Are they registered with the PA Attorney General’s office? It’s illegal for anyone to work in or on your house for hire without a Commonwealth Registration Number.
Consider their personal information. A contractor whose home life isn’t balanced will also have a tough time being responsible and reliable in business.
Are they insured? This is also part of the PA. contractors’ requirements.
Look over the contract to ensure you and the contractor are on the same page. Make sure there are clear provisions for communication.
Pricing—look around and don’t jump on the lowest bid. Quality work and a long-term, viable contractor both come at a price.
Trust—do your homework BEFORE signing the paperwork. That way you can relax and trust the contractor to do what he said he would do. Inspect the work in progress, but with trust, you don’t need to worry about work in progress that’s not yet complete.
Ask for a portfolio of their work. These previous jobs are reliable indicators of the level of skill you can expect.
Be sure to sign and agree to change orders when adding to or modifying an existing project. This protects both parties. |
Use only the best brands of paint: Valspar, Behr, Sherwin Williams
When using a roller cover, always wrap your hand around the cover and pull horizontally across the surface to remove loose fibers so they won’t get stuck in the paint on your freshly painted wall.
When using latex paint, soak the brush in water before you start cutting in to eliminate paint drying between the inner fibers. This will also extend the life of the brush. Use a cloth to soak up dripping water from the bristles before you start.
When rolling walls, use a light to shine horizontally across the wall to help you see runs and streaking that might occur.
When painting ceilings, roll heavy coats with light pressure on the roller to avoid streaking and inconsistent dry marks.
Ceiling paints are okay, but in my experience, they tend to dry too quickly and leave streaks. I recommend flat sheen wall paints for ceiling areas.
When painting an entire room from ceiling to floor, start with the ceiling, tape off the baseboard to eliminate texture left by wall mist, then paint the walls. Trim should be the last thing painted.
Before painting, sand the walls and ceiling with a drywall sander–they usually have a 3 to 4 foot handle and an adjustable floating neck. Sanding can eliminate old roller fibers, old spackling marks and any drips that may have dried on the walls.
When to prime–if you are covering semi-gloss or oil-base paints, if there are water marks, if there is bare wood, and if there are tar stains from smoking (usually in the upper corners of a room), then it is a good idea to prime first.
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