Alameda – Painting - Contractor

As you’re interviewing local painters in Alameda County, it’s wise to use a list of set questions. This will ensure you get the answers you need to make a wise decision. It’s also a good idea to write down the answers you get from each painter. That way, you’ll be able to recall which Alameda County painting company answered your questions acceptably and may make it clear which company is the best choice for you.

• Have you earned and maintained a Diamond Certified rating?
  
• Do you have a valid contractor’s license?
  
• What is your license number? (You may want to verify this license number and look for any complaints against their record at the Contractors State License Board.)
  
• Do you have liability and workers’ compensation insurance coverage?
  
• Tell me about your understanding of residential painting and the experience your employees have.
  
• How many times have you done a job like mine before?
  
• Do you charge for painting estimates?
  
• Do you have your own painting crew, or do you hire subcontractors?
  
• How are your painters trained?
  
• Are you on site during the work? If not, who will be in charge during the project?
  
• Do you recommend a specific brand and type of paint (Benjamin Moore, ICI Dulux, Kelly-Moore, Glidden, Behr, enamel, matte finish, flat paint, semi-gloss, high-gloss)? Why?
  
• What guarantees do you offer on your painting work?
  
• How long have you been a painting contractor in Alameda County?

It’s best to choose a Diamond Certified painting company because all certified companies have passed an in-depth ratings process that most other painters can’t pass. If you want quality from a painter in Alameda County and the greater Bay Area, you will have confidence choosing a Diamond Certified painting company. Diamond Certified reports are available online at www.DiamondCertified.org for all certified companies. And you’ll never be fooled by fake reviews, because all research is performed via live telephone interviews of actual customers.

If you can’t find a Diamond Certified painter within reach, you’ll have to do some research of your own. It’s wise to call references provided by your painting contractor. Keep in mind, though, that references painting companies give to you are not equal in value to the large random sample of customers surveyed during the Diamond Certified ratings process. That’s because references are rarely randomly selected from all of a company’s customers.

If you do call references, ask for a list of the company’s 10 most recent customers. This will help avoid them giving you the names of only customers they know were pleased with the work. Questions you may want to ask include:

• Were you satisfied with the painting services from _(painting company name)_?
  
• What type of painting did they do for you (interior painting, exterior painting, room painting, faux finishing, eco-friendly painting, bathroom painting, etc.)
  
• Did the painters finish the work on time?
  
• Did the contractor keep you current on the status of the project?
  
• If you live in a smaller town such as Castro Valley, Piedmont, Komandorski Village, Mount Eden, Pleasanton or in the rural Tri-Valley Area, did they charge extra to drive to your home?
  
• Did the painting company show up on time for work?
  
• Did they clean up after the job?
  
• When you need new painting in the future, will you consider hiring this painter again?
  
• Would you recommend this painting company to your friends and family?

Now that you’ve found the local painting company that meets all your ideals, it’s time to ask for a contract. This contract should include written details on the price, quality and paints to be used, the start date and completion date.

Before you sign the contract, be sure you understand all terms and limitations. The contract you sign is binding, and should protect your property and your interests as well as those of your contractor. For this reason, never sign a blank or incomplete estimate.

When signing the contract, don’t be afraid to write in special requests or verbal agreements you’ve made with the painters. This will protect you and ensure you get the services you have agreed on. These add-ons may also include end dates and special instructions related issues that aren’t always covered by a standard contract. For example, rutted lawns, damaged shrubs and crushed flowerbeds are often unexpected results of exterior painting jobs.

But you can proactively protect your property. Before the work begins, schedule a walk through with the supervisor and conduct a pre-work inspection of your property. List or photograph your landscaping, house and property and talk with a representative about reasonable expectations for protecting your home and yard during the work. Both you and the painting contractor should sign and date the document when you’ve reached an agreement. When the work is done, accompany the contractor on a final inspection and verify that your expectations were met.

Prepare Your Alameda County Home for New Interior and Exterior Painting
Professional painters in Oakland, Berkeley, Fremont, Hayward and San Leandro and throughout Alameda County should be able to handle all necessary preparations for the painting work. But there are a few things you can do before their arrival and during the work to help their job go more smoothly. You may even cut down on invoiced hours or damage to your home and possessions.

Remove furniture and other items. Before the painters arrive, remove all furniture, decor, rugs, and other objects from the rooms slated for painting. Anything that’s not removed should be moved to the center of the room and covered with drop cloths or plastic. You may want to store any heirlooms or expensive items that are in high-traffic areas of your home to prevent them from being broken or damaged. Some painters will take the time to move and cover furniture, but there may be an additional charge for this service. Ask about who should prepare the room for painting, and, if the painters offer the service, how much they charge. It may be worth it to you to have them do it, or you may be able to knock a few hours worth of time from your final bill by doing it yourself.

