I learned 16 yrs ago that when you have cut edges of mdf it soaks up paint like a sponge. To keep that from happening you mix a 50/50 mixture of titebond glue and water and paint that on to the cut edges. Allow that to soak in and dry. Lightly sand that and now you have a surface that is sealed and it will accept paint just as nicely as the uncut paper surfaces!

@daveparker839

Жыл бұрын

Great tip for a beginner like me. Are you saying that you did that INSTEAD OF priming and put the color paint on top of that?

@johnheyden7277

Жыл бұрын

@@daveparker839 it has been several years but as i recall I carved my custom waincoting on my cnc then i took the mixture of 50/50 titebond/water painted the cut surfaces, let dry, sanded lightly and then i think i used a primer/paint in one (or just a paint) and sprayed it on. The titebond mix makes it fell like an eggshell after sanding lightly and you just spray/paint over that. I recall before doing that the paint would just be absorbed like a sponge.

@mcouture8169

Жыл бұрын

1 gal of Titebond = ~$22+ while 1 gal of Kilz stainblock primer = ~$13. Would be nice to see a comparison between the two.

@johnheyden7277

Жыл бұрын

@@mcouture8169 Keep in mind you are diluting the mixture by 50% with water and you are only covering the cut edges. You would not need a whole gallon. Even if you are doing a whole kitchen i'd bet a small bottle would be enough.

@jonwoodworker

Жыл бұрын

@@daveparker839 50/50 water/glue (glue sizing), sand, prime, then paint. The problem with DIY glue sizing is the glue is much harder than the raw MDF and can create a nightmare if done incorrectly. Read my long winded post below.

Sanding MDF without a mask is a NONO

Perfect timing April, thank you. I’ve just built some built in wardrobes in our bedroom and am making the doors from mdf! Needed this as a sanity check to save ruining hours of work!

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

yess! good luck, you've got this!

An Informative video on painting MDF! Well done, April!

A lot of great tips. Thank you April for taking the time out out of your busy schedule.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful!

I usually just play a propane torch lightly over machined mdf after sanding to eliminate fuzz. Catalyzed lacquer paints give the glassy smooth finish that some clients prefer, but I've also had requests lately for a brushed finish on painted cabinets to give a "handmade" look. Good video, keep em coming!

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it.

Watered down wood glue works well for sealing the edges. It also seems to toughen up the corners. I usually end up wiping a thin layer across the faces with a plastic spreader as well. It beats mdf soaking up all your paint.

@MadLadsAnonymous

2 ай бұрын

Great tip!

Hi April, Excellent paint job. Thanks for showing the sprayer you used and well as the paint Magnolia Home by Joanna Gaines. Chip and Joanna have an awesome cable channel Magnolia Network. You and your family stay safe.

If you are painting MDF, you might what to try MDO (Medium Density Overlay) which has a paper coating which takes paint a lot better. Furthermore, an alcohol based primer works great!

Thank you! I am flipping some old mdf nightstands and they had the classic water damaged bubbling on the finished layer. I sanded them down but they still had the fuzziness. They are now primed and ready to be sanded again. Thanks again!

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Awesome! Glad you found this useful. Thanks for watching.

Great job April, thanks for the excellent advice and showing how it's done. Stay safe and keep up the great videos. Fred.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

I appreciate that, thank you! Thank you for watching!

Thanks for all the tips on painting MDF! Your cabinet doors came out looking great!

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad you like them!

Great suggestions on how to treat MDF edges both in the video and comments. I've always taken my finger and wiped on a thin layer of drywall joint compound on the edges of MDF. Only takes a light sanding to get it smooth and of course takes paint well.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Excellent suggestion! Thanks for sharing and for watching.

Thanks for the stand off idea. Also I had always wondered about the electric sprayers.

@AprilWilkerson

7 ай бұрын

Great! Glad you found it useful. Thanks for watching.

Thanks for showing the sprayer. I have looked at many airless spraying systems and been warned most don't work very well with acrylics. That Wagner looks pretty smooth.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Thank you for watching!

@mlr080965

Ай бұрын

when spraying acrylics use Floetrol it does wonders with water bases coatings ** although it will retard drying but it helps to get a showroom finish

I tend to seal my MDF with Shellac or Sanding Sealer, but sealing primer works as well :)

Perfect timing. About to start a project myself. Very helpful.

@geoffreymills9932

Жыл бұрын

If it's something you live with and plan to keep for a long time, do yourself a favor and use Baltic birch plywood, yes it cost more up front but it will last a lifetime, MDF and rangerboard are a 5 year investment,

@henrysboy2

Жыл бұрын

@@geoffreymills9932 Great advice. Thx.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Great to hear! Enjoy your project!

