11/02/2023
Onsite painted cabinets are starting to become a favorite element of mine. Here’s a comparison of how offsite and onsite cabinet builds stack up.
OFFsite—
Pros:
- Cabinets show up ready for installation.
- Cabinets are painted in a climate controlled paint booth.
- Cabinet construction doesn't add to the timing of the overall project.
Cons:
- Cabinets can be damaged in transit.
- If something goes wrong, it’s going to take time to get your part fixed and back onsite because, chances are, the cabinet booth is being used by the cabinet company for another project.
ONsite—
Cons:
- Potential for time to be added to the overall project length.
- If clients are living onsite during the remodel/construction, it will be stinky. In my opinion, that’s not worth it if you're living onsite.
Pros:
- If there is small damage in transit, it’s easy to fix before final paint.
- No filler/scribe needed.
- The finish is much cleaner/nicer looking.
- Final product looks more seamless: like it was part of the original character of a home, as opposed to an afterthought that was added later.
There is a common misconception that the paint quality is not as good. This is actually not true, as we spray the exact same paint products that our cabinet shop does. In fact, we essentially turn the entire kitchen (or wherever the cabinet install is happening) into a giant paint booth. We have air filters and fans that vent the space properly and safely. The painters change the carbon filters 2-3x daily to make sure things stay as clean and healthy as possible.
Here are a few things to consider. Your painter(s) must be very familiar with the proper paint products. Quality cabinet paint requires proper training and should be treated as such. We use a 2k acrylic urethane or a conversion varnish.
I recently worked with Avatar Painting, Inc. and they are one of the best painting crews I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with. Knowledgeable, reasonable, and detail-oriented, just to name a few great things. If you’d like to see what exceptional painting jobs look like, give Jason and his team a follow.