Spring: The Peak Painting Season

For most residential painters, spring is their busiest time of the year. It's when homeowners finally spend some time outside and can see their house needs attention, or maybe it's just because spring is for many the time to engage in clean-up and fix-up.

Here are a few tips for conducting your own walk-around inspection. Things to look for:

• Cracked or peeling paint.
• Signs of rotted or swelling wood.
• Cracks in caulking (or missing caulking) around windows & doors.
• Mildew (grayish discoloration--looks like dirt).
• Severely faded, or thin-looking, paint.

Paint is not just there for aesthetic reasons. It's most important function is serving to protect the wood and siding from the elements. The sun's U.V. rays are perhaps paint's biggest enemy, so you'll likely see the worst degradation of paint in areas that get the most exposure to the sun.

If you have painting done, be sure it includes:

• Pressure washing, including the use of bleach (removes dirt and mildew).
• Priming of any exposed bare wood.
• Use of a good-quality caulk. I don't recommend latex caulks and do recommend the use of a quality elastomeric caulk (it stays flexible and stretches), such as Sherwin Williams' "Sher-Max" caulk.
• The use of a top-quality paint. My choice: Sherwin Williams' exterior "Duration" paint. Benjamin Moore top-quality exterior paints also perform well. I do NOT recommend buying paint from the big box stores (Home Depot, Lowes).
• A warranty. Be sure to get it in writing and know what it includes. Most reputable painters will include a warranty (generally at least 2-3 years).

CertaPro Painters Complaints

There's a franchise painting company out there called CertaPro Painters.

They call themselves a national painting company but they're not, really.
Each franchise is really an independent company and who knows if they all do things the same way? Probably not. They may use subcontractors.

They like to put a lot of stuff out there about customer satisfaction and all that but I've see quite a few complaints about them. You might want to take a closer look at CertaPro Painters complaints.

If they were as good as they claim they are, I don't know why they'd have to hire a "reputation management" company to bury the complaints, though, do you?

Finding A Good Painter

If you are having your house painted, it can be an expensive investment.

How much does it cost to paint a house?
Well, an exterior paint job could be in the range of $1,500 to $3,500 or more depending on the size of the house, how tall, difficulty of reaching areas, the condition of the existing paint, etc.

So since you'll be spending all that money, you'll want to ensure you find a decent painter.

Be sure to check the painter's references.
Any good painter should be able to give you at least 3 good references.
Call them.

When the painter visits you, what kind of vehicle does he drive?
If it's a 20-year old, beat up pickup truck with one fender duct-taped on, well...maybe not.
If it's brand new and looks just too slick, well...maybe not.

Find out if the job includes a  warranty.
If so, is it in writing?

Don't pay much up front.
A 10% to 15% deposit is acceptable, but if the painter wants a larger deposit or payment up front, forget about that painter.

Does the painter use subcontractors?
Could be trouble.