The Mike Farrington double tapered tablesaw sanding disk works great on machined edges of MDF.

I appreciate all the research you put into the subject matter of your videos April! You do the research so we don't have to... Thanks!!!

@steve.-007

Жыл бұрын

But it’s wrong! She hasn’t researched it or worked with much mdf! You can definitely remove the fuzz by progressing through the grades of paper finishing with 600 grit and you can sand the face with 600 or 1000 grit AND you should wear a mask while sanding and spraying! Sorry but she’s got this wrong on so many levels.

@BearCreekWoodworking

Жыл бұрын

@@steve.-007 Sounds like you have work with MDF a lot. Thanks for the useful information. I'm trying to learn more about how to use MDF. Thanks!

@steve.-007

Жыл бұрын

Just want people to have the right info and stay safe ,wear a mask when sanding mdf and spray painting

We love these tips and technique! Nice work with your Wagner FLEXiO sprayer!

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Thanks so much!

This will help with my arcade cabinets. Great video April. Happy Sunday! 😀

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Thank you! You too!

So many great tips & tricks! Great job, April! 😊

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful!

I have always been shy of MDF because of the "Fuzz Factor". So I normally use plywood. However, I do realize MDF is actually the better choice of material sometimes. So all of your useful tips will come in handy the next time I tackle a project using MDF.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

I'm glad the information is useful for you. Thank you for watching!

Your videos are always great. I love seeing what your next project is.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad you like them!

BIN primer is great for more than just MDF, prime, light sand with 320 or 400, and wipe down, and your ready for most any paint

Oil base is oil base. It takes longer to dry. Water base raises the grain more. More sanding after priming. Shellac is alcohol base. It drys quickly and can be recoated after 15 minutes or so depending on humidity and air temperature.

Awesome pointers. You are a real craftsperson. I even like to read comments as they are helpful also.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Thank you! I like reading through the comments too...viewers always have great tips.

The fluffy edges have always done my head in, thanks for sharing April 👍 much appreciated 😊

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

You are so welcome!

@tomroswell4324

Жыл бұрын

Great job showing how to finish mdf doors. I have been finishing mdf doors for just over 10 years. My proces is : -150 for all machined areas - 320 for entire door - prime using mlcampbell level primer. This primer can be applied very heavily reducing or even removing the need for multiple coats - sand primer with 320 or fine sanding sponge - use tack cloth and compresed air to remove dust. Then apply final coat of paint. In my case that is mlcambell turino. The coatings I use are solvent based

@steve.-007

Жыл бұрын

You might want to try sanding down to 600 grit on both the face and edges,ends up really really smooth 😊

Another video crammed with great tips and how to explanations. Thanks for sharing this one with us.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it!

Actually I’m in the middle of this right now and was questioning the procedure I came up with to paint mine. They will have stained wood pieces together in the frame so I couldn’t assemble then paint. I’d never get the edges the wood slides into cleanly. So I’m painting disassembled MDF frames I made and once assembled I can sand the glue and mess off the face and repaint as the centers are inset. But the edge the centers slide into shouldn’t need repainted so no paint on the inserts! But prepping the MDF with Zinsser and then sanding all the pieces in prep for the kettle black finish I began to wonder if I was messing this up. Found your video and see you do yours the same way. I too was worried about the edge fuzz but figured the Zinsser would fill that and sanding would make it smooth. And you confirmed this for me. Thanks for the video!!

If you want a perfect edge finish, you can also get paintable iron on edging made for MDF. I've used it a few times, it's amazing stuff and very cheap.

@Z-add

Жыл бұрын

this by far is the fastest way of painting mdf edges.

Very cool April🤙🏾💯 Thanks for sharing...

Just for fun: I build arcades out of 3/4" MDF and the best way I've found is to mix 1:5 wood glue to water. Simply use a foam brush on all your cuts. You'll notice that the glue/water mix is a bit bubbly off the foam brush. The bubbles will disappear as the water medium carries the wood glue into the MDF. Instead of a fuzzy finish, you'll end up with a rock hard surface made of the fuzz and glue. Next, just hit it with 120g and the edges and the cuts will me much harder and will resist denting, which the primer won't be able to do. If you want it smoother, remember that the water has allowed the glue to seep into the MDF so, you have a bit for sanding left. I use this technique since I install t-molding to all the arcade edges which requires a 1/16" slot cut in the middle of the 3/4" edges (scariest router bit I own). This allows more support and resists denting even though the 3/4" has been halved with a 1/16" slot in them. I didn't create this technique, I learned it. But, I try to spread it around as much as possible.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Awesome! Thanks for the great tips and for watching.