Provide enough clearance and parking space for work trucks. Some painting companies have large work trucks that require more clearance or parking space than standard vehicles. Contact the company before the start date and ask them how much parking space they’ll need and whether their work trucks are oversized. You may find it helpful to walk through the site with your contractor ahead of time so they can point out potential clearance issues or hazards you can move or reduce before the painting begins.

Trim plants and bushes before exterior painting. If you’re hiring an Alameda County painting company for exterior painting, you may save time and money by trimming trees, bushes and other plants that are within reach of your home’s exterior. Ask your contractor about the amount of space they require around the perimeter of the job.

Keep children and pets away. Your contractors will be focused on the work and shouldn’t have to watch out for children and pets. Barricade off the rooms to be painted and keep pets and kids away until after the work is done and the paint is completely dry. This will prevent accidents, injury and the expense of touch-ups and repainting.

When the new painting is completed, most good painters will give you a written invoice for the completed work. This usually includes:

• The contractor’s name, business address and license number.
  
• A list of all services completed.
  
• An itemized list of all paint and painting supplies purchased, including brands, quality and amount.
  
• The total cost for painting services, including the amount charged for labor.
  
• Any relevant warrantees or product guarantees provided by the paint manufacturers and the painting company.

It’s smart to compare the completed work to what was promised on the official invoice. Ask your painting company representative to walk through the job site with you and show you the work. Check what was done against the invoice to verify that the company did everything that was promised in the way they promised to do it. During the walk-through, ask if there are any unusual instructions for maintaining your new paint. If you have questions about the work that was done or the materials used, now is the time to ask.

The top 10 requests for residential painting services in Alameda County including those in Hayward, San Leandro, Berkeley, Oakland and Fremont and the surrounding areas are listed below. The paragraphs below the table define each painting service request.

Paint Color Selection
Paint color selection is a service many larger painting companies in Alameda County offer. Paint selection involves potential paint color choices, existing colors in the home and overall room and decoration scheme. Paint matching services may also be available in cases where homeowners want to match new paint to an existing color.

Exterior Painting
Exterior paint is applied to the outside of homes and buildings. Exterior paints must be more elastic and fade-resistant than interior paints so they’re able to stand up to harsh weather conditions and fading from the sun.

Interior Painting
Painting on the interior surfaces of a home is referred to as interior painting. Interior paint for walls and ceilings comes in many colors and finishes, including faux and decorative finishes, wood stains, clear finish, matte paint, glossy paint and texturized paint. Many modern interior paints are available in ecologically aware formulations that are less toxic than exterior paints.

House Painting
House painting can include interior painting and exterior painting, and often takes into account the entire process from color selection, paint prepping, taping, priming, painting and sealing. Many painters specialize in painting homes, while others paint commercial buildings, industrial buildings and government buildings. You may want to consider hiring a house painter that has experience in the types of materials, techniques and methods you’re looking for.

Decorative Painting Techniques
Also known as faux finishing and faux painting, decorative techniques including tromp l’oeil, rag rolling, venetian plaster, sponge painting, marbling, stripe technique (striping), color washing, pickling, liming, wood graining, verdigris (aged copper-like finish) and antiquing are fashionable methods that add a custom look to homes.

Faux Painting / Faux Finishing
Like decorative painting techniques, faux painting is a technique that adds a faux finish to the surface so that the wall or ceiling appears to be made of something else. Examples of popular faux painting are: Venitian plastering, faux suede, faux marble or marbleizing and wood grain faux effects.

Commercial Painting Companies
Painting for commercial buildings, stores, schools, office buildings, museums, public structures and hospitals is known as commercial painting. Some contractors do only commercial painting, while others provide a combination of services for commercial, industrial and residential painting.

Low VOC Paint
Low VOC paints have lower quantities of volatile organic compounds, or potentially harmful chemicals. Low-VOC paints are often used in homes and offices where people spend a large amount of time. Low-VOC and no-VOC paints may help improve indoor air quality and avoid toxin-related illnesses.

Industrial Painting Services
Industrial painting services in Alameda County paint large industrial and commercial buildings. Industrial painting is often done on metal building interior and exteriors, ceilings, walls, floors, metal siding, metal roofs, office buildings and large professional buildings, parking garages, factories, manufacturing plants and storage warehouses.

Painting Services
The term painting services encompasses all products and painting specialties offered by local painting companies in Alameda County. Popular painting services include house painting, interior painting, exterior painting, residential house painting, commercial painting, preparation, spray painting, paint rolling and high-volume painting services.

Top 10 Brand Requests

1. Sherwin-Williams Paint
2. Behr Paint
3. Valspar Paint
4. Dutch Boy Paint
5. Kelly-Moore Paint
6. Glidden Paint
7. Dulux Paint
8. ICI Paint
9. Benjamin Moore Paint
10. Olympic Paint

Q: Why choose a Diamond Certified Painting Contractor in Alameda County?
A: Diamond Certified helps you choose a painter with confidence by offering a list of top-rated local companies who have passed the country’s most in-depth rating process. Only painting companies rated Highest in Quality earn the prestigious Diamond Certified award. Most companies can’t pass the ratings. American Ratings Corporation also monitors every Diamond Certified company with ongoing research and ratings. And your purchase is backed by the Diamond Certified Performance Guarantee. So you’ll feel confident choosing a Diamond Certified painting company.

