One of paint’s basic purpose is to make a space more pleasing to the eye. But in the case of commercial and industrial painting, it is more than aesthetic reasons – they also help in maintaining your business and your equipment, and in keeping your employees and clients safe. And the best painters in the Bay Area know that all too well.
It goes without saying that your business should be properly painted not just to make it look good but also to prevent it from deterioration and keep it in good shape. But before you hire a painting contractor, you should come up with the following key questions that will ensure you the best responses from your short-listed candidates:
1. “What materials are you going to use?”
Painting can be a good investment if you hire the right contractor. A good, professional and reputable contractor will specify, in writing, the paints and materials that he will use. You can be sure that such a contractor uses top-of-the-line paints and materials for your commercial space and facility.
Asking this question is important because what a contractor uses will directly affect the paint job itself. Using sub-par and inferior materials won’t last as long, and the structure and the equipment are likely to experience a variety of surface problems – as a result, you end up spending more to address these problems, when you should not have in the first place hadn’t you hired a bad contractor. When a contractor uses expensive paints and materials which are made of good quality materials, they will make the paint last longer.
2. “Do you do prep work?”
Make sure that you also ask this question because if the painters do not clean and prepare the surfaces before they paint them, the result is a paint job that won’t hold up for a very long time. Make sure your contractor does solid prep work and ask him how he will clean the surfaces and fix any repairs on them such as cracks, holes, peeling, fading paint, etc. before he starts painting.
3. “Will you protect the equipment?”
A good commercial and industrial painting is meant to keep your business and facility well protected from several damages and maintain them in top shape. Stains, rust, caustic chemicals, corrosion, impact, etc., are some of these things that prevent your equipment from functioning normally. Industrial painting contractors are usually responsible for the upkeep of your equipment. Still, though, it is worth asking your candidates regarding how exactly they will maintain your equipment and what specific types of paints they will use on them. It is always good to have an idea about the type of paints they plan to use for certain areas of your commercial space and facility, how long these paints should last, etc.
4. “Should I worry about your crew in my property?”
When you hire a commercial/industrial painting service, you can expect several people going in and out of your property as the painting job is in progress. It is only natural that as a client, you may be concerned whether your property will be safe under their hands for a time. Trust is a critical factor, and this is something that your contractor should have built prior to encountering you. Their own customers should place their confidence in them as well. Ask your potential contractors if they perform criminal background checks on their employees and conduct regular safety training. You should also ask them whether they employ their own workers or hire subcontractors. Any good and reputable contractor performs criminal background checks and conducts regular safety training on their employees. Avoid contractors who use subcontractors, as they won’t guarantee their quality of work, training or safety.
5. “Do you provide warranties?”
Any professional and reputable contractor backs his work with a warranty. Warranties are a sign of a contractor’s professionalism, high-quality job, and good faith. If the contractors are confident in their job, they will hand you warranties that may last a little longer than the standard number of years. At the same time though, you should be wary of warranties that have 15 years or longer – they may be a marketing gimmick. It is important to read the warranty to know what it covers and what it does not cover, to allow you to ask questions to the contractor if you find things in the warranty that you don’t understand or which need a clearer definition. That way, this will avoid disputes in the future.
Asking these questions will guarantee you the best responses from your potential contractors. No matter how big or small your business is, whenever it calls for proper painting and maintenance, it deserves nothing less than quality service from the best painters in the Bay Area.
