All Topics / Value Adding / Painting – tradies supply or you buy?

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  • Profile photo of wisepearlwisepearl
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    Just interested to know what some of the more experienced renovators do with paintwork… Do you source and buy the paint yourself, try to shop around for good prices? or do you get quotes from tradesmen with them to supply paint?

    Profile photo of wisepearlwisepearl
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    p.s. on that note, anyone got any tips or templates for writing scope of work for painters?

    Profile photo of hbbehrendorffhbbehrendorff
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    well technically they are supposed to supply materials otherwise they are just your employees

    Tradies don't really like you supplying materials, Because they get there materials at a great discount and part of there profit is in the difference between there price and RRP

    You might find that if you supply the materials then they might probably charge you more for labor then they otherwise would,  I would anyway.

    Get several quotes so you know your not being ripped off and remember that the cheapest price doesn't mean anything.

    A lot of the time a extremely cheap price either means they have no work, they are dodgy or both.

    I would definitely ask around who has the best reputation for quality, Its quite common that you would have to wait for a good tradesman as apposed to a bad tradesman being readily available.

     

    Profile photo of hbbehrendorffhbbehrendorff
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    wisepearl wrote:
    p.s. on that note, anyone got any tips or templates for writing scope of work for painters?

    This is an exert from the Qld BSA site

    Scope of work

    1) Apply paint or other substance for protective, decorative or technical purposes, including colour matching.
    2) Apply texture coatings.
    3) Apply wall paper.
    4) Prepare surfaces for application of paint or other protective, decorative or technical materials.
    5) Incidental work
    of another class

    Technical qualifications
    Any 1 of the following—
       a. successful completion of either of the following courses—
          (i) an apprenticeship in painting and decorating;
          (ii) Certificate III in Painting and Decorating CPC30608;
       b. successful completion of a course the authority considers is at least equivalent to a course mentioned in paragraph a.;
       c. a recognition certificate as a qualified painter and decorator;
       d. a qualification or statement of attainment of required competency issued by an approved authority for the class of licence.

    Managerial qualifications
    An approved managerial qualification.

    Experience requirements
    Two years experience, which includes experience gained during an apprenticeship or other training, in—
       a. the scope of work for the class; or
       b. other work, if the authority considers experience in the other work is at least equivalent to experience in the scope of work for
       the class.

    Profile photo of Mick CMick C
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    I personally always buy my own.

    Cheaper and you can choose the quality your after + you keep the left over paint.

    Regards
    Michael

    Mick C | Shape Home Loans
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    Profile photo of CatalystCatalyst
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    wisepearl wrote:
    p.s. on that note, anyone got any tips or templates for writing scope of work for painters?

    If they know what they are doing they should have their own. All paints are not equal. I think you'll find painters will want to buy their own. They get trade discount and know the quality.

    I buy my own paint but I paint myself. Don't use Bunnings. Too expensive.

    Profile photo of Jamie MooreJamie Moore
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    Call me crazy but I actually don't mind painting – it's kind of relaxing.

    The last renovation we done, we painted the entire house ourselves. After a long day in a fairly stressful industry it's nice to do something a little brain numbing (not to say that painters are stupid!)

    For that reason, we buy our own and paint ourselves. We got a quote for a touch up job on an IP recently – I couldn't believe how much they were going to charge!

    Cheers

    Jamie

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    Profile photo of Scott No MatesScott No Mates
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    if it still exists, check out Natspec on google.

    Profile photo of colinnewlandcolinnewland
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    I completed 2 paint reno's (inside and out) and asked to be given trade prices (for 50-60% off retail). I now get top quality paint in the quantities I want/need and always get to keep some over for later touch-ups and accidents. To push this a little further, get a couple f friends who are thinking about doing their own renos and get a bulk order the first time out and ask for rade prices up front AND ensure that yu can continue to get trade at a later date. 

    Ask for trade prices; the worst that can happen is they say no.

    Remember, a top quality job is ALWAYS in the preparation (sugar soap on the walls to remove all dirt, grime and grease is a MUST) and then filling cracks and hole. This is what takes the time (a least 50% of the cost of labour) and 'almost' anyone can do it…yourself or a handy man (but they charge like tradesmen lately). Then get in a qualified painter if you must and they should be in and out very fast at a much cheaper total cost.