Always love your videos April. Thanks for the tips.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad you like them!

Like always you do a wonderful job of explaining the hard to explain!!

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad you think so!

just finished a job that included mdf... now I know what to do next time! The fuzzies suck if you don't know how to work with them! Thanks for the tips! :)

Thanks for sharing your method April! 😃👍🏻👊🏻

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

My pleasure!!

Hello from England April,I’ve been a carpenter for 30 years and you can definitely get rid of the Fuzz ,I work down the grades 120,240,320 and finish with 600 wet and dry which gives the edges a really smooth finish comparable to the face,I also use 600 to sand the primer and even 1000 for a super smooth finish,you should give it try I’m sure you’ll be pleased 😊.

@jonwoodworker

Жыл бұрын

Steve, you are correct. But, save yourself time on the edges and just do 400 grit. If doing flat or low gloss, stay with the 400. Higher gloss use the 600. Anything over 600, your losing mechical bond. Unless your using lacquer which would provide a chemical bond, but even 400 is overkill for lacquer.

Finished my MDF cabinets in August using your methods and it was a great success. I had a good result using Zinsser BIN shellac-based primer. I have become a huge fan of shellac. It's like painting with liquor-infused milk. You almost want to drink it. The dried texture is great and paint really adheres to it. I don't have a sprayer, so I used flocked rollers. But yeah, cleanup is a nightmare. When you're done for the day, it's better to seal up your roller inside your shellac can. Then my topcoat was Benjamin Moore Advance. Your method is great--the only thing I might suggest is using tack cloth to get off every speck of dust between coats.

@debbieselland6591

Жыл бұрын

How did you like the BMA paint. I am redoing my flat 1973 solod wood kitchen cabinets. I'm adding MDF trim to make shaker style doors. I will then paint.

@davidnagel7710

Жыл бұрын

I use this method as well! Exact same products with excellent results. In order to help with clean up, I buy Zinsser BIN shellac-based primer in a spray can just for the MDF edges, then traditional water-based primer for the smooth surfaces. Best of both worlds and minimizes the clean up. Otherwise, shellac requires ammonia for clean up.

Thanks April , always great content and absolutely love you on Assembly.... you look fabulous

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much!

Just a note, Zinser is a tinted shellac with an *alcohol* base and typically dries in 10-15 minutes for sealer coats. Shellac has been my favorite sealer for years.

@ozstockman

10 ай бұрын

I was about to say the same. Alcohol evaporates fast and that's why this primer dries so fast.

Thanks April! Love the CNC content!

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Thanks! Glad you enjoy my channel. Thank you for your generosity and for watching.

People in my CNC group recommended Shelac, sand, and then paint. Seems to work great. I wonder if primer is any different.

Thank you, April, for the tips in painting kitchen cabinets. I will definitely work on my cabinets next summer. You are awesome as usual.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful!

Thanks for sharing those tips and the make!

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

You are so welcome! Glad you found it useful. Thanks for watching.

I am preparing to paint MDF cabinet doors and drawer faces which were covered by plastic overlay. Everything is already smooth so can I just apply the primer and then paint?

April. I absolutely love watching a laundry room make over as I’m from the United Kingdom and it’s not often you see a laundry room unless you have some good money behind you.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

I never knew that laundry rooms weren't really a big thing over there!

@antonyhawkins8143

Жыл бұрын

@@AprilWilkerson our houses are to small. Washing machines tend to live in the kitchen

@01arron

Жыл бұрын

@@AprilWilkerson yes. Sadly our houses aren’t big enough for one over here. Even though we have two story homes they are way to small to fit a laundry room in. Unless like I said you have enough money behind you to have that option or to add a room extension

thanks for sharing your knowledge so we don`t have to guess and be better educated of our options ! Cheers April !

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful!

Excellent work on the cabinets! But you must use a respirator when spraying any paint or primer

Thanks, great video and tutorial, and those cabinets look great!

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad you like them!

Thanks April, great info as usual.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoy my channel. Thanks for watching.

Did you need to thin the paint or primer with the flexio 3500?

can sanding sealer be used as a primer?

Very interesting and I may have to try this out.

first time iget idea about paintaing thank you for your effort with great love

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

So nice of you, thank you for watching!

I thank you for your compliments - you are really a working woman who is useful to yourself and others without compliment - and a woman with a good heart - and I thank you for your work that you provide ------

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Thanks! Glad you enjoy my channel. Thanks for watching.

Thanks for the tips. Useful video from a great woodworker.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for watching.

