How much will it be to paint my foyer?

How much will it be to paint my foyer?

We have painted more foyers than I can remember, the reason for that is they are typically high and dangerous for the typical homeowner to tackle, the heights present a few challenges when working with paints.

• Lap marks from rolling from high to low where the paint meets in the middle, once the paint is dry you will see a band in the middle of the wall
• Working on the stairs, how to properly use a ladder near and on your steps
• Time, we just only have so much time in the day, do you really want to spend it painting when you can be enjoying your family or doing what you do best to earn your living?

Heights of foyers

So your typical foyer we see is usually about 18-20 ft high, the stairwell is right in front of you when you walk into the front door and it may or may not be an open space crossing right into the living room.

For this instance we are speaking of one that is not open, it has a small hallway at the top, a bathroom at the bottom hall and a closet.

So what do you want to be painted?

Here is where your choices begin, let's assume your foyer is about 20x10

This means your ceiling is 200 square feet, not that much but remember it's now 20 ft in the air and will require ladders and possibly scaffolding so the price goes up a bit, typically that ceiling using a good quality paint from Benjamin Moore like Ultraspec will cost you about $225-$275 

You will want to use a flat paint generally on a ceiling to hide any imperfections, remember when they are building a home the ceiling is not a focus for the finishers and you can have some uneven sheetrock or spackle work.

Paint The Walls

Now to paint your walls remember we are measuring the wall sq ft, not the floor so we have 1200 sq ft, not 200, so to do our general spackling of most (not all) dings and dents, nail holes) spot prime with an interior primer and apply two coats of a good quality paint such as Benjamin Moore Regal we would be charging about $1100

The Trim

Do you want the trim done? That would include any baseboard, spindles perhaps, the interior side of the front door and any other doors in that area. Typically in a room this size you can add another $400 to apply two coats of paint.

Remember these prices can vary and your foyer may be higher or lower but to have an idea of what it may cost is a great thing.

Using professional painters

These costs are using professional painters, who are employed by us, are trained by us and work to support their families.

Painting A Medical Facility

Painting A Medical Facility.

Painting a medical facility takes a trained and professional staff as you will surely have challenges unlike other commercial painting work  such as:

• Using Products around people who are sick, low to zero voc products
• Wet paint around a very busy facility and many people
• Safety issues and tight workspaces
• Being considerate of your surroundings, being quiet, not disrupting the work of the staff
• Guiding patients to the correct areas and helping when needed
• The work surely will be phased, have you properly estimated it for these delays?

Medical painting and facility painting can be great.

It also can be disastrous if your staff is not trained as a company, are they professional and do they know that some matters will take priority over the painting work and can come at any moment?

It can be frustrating if you're not prepared for these types of delays but with the proper planning and the training of your staff, these types of projects can be very rewarding. Knowing your working in a clean area with special paints that will help keep the walls germ free goes a long way in taking pride in your work, it goes one step further knowing your also helping out a team of doctors, nurses and staff in the hospitals or clinics.

Amato Painting does countless commercial painting projects.

The hospitals, clinics, and rehab centers are one of our specialties and we have worked for some of the areas largest facilities down to small clinics. Some of this work is done at night but keep in mind most of the facilities are still running so it takes a highly trained staff of painters to accomplish these projects. Throwing subcontractors or unskilled "painters" into projects like this is a recipe for disaster.

Some types of things painting can do for your facility 

• Anti-scuff paint for high traffic areas
• Clean rooms and germ-free walls
• Color coordinating hallways
• Protection of surfaces from rust, mildew, and mold
• Patient and employee morale using certain colors
• Protection from water damage for exterior surfaces
• Staying up to date on inspections

If you need a consultation on what a professional company can offer your facility please schedule online at www.ryanamatopainting.com

How to get the best price when painting your home

How to get the best price when painting your home.

When you decide to have your home painted whether it's the interior or exterior you have a few things to do to make sure you get the best price for your project.

Remember you can always get a lower price, that is not the goal here, you want to find the best value for the price, the lowest price may actually be the highest when all is said and done.

How can that be you ask? It's simple, you have three prices to paint your bedroom, let's say $500,$600 and $800

Of course, the $500 is tempting, you only have so much money allocated, they seem fine and anyone can paint, right?

The painting estimate

• But they want you to supply the paint, so you have to take time, run to the store, get the paint. If you don't order enough guess who is running back out for more paint? And hopefully, they don't charge you for the wasted time.
• The will not help with color selections at all, so you have more work to do.
• Maybe they used a lower grade of paint, which means it will not last as long, clean up well and you will be forced to repaint in another year (ADDED COSTS)
• They use subcontractors who are not trained by the same company, you may get a good paint crew and you may not, it's a gamble. 
• They may not be insured and the subcontractor also may not be insured making things very sketchy should an injury happen.
• If something happens who will come back and touch up? Wil they come back at all?
• Is the communication good throughout the process? 
• Is their relationship with the paint manufacturer a good one? Support from Benjamin Moore or Sherwin Williams surely helps any project should an issue arise.

 What painting actually costs

So that $500 estimate could actually cost you double or triple a year or two down the road by having to repaint the work again or worse yet an accident and your insurance will cost with a deductible.

The lowest price is usually that for a reason, not in every case but the majority of the time. Saving money is great however when it will cost you more, in the long run, you have to be very diligent and think about the goals of the project.

Here are some tips to get a great price when painting your home.

• Develop a relationship with your painting contractor, when you have projects pop up you will have a go-to company and with that usually comes perks such as free upgrades of paint, an extra here and there and knowing who is around your home.
• Know exactly what you want to be done and clearly explain that to your estimator
• Make sure what you said you want to be done is clearly listed in the proposal, many companies will do a completely different job than the one you wanted using cheap paints and materials or untrained labor.

