Expert: Greg Scholl - 2/9/2010

Question
Hi Greg, Our home is 16 years old.  We have the original wood cabinets and they are in pretty good shape with one exception.  One door, right above the handle, has a worn spot where the finish is completely gone.  I've cleaned it well with wood cleaners and have put some stain on it that matches fairly well.  Of course when the light hits it you can see it has no sheen to it because it has no finish on it.  Is there something I can use to touch up the area where the finish is gone?  I think the wood might be oak.  This is the only area on all the cabinets where this has happened.  I'd appreciate your help.  A second question is I would like to make them a little darker just to freshen them up.  Is there anyway to do this easily, without stripping them?

Answer
Hi Trudy, without some knowledge and experience spraying lacquers, I can't recommend you start experimenting on your cabinets...spot finish repairs like this on a kitchen cabinet are almost impossible to do well, even for a Pro. These finishes often employ "toning", which are sprayed on colored clear coats, and when they start to fail, these finishes are the most difficult to spot repair....they're also often sprayed with catalyzed lacquers, which are very hard and durable, and will only accept touch ups with the same types of materials...for the same reason, it's not possible to darken the finish, the entire kitchen full of cabinets would have to be prepped, colored, and resprayed, and the cost to do that would be very high, a LOT of labor involved...refacing is always the better solution...where they replace the door and drawer fronts and cabinet frames/sides with pre-finished new ones....or finish those parts onsite to match.There are many companies that do this, including Sears, and if I was contempating such a thing I would get at least 3-4 estimates. Painting is also another way to change the look in lieu of spending a lot more on refacing/replacing, and will provide a fair service life as compared to the typical factory finished cabinets, which will give 15-20 years of maintenance free service......post back if need be- wish I had a better answer....regards- Greg