What kind of primer/paint would I use on MDF built-in bookshelves?

I'm building a built-in, 13' tall bookcase/cabinet from scratch in my living room and will be using MDF and moulding.





I want to finish them in a hard, durable, white paint that looks pro.





What kind (brand and type) of primer/paint would I use? Brush or roller?





Thanks.What kind of primer/paint would I use on MDF built-in bookshelves?
I use MDF quite often. I prime with Kilz and then paint.





You need to be specially careful with any edges that show. They really soak up the paint and tend to be rough looking. Sand them carefully, prime them and then sand again until they are smooth.





A roller will give you a smoother finish. Also if you use an eggshell finish you will get a better look. It also tends to hide brush marks.





For books cases I really like a oil base paint. It is more trouble but it will be more durable.





Note: If you are using MDF for shelves, be sure them are supported along their length. MDF can sag over time and the extra support will prevent this.What kind of primer/paint would I use on MDF built-in bookshelves?
I'd use a sandable primer, probably from Sherwin Williams. You prime it, let it dry, use a fine grit ( 150 to 200 grit ), to lightly sand it, then clean it. Next I'd use a little Penatrol paint conditioner to condition my alkyd based Pro-Classic brand (also at Sherwin Williams) semi-gloss white paint to lightly coat (with a smooth roller appropriate for oil paint), let dry completely, then lightly sand with very fine grit sandpaper, then clean using a waxed tack cloth.





Then final coat %26amp; let dry...





This is the basic method I'd use if I were painting it by hand, without a sprayer. I'd use oil paint because you have longer working time and can sand out brush strokes %26amp; imperfections between coats. (latex paint tends to not be sandable while you can sand to zero with alkyd based paints.





I don't work for Sherwin Williams but I am a pro with many years experience at renovation, remodeling and repair.





Good luck and I hope this helps...
Read it all first, I tend to remember of solutions to problems as I write.





Knock off the splinters off the edges from saw cuts using a piece of scrap wood and then dust off the cabinet with a duster brush or a dry rag or vacuum cleaner or a blow off the dust with mouth or air hose


On any bare wood...oil based primer such as alkyd primer. Thin it 10-15%(in other words, put some in another container like a plastic ice cream pail and then add a shot of paint thinner and stir it up with a wood paddle(not a brush as the brush will soak up all the thinner first into the bristles). This thinning does not hurt the primer, but in fact makes it easier to spread and it will soak in deeper into the wood surface and dry harder and faster than straight out of the can. Primer is not meant to be the finish coat, just the go-between coat between the surface and the finish. Brands don't matter. You get what you pay for.


You buy cheap=you get cheap. That fact holds true for paint.


Brush it and you can use a roller with 1/4'; pile if you wanna. Use a ';natural bristle'; brush for the paint. Not the ';good for both latex and oils and not the polyester or nylon brushes'; Forget the sponge. I got better things to do in the day than having to ';f'; around because the tool goes so slowly. Put on a light coat. It does not matter if it does not cover in 1 coat because it is ';primer';. Just hit everywhere. Then let it dry a full day and night or 2days or 3 or 4 or 85.


After it dries you will be able to see gouges, nicks, nail holes, pecker holes, hammer marks and the like. Fix them now.


I like spackle or Polyfilla over silicone because I can sand it smooth (silicone just is not that smooth) It is good for corner cracks but for knots and wood defects....no. Let fillers and silicone dry. Not rushing. Extra time is better than doing it to soon. When it says to work on a dry surface it means a dry surface.


Now hit the patches with sandpaper. 120C should be just right (a used piece of 120C=120A) if it is fairly good wood. Get the garnet(orange) sandpaper. Now, it is not perfectly square...so that means there is a long and short edge. Find the long edge and fold the sandpaper in half cutting the long edge in half. You have now folded the sandpaper correctly. Cut it in half along the fold. Now take the half sheets and fold them into thirds. You now have two pieces of sandpaper that fit comfortably in your hand and have 6 long edges to work with(when you want to use the edge of the sandpaper to get into the corners).


This is a hand sand job not a machine sand job. Machine sanding should be in the carpentry department(while building) not while finishing.


If the sandpaper clogs right away when you start sanding on the spackle(look at the sandpaper and blow on it. If the paper stays white on the pressure point it means that the mud is still mud. It should come off like dust. Always.


I am not asking you to sand off the primer, but if you felt over the surface you just painted with primer, you will be amazed at how rough it feels. That is sawdust, air dust, snot, bugs, and miscellaneous that fell into the wet paint while it was drying(also some of the wood surface swells upwards and dries into the uplifted position never to return. You are going to rub over that surface a couple of swipes with the sandpaper and refeel the surface. It should feel velvety smooth. This is what you want over the entire cabinet. You should not need a block to sand it(as the wood should be that good that there is no large expanses of pure filler). If it is a half inch gouge, sand it across the gouge from wood to wood rather than with the gouge(to regouge it) And feel it with your eyes closed using the finger tips.


So start sanding the lowest levels or flat surfaces first, then up the walls of the bookcase and the ceilings last. Using the ';dirt falls down physics'; Then when you figured you got it all sanded, vacuum clean the entire case and use a slightly damp clean cloth to wipe it quickly(especially around the polyfilla for it will redissolve and let it stand to dry for 5 minutes. If there was a lot of major repairs (over 1/2 inch holes) then some more of that primer is needed to be brushed on on those patches. Smaller ones can be left as is. They will not show.


Now find your finish paint. I would look for a gloss(no less than a semi-gloss) if books are going on it. Any flatter and black marks will be left from the books as they will mar the surface on flatter finishes.


You can go latex or oil. If you go latex, you need a different brush(nylon or polyester this time) and a new roller sleeve. And 2 coats of finish with a day minimum between coats in which you lightly sand to knock off the junk that comes from somewhere and sticks to the paint. (it could be a bug or a particle from the Skylab falling back to earth)


Why I didn't use latex primer? Try it and let it dry. Then feel it. Simply....what does wood do in water? Swell. Latex is water based paints. So, particle board, regular wood or chip board gets really rough and stays that way when it dries.


Kilz is either water or oil based ';stain stopper'; primer. Read the label. If you have wood that has the sawmill stamping inks on them or cedar wood with knots or rusty nails- the ink, cedar oil, and rust will bleed through multiple paint coats to the surface. A thin coat of Kilz (from a spray bomb (or shellac) will stop that from going farther. You still use a primer overtop. and then a finish paint over that.


Some ';so called'; carpenters use indelible pencils (which can burn through 5 coats of paint. %26gt;Tried to paint it over just out of interest) Latex or oil. A regular pencil does not cause that problem





Hard and durable. Oil finish is harder, lasts longer under wear and tear(used in kitchens and bathrooms on the walls and cabinets that get washed continually, handrails, on outdoor machinery.


It sounds old school but ask a paint store- not Wal~Mart or similar box store paint department. Ask the store manager over the floor sales clerk who just got hired this summer.