You Want A Painting Estimate Now

You Want A Painting Estimate Now

You want a painting estimate now but are your prepared for what you may hear?

Do you know what type of company you would like to hire?

What? You didn't know every company is different?

Remember the painting industry is not robotic, every painter, every company does things differently and each will have different costs associated with "their way"

Before you send that email or call that painting company you chose from facebook or Google, make sure you know what is important to you and your family for the work you want done. 

This can included

• The time frame
• How much preparation of the surface you want ( it is not standard from company to company) 
• The type of paint you want to use vs your budget, remember you can go from $15 a gallon of paint all the way up to and over $100 PER GALLON
• What will make you thrilled once the project is over, what will you remember about the job
• Have you had issues in the past with other companies

The Time Frame

The time frame is very important, most companies will surely be 4-6 weeks out with scheduling, please plan your projects ahead of time when possible, there is always a chance a project can be done ahead of that time frame when time and schedule permits. But if your time frame is less than a week, you will have an issue securing a highly sought after professional painting company or painter.

Let them know right away on the phone, a good company will ask this BEFORE coming out so they can avoid wasting anyone's time for a time frame they could never meet.

Preparation

No two companies will prepare your walls the same and it doesn't mean any one company is right or wrong, some companies do high end work where every inch of the surface is perfect and budget is not an issue for that client while other companies give you a general patching , hitting small dings and dent, maybe not all of them will be done but the majority and than there will be companies in between. 

Without explaining what you want your project is ripe for missed expectations and trouble, the experience will be miserable if you think your getting one job but receive another.

Don't be afraid to have an open and honest discussion with the contractor you're going to select because it is certainly a relationship. With any type of relationship if there is no communication there will be issues.

Paints Used

Paint prices vary so greatly, you can get a lower grade paint for a quick color change for an apartment for $15 or less in some cases or you can go all out and spend over $100 for a custom hand made paint from Benjamin Moore. Somewhere between those two options are many, many other choices depending on the performance you wish for your home or business.

Here are some questions to ask yourself

• Will you wash your walls?
• If so will you scrub them?
• Do you have children and pets?
• What type of sheen (shine) or lack of do you wish?
• What colors are you choosing?
• How often do you repaint
• Do you want a zero voc paint?
• Do you or anyone in your home have asthma or allergies?

The Vision

When your project is over a good company should know and meet what your vision is for your project.

We all have a vision, whether you got it from Houzz, Google, saw a friends home, a picture on Facebook or simply came up with it on your own, that is a vision and we want to know what that looks like so we can meet and exceed it.

A picture, drawing, link or video is a great way to share this vision, having a working relationship with any contractor will surely make your painting project a great one

Painter for a day is a great deal

Sometimes small projects get pushed away from other painting contractors as they are sometimes more work than it is worth, we saw this issue and created a "painter for a day"
What this means is you don't have to take time meeting 3 or 4 contractors giving estimates and many of them won't show, so you took off of work and lost even more money.
We offer one fee of $500 for one experienced painter for one day.
We are offering a painter for a day:

Our Painter For A Day program includes all of the following for the low cost of $500.00. Job Specific Materials & Equipment are billed at our cost plus 25%. Job specific materials are paint, tape, roller covers for example:

• One experienced painter during normal working hours
• All necessary tools such as ladders, drop cloths
• 8 hours of quality painting service

Painter For A Day services can include:

• Painting your Office, Hallways, or Lobby
• Painting your Common Areas or Stairwells
• Touch-Up Interior or Exterior Trim
• Paint your Doors and Door Frames to make them look new
• Work on both interior and exterior surfaces
• And Much More!
• This would be great for a smaller job such as that one wall that needs to be painted, or a few doors and trim that you need to be spruced up before the family comes over.
• This is not for large exterior work, anything needing an extension ladder or more detailed projects, for those you would want to get a proper estimate. This is for residential projects only but doesn't fret our commercial friends we also do offer painters for daily projects.
• For you,  it saves time, no need for an estimate and knowing you will get your small project done in an efficient way.
• For our end, it reduces costs as we do not have to come out for an estimate as those costs are built into the jobs, for a painter for a day you get a drastically reduced price and an expedited service saving weeks when normally placed on the schedule.
• If you would like more information please visit our website at www.ryanamatopainting.com or email bidrequests@ryanamatopaintingllc.com

Number one reason for a paint job you don't like

Expectations are the number one issue a job can go wrong.
If the painting estimator, foreman and painter do not know your expectations for the project rest assured you're gambling with your satisfaction of your home or business.

If the painter is doing the job his or her way but you have a completely different idea in your head it is ripe for disaster
This is one reason we will not do estimates without meeting the decision maker and interviewing them about their project, what they expect and want so they are 100% satisfied at completion.

The number one missed expectation is general patching. What gets patched on a job before painting, how smooth will the walls be? This is all up for debate.
Check out this video I made regarding general patching of your painting project, it can help save some bad feeling sand money.

What to expect on the first day of your painting job

The first day of your painting project is coming up and by now hopefully, you have expressed all of your expectations and have turned in your color selections. So now what?