With our company, we offer a free color consultation with a decorator, touch ups once per year and a highly skilled staff of employees

Interior painting and why it's so awesome

Interior painting is awesome

Yes, I said painting is awesome, especially interior painting, being in someones home on an estimate is where it starts, getting to listen to their hopes, dreams, and expectations and usually getting to sit down and take a look at colors and ideas.

This is what I love and where I am most involved, many people do say to stop doing the estimates personally and eventually I will have to but for now, I enjoy the days out and getting to meet most of the people. Yes I sometimes come across some I would rather just forget about, not everyone can be as nice as most of our clients.

Once we are given a project is where the work starts, from gathering tools and the paint itself, to going over the plan with their crew leader, to the crew leader making a visit to the home to make sure my plan or Kyle's plan is a good one or do we need to tweak it a bit.

Once that visit is done the fun begins, getting to change a home drastically and immediately by adding color is an awesome feeling. I know for a fact if you ask our painters why they like to paint most will say they get to step back after the job and see what they did and see the smiles on the customer's faces.

There aren't many other trades such as painting where you can almost instant gratification, in less than a week and in some cases a day you can change the look and feel of your home. Not to mention it is the number one investment to add value to your home for the lowest cost.

Our painting customers are the best

Meeting all the great people from doctors to mechanics to office workers and mom's and dad's and their children is always fun and most people are so accommodating we can never forget them. I see people out all the time we have done work for and get to know them and their families.

Yes, we do get some people that would turn anyone's smile upside down, but most likely they are not happy anywhere in their life so these people are few and far between, out other clients are the ones we remember and develop relationships with. Here's to a great fall painting season

Playing phone tag

No More Phone Tag

What's worse than being excited for getting work done around your home and deciding to call a contractor and they either call back days later or never at all?

I know that frustration first hand when I had a few things to do around my home and reached out to numerous contractors only to be never called back, called back weeks later or promised an estimate and never received one.

We face that same thing in our office although in a different way. We try to get right back to people the same day but when we return the call nowadays not many people actually answer their phone. So when we attempt to schedule an estimate it becomes a game of phone tag.

I needed this to stop so we just added an online scheduling system, you can schedule your estimates online without having to speak to anyone at http://www.ryanamatopainting.com/contact-painter.php

Simply select your estimator to see his availability and choose the day and time that best fits your needs. That's it the end of phone tag for us.

We want nothing more than to be able to come out right away and give you your estimate right away, the downside to this is we are ALWAYS the first one out and we sometimes get "I need to wait for the other estimates" When this happens we know the other estimates may or may not be coming and were waiting for weeks on our end sometimes for an answer as the schedule keeps on filling your available time to do your project keeps getting pushed back.

Keep that in mind when you receive these other estimates, what happens when the job starts and they weren't attentive when you asked for a price?

How To Get The Paint Job Of Your Dreams

How To get The Paint Job Of Your Dreams:

Everyone dreams of a beautiful home, one that is warm, inviting and let's face it makes people a bit jealous when they see it in person.

We all see the tv shows just amazing bedrooms, bathrooms, and basements. We see the pictures on Pinterest and all over social media and wonder if one day we can have the same amazing outcome.

Sure it takes money, great products, and the painting company or contractor to make it happen but there are a few things more important than all of those and we will go over them below.

Now don't get me wrong after you have all of these important things in place you need the best products for the job, a great company with skilled craftsman and women but we will get to that in a minute.

There are a few super important matters to go over before we get into to all those other details and these are the ones that most of the time cause issues of a bad job or satisfaction not being met, it is not always a "bad contractor" even when it may seem that way.

• Expectations: Yes we all "expect" a good job but what is that exactly, one person's idea of a great job can be totally different than the next, I have seen it, first-hand guys, we do the same job on each and every one of our projects and we have "bad" jobs as any other contractor has had. Could it be a bad paint job? Sloppy? Missed spots? Or simply a difficult client, one that is never happy? Those all can happen but usually, it starts with missed expectations, something was missed at the estimate, the client may not of been home or the one that will critique the mist wasn't home and never met the estimator to explain what they want and expect. remember one person's perfect paint job doesn't make it everyone's. If the estimator had dove in and explained to the correct person what will and won't be done and how things will go it could have been a different story. TIPS: Be Home for the estimate-Have a detailed list of what you want done-How much prep and patching do you expect- How long will this project really take? Ask questions and be open about communication

The keys to know when painting your home

• Quality Vs Price: Were you open and honest about your budget? Or did you hide the fact you're looking for the top of the line job but you beat the contractor up on the price? Trust me when someone just drops the price it will be coming from somewhere, cheaper materials, cheaper labor or skipping steps somewhere.TIPS: Be honest about your budget-Be open about what this project looks like in your mind

• Communicate Throughout the project: It never stops amazing me when people hire us and then disappear. Meaning they don't talk, are not available to go over things, have no input until the last day and then it is ripe for expectations to be missed. TIPS: Be available- Speak to your lead painter-Do walkthroughs with them

• Be Nice: Nothing is worse than working for someone who just isn't nice. We all know the kind, they hire you and then have nothing to say but negative things if they speak to you at all. Or they refuse to deal with the lead painter onsite who can help them in a few minutes, they would rather go around the communication policies and call their supervisors. This only delays a quick fix that could easily be done onsite ruins the relationship of the person that can help you the most and makes everyone want to finish your job quicker to get away from them. Again leaving it ripe for things to be missed or mistakes to be made. No one works well under mean people. TIPS: You catch more flies with honey than vinegar- Be kind

These are just a few of the important things when you're having any home improvement project done. After these things than it is selecting your painting contractor, finishes and more. If you can keep the important ones straight these other choices are the fun ones.