If you’ve ever gotten quotes to have your San Diego house painted, you’ve probably experienced a wide range of prices. Some may have been ridiculously low, and while you may have been tempted to go with the lowest bidder, you were probably leery of the quality of the paint job you would receive.
There are many reasons why you might get a really low quote from some San Diego painters. They may be accepting payment “under the table” and not paying taxes or purchasing worker’s compensation insurance (which is illegal). They could be doing a “bait and switch” operation, where they give a low quote to get your business, but then tack on a bunch of extra fees or added charges at the end. Or they could just be cutting corners on their work.
A quality paint job comes at a price. You generally get what you pay for when it comes to having your home painted. A good residential painting company will take the time to do the job right.
One way a good painting company stands out from the rest is in the extra steps they take to make sure your paint job lasts. They will take the time to properly prep the house by scraping off peeling paint, repairing any areas that need repairing, and pressure washing the walls.
Another thing a reputable painting company will do when painting a home is a process called back-rolling.
What Is Back-Rolling?
If you’ve never heard of back-rolling, it is the process of going over the painted surface with a roller after the paint is sprayed on, but while it is still wet. This may seem like an unnecessary extra step, but it really does make a difference. Paint that is sprayed on goes on quickly and looks great initially, but it has its downsides. Most importantly, it won’t adhere as well to the surface of the wall or trim as paint that is rolled on, because it doesn’t always get into all the crevices of a textured wall surface or into the wood grain of trim or paneling. Back-rolling forces the paint into all areas of a textured surface.
With paint that is only sprayed on and not back-rolled, you may start to see peeling or bubbling down the road. Simply put, a paint job that is back-rolled will last longer, which will save you money in the long run.
Another benefit of back-rolling is that if you ever need to touch up the paint for whatever reason, the area that you touch up with a brush or roller will fit in seamlessly with the rest of the painted surface. A wall that is sprayed and not back-rolled will have a different finish than the touched-up section, and will be more obvious.
Don’t just assume that every house painter in San Diego takes the time to back-roll. You need to ask—especially if the price seems too good to be true! A quality paint job that is done right will save you money over time, since you won’t have to repaint as frequently.
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