It's hard to find the best craftsmanship when every painter tells the same story. "My work is of the highest quality." We all know that very few of them are actually offering great quality. The trick is figuring out who.

With almost anything you purchase, you can inspect the quality before deciding to spend your money on it. You can even compare like items to evaluate the differences. All of this is impossible when you buy a paint job and all you have is the word of the person handing you the estimate and promising the best in brand name paints. The work that goes into a good paint job is by no means generic. Bad painters can save one third or more of the labor cost and they don’t always pass the savings on to you.

Following is a comparison of a Color Crew job painting old walls and new wooden trim, to the same job done by the competition.

The Color Crew

TC’s Painting and Powerwashing

Trim
Fill holes heaping with wood filler, sand rigorously with 120 grit sandpaper. Smooth trim with no fuzz or planer ‘check marks’. Nail holes invisible. Fill nail holes level. Don’t worry that the filler shrink. Minimal or no sanding. Check marks, dimples. Course texture.
Shellac knots, oil primer, sand with 220 grit sandpaper, clean until dust free, second prime coat. Two coat primer job guarantees good seal- and hide. Final sanding means ultra smooth surface to paint. One coat primer. No sanding. Trim has rough texture. Poor quality sealing means wood grain will raise, in time looking like painted driftwood. Possibility of bleeding knots.
Caulk all joints with premium siliconized acrylic caulk rated for 55 years. Tool with finger and water. High elasticity prevents joints from opening up in time. Finger-smoothing disguises caulking into woodwork. Caulk with 10 year latex ‘painter’s caulking’. Wipe with damp rag. Minimal elasticity means bead could crack open. Damp rag smears caulking on trim.
Paint with premium quality acrylic. Trim is incredibly smooth, ultra-level, and reflects light evenly Premium quality brand name paint for that ‘mark of quality’ that customers expect. No topcoat could conceal the fast and miserable quality of preparation. Trim has ruddy texture and is difficult to clean.
Walls
Repair plaster damage and drywall pops. Sand walls. Prime and Paint Smooth walls look crisp, and beautiful. Fill thumbtack holes with vinyl spackle, paint. Hey! what about the?