A good company will call and confirm the start of the job a few days beforehand and introduce either your foreman or project manager at this time, he would be your point of contact throughout the process, one thing this person hates is clients calling the office when he or she can easily solve almost any problem on site and much  faster.

On the day of the job you should have your breakables moved out of the rooms being painted, furniture put into the middle of the room and a nice breakfast ready for the painters (ok just kidding on the breakfast)

Your crew or painter will arrive and the person in charge (your foreman) will walk through the entire project with you and go over each color and all of your expectations based off of the scope of work. If there are any issues this is a great time to bring them up and resolve any unmet expectations after the job is complete.

They will go over job sequencing and scheduling to let you know how they will manage your job when certain rooms will be done and if they see any issues

As this is going on the rest of the crew is setting up a shop area somewhere you said would be a good spot such as the basement or garage, you should also let them know where they can clean their tools and what bathroom facilities to use.

Once your walk-through is complete your general spackling will begin and masking off of baseboards, plastic covering the furniture and drop clothes placed on the floor.

Now the expert work will begin, our painters are highly skilled and trained and do not need other supervision on the site, remember you hired professional, you must let them work. They may do things you're not accustomed to, remember just because you read it online doesn't make it true or the professional way to do things. Nothing is worse the client disrupting the painters, it distracts them, cause ill will and may make them rush your project.

A few days before the project is over the foreman will walk it with you, address any concerns at this time, hand you, our invoice and let you know payment is due on the completion day.

Once payment is made we will ask for any referrals, reviews and take some pictures of our work. No is a great time for a video review of our work and helps tremendously with our future work

A great few weeks

We have had a great few weeks at Amato Painting in many ways.

We won Lehigh Valley Style Best Painting and Wallpaper services 2017 for the 4th Year in a row

Lehigh Valley What's Happening Best Painting Company for the second year in a row and third overall time plus we are a Hall Of Fame Member
We were honored to receive the PDCA Bronze Safety Achievement Award which is a National Award and one we were thrilled to get.

I personally have been all over the place, in magazines, on other websites, have an article coming out in a National painting trade magazine soon, been invited on blogs and just for doing what I love to do which is painting, business,
and teaching others

Not to mention the painters and sales team have been killing it recently and were booked pretty solid

None of this would be possible without the people who help me , from the painters who get up every day and go to jobs they may not like or deal with very difficult customers or tough weather such as rain, extreme heat and cold. Jeremiah has been here from day one and is the hardest working person and always up for a challenge to the office staff who deals with my ever changing ways, we worked hard to bring in great people in the office and in the field who can manage themselves and it has paid off on my end simple by me not being involved in every day to day task.

Tanya kills it with our commercial jobs and if you don't pay your bill you will answer to her, she is who I lean on every day and were a great team together!! She does not go unnoticed by me

Kyle came in and took a huge load off of me personally by managing the painters, he is learning while in the fire with some of the craziness each day but has handled it very well and always asks to learn new things

Marisa Came in when we needed support in the office, with a busy family life she helps as much as she can and has certainly helped with the enormous amount of paperwork thatis required for some of our jobs.

Adair in the shop has brought some structure to the ordering of paint, supplies and all whiel he goes to college at night (That is a work ethic!)

Rich our commercial estimator is so busy he asks for mercy sometimes but has been a great resource and is invaluable to us

But on my end the people who have inspired me to keep me going, some may not even know it
Rian Carr was with us a short while but you can sense his passion for things and that is inspiring to me, Other painting companies most certainly inspire me Nolan Painting and Brian and Kevin helped me so much get to where we're at today, Steve Burnett and Tom Reber, I am not a client of either but each day I learn something new
There are so many more, Anthony from Sherwin Williams, Eric Miller Benjamin Moore, All the guys from Gleco Paint and the Benjamin Moore reps, Pipeline Deals, Knowify, Pep Cloud Estimating

Too many to mention but the point is everyone who you come across each day may insire you in some way to do great things never have your blinders on.

What makes for a great painting estimate

I go on about 10 estimates a week in person and not counting the others we do from blueprints in the office so I have seen it all from potential clients who could care less what I have to say other than the price to ones who I can talk to forever.

Somedays the bad ones make it a very long day but the others who turn out to be great make up for the bad generally

So what makes a great estimate on my end?
Communication is the big one here for me, if a potential client does not open up about their project or we do not connect in some way while I am there it makes for a very difficult estimate, I never find out their key needs nor did they share them with me which makes it a complete guess once we start the job and is ripe for problems and expectations not met.

Be on site, I know that sounds simple but the person making the decision should be on site, you have to connect or feel comfortable with who you hire and not make your decisions solely off of the price. We ask a lot of questions before we show up on an estimate and if the decision is based solely on price for a residential project we will refer these jobs out.

We are entering into a relationship once an estimate is given and you select us to do your work, we will be interacting over the course of your project and we like to work for great people and are selective in who we work for just as much as you are when selecting your contractor.