    Profile photo of Boo_HsstBoo_Hsst
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    Most painters I know want to supply their own paint.  This seems to be due to the different types of paints available.  Some paints are better for rolling and some for spraying.  I don't know which are which but I have been told that painters get used to using certain types of paint.  Probably the same reasons electricians like to use certain brands for certain jobs, and plumbers like to use certain fittings.  But if you know what paint the painter wants to use and you have an idea what you can get it for you can always ask for two quotes, one with paint supplied and one without.

    I know it wasn't asked but I just wanted to add my $0.02. 

    Homes that have tongue and groove walls and ceilings take a little longer to prep.  As the house moves over the years you can get gaps in between the boards.  These gaps are dark as there is no light behind it, and can make a new paint job look old or dodgy.  I bought tubes and tubes and tubes of weatherboard gap filler.  I squirt a line of filler along the gap including the parts where the boards are still close together, Then I run my finger along the seam to get a smooth line of glue that fills the gap.  This will, after a few hours, give your finger an awesome buff almost to the point of seeing your reflection on it.  The glue shrinks a little when it dries, and you get the nice tongue and groove look without any black lines.  Then I just use a brush to paint just the grooves.  When that dries I then paint the whole lot with two or more coats, using rollers.

    I am not a professional painter, I am just a handy man.  But this is how I renovated my own home, and it looks better than what I have seen friends do to their own houses.

    Profile photo of CatalystCatalyst
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    Jamie M wrote:
    Call me crazy but I actually don't mind painting – it's kind of relaxing.
    Cheers
    Jamie

    I don't mind painting either. I have painted 3 full houses in the last year. It's the fiddly bits I hate and if surfaces are poor.

     Blooming lacquered skirtings and window frames are a pain to prepare and paint.

    I love doing doors.

    But I do hate ceilings (especially nicotine stained ones).

    Profile photo of tvpropertytvproperty
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    I've always painted myself and therefore buy my own paint.

    I've really grown sick of it but can't bring myself to pay for professional painter pricing, so recently purchased a spray unit and have already trialled on a friend's new extension and will be doing the complete inside of my current rental reno in a few weeks or so.

    Profile photo of John SJohn S
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    Unless you can get it better then half retail price your painter might as well get it as that is about what they pay.
    Also decent paint is worth the money.
    Painted my first house with cheap paint at retail price and 2 coats didnt fully cover.
    Painted my second house just the other day with solver maxiwash and first coat is way nicer then two coats of the cheap paint could do. Also less drips as paint didnt flick off the roller so easily.
    If you do paint yourself think about paying a bit extra and get a wider roller and decent quality. Takes half the time of those cheap 230mm $20 roller and tray sets

    Profile photo of Don NicolussiDon Nicolussi
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    Last time we painted out an IP we did it ourselves because the tenant left early and we only had  few days to do it. The paint was really cheap – but for a reno (sale)? i think best to get at tradie on a fixed price unless you are a gun painter. They might give you a level of finish from 1 to 3 in their quote and detail the number of coats etc and the type of paint. Seen lots of new homes get sprayed but for some reason this never seems to look good when people try it in the older homes. Not sure why?

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    Profile photo of wisepearlwisepearl
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    I decided to get a painter in to do the whole job, and get him to supply paint. We already did DIY bathroom + kitchen stripout, tile removal, and spending this weekend doing deck resurfacing and erecting a fence, plus after work today installing a cabinet and tomorrow ripping out carpet. so doing enough odd jobs ourselves to keep costs down. My last two paint jobs i've worked alongside the professionals, in that i worked on sections all weekend or night time while they worked during the day, and seeing the difference in my speed and their speed made me wonder if i would ever DIY paint again!

    Ended up getting a handyman with 15 years paint experience and references who vouched for his painting work instead of the licensed painter. would have preferred to go with the licensed guys, but HWS blew last week and needed replacing so that came out of my budget, plus the handyman's price was 60% of what the pros wanted, and he could start immediately… figured he'd do a much better job than i would anyway!

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