Q: What is lead paint? Should I be concerned about it?
A: Lead paint is the leading source of lead poisoning in children and adults, which can cause brain damage and slow physical development. Lead-based paints were applied to interior and exterior surfaces of older homes before 1978. Lead paint contamination isn’t usually a problem if the old paint is covered with new, lead-free paint. However, when the old paint chips, cracks, peels or is scraped, lead paint underneath can become exposed and pose a threat to children and pets.

If your home painting contains lead, your contractors legally need to take precautions when removing it. These containment procedures usually include sealing off the rest of the home, wearing respirators while removing the paint, disposing of the clothes worn while removing lead paint, and using filtration systems and post-removal cleaning procedures to remove all lead particles from the home and area surrounding the home. If your contractor doesn’t use proper lead paint removal techniques, you can legally be held responsible for contamination.

Q: How do I know if my home was covered in lead paint?
A: Most homes built before 1978 were painted with lead paint. An easy lab test can prove if your paint contains lead. Some painting contractors in Alameda County will test for lead paint, and lead paint tests are available at most hardware stores for DIY lead paint testing.

Q: Can I paint my house myself?
A: As with many home improvement projects, it is possible to apply new paint to your home yourself. If the area you want to paint is small or you have experience painting, you may be up for doing the job yourself. However, painting is often time-intensive, messy work. And depending on the size of your project, you may be wise to hire a professional to do the job. Professional painters have the knowledge, skill and the tools to do the job right. Most will also guarantee their work, so you’ll be more assured of getting a quality paint job that lasts for years longer.

Q: Does it matter what quality of paint I choose?
A: With paint, you usually get what you pay for. Top-quality paints are more expensive, but they often have better components that make them smoother, more durable and last longer than cheap paint. You’ll have to repaint less frequently and your home will look better between painting.

Q: What is the difference between paint finishes?
A: Exterior and interior paint is labeled according to sheen and gloss. The higher the sheen, the more light reflects off of the paint and the shinier it appears. Your choice of paint depends on the area and surface, the color of paint and whether you’ll need to clean the painted surface or hide imperfections.

Matte and flat paints have very little or no gloss. They are often used on walls and ceilings and hide surface imperfections. Eggshell finish has a slight sheen and a lustrous appearance. It is often used on interior walls. Satin and silk finish paints have a finish that is in between that of eggshell and semigloss. They are easier to clean than flat paint. Semi-gloss finish is shinier, glossier paint. It is easy to clean and resists staining. However, the glossier a finish is, the more likely imperfections in the paint will be noticeable.

Q: Why do painting estimates vary so widely?
A: Painting contractors base their prices on the cost of labor, the time needed for painting preparation and repairs, the quality of paint applied and the number of coats. Cheaper bids may be a sign of a lower quality of work or less knowledgeable painters. However, you’re wise to ask the contractors when one bid is much lower or much higher than the others you’ve received to make sure the painting company is bidding on the same project and same details within the project. You can avoid most of this uncertainty by requesting detailed bids that are itemized to include quality and brand of paint materials, details about paint application and number of coats.

Q: Why is my exterior paint is peeling and what can I do about it?
A: Some paint will peel when overexposed to moisture and weathering. Your paint may be peeling because it is the wrong type of paint for the surface, it was applied poorly, or the surface was not properly prepared before painting. If your paint is peeling, there isn’t much you can do. The peeling paint will need to be scraped and removed, the surface sanded and prepared, and a new coat of paint applied. If you hired a local painter in Alameda County, call them back to address the situation. Good painters will usually stand behind their work, and they may repair or repaint your home based on the warranty they promised when they first did the job.

Your best course for dealing with peeling paint is to remove the entire coat of paint, not just the peeling area. That’s because the rest of the paint will most likely also fail since it was applied in the same way to the same surface. Contact a local Alameda County painting company to assess the damage and advise you on your specific situation.
Q: What are low-VOC and no-VOC paints? Should I consider using them?
A: VOCs are volatile organic compounds, or chemicals that emit potentially harmful gasses over time. Paint, lacquers, varnishes, paint thinners and paint removers often contain these chemicals. Paints with lower concentrations of these toxic compounds have become available recently.

There are also some paint brands that offer products with no VOC content. These natural paints and finishes are durable, cost effective and less harmful. Talk with your painting contractor and ask if they are familiar with low-VOC paints and whether they would recommend them for your home. Most customers who chose low VOC paints or no VOC paints do so because they are concerned about indoor air quality or have children or pets they want to protect over the long term.