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catroddick

Trying to find Cabinet Paint

Catherine Roddick
11 years ago

I apparently live in paint hell. OK- IâÂÂm likely exaggerating, but it doesnâÂÂt really feel like it right now. Northern California, north east of Sacramento. I have the big box stores. I have a few Ace Hardwares that have some Benjamin Moore paints. I have Kelly Moore.

I went to my Ace Hardware and asked about painting cabinets- I asked about Advance and got a blank stare. I asked about Aura vs. Satin Impervo, and somehow the guy leaped into a discussion of how great Natura is for babyâÂÂs room (who said anything about a baby? IâÂÂm painting cabinets here!!!!!). After I walked out of the store I remembered that you all discussed AceâÂÂs door and trim paint, but since the guy couldnâÂÂt bother to mention it when he was talking at me, I couldnâÂÂt be drawn back in to see if they had it.

I went to Kelly Moore and the guy couldnâÂÂt even walk around the counter in the empty store, just mumbled something about âÂÂDura PoxyâÂÂ, which I could not even find in the store.

So IâÂÂm here to ask you all for help- because it is not forthcoming in my town.

IâÂÂm painting over 2004 builder grade oak cabinets. IâÂÂm good with them looking like painted wood cabinets. IâÂÂll scrub, sand, prime, sand, (prime again, sand again?) and then paint. I donâÂÂt need to completely hide all signs of wood grain, and a little sign of brush strokes do not bother me. IâÂÂm going creamy white- a soft, rich, simple white like whipping cream makes me happy. I will be brushing all the boxes and cabinets, and the ability to touch up in the future is very important to me (though I donâÂÂt want to need to do it all the time).

I am by no means a professional. I do have a twisted love affair with paint, though I fear this project may just knock that out of me.

Apparently I canâÂÂt get Cabinet Coat in CA, unless I drive 2 hours to Reno and sneak it back into the state (yes, IâÂÂve thought about it). Should I be able to find BM Advance here in CA, and just have not had luck yet?

I just found that I do have Sherwin Williams in town, but IâÂÂm deflated. So unless you tell me there is an amazing paint there for me to check out, IâÂÂm not interested. Or is it worth going back to Kelly Moore and making that guy sell me paint? (Not a fan of this idea).

I do have the option of picking up Aura at my local Ace, or driving a half an hour to the store that carries BM Satin Impervo. Thoughts on these two?

And primers- I saw that Ace has both Zinsser and BM Fresh Start. A few threads here have me leaning towards Fresh Start- though I need to figure out which one to use.

I have seen a few threads mention that the newer Behr Ultra has been satisfactory. IâÂÂve rolled A LOT of Ultra on my walls at home, and have been very happy with it. If itâÂÂs truly up to cabinets, IâÂÂll try it. But IâÂÂm really not...

Comments (15)

  • Faron79
    11 years ago

    Jeeezz...

    I wish you were near ME!!
    We're an ACE who doesn't have BM.
    We went with C2 in 2006 as our high-end paint, & haven't looked back!
    * C2 recently collaborated with Vermont Natural Coatings, and has released an exciting new "Whey"-based Cabinet paint that's very tough.
    * Both ACE's Cab/Door/&Trim paint & Insul-X's Cabinet-Coat are on my shelves.
    * Primers...C2's SAP (Sandable-Acrylic-Primer); XIM's Peel-Bond & Trim-Magic; and Insul-X's awesome STIX primer are in our arsenal as well. All THESE primers are a little higher-build, enabling you to obtain a smoother surface for fussier projects, after sanding it down correctly.
    * ACE's Cab. paint was rolled-out in ~'07 to be 50-state VOC-Legal.

    Faron

  • jeri
    10 years ago

    Hi Norcal_Cat!

    I'm in Southern California - Ventura County. My local paint store carries Cabinet Coat which I am leaning toward for my cabinets. I've read good things about Cabinet Coat as well as BM Advance, but the Advance takes longer to dry and will yellow some, so I'm leaning toward the CC. It's suppose to be great a self-leveling to give a nice smooth and hard finish.

    Have you called around? Cabinet Coat is now owned by Benjamin Moore, so any store that carries BM should also carry the CC. Perhaps there is a store locator on the BM website?

  • tuesday_2008
    10 years ago

    You say you have a SW in your town. I highly recommend their Pro-Classic I painted a builders grade tired looking bathroom vanity in this (Dove White) and it looks and feels awesome. It has been about 4 years and doesn't have a blemish on it. It is in DH's BR and doesn't get much abuse. Has a nice hard finish.

  • Catherine Roddick
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Good to know about SW. I'll visit them and check it out.

    As far as Cabinet Coat, I'll have to do some more rearch. Their website does not show a dealer near me, and though you can buy it online through Home Depot, they won't ship it to CA. So I assumed it wasn't an option for me.

    Thank you for the feedback- I'll keep digging!

  • jentrex
    10 years ago

    Do a search on the kitchen forum. Lots of people paint their kitchen cabinets and have posted paint advice.

  • Catherine Roddick
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thanks jentrex- I spend a lot of time in the kitchen forum, and though everyone talks of BM, there hasn't been much comparison talk. I may cross post.

    I just noticed that I have a Dunn-Edwards near my office. Any feedback on that brand?

  • Faron79
    10 years ago

    I just tinted a couple gallons of CC tint-base today!
    Both were light ACE colors...for 2 diff. people.
    $48.99/Gal.

    Faron

  • Catherine Roddick
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    whoohoo! I found Cabinet Coat! Sitting on the shelf of the Ace I had already visited.

    So now here's the issue. The guys at this Ace know nothing about the product and dont know how to tint it.

    Can it just be tinted with Benjamin Moore codes? I saw "CC2" on thier computer- is that what they are supposed to use?

    If I go with Aura, I want Simply White. Can they tint Cabinet Coast tint base (it is tint base, not white) to be Simply White (or darn near given any natural difference in the paint itself)?

    Thanks!

  • Faron79
    10 years ago

    Dear Lord....I've been tinting that stuff for nearly TEN YEARS!

    EVERY color....even "Light Whites", have to go into the CC-Tintbase.
    NOT into their White base.

    For light to medium colors, you can normally just shoot the native formula into the cc-tintbase. I won't be dead-on, but usually VERY close.
    Aura colorant is a different animal though, so don't pick "Aura only" colors.

    Faron

  • Catherine Roddick
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    I am choosing a basic BM color- Simply White OC 117.

    So they should be able to put this on their regular paint tint machine and tint it like any other BM paint?

  • Faron79
    10 years ago

    You bet'cha!
    (remember...it has to go into the TINT-base...NOT the White)

    Faron

  • Catherine Roddick
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Excellent! Thank you Faron!

  • jeri
    10 years ago

    Norcal_Cat - IâÂÂm stunned you are having so much trouble with this, but glad you found what you are looking for!

    I too will be tinting the CC either Simply White or White Dove, so please let me know how it goes! We are leaning toward spraying, but I will be very interested in how your application goes.

    What primer are you using?

  • Faron79
    10 years ago

    Sheesh....

    We're having a mini-run on the CC-tintbase this wknd!
    Made another Gal. of a C+K color. Turns out perfect using the stated base.
    We're now out until this Fri.!

    Faron

  • Catherine Roddick
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    I'm still debating primer. I grabbed the BM Fresh Start in white.
    I'm still out a bit on painting. Maybe a couple of months. But I have crown molding to paint and am trying to decide whether to paint it the existing trim color, or make all the trim Simply White. It's the classic snowball effect in decision making.