When To DIY And When To Hire A Professional Paint Contractor

The next time you find yourself browsing the paint department at your local big box store or specialty paint shop you will notice exterior paint can labels that advertise a 20 year, 25 year, or even a lifetime warranty on their paints. At that rate you should expect to only paint your home a couple of times your entire life. Yet studies have shown that the average home in the United States gets re-painted every 7 years.

Maybe this means that manufacturer's paint warranties are a bunch of BS; maybe it means that people tend to move every few years; or maybe it means that folks just get bored of their paint colors and want a change from time to time. Regardless of the why, what it really means at the end of the day is that chances are good that you will be re-painting your home several times over the years.

So the big question is, "Do I do it myself or do I hire a professional painter to do it for me?"

I can't tell you what is the best answer for your particular situation but I can give you some food for thought. When contemplating what to do, here are just a few of the most important questions you should ask yourself:

Do I have the desire, time, and knowledge to tackle a home improvement project that will likely take me several weeks to complete?

Do I feel like I can produce a result that I will be satisfied with?

Do I have the money in my budget to hire a professional company to perform the work?

Do I feel comfortable using ladders or other types of climbing equipment necessary to perform overhead work?

Do I own or am I willing to purchase all of the tools and equipment that I would need to do the job?

Benefits Of DIY When Painting Your Home

• As someone who has done A LOT of DIY projects over the years there is definitely something to be said for the satisfaction that you get from a job well done, knowing that you were able to accomplish it yourself.
  
  
• In addition, you get to have more control over the outcome and the final product...assuming you possess the skill set to create the outcome you want.
  
  
• Maybe the most important benefit that people would list is the money that they save when they perform the labor themselves. Material cost usually only accounts for about 30% or less of the total job cost of a professional paint job, which means that you stand to save a substantial amount of money by doing it yourself.

Benefits Of Hiring A Professional Contractor To Paint Your Home

• A quality painting contractor will complete a painting project in 1/4 of the time or less than you can complete that same amount of work in. This is due to the fact that this is their profession so they are more efficient at the task. Not to mention that they will be able to complete it in consecutive days, whereas the average homeowner will not because they likely have a full-time job and are only able to work on the weekends.
  
  
• Pro's know all of the tricks of the trade and they've been practicing their craft for many years. The good ones do outstanding work that would be all but impossible for you to replicate as someone who has little to no experience doing this type of work.
  
  
• They will help guide you in selecting the perfect products for your particular project needs, and make sure that the proper surface preparation work has been done prior to painting. The right product selection and proper surface preparation makes all of the difference in how long your paint job will last.

Situations When DIY Is OK & Situations That A Pro Is Always Better

If it is important to you to save money, you have the desire to dedicate a substantial amount of time to the project, and you feel confident that you can do the job at a level that will satisfy you when it's done then you should definitely give it a shot.

If you have any reservations about these points that I've discussed here then I would say you need to seriously consider hiring a professional.

If you do choose to hire a pro, make sure you educate yourself about the process so you get it done right. And we have lots of articles here on the ImageWorks Blog to help you do just that.

If you would like some assistance with your house painting project please give us a call at (813) 570-8800, visit our Contact Us page, or click on the button below to request your free, no-obligation consultation and quote.