Clean Cut Painting

In hindsight, the arrogance of the owner should have been a warning. I have learned a 1300 dollar lesson and hope this review will help other not fall into the same trap. The owner only painted the foyer so it was very expensive. To be fair, a 8x10 section of the foyer has a 20 foot ceiling so i expect it to cost a little more. The owner made the statement that he had over 50,000 hours in painting experience. I am a physic major, so this comment struck me as odd. After I complained about his work and the owner refusing to acknowledge that he did a less that excellent job, I checked him out on the Better Business Bureau. Clean Cut Painting has only been in business for 21 years and he is 43 years old, according to the owners web site. With over 50,000 hours of painting experience, that means he started painting somewhere around his senior year in high school and has never taken a vacation or ever been sick. Personal opinions and mistruths aside, let me get down to the meat of the problem. I tried reasoning with the owner. I asked that my concerns be addressed to correct the flaws and the owner ended up refusing to talk to me with a “Have a nice day, sir” in text. He would not even pick up the phone to talk to an unhappy customer. I work 12-14 a day and take care of three children by myself. I did not get a chance to see the job in the light until the weekend after the job was completed. · Painting Accuracy and Skill - 6 out to 10 o The owner used a quarter inch roller on relatively smooth walls. This is done to try and cover flaws in stead of fix them. I have hired professional painters before and was taught many of the tricks in which to be wary. o There are large bumps on every wall that were present before he started painting. He should have knocked those off before he put on the first coat. I even asked him to know them off. The owner knocked the one off while I was watching and appears to have ignored the rest. o On every corner, due to the quarter inch roller, you can see the noticeable ridge where the paint over lapped. There was no visible attempt at smoothing those out. o There are a few spots, since the owner did not actually fix the walls properly, that don’t even have paint on them. o Deep brush strokes are clearly visible on many of the edges including the ceiling. o On the ceiling, he used a quarter in roller which left a horrible texture, and you can see where the roller slide instead of rolled. The ceiling did not have a texture on it before and I did not want any texture on it as an end-product. · Wall Preparation - 2 out of 10 o The owner stated that he wanted to go with an eggshell or flat paint. I told him that I want the walls more “washable” due to having guest and kids in the house on a regular basis, so I went with a Satin finish. By the owners’ own words, he said that it is easier to cover flaws with less shiny paint. The owner new the flaws would show up in the light. He even admitted in text. I spoke with him and said I want the walls smooth. I kept turning on the lights and he kept turning them off. I understand why that was the case now. In the light, I would have been able to see the flaws and would ask them to be fixed before I paid him. § The walls were halfway patched with large divots and bumps on all walls. § Where he did patch, the owner made it worse. The sanding job left a raised border around all the patches that is easily and clearly visible in the light of day. § The was may have changed color, but they look worse in the light of day than before he started. · Cleanliness – 6 out of 10 o The owner did vacuum the floor for the most part. o The owner did not get any dust off the floor trim nor in the corners. o There were little dots of paint every where on the floor. I have personally scrubbed the floor before this paint job. I must give the owner credit, though. He used drop cloths to keep any big spills off the floor but why didn’t he clean up the spots? I am now down on my hands and knees cleaning the mess that he made. · Customer Satisfaction – 1 out of 10 o According to his website He makes the below promises but beware. The promises seem to be empty promises. o I will respect your property. o I promise to treat your home as if it were my own. I will always take care in protecting your personal belongