ᐅ How to Re-enable KALLAX Doors After Spray Painting?

Hello everyone,

I have a small problem with my KALLAX shelves from IKEA, specifically with the doors that I painted later using spray paint. Now the doors are sticking at the hinges or the edges and won’t open or close properly. I suspect that the spray paint stuck to the seals or hinges because it wasn’t fully dried or perhaps remained too tacky on the surface.

My question to you is: How can I make these doors move smoothly again without damaging the paint? Are there any products or methods to protect the paint while preventing the sticking? I would prefer not to have to repaint completely, as that would be quite labor-intensive.

I would appreciate any helpful tips or experiences, thank you in advance!

Hey Ronreo, that’s exactly what I experienced recently! 🙂

What really helped me was gently roughening the hinges and contact surfaces with some fine sandpaper, so the surface wasn’t as sticky anymore. Then I applied a very thin layer of silicone-based lubricant – this makes the movement much smoother without damaging the paint.

You should give it a try! It’s great when you can fix this without much effort :-)

kenkeo schrieb:
a very thin layer of silicone-based lubricant applied – this makes the movement much easier without damaging the paint.

That sounds great, I had the same problem. It’s really important not to use oily substances, as they can sometimes damage the paint. Silicone grease is ideal for this! 🙂

I would lightly sand the doors at the contact points and then wipe them down with a damp cloth to remove any loose particles. After that, either spray silicone lubricant or apply a special furniture wax solution. Problem solved.

Sticky surfaces after spray painting? First, remove the excess paint with very fine abrasive pads (grit 400+). Usually, this is enough to eliminate sticky surfaces before using any lubricants.

Please note that with spray paints, especially on coated furniture surfaces, complete curing and the associated drying phase can take several days. If such a surface is subjected to mechanical stress too soon, sticking may occur.

To address this issue, the following steps are recommended:

1. Carefully sand the affected contact areas with 400-600 grit sandpaper.
2. Then thoroughly clean the surface using isopropanol to remove dust or grease.
3. Use silicone spray or specialized furniture coating maintenance products that increase slip resistance while being gentle on the coating.

Avoid oil-based lubricants, as they can damage the paint.