7 Things to Ask Exterior Painters Before You Hire
Every homeowner needs this list!
Painting your home exterior is a considerable investment. We know it can be hard to know if a paint contractor will give you your money’s worth. Here are a few quick and easy questions you can ask in the estimate appointment to help you with your decision.
First, we recommend getting three paint bids. Usually one company will stand out above the others.
- How long have you been in business in Colorado or elsewhere?
- What is your method for applying paint? (We apply a true two-coats of paint. “Wet-on-wet” application is NOT a true two coats and will void a manufacturer warranty. There are a few products like Sherwin-Williams™ Duration® or Emerald™ that are one-coat products but must be built to a certain thickness.)
- Who do I contact if there is a problem during the paint project? (It should be the owner or the project foreman.)
- Do you warranty your labor?(Some charge for a warranty. Some don’t.)
- Do you scuff sand areas of peeling paint or do you just primer it? (No matter what primer they use they should ALWAYS scuff sand.)
- What’s your typical amount of time spent on prep? (At least a full day)
- Are you using actual primer or are you just painting? (They should use primer unless they are using Sherwin-Williams Duration or Emerald.)
Simply print this article and check off the questions as the estimator covers them. Make note where they fall short of the standards we share. Be proactive and ask the questions they haven’t answered.
TIP: Be sure the written estimate reflects the answers they gave you for each question. For example, if they say they will do two coats, make sure it is detailed in the bid. When you sign a paint bid it becomes a contract.
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Things That Make or Break Exterior Painting Time Tables
When gathering paint estimates here are a few important factors to keep in mind when asking for a timeline.
1. Damage. More specifically, the amount of time it will take to repair the volume of damage. This is the single most important factor in timeline. We can paint a large home with minimal damage (1 day prep) faster than a medium sized home with extensive paint damage (2-3 days prep).
2. Weather. In Colorado Springs we have a window of warm weather to paint exteriors and have them cure properly. Summers can have daily storms and a brief monsoon season. Most of the time, though, our crews can make progress each day.
3. Size and shape of home. If you have a large home it will take longer to paint than a smaller home. Even if your home isn’t large, but you have 2-3 stories it will take longer to paint than a larger ranch style home.
4. Crew size. The contractor just starting out by themselves with no help is going to take longer. The painting crew of 2-4 is where maximum efficiency is reached. Crews larger than that actually decrease quality control.
Check out our recent article Typical Timeline for Exterior Painting in Colorado Springs for more specific information about how long it could take to paint your home.
Why Shouldn’t I Use Cheaper Paint?
What does cheaper paint have to do with fruits and veggies?
Let’ say you’re an athlete and your job is to perform. Do you think fueling yourself with fast food regularly would get you the best results or would slightly more expensive organic meat and produce be better?
Obviously, the better quality foods are the best choice. Fast food and much of our packaged food we buy in stores have things in them that make them less expensive: lower quality ingredients, fillers, man-made chemicals, and terrible preservatives.
The same can be said of paint for your home. Professionals use pro grade products for one primary reason: the results are predictable. The number of impurities are small. The ingredients are higher quality. The paint rolls, brushes, and sprays well without getting gunky. It covers and touches up well.
Inexpensive paints are like packaged and fast foods. We have used them—and will not use them in the future. They contain sediment and fillers that clog up professional paint pumps. They are thick and goopy or the opposite, thin and runny. The results they give are unpredictable at best and at worst are predictable (looking very thick).
Even for your DIY project we suggest visiting a professional paint store and paying a few more dollars for products that are far superior.
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Typical Timeline for Exterior Painting in Colorado Springs
“How long will it take you to paint?”
You’re not the only one who wants to know how to plan for the disruption of a crew painting the exterior of a home.
We are happy to share some timeline estimations so you can plan ahead. Please note these are generalized time frames based on our 12 years personal experience painting homes.
On average most homes in Colorado Springs take 4-7 Days to prep and paint. The longest we’ve been on an exterior is 2 weeks, but that was a 6,000 square foot home in very bad condition.
