FAQs
- What should the customer know about your pricing (e.g., discounts, fees)?
Yes. I have a standard pricing system. The rates you are not set in stone as some projects will call for less prep and therfore warrant a lower rate. In a nutshell, My rates are based upon the following. 2.00 per sq ft ceilings, walls and or floors. labor and material 1.00 per linear ft on trim labor and material Exteriors are at a rate of 2.00 per sq ft My rates will not exceed these thresholds. All rates are for labor and material and all necessary prep i.e. pressure washing, scraping, sanding, priming, caulking of miter joints, butt joints, cracks and unsightly gaps as they occur.
- What is your typical process for working with a new customer?
Typically, when helping a new customer, I will ask the purpose for getting their painting done. Of course, the purpose of painting is to protect and beautify. However the customer may have just bought the house and plan to be there a long time in which case I would aid in finding colors that best suit them and their familes wants and desires. If, for example, the purpose is to put the place on the market, I would aid in finding color schemes that will have the most common appeal. If we don't know the purpose for something, we can't get it's full benefit. Conversely, if we know, we can.
- What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
As a graduate of Northern Illinois Painting Academy, I completed a 4 year apprenticeship program. During the first year of that apprenticeship I didn't touch a paint brush unless it was to clean it. I did prep. And when I say, "I did Prep". Buddy I mean, I did prep. I learned to safely set a 40 ft extension ladder solo. Safety was always first and staging had to be right cause I was the rookie. The grunt. I did the dirtiest, most strenuous parts of the entire scope of work. I was glad to have 20 year seasoned veterans training me on safety cause I was the guy who was gonna be atop the aforementioned, 40 ft extension ladder dragging 50 ft of hose with a 4000 psi pressure washing gun that was capable of blowing me and the ladder off the side of the building. N.I.P.A. was stringent about paint prep. I, in fact, underwent literally thousands of hrs honing my skills at patch work such that before my 3 year I was repairing damaged drywall and or plaster quicker than it could be demoed and removed. You may ask, "How does that help me?" Most everyone has done patches at one time or another. Joint compoud takes forever to dry and when it does it shrinks and cracks. Sand, sand, sand. Dust, dust, dust.....you know. No fun to do. No fun to watch. I make it fun to watch. Never get tired of the look on customers faces when they go into the laundry room, for example, to iron a few shirts and return a short while later to see their wall......that was busted plaster, peeled paint and water stained that is now smooth and flat with not a spec of drywall dust anywhere. I use only quick setting, non shrinking joint compounds that allow me to be able to do the fastest and best drywall and plaster repair work plus not throwing drywall dust into air that, as we all know, will find it's way into every nook and cranny of a domicile.