Know what you want and express it at the estimate, not after the job starts. At that point you should let the painters do what they are trained and experienced to do, paint. Nothing is worse than a homeowner looking over their shoulders or pulling gout a light to shine on the wall which is a big no-no. Know what you want, express it to the estimator and let them deliver it.

You can always find someone cheaper

You can always find someone cheaper but at what cost?

You  do your due diligence and get three estimates

One is high or so you think, one in the middle and one very low.

They all seem to have the same things, paint walls, patch holes. You didn’t ask a lot of questions or really explain your expectations but shouldn’t be a problem they are all painters and should know how to do this right?

Did you ask is what type of experience do they have on work like yours

Do they carry full liability insurance AND WORKMAN'S COMP?  if they have other painters on your site and you haven’t gotten their workman's comp cert your at a huge risk (bet not many have it

What is their reputation with customers and the paint stores they use?

What type of training do they offer their painters (bet not many have an answer here either)

SO that high price or so it seemed,  in the end may be the best one, trained painters who have health insurance, workman's comp and know what they are doing.

The low priced one has no insurance, spilled paint (it happens) but cant pay to replace it and you already gave them your deposit

Your gambling on your home, who is in it and what they may damage or not.

At Amato Painting we can with certainty know the results you will get as we have done the same type of work over and over. We train our painters from start of the job to the last day.

No worries when you handle a job or project over to us. We will take care of all the little details.

How many coats of paint and why?

How many coats of paint and why? 

That question gets asked a ton when I am doing a painting estimate.  It seems that one coat should be sufficient – after all, it’s paint, same color same can from the same store however it isn't quite that simple

  Let’s look at several factors that can affect how many coats of paint are necessary for a perfect paint job.

Painting with the same color of paint

If the walls in a room are currently painted white and you paint them with white again, one coat should be sufficient. However, if the “new” paint is of low quality or has a sheen of any kind it will be difficult to match that same sheen as existing, while it may "cover" your finish would not be uniform

Assuming the walls are clean and not faded a single coat using the same sheen and good quality paint should be sufficient,.

Painting dark over light

Accurately estimating the number of coats you’ll need if you’re going from one color to another can be tricky. Theoretically, when painting a dark color over a light color, a single coat is all you need. But this isn’t always the case. (If ever) 

Some paint shades – for example, pastels, and even some heavier colors like deep red – are what we call low-hide colors. This means they don’t hide previous paint colors, as well as other shades do even when the previous colors are of a lighter tint. Two coats of paint are often necessary when using low-hide colors.

Also, custom-mixed colors and lower-grade paints won’t cover as well as factory-mixed paints, regardless of what shade you’re trying to hide.

Painting light over dark

Obviously when painting a light color, say a creamy yellow, over something like a rich mahogany, a single coat isn’t going to do the job. You might paint four coats, and still, that creamy yellow looks polluted. In this case, you can save time and money by applying a tinted primer before the new paint.

There are many types of primer, but all of them are engineered to neutrally block a current color and provide a surface that will allow the new paint to fully attach and cover. Before selecting a primer, talk with a professional painter or an experienced paint store staff member.

What it costs to paint a bedroom in Easton,Pa

What it costs to paint a bedroom in Easton,PA

One question we get asked every day is what does it cost to paint a bedroom

Some people are shocked at the price and some understand the costs that a small company incurs on a daily basis to stay in business

Using a professional painting company comes along with many great things, a trained staff, professional painters, liability  insurance  and workman’s compensation paid on workers, crews, vehicles so if something would happen you and your family (and home) are covered. The same can not be said hiring a company who uses uninsured sub-contractors. You’re on your own there and hopefully if something would happen the insurance is in place on the company and their subcontractors

Here are some fees that are in the cost to paint a room from a professional company:

•                   Workman Compensation and liability insurance
•                                      Taxes, payroll taxes, social security unemployment  etc
•                    Costs such as vehicles and marketing
•                    Training for painters
•                      Health Insurance and benefit packages if applicable

So what does it cost to paint a bedroom let’s get to the answer?

To paint a typical 10x12 bedroom pictured above  with two coats of quality paint from Sherwin Williams or Benjamin Moore you will have these typical costs

 The average cost would be about $350

Add the ceilings and add $150-$200

Add the baseboard for about $125

So a typical room this size is around $350-$600 Depending on what is getting done, height of walls, any patching other than small dings, dents and nail holes. The timeframe is also important; if you need it done right away a good company is ging to be booked out 4-6 weeks, so to move you up in the schedule will come with a premium.

Do you need the absolute best materials and quality? Well then that is a premium

If price is the absolute most important thing and you need the cheapest price possible, than timing and quality will certainly be where the savings will come from, it would be scheduled when crews are free , a rainy day where scheduled exterior work cannot be done.  You may get trainees on site learning the trade or the average painter while the top craftsman are on the other jobs where the top quality was requested and paid for.

Most jobs can be done under any budget “if” that is known and spoken about at the estimate.

What we find sometimes is that is not shared, someone looking for the bottom dollar price never shares that, gets a bunch of estimates and solely picks the lowest price regardless of who they preferred while if they would of shared this with the painting company they likes most likely the project could have been adjusted to make that happen