As the dance proceeds, keep an eye on the weather. Rain can wash freshly applied latex right off the wall, and a temperature dip below 50 degrees F two days after application can interfere with adhesion and curing and dull the sheen of glossy paints. (Latexes like Sherwin-Williams's Duration and Benjamin Moore's MoorGard Low Lustre are formulated to tolerate temps as low as 35 and 40 degrees, respectively.) House Painters CO
Take and pass your contractor’s certification exam. Like the licensing requirements, the content and format of the exam will vary depending on your location. However, the test will almost always include a comprehensive written section, on top of which you may be asked to describe or demonstrate key skills. Upon passing your exam, you’ll have between 1 and 4 years to complete the process of formally registering your business.[9] House Painting CO
Even if you think you'll probably do the job yourself, it's good preparation to seek estimates from professional exterior home painters near you. Then you'll have a financial point of comparison and you may benefit from what a home painting contractor has to say about the condition of your home, color choices and types of paint available. Let the painter make his pitch for a professional job before you decide what to do. You can still opt to do it yourself while having learned something worthwhile. Home Painting
Research the licensing requirements for your area. These laws governing professional contractor work will be different depending on where you live. It’s important to be aware of these laws and what they mean from the outset. Contact the licensing board for your state or district to find out more about what you’ll need to do to get your business off the ground. House Painters CO
Picking exterior house paint colors is a lot different than picking a color for a shirt or a car. It may help to drive around to observe colors that other homeowners have combined on homes that are of similar size and design as yours. There are also online resources that provide homeowners with the ability to create virtual makeovers of their home by combining colors together through their software programs as well. Home Painting
Work with a professional painting contractor. If you haven’t done so already, sign on to work with a painting company near you. As part of a professional team, you’ll learn the tricks of the trade and work in a variety of different environments, both commercial and residential. There’s no better way to accumulate practical experience than to do it on the job.[7] House Painting
If you’re a construction or renovation worker who specializes in painting, you might have given some thought to how you can go into business for yourself. Painting contractors not only need to be skilled in a variety of painting techniques, but also know how to bid on jobs, calculate project expenses and hire workers in order to be successful. Before you can begin working as an independent painting contractor in most states, you’ll first need to apply for licensing, carry liability insurance and file the right documents to have your business officially recognized.
If you’re a construction or renovation worker who specializes in painting, you might have given some thought to how you can go into business for yourself. Painting contractors not only need to be skilled in a variety of painting techniques, but also know how to bid on jobs, calculate project expenses and hire workers in order to be successful. Before you can begin working as an independent painting contractor in most states, you’ll first need to apply for licensing, carry liability insurance and file the right documents to have your business officially recognized. House Painting CO
If less than half the old paint is left, however, it may be worth stripping it all off. Guertin gets rid of stubborn remnants using shrouded grinders (like the PaintShaver), infrared paint strippers (such as the Speedheater), or chemical strippers (like Multi-Strip), then smooths the wood with a course or two of sanding. When siding (or bank accounts) can't take the shock of a total strip job, Rich O'Neil, of Masterwork Painting in Bedford, Massachusetts, has successfully hidden rough, well-adhered paint under Peel Bond, a thick primer. House Painting
Small random-orbit or pad sanders make this job go faster. (Wallis first covers these boundaries with Synkoloid patching compound so no edge is visible after sanding.) As shown, you want to make sure that there is a feathered, smooth transition from exposed wood to old paint. For areas that might get close scrutiny, you can follow up with a 100- or 120-grit rubdown to erase any scratches. House Painting CO
Even if you think you'll probably do the job yourself, it's good preparation to seek estimates from professional exterior home painters near you. Then you'll have a financial point of comparison and you may benefit from what a home painting contractor has to say about the condition of your home, color choices and types of paint available. Let the painter make his pitch for a professional job before you decide what to do. You can still opt to do it yourself while having learned something worthwhile. House Painting CO
If you have ornamental or colorful trees, shrubbery or floral selections around your home you should figure their colors into the color scheme selection that is made. These landscaping attributes will have an effect on how appealing the property is as a whole throughout the year. Homes that have a great deal of trees can make the property darker and cast shadows onto the home. Individuals will want to avoid darker colors for these situations.
Acquire liability insurance. In the event of accident, injury or property damage, liability insurance will protect you from having your assets seized. Look into a few different providers to compare rates and see what sort of coverage they offer. Good insurance is absolutely critical for small business owners, who stand to lose a lot more should something go wrong.[12] House Painting
Register your business. The final step to becoming operational is to actually form a business entity. Usually, this is as simple as filling out a few forms with the Business Services Division of your local government. Private contractors will need to file for sole proprietorship, which means you'll be recognized as having full ownership of the company.[18] Home Painting
The other difficult part is getting a painting contractor to show up. While this generalization does not apply to every painter, you can rarely get a paint contractor to show up to look at the house and to later produce a written estimate. It's hardly the fault of the painting contractors; it is a combination of the contractors being smaller operations along with a high demand for their work. House Painting
Painters often tint primer close to the color of the top coat, but Wallis thinks that's a recipe for "holidays," or missed spots. Instead, he tints his primer a contrasting color. "If I can see the color coming through, I know I need to apply more paint," he says. On the cottage shown in this story, he chose a gray-blue primer to go under a peach top coat. Home Painting
Deciding which paint to use has gotten much easier now that acrylic latexes have pushed oil-based paints almost to extinction. The acrylics offer superior performance (they don't harden with age, the way oils do, so they move and breathe without blistering), they don't mildew as readily, and they emit fewer VOCs, so they comply with new air-quality regulations. They also work over both oil- and water-based primers. House Painting
