The Best Primers for Cabinet Painting: A Contractor's Guide

Primer might be the most underrated part of cabinet painting. The topcoat gets all the attention, but your primer choice determines adhesion, stain blocking, grain filling, and how smoothly your finish coats lay down. After refinishing countless kitchens across the Tri-Cities, here are the three primers that have earned permanent spots in my van.

Benjamin Moore Stix: The Grain-Filling Secret

Benjamin Moore Stix is technically a bonding primer, but its superpower is grain filling on oak cabinets. If you have ever painted over oak and still seen all that prominent grain texture through the finish, Stix is the solution.

Why Oak Is Challenging

Oak has deep, open pores that show through standard primers and paints. Many homeowners are disappointed when they paint their oak cabinets white and the grain remains visible, giving that telltale look of painted oak rather than smooth painted cabinetry. Stix addresses this better than any other single product I have found.

The Grain-Filling Technique

Here is the process we use at Rock's Painting for oak cabinets:

1. Apply first coat of Stix liberally. Work it into the grain with a brush before back-rolling or spraying.
2. Let it dry completely. Full cure is important before sanding.
3. Sand with 180-grit. This knocks down the raised grain and creates a smoother surface. The sanding dust fills the pores.
4. Apply second coat of Stix. This coat levels more because the grain is already partially filled.
5. Sand again with 220-grit. Light sanding only, enough to smooth without cutting through.
6. Apply topcoat. Now your finish paint has a smooth, sealed surface to adhere to.

This process adds labor, but the results are worth it. Clients consistently notice that their painted oak cabinets look smooth rather than textured.

Other Stix Advantages

• Bonds to glossy surfaces without heavy sanding
• Water-based for easy cleanup and low odor
• Sands beautifully once cured
• Works on many challenging surfaces beyond wood

Zinsser BIN: The Stain-Blocking Standard

Zinsser BIN is a shellac-based primer that has been the industry standard for stain blocking for decades. When you need to seal in stains, odors, or tannin bleed, BIN is the answer.

When to Use BIN

BIN is essential when dealing with:

• Smoke or nicotine damage. Cabinets in homes where smokers lived often have yellowed finishes and embedded odors. BIN seals in both.
• Water stains. Previous water damage can bleed through water-based primers. BIN stops it cold.
• Tannin bleed from wood species. Some woods, especially when wet, release tannins that cause brown spots through paint. BIN prevents this.
• Strong odors. Cooking grease, pet odors, and other stubborn smells can permeate cabinet surfaces. BIN encapsulates them.

Working With BIN

BIN has some characteristics that require adjustment:

• Strong odor during application. It is alcohol-based and smells like it. Ventilation is mandatory.
• Fast dry time. It dries in minutes, which is great for speed but means you need to work efficiently.
• Cleanup requires denatured alcohol. Water will not work, so plan accordingly.
• Excellent sandability. Once dry, it sands to a powder-smooth finish.

For most cabinet work without staining issues, we prefer Stix because it is easier to work with. But when stain blocking is needed, BIN is irreplaceable.

Zinsser Cover Stain: The Oil-to-Latex Bridge

Zinsser Cover Stain is an oil-based primer that serves a specific purpose in modern cabinet painting: it allows waterborne topcoats to adhere to surfaces that were previously finished with oil-based products.

The Oil-Based Adhesion Challenge

Many older cabinets in East Tennessee were finished with oil-based lacquers, varnishes, or polyurethanes. While modern waterborne paints are superior in many ways, they do not always bond well directly to cured oil-based finishes, even with sanding.

Cover Stain solves this by providing an oil-based layer that both adheres to the existing finish and accepts waterborne topcoats. It is the bridge between old and new.

When to Choose Cover Stain

• Cabinets with original oil-based finishes from before 2000
• Surfaces where adhesion tests show poor bonding with waterborne primers
• Projects where long-term durability is critical and you want maximum adhesion insurance
• Stained and varnished cabinets that need complete conversion to painted

Practical Considerations

Cover Stain is oil-based, so cleanup requires mineral spirits and dry time is longer than waterborne products. It has a strong odor that requires ventilation. But these trade-offs are worth it when you need the adhesion and stain-blocking benefits only oil-based primer provides.

Choosing the Right Primer

Primer Is Not Optional

Some homeowners ask if they can skip primer, especially with cabinet paints that claim to be self-priming. Our answer is always no. Even the best cabinet paints perform better over proper primer. You get better adhesion, better stain blocking, and a smoother foundation for your topcoat.

Skipping primer to save money on a cabinet painting project is false economy. When the topcoat fails in two years because it did not bond properly, the cost of redoing the work far exceeds what you saved on primer.

Our Process

At Rock's Painting, primer selection is part of our initial cabinet evaluation. We assess the existing finish, check for staining issues, identify the wood species, and determine the appropriate primer for each specific project. This attention to preparation is part of why our cabinet work holds up year after year.

With over 250 projects completed throughout the Tri-Cities, we have learned that proper preparation and the right materials make the difference between cabinet painting that lasts and work that fails prematurely. If you are considering cabinet refinishing, we are happy to evaluate your cabinets and explain exactly what your project requires.