Granite is a beautiful addition to your kitchen as it gives the house a premium, modernized feel. Unfortunately, not everyone has the budget to install granite countertops in their home. While this is the case, you can still get the granite look by painting your current countertops.

Benefits of painting the countertops

In addition to giving your countertops a high-end look, painting the countertops also hides imperfections they might be having.

The variegated pattern of the painted granite also hides small imperfections that might come about as you are painting. This takes your stress away as you don’t have to be perfect in your work. In fact, if you don’t have the budget to hire a professional to handle the painting, you can do it by yourself.

The granite look works with almost any décor style, so if you don’t like the current look of the countertops, when you paint them, you make them blend in with the rest of the house.

Painting the countertops also allows you to highlight certain areas of the house that you would like people to pay attention to. You can highlight the bathroom cabinets and at the same time, add texture, depth, and warmth to the living space.

For you to properly paint the countertops, you have to follow a series of steps.  To help you out, here are the steps you should follow:

Clean the countertops

You can’t apply paint on dirty counters, so you need to clean them. Use a degrease or a mix of 1 tablespoon of mild dish soap to 4 cups of warm water. You can also use a mix of one part vinegar and two parts of warm water to remove any layers of dust and grease.

Thoroughly wipe down the entire countertop surface and allow it to completely dry. When cleaning, pay attention to the corners and edges of the countertops. Use a narrow scrub or toothbrush to get into the recesses and curves of the countertops that are prone to holding pockets of detritus.

You can also use a small, handheld vacuum with a brush to clean the edges.

Protect the appliances

It’s wise to give the countertops a seamless finish. For you to do this, you have to remove the appliances from their place. You can easily move the stove or any other small appliance but if the appliance is large, leave it where it is. To protect it, cover it with your preferred cover material.

Also, use painter’s tape to block off the sink or any other stationary items that you don’t want to get stained or nicked during the sanding.

Sand the countertops

Once everything is in place, the next action should be to sand the countertops. Use 320-grit sandpaper to go over the countertops. You should note that sanding is a big job and requires you to use a lot of pressure.

If you have a large kitchen, use a handheld sander. The sander is inexpensive and significantly makes the sanding work easier and faster.

When sanding, pay attention to the corners and edges. Ensure every inch of the countertops is sanded to make it easy for the paint to adhere.

You can get away with a single sanding on some countertops, but you are better off sanding at least twice so that you get a rough surface that doesn’t cause the paint to bubble or crack in the future.

Fix the gouges and dings

Once you are done with sanding, carefully go through the surface and be on the lookout for dings and gouges. If present, fill them with epoxy putty. Smooth the epoxy putty over the flawed areas then scrape the excess and allow it dry according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Once dry, sand to match the level of the rest of the counter.

Paint the countertops

Painting the countertops to resemble granite is easy. In fact, you don’t need to hire granite contractors Durham to help you out. After sanding the surface, apply a primer to cover all the parts of the original countertop surface.

Let the primer dry for at least eight hours then sponge three colors onto the dry primed countertop surfaces. Move evenly across the countertop surface in dabbing motions. Take care not to push the sponge too much onto the primed surface as you will make the surfaces look smeared and foggy.