A Guide on How to Choose a Home Painting Contractor
Most of us start a painting process by asking ourselves whether we need to hire a professional service or not. If you do not have any experience with this type of work and if you generally do not have enough time and cannot name a proxy to cover for you in all different areas of your life, it might be better to give it a miss. Professionals should, by definition, do a better job than you. Also, they should be able to do it in less time. The next question is how to find a contractor which will live up to your expectations.
Check the credibility
You should start your selection by finding out whether the contractor you want to hire has a license and get their license number. The number will help you get their track record and find out whether there have been any major complaints about their conduct. You will also be able to see how long they have been in business. Check the references they give you and even if their previous customers are overall satisfied, confirm whether there were any minor issues during the process. There usually are, but the nature of the incidents is what you are interested in knowing. The important thing is that the contractor did their job properly and that they acted responsibly throughout the process. Check whether they did something similar in the past to what you need to have done.
Who will be doing the actual work?
How big is the business you are looking into? Do they have enough of their own employees or will they hire subcontractors? You can trust a business to be able to vouch for their employees (even if they don’t want to, they have to). On the other hand, if they are hiring subcontractors, what do you know about them? Is there a way of checking? Have they worked with them previously? Will the original contractor formally enclose that they are liable for the work of their subcontractor? This is something you should keep in mind.
Get informed about the process itself
If you haven’t done the research yourself, check with the contractor if they can recommend certain materials and paints best suited for your project. Can they explain the reasoning behind it? What sort of prep work will they do? Ask them whether they are usually the ones to move and protect the furniture. You also want to know if they will protect other surfaces from getting paint on them, such as floors, doors, and windows. While you are at it, check whose responsibility it will be to clean and dispose of trash after the painting is done. Discuss the storage options. If they plan on leaving everything at your place, what type of storage should you provide and who will be responsible if anything goes missing?
Get an estimate
The price usually has the greatest impact on the decision-making process. This is why you should not be shy and ask everything you need to know upfront. Make sure that the contractor is available during the period you had in mind and ask them to give you a specific starting and finishing date. Also, the estimate they give you should list all of the items they have mentioned, starting from the preparation process. Get a formal, printed estimate and not just a scribble on a piece of paper.
Can they vouch for their work?
Ask them whether they can offer a guarantee for the work they do. If they do not mind it, ask to see how it is worded. You do not want them to avoid their liability by placing the blame on the paint manufacturer. If you want to try and decrease the expense, perhaps you can do the prep work yourself. Check how they feel about it and whether they would be able to offer any guarantee in that case. Most residential and home painters prefer doing the preparation work themselves as that way they know they did it well. Even though it can appear rough and easy, the prep work is sometimes the one that can make all the difference.
Communication
By now, you have already spent some time negotiating with the contractor and you have probably formed your first impression. Do they seem reliable? Are they easy to communicate with and how flexible are they? The last thing you want is for someone to paint your house the way they want it or stir you away from your idea for no apparent reason.
When redecorating your home, allow some extra time to choose the right contractor. You have to shop around and not fall for any verbal promises nor low prices. A contractor will always benefit from any job they take on, meaning that you are the one paying the price of a low price.
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