What did you use for your filler?

Excelente April yo también trabajo el MDF 👍🙏

Hi April. Everything that I need to renew my cabinets. I'm fixing them and this video came as cake. Thanks a lot.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful!

Cabinet carcasses! 😂 Love it!

Great idea with the standoffs at 5:13. Except for the close proximity between fingers and nailer. I've seen a few people put a brad nail through their finger when the nail bends and comes out the side of the wood.

@woodrowsmith3400

Ай бұрын

Lol. I've been bit like that more than once...mostly because I mis-forgot the right way to shoot brad nails 😂

I've been painting for 25 years and I have to say this is the most comprehensive and correct video on how to do a project like this. My only critique would be MDF is absolute garbage and cabinets it looks good in the short term but it doesn't hold up in the long term I've had to repair so many older MDF cabinets because they can't handle the long-term abuse.

@ALLAHDRINKSCUM

Жыл бұрын

You suggest thermafoil doors? Will also peel in time. Mfd will not. You suggest soild wood doors? Will crack over time. Mdf will not.

@hotjob100

9 ай бұрын

Your correct . When I hear it's better than wood , Wrong .MDF Worthless. at best.

Looks great! Always great information! Very helpful!!!

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful!

@steve.-007

Жыл бұрын

It’s the wrong information!

Very nice April!!

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Thank you!

A big thank you for sharing your expertise.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful!

Excelente trabajo!!! Y qué linda chica!! Felicitaciones por ambas carácteríticas!!!

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Muchas gracias!

Interesting. I kind of learned these through trial and error, particularly the sanding/fuzzy texture issue. I decided to just try priming it with blocking primer and then sanding it (like when painting damaged Sheetrock) and it worked great.

@geoffreymills9932

Жыл бұрын

You need a vinyl primer for MDF but it won't matter in 5 years because it's garbage anyway

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Depending on where it is, that "garbage" may be just fine. My cabinets in my laundry room, MDF is great and will last. Thanks for watching.

@dm-zx7xb

Жыл бұрын

I used killz on my bathroom mdf cabinet doors 15 years ago because they had a bit of water damage on the bottom and they still look great today. I sanded back into proper shape, applied killz, sanded down the fuzzies, killzed it again, and painted with regular white paint. Haven had the first issue. Also not much on KZread back then lol

Very informative thank you!

I 2k clear (spraymax) everything to keep that paint job looking good works over oil or latex just let the base coat throughly cure. Water based 2k works just as well just takes longer to set and cure.

I use an ETS 125 with the edge guide to get perfect edges on MDF. A light pass after priming gives a great surface finish

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Great tip!

Thanks for the great video! Do you thin your primer and paint? I just got the same paint sprayer

Nice video!! I’ll be painting mdf soon as part of a kitchen project

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Thank you for watching!

Excellent job! What type of painting did you use? my English is not good! thank you !!

Wow I love the attention to detail, learned something new . Thumbs up and subbed

@AprilWilkerson

6 ай бұрын

Awesome, thank you!

Lovely as always. Great info

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it

@therelaxingwoodshop7495

Жыл бұрын

@@AprilWilkerson always

Great process April! Thanks for sharing! Are there other materials you would recommend instead of using MDF? Just curious 😉👍

@barbaramarques7498

Жыл бұрын

If I am repainting mdf do I need to sand and prime or can I apply the primer on top of the paint that is already there?

Amazing video. Well done.

@AprilWilkerson

10 ай бұрын

Thank you very much!

Watched “Assembly Required” and was hoping it would be renewed, then I stumbled on “More Power” and have binge watched it. I like it better because you have a greater role and get much more screen time. You are great in front of the camera. Sorry, Tim, but April has it.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Thanks! The Show was such a blast to film. Thanks for watching.

Spraying cabinet doors. So far I have primed both sides and painted one side of everything. Just noticed that one of the larger doors has cupped slightly. Any way to straighten it? Will it relax after painting the other side? Have put so much work into these and now this. Am I screwed?

I'm about to start re-painting MDF cabinets. The old paint is peeling bad. Any big tips about this workflow? I plan to sand away the old paint, use premium wood filler to smooth small areas, prime it with zinssers bin primer, sand it again, cover with cabinet paint using a paint sprayer I just purchased. Any tips help, thanks!

Great informative video, I have learnt a lot from this!

