Tips for Painting Your Commercial Property
Planning and Preparation Are Key
Unlike a residential project, the scope and budget of a commercial painting project are generally much more finite. Make sure that you have a budget, schedule, and project plan in place so that when you meet with professional painting contractors, you will be ready to discuss the details and get an accurate estimate for each quote. If you don’t have a plan or a budget, you’re going to be at risk of getting a range of quotes that are all over the map because painters either won’t know what you need or they’ll try to tell you what you need since you aren’t prepared.
Plan to do the work at a time when it’s least disruptive to the business. For example, if you have an office that is closed after 5 PM and doesn’t open at all on Tuesdays, you could talk to painters about scheduling the work for Monday evening through Tuesday. Some contractors won’t work after business hours without a premium charge, though, so be careful to watch for this. Fortunately, professionals in the commercial painting industry understand the importance of flexibility and are usually willing to work with you to come up with a timeline and schedule that fits the needs of your business and doesn’t force you to shut down or create a mess during open business hours.
Do a Walk-Through
Either on your own or with your painting contractors, you should perform your own walk-through and inspection of the area being painted. Whether it’s an exterior painting job or interior painting, you’ll want to look for cracks, damage, and areas that need a little special attention. If those aren’t pointed out during estimates, be sure to ask the painters what their plans are for addressing these issues and what they charge for the necessary repairs. Often, it’s an included service with the painting, so it may be assumed by the painters that they’ll fix it. Still, it’s in your best interest to double check.
Plus, if you’ve got a really good painter on your hands, they’ll be the ones urging you to walk around and discuss what will be done. They might even point out things you didn’t notice or explain the entire process to you so that you know what to expect along the way. When you’re running a business or dealing with a commercial space, this kind of information can be quite helpful. Knowing what the painters have in mind will help you plan keeping your business operational with as few hiccups and interruptions as possible during the entire painting process.
Choosing Your Commercial Painters
Of course, not all commercial painters are created equal. It’s going to be up to you to research the commercial painting contractor services in your area and find the best one for the job. Aside from the obvious factor of choosing companies and painters that specifically work on commercial properties, here are some other things to look for:
Licensing and Insurance
Painting may be a job that just about everyone can do, but you aren’t going to trust your commercial building to just anyone. Hiring a friend of a friend might work for getting your house painted, but you really want to stick with licensed, insured, professional commercial painters for any business painting needs. Reputable painters should be more than willing to show you their proof of insurance and other certifications when you ask, if they’re not readily available or displayed on their website.
Reputation
Getting an affordable quote is important, but getting service from a company that you can rely on is far more valuable. While pricing does matter, you shouldn’t focus on it too much. Make sure you’re also looking at the reputation of any company that you consider hiring. Ask if they have testimonials or referrals available, examples of past jobs, or other helpful information that can give you the insight that you need.
Detailed Quotes
Imagine having a painter come to your business, take a walk around, and then wave their hand and say, “Yeah, we can paint the place. It’ll be about $2,000”. If you get no further explanation, how are you supposed to compare your options or even know what you’re paying for? Make sure that you talk to at least two or three contractors and get detailed written estimates. Use the first estimate to set the benchmark for the rest and make sure they cover all the bases, including things like disposal fees, waste charges, any repairs being done while painting, and so forth.
Guarantees
Make sure that any professional contractor you hire, for painting or otherwise, offers a guarantee on their work. If a company isn’t willing to stand behind what they do, are you willing to trust them with your commercial painting project? It’s just bad business not to have a guarantee, so even if it’s not advertised, you should ask whether your painters will guarantee their work. Find out what’s included and how long the guarantee runs, too.
5 Top Benefits of Hiring a Commercial Painting Contractor
A lot of people will consider finding another way to get the painting work done around their commercial property, rather than hiring commercial painters specifically. After all, painting is easy enough, right? When it comes to commercial spaces, however, there are unique considerations and the job may require special materials that the average person isn’t familiar with. Painting a commercial space is an investment in the business. Make the best investment by hiring the pros. Here are the biggest perks.
1. Quality Results
Commercial painters should have a portfolio of their work that showcases what they can do. It will usually be fairly easy to note the differences in professional jobs versus painting jobs that were done by anyone else. When you hire the pros, you can guarantee that your business will get the fresh look that it deserves and that look will stand the test of time. Between their skills and their knowledge of materials, they just do a better job. Period.
2. Technology
Commercial painting companies use the latest state-of-the-art painting equipment and technology to produce high-quality results. They can help create perfect color matches, offer unique finishes, and make sure that they maximize their efficiency in completing the job by using the best tools, materials, and planning resources. From getting that perfect blemish-free finish to getting an exterior coating that will withstand the elements for decades to come, there’s a lot to gain from professional painting for commercial spaces.
3. Safety
Professionals have the right certifications, equipment, and experience to ensure that every job is done safely and without incident. In your business, this is especially important. Painters will provide their own ladders, scaffolding, harnesses, and other safety equipment to ensure that every job is completed without incident. Plus, in the event that there is some kind of accident, they’re licensed and bonded so it’s not going to be a liability to your business.
4. Timely Work
A professional painter has multiple jobs lined up, so they aren’t going to waste time trying to complete a project. They will be able to come in and work within your budget and timeline, and can even advise you on other scheduling matters, budget constraints, and details that could change the scope of the project. Still, they will work their hardest to get the job done within the time allotted because they know it’s important to you. It’s also important to them, because they have other jobs to tend to.
5. Money Savings
Commercial painters have been doing their job for years. They know the industry, the products, and the nature of commercial painting projects. They will be able to offer helpful advice and insight on painting materials, supplies, and the services that they provide so that you are only paying for what you need. They know you’re in business, as much as they are, and are trying to get the job done for the best price to maximize the return on your investment and reduce maintenance costs.
Conclusion
Commercial painting projects are much bigger and more complex than residential jobs. Fortunately, with the right tips and information, it’s going to be much easier for you to get the results that you expect. Hire commercial painters to reduce the risk of liability, theft, and just plain poor results. When you’ve got a plan and the pros on your side, your commercial painting projects should go off without a hitch.