Here’s the breakdown:
Power Wash: 1 Day
We gently power wash the ground level of most homes to get rid of dust, dirt, wildfire ash, cobwebs, and some loose paint. The house must be dry before we prep.
Proper Prep: 2-3 Days
The most important step of the process is prep work. This will make or break your paint job. We mask off windows, doors, and other things that shouldn’t have paint on them. We sand and prime, nail in loose siding boards, and replace caulk to make sure your home stands the test of time.
Painting: 2-3 Days
This step requires painters to get on and off ladders and move paint, pumps, brushes, and other tools around. We do two full coats of paint (translation: 2 full passes around your home) or the proper mill depth for other coverings. We also clean up in this phase, which is about half a day.
While it my seem like a long time, understand that most people in Colorado Springs repaint their home exteriors every 8-15 years. One week to make your house beautiful for years is a pretty small investment.
Contact us to arrange an estimate TODAY!
Best Exterior Paint Colors for Colorado
As we’ve mentioned in our article, Light Exterior Paint Color Can Save You Money, light exterior paint colors tend to be very popular in Colorado. With over 300 days of sunshine a year sun becomes our greatest paint enemy. Light colors fade less quickly and hide typical wear and tear very well.
First of all, let me say that the best exterior paint color is one that makes you happy and helps you comply with your HOA. Always, always, always buy samples and apply them to various places on your siding before making your decision. Being confident when choosing color will save you the hassle and expense of a re-paint.
We’ve painted a LOT of houses in Colorado Springs. A quick drive up and down the streets of the nicer areas of town will confirm what we tell you. There are three go-to exterior paint colors homeowners choose over and over again—they are all neutrals.
The great thing about these colors is you can add bold accents easily. It’s just like when you dress yourself. You can wear a navy top with gray pants and accessorize with a pop of kelly green or orange and it makes sense visually.
Here are the top exterior paint colors for Colorado Springs.
Tan
You will see an unending sea of tan houses in Colorado Springs. Our dirt is a light sandy color in most places and it blends well with our winter brown foliage. It’s hard to get this one wrong. Tread lightly when it begins to have pink undertones because it starts to look like skin tone peach or even a light pink in certain lights.
Colors to try:
- SW 7528 Windsor Greige
- SW 7518 Beach House
- SW 7538 Tamarind
Green (olive or sage)
Treat this like you would a great olive blazer, dress, or pair of slacks. It looks amazing with red, orange, purple, and neutrals. It’s the neutral that stands out a little bit. Be cautious about how close to yellow you go on the color swatch. It can start to look muddy or very retro like my mother’s green washing machine that was retired in 1985. Colors to try:
- SW 7728 Sprout
- SW 7726 Lemon Verbena
- SW Koi Pond 7727
Gray
I love gray. It goes with everything. You can put ANY color with it. And most grays that lean toward another color like blue, green, or yellow work better than a neutral prison cinderblock gray. Be sure to choose a color on the top 2/3 of a gradient paint swatch or one that uses a light or medium paint base. Go too dark and you run the risk of obvious fading and oxidation. Colors to try:
- SW 7643 Pussywillow
- SW 7642 Pavestone
- SW Collonade Gray
White or cream is very common for trim. Dover White or Extra White (both Sherwin Williams colors) are very common homeowner choices. If you want a darker trim color, try to keep it from being the absolute darkest color on the color swatch. A step or two up will be more forgiving over time.
Colorado Springs area homeowners mention this post and receive 10% OFF up to $300 on your next paint project*. Get your free estimate NOW!
*Offer details: This may seem obvious, but we need to say it. This is a great offer, but we won’t apply the discount to past work or current estimates—this is for new ones only. You get to use this coupon once. And we’re not able to make a living if we let you combine offers and discounts so that’s not possible here, either. We’re happy to help you with your job size of 10’x10’ room or larger. The offer is for 10% off the price of your paint project with a limit of $300 off.