Painted my kitchen cabinets with a $20 foam roller set...

I grabbed a 4-pack of foam rollers from the Dollar Tree in Portland for a cabinet refresh. After three coats, they came out smoother than the brush job I paid $200 for two years ago. My biggest takeaway was letting each coat dry a full 8 hours instead of rushing it. Has anyone else seen better results from cheap rollers over the fancy ones?

2 comments

2 Comments

tarab543d ago

Beg to differ on this one. I tried those cheap foam rollers from a discount store here in Ohio, and they left little bubbles all over my cabinets that drove me nuts. Ended up having to sand the whole mess down and start over with a 10 dollar microfiber roller set from the hardware store. The cheap ones seemed to hold way too much paint and then release it unevenly, especially on the second coat. Maybe the weather or humidity here is different, but I had a much rougher time with the budget rollers than I ever did with the nicer ones.

wrenwilson3d ago

Oh man, I feel your pain on those foam rollers. They're like sponges that just dump paint everywhere. I had the same bubble disaster on a dresser I was refinishing and learned the hard way that you gotta wet the roller first, squeeze it out, then load it up more gently. For cabinets especially, I swear by those high-density foam rollers that are a bit spendier, like the ones meant for smooth surfaces or automotive paint. They hold the paint in a thin, even layer instead of glopping it on, so you don't get those bubbles or texture issues. And if you're working in high humidity or cold, you gotta thin the paint just a tiny bit with Floetrol or water to keep it leveling out smooth. Saves a ton of heartache and sanding later.