Dried out with fan and light bulbs. Sanded off punky particle board with ROS.
Current status:
Cabinet floor is mostly smooth and dry with some small patches of dry but rough and a little punky PB.
Limitations:
Replacing cabinets is NOT an option just now.
Question:
What is best solution and prophylactic action? I'm thinking of sealing the particle board and MDF with something (shellac, wood preservaticve, &tc,. ???), then coating with a primer (Kilz?), then painting with a quality oil-based paint.
The best solution: Replace the bad MDF with plywood. I've done this several times for people, and it usually takes a couple of hours. Cut the old stuff out with a reciprocating saw; replace the bad supports underneath (trust me, they're bad), glued and nailed in place; put in replacement floor, glued and nailed. The new floor will have to go in in two or more pieces. Sand, prime, and paint. Use a good gloss paint.
Next best solution: Use wood putty on the rough parts. Sand, prime, and paint. Cover everything with heavy shelf liner.
OK solution: Put a new piece of plywood on top of the bad MDF. Sand, prime, paint
Go to Sam's or Gordon's or whatever local place sells restaurant supplies to the public. Buy 1 or 2 or those gray plastic tubs they sell for busboys to use, whatever combination they have that will fit through the doors into your cabinet. Put them under the drip points for sink. Added advantage- you can fill them with cleaning supplies, and when those leak, they will not soak into the cabinet floor either. You can also slide them out like drawers to reach the stuff in the back. If the busboy tubs are too big for your cabinet, plastic wash tubs, catbox pans, etc, come in other sizes and would also work.
Saw dust + water soluble glue = particle board. Dissolve glue and you have sawdust. If the defects are small, just mix up some Elmer's Wood Glue, a little water and some crumbled particle board or sawdust. Wood filler works fine.
Shellac is one type of primer, for certain coatings. Don't over-engineer a simple task. Prime with your favorite brand of primer intended for bare wood. Caulk joints and openings with paintable caulk so future leaks don't penetrate the ends of the panel. Paint two or three coats of alkyd, being sure that each cures .. you don't want to put stuff back in before the paint cures.
FWIW, Kilz is a BRAND NAME - I think everyone thinks "Kilz" because it got to be the most popular stain-blocking primer. I have used several types of Kilz, as well as other brands. If I need primer, I generally get same brand as my favorite paint.
More, here:
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If the p.b. is dry, largely intact, and properly painted, it will last another 100 years.
We had our kitchen "redone", with new doors and drawers and facings on frames. The cabinets are 40 y/o, built in place 3/4" ply - we couldn't afford same quality for replacement and there was nothing wrong with interiors other than wear. Sanded and painted interiors (who looks at inside of the cab. when it is full?). Just a couple of months after paying beaucoup $ for the work, our kitchen flooded from burst washer hose. Quick work with a wet vac and squeegee nozzle kept the cabinets from being damaged by the water, which got to about 1" deep in places.
I keep an old towel laid down inside cabinet under the sink to catch drips - no leaks, and if there is something more substantial I want it to be evident.
I like alkyd paint for kitchen and bath - greasy dirt and spills soften latex paint too quickly.
Probably just get it smooth, mabye give it a coat of exterior paint if it's real bad, and cover with shelf liner. Or if you want a better result with more work, you can go buy a sheet of veneer cabinet facing, make a template and glue in place. Will likely have to be in more than one piece though to get it in
over any 15 year period or so, you'll get leaks under the sink for rusting connections etc. I paint my wood inside with a two part epoxy paint.. -- ps. I'm in the epoxy business so just grab some from the shelf. --- paul
I like using a piece of scrap vinyl flooring in the bottom of cabinet to make it more water resistant. Of course, it won't hold up to a gallon of water, but is impervious to the little drips.
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