterwards.
Worn timber worktops don't automatically mean new ones either. At the Old Telephone Exchange in Fulbourn the kitchen worktops were oiled with Osmo as part of the decorating.
If you need more cupboards, a different layout or new worktops anyway, a new kitchen may make more sense, and we'd rather tell you that than sell you a respray you'll regret. Many customers have the walls and ceiling painted at the same time; our page on kitchen decorating covers that side.
What affects the price of kitchen spraying
There's no set price per door, because kitchens vary so much. The main things that change the cost are:
- The number of doors, drawer fronts, end panels and plinths
- Door style: flat slab doors spray faster than Shaker doors with mouldings
- Whether the insides of doors, the cornice or an island are included
- The material, especially oak that needs grain filling or laminate that needs a specialist primer
- Replacement doors, repairs and how much filling the old finish needs
- How much masking the room needs around worktops, tiles and appliances
Your quotation
Graham sets all of this out in writing after his visit, so you can weigh it against the cost of replacing the kitchen.
Booking a respray with us
Call, send a WhatsApp or fill in the contact form. Graham will arrange a time to look at the kitchen, open a few doors, check the hinges and edges, and talk through colour and sheen. You can watch him using the Graco handheld in our decorating videos if you'd like to see how it works.
The quotation usually follows by email, and Belinda then agrees dates and keeps you updated. When the last coat has hardened and the handles are back on, Graham goes round the kitchen with you, and you don't pay until you're happy with the finished work. We're based in Landbeach, close to Milton and Waterbeach, and respray kitchens across Cambridge.
