Cabinet refinishing is one of the highest-impact upgrades you can make to a Naples kitchen — but most homeowners have no idea what actually happens during a project. Here's the real day-by-day flow of a typical 7-day cabinet refinishing project, so you know exactly what to expect.
Before we start: estimate and color consultation
You sign the written estimate and pick your colors. We schedule a project start date, usually 2-6 weeks out depending on season. The week before, we confirm scope, products, and any last decisions. Your only job: clear the inside of the cabinets if we're doing interior painting (most refinishes don't require this).
Day 1: Removal and labeling
The crew arrives early. First three hours:
- Mask off countertops, floors, and adjacent walls with plastic and drop cloths.
- Remove all cabinet doors and drawer fronts. Each one gets a numbered label (back side) so it returns to its exact location.
- Remove all hardware — pulls, knobs, hinges. Stored organized for reinstallation (or replacement if you've chosen new hardware).
- Load doors and drawer fronts into transport racks and into our work van.
By end of day 1, your cabinet boxes are still in your kitchen (with masking around them) and your doors are off-site in our controlled spray environment. You can still use the kitchen with care — the boxes are there, just no doors.
Day 2: Cleaning, degreasing, sanding
On-site at your home:
- Cabinet boxes (frames, exposed ends) get thoroughly degreased with a commercial cleaner that removes years of cooking oils and hand contact residue.
- Mechanical sanding to break the surface for primer adhesion. We use vacuum sanders to minimize dust.
- Any nicks, dings, or seam gaps get filled and re-sanded smooth.
Off-site, the doors and drawer fronts go through the same process — but with more precision because they'll be sprayed flat on racks rather than vertically.
Spraying cabinet doors in your house creates risk: dust contamination, temperature swings, and overspray on adjacent surfaces. We spray doors in our climate-controlled environment with proper lighting, ventilation, and dust control. The finish quality is meaningfully higher than on-site spraying.
Day 3: Bonding primer
Both the on-site boxes and the off-site doors get a bonding primer. This is NOT regular interior wall primer — it's a specialty primer engineered for slick surfaces like factory-finished cabinets, plastic laminates, or oak with heavy grain. The primer creates the molecular grip that holds the topcoat for years.
Boxes get sprayed first (you'll smell primer in the kitchen, but it's low-VOC). Doors get sprayed flat at our shop, then dry overnight.
Day 4: Sanding and inspection
Light sanding between primer and topcoat to knock down any texture and prepare the surface. Doors get inspected under raking light to catch any imperfections that need touch-up. Boxes get the same on-site.
Day 5: First topcoat
The first finish coat goes on:
- Boxes sprayed in your kitchen with full masking and ventilation.
- Doors sprayed flat at our shop.
- Topcoat is cabinet-grade — typically a 2K polyurethane, pre-cat lacquer, or acrylic-alkyd hybrid. NOT regular wall paint, which wouldn't survive cabinet use.
Color starts to land. You can see the final look forming.
Day 6: Final coat and dry
Second (and usually final) topcoat applied. The doors and drawer fronts dry overnight in our controlled environment with proper temperature and air circulation.
Day 7: Reinstallation and walk-through
The crew arrives with all of the doors and drawer fronts, fully cured:
- Doors and drawer fronts reinstalled in their original locations (using the labels from day 1).
- Hardware reinstalled (or new hardware installed if you've upgraded).
- Bumpers added to cabinet doors to prevent slamming wear.
- Touch-ups on any edges that took minor damage during reinstallation.
- Final walk-through with you. Anything you flag gets corrected before we pack up.
- Cure-time guidance: cabinets are touchable on day 7 but reach full hardness over 7-14 days. Light use is fine; avoid heavy abuse during cure.
Final payment collected. Written warranty handed over.
Want a cabinet project quote?
Free walk-through, no pressure, written estimate within 24 hours.
Request a Cabinet EstimateWhat you should do during the project
- Day 1: Be home for the start so we can walk through any last details.
- Days 2-6: Coffee in the morning is fine. Cooking with light prep is fine. Avoid heavy cooking that creates grease aerosols during the boxes-being-sprayed days.
- Day 7: Be home for the final walk-through. Bring a flashlight and a critical eye.
- Days 7-14: Easy on the cabinets while the finish reaches full hardness. After day 14 you can use them normally.
What you'll see along the way
The visual progression of a cabinet project is dramatic:
- Days 1-2: Worse than where you started. Doors gone, masking everywhere, boxes look raw.
- Day 3: Primer goes on. Color is gone; everything looks white-ish primer.
- Day 5: First topcoat. The color you chose is suddenly visible. This is when most homeowners get emotional — the kitchen feels new.
- Day 7: Doors return, hardware on, everything cleaned up. Your "new" kitchen.
Common questions during the project
Can I be in the kitchen while you're spraying boxes?
No — while we're actively spraying, the kitchen is closed off. That's typically 4-6 hours total spread across days 3, 5, and 6. We coordinate timing with your schedule.
What about pets?
Pets should be kept away from active spray areas (mostly for their safety). Most homeowners with pets simply close them in a bedroom while we're spraying boxes, then let them roam normally between sessions.
Can I change my mind about color mid-project?
Up until the first topcoat goes on (day 5), yes — though there may be additional charges if you've already paid for paint. After topcoat goes on, changing color requires sanding back and starting over — significant additional cost.
See real cabinet projects in our cabinet refinishing portfolio, or read our refinish vs replace decision guide.