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching.

i liked to use a laquer based primer,,,,,really seals the edges and dries very fast,,,,,very easy to sand too....then a tinted laquer or conversion varnish for the finish,,,,,comes out looking like a car finish

Hi April. Do you have any videos/tips on making these shaker style mdf doors? Thanks

I'm a custom cabinet maker and can say for sure that there's a lot wrong with these instructions. For one, if you lay all your parts together like that, how do you get your edges? Two, your getting overspray all over adjacent parts. Three, using house paints has no durability and dry to slow as airborne dust particles will stick to them. I use a quality lacquer that flashes in under a minute, a good quality air assist spray gun that allows you to control the spray fan size and control the amount of product being sprayed. I paint each part individually. I first turn down the fan to almost a O and with more air then product I spray the edges. The air forces the paint into the pores and the light volume of product prevents paint sag. I then dial up the spray fan and coat the surface with heavier product volume with about a 50% overlap. When dry I sand the edges flip to the other side and repeat the process doing the edges and the surface. This way the edges get a coat of paint every time you flip the part getting twice as much paint applied.

I get rid of fuzz using wood glue mixed with water. Your cabinets look great. Thank you.👍

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Awesome! Thank you!

You can easily eliminate the fuzz with sanding alone. I do it every day of the week.

@steve.-007

Жыл бұрын

Yep me too

@jonwoodworker

Жыл бұрын

I love all the advice of mixing various concoctions though...lol...To me all of these sealing ideas just create more pits and when your spaying gloss, pits are hell. I polish the edges with 400 then prime.

As a full time professional finisher in a high volume custom cabinet shop, your NEVER getting a professional result in two sprays. Spraying MDF is a whole other animal. My advise for DIY is to brush. If you want to spray MDF: 1. Don't fill holes first, filling holes first creates a shiny/smooth spot wherever you apply filler. 2. Polish exposed cuts and ease edges with 400 grit. Or you could go old school and glue size the raw MDF (I did this method once in my career) Do not sand the front or back surfaces 3. Blow off/vacuum. 4. Prime edges, then back. 5. Flip, prime edges and front. 6. When dry: fill holes, sand edges to 400, sand surfaces w/150 being careful not to sand through primer. 7. Repeat steps 1-6 sanding surfaces w/220. If Spraying flat or satin you might be ready to paint, depending on how well you prepped the surfaces. If your trying to achieve a gloss or automotive quality finish, you are far from over. Gettibg a pit free edge is the difficult part to spraying. As April shows, the light at a low angle is the only way to see imperfections...however, you need to look directly towards the light, not on the same side. Unless you are really experienced with Spraying paint, just brush your doors and drawers....much easier for DIY. Or take the doors/drawers to a local cabinet shop and have them edge with paintable edge banding.

@steve.-007

Жыл бұрын

You definitely know your stuff👍

@abel-zp1ir

7 ай бұрын

Thanks for the professional advise sur as a beginner i learnt a lot 🙏🙏

@joanmacleod1362

4 ай бұрын

Now I know why I had shiny spots. Thank you for sharing your expertise

@jonwoodworker

4 ай бұрын

@@joanmacleod1362 Your welcome. If you have shiny spots, sand and repaint. If you notice, wherever you filled first will always be smoother, creating the shiny spot. But with more coats it starts to blend in.

@joanmacleod1362

4 ай бұрын

@@jonwoodworker thank you so much

What can you put on the cabinets for a shellac? After painting??

Very helpful thanks!

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Thank you for watching!

Excellent video.Thank you.

@AprilWilkerson

6 ай бұрын

Thanks!

Trick to mdf edges is stack one side of same sized fronts clamprd together and sand to 320. Rotate till you sand all sides. Now you have all sides ready for prime. BIN is easily cleaned up with ammonia quickly. Best sandaled primer.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for sharing and for watching.

Thanks for the information, always stayed away from MDF for that reason.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

You're welcome and thank you for watching!

That was great April. Whenever I paint MDF it turns out rubbish I can't wait to try some of your technicues

Thanks for the tips. I use MDF whenever possible and the edges have always been a problem.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

You are so welcome!

@steve.-007

Жыл бұрын

Sand down to 600 grit👍

Thank you

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

I'm glad you enjoyed the video. Thanks for watching.

Much simpler and quicker to use automotive hi-build primer in the spray can. A quick pass at close range on cut surfaces / chamfers leaves a hardcoat in just minutes. A quick follow up w/320 dusts off any errant nubs. You are done in minutes. Also use automotive “spot putty” for dents and dings. Much cleaner outcome than wood putty.

Thank you. Excellent advise.

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful!

@AlGuden

Жыл бұрын

Is the prize a scam? SAure makes me nervous to see things like that?????

Will spackling work as a filler? (I've got a bunch of it :) )

Thanks you

@AprilWilkerson

Жыл бұрын

Thank you for watching!