How to Sand Cupboard Doors

Unscrew and remove the door hinges from the cabinets with a screwdriver and remove the doors. Unscrew the hinges and handles from the doors and put them in a safe place, along with all the screws. Use a nail to mark a number on one edge of each door as you take it down. Etch the number deeply so you don't sand it off.

Set up a pair of sawhorses in your workshop or outside and lay one of the doors on them. Strip off the old finish from both sides of the door with a chemical stripper and a paint scraper, then wipe the door down with a damp rag to remove the stripper residue.

Fit a piece of 100-grit sandpaper on an orbital sander and sand both sides of the door to remove any finish that you couldn't strip off. If the door has molding on the front, get as close as you can to the inside corners. Scrape off what you can't reach with a pull-scraper. Replace the paper as needed when it gums up or loses its grit.

Replace the paper with 120-grit sandpaper. Sand both sides of the door again to remove the orbital marks left by the coarser paper and smooth the wood. If the door has a stain and you are going to lighten the color, use the 120-grit paper to sand out as much of the old stain as you can.

Cut a sheet of 120-grit sandpaper in half and fold one half of the sheet. Use it to sand in the corners and along the edges of the door molding, as well as any other places you can't reach with the orbital sander. Sand with the grain of the wood. Sand out any scratch marks left by the scraper and sand along the edges of the door.

Hand sand the front of the door with 150-grit sandpaper. Cut a sheet in half, fold it over and sand the entire surface, going with the grain of the wood.

Wipe off the sanding dust with a damp rag prior to staining.