New Construction Painting

Here’s some information we always get asked about the new construction painting process.

When should we schedule you to paint our new home? We currently have the home sheetrocked and think now would be a good time to get things primed. Are you available to start painting our home next week? Our painter who we planned on using, isn’t answering his phone? Funny enough, they are frustrated beyond measure as they have been discussing the painting process with someone for over a year and then that person goes missing in action.

How often does this happen? All the time. Why? Most painters company size is 1.7 people. And it’s very easy to need 5 to 7 people to properly paint a home in Summit County. Also who has 3 months to paint a house? The typical painter will take 2 to 3 months to prepare and paint a new home. Likely it will require them working nights and weekends around other trades.

We also see painters disappear if they have a better opportunity or the project was improperly priced to begin with. However, generally we try to help. But sometimes painting right after sheetrock just doesn’t make sense. And sometimes they are in a panic which just won’t help the situation. Priming the sheetrock to inspect for the finish and prevent future construction damage is a good idea. Also we find do it yourself builders don’t always find the best tapers and lots of issues can arise if you don’t have a coat of primer and maybe one coat of finish to inspect the sheetrock workmanship.

Painting generally turns out better when you wait until the very end of the construction process, because everything has the potential to damage the paint during the installation of cabinets, toilets, trim work, electrical fixtures, closet installations and so on. So there is no point masking twice to paint something and then painting it again 2 months later after the damage has been done.

The case where priming and painting first makes sense is where you will no longer spray in the home after the first time. Meaning all the work after primer and paint is going to be by hand. When you paint by brush and roll the masking and cover up is minimal. It is still necessary, but not nearly the amount of work as a complete cover.

So if you answer the question do I want them to spray at the end of the project, well you can wait until that time to start priming or painting.

Our typical recommendation is to prime and install one coat of finish as soon as the drywall is complete. This provides the best construction protection and also ensures the sheetrock is completed throughly and you have a chance to experience the color. So if the final color needs to be modified or it’s not what you were expecting, you get to feel the lighting and think about the other finishes and elements for a few months.

What did we miss in this discussion? What else would you like to know about our process? We are here to help.