RELATED: The 8 Painting Mistakes Almost Everyone Makes STEP 4: Repair any dings that would show through a coat of paint. (Because Formica is non-porous and slick, paint won’t adhere properly without first roughing it up a little.) Don’t neglect corners, divots, and edges, and don’t skip this step or skimp on the process-it’s tedious, but it’s crucial to achieving a professional-looking result. Protect your eyes, skin, and lungs from airborne laminate dust with goggles, gloves, and a dust mask. Then, use 120- or 150-grit sandpaper or a sanding block to scuff the glossy surface. STEP 3: Sand the Formica for better paint adhesion. Follow with a clean, water-soaked rag to remove any last traces of grease, and then wipe the laminate dry with a clean towel or rag. STEP 2: Remove all dirt and grease from the Formica.Ĭlean the Formica with a degreasing-cleaner-soaked sponge, working from top to bottom.
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One pro tip: If you do remove the doors and drawers, make sure to mark each with their location on the back or inside so each will be easy to replace them in their correct spot when you’re finished. While it is possible to paint cabinet doors while in place, it can be easier to remove them and lay them flat during the painting process. Then unhinge doors and pull out drawers altogether.
If you’re painting Formica cabinets, remove handles or knobs from doors and drawer fronts.
If painting cabinets, tape off surrounding walls (and, potentially, hinges if you aren’t planning to unscrew them). If painting a Formica countertop, tape off the sink, the backsplash, walls that edge the counter, and the lower cabinets.Whether you plan to paint Formica counters or cabinets, protect the surrounding areas-floors, namely, but also lower cabinets if painting countertops or countertops if painting upper cabinets-and any nearby fixtures using drop cloths held in place by painter’s tape.Īt the same time, tape off anything near the Formica that you don’t want to get paint on. STEP 1: Prep your space with drop cloths and painter’s tape. Still, many homes still sport Formica counters or cabinets in yesterday’s colors and patterns. Hugely popular from the 1950s through the 1970s as an inexpensive, colorful, and fairly durable countertop material, it’s no wonder that Formica is making something of a comeback today in new installations. It’s actually made from many layers of paper, which are soaked in resin, dried, and then sealed in clear melamine. There’s another way to deal with outdated or ugly laminate, as long as it’s in reasonably good condition: paint.Ĭreated in 1913 as a form of insulation, Formica-which is the brand name of the laminate made by the Formica Group-is not made entirely of plastic, despite the feel and appearance. Don’t assume you simply have to accept that your space is firmly tethered to the 1970s by its avocado green or harvest gold Formica counters or cabinets, however. It’s a dilemma shared by many homeowners: Yes, those tired Formica countertops and cabinet doors in the kitchen or bath date the room, but the cost to replace them exceeds your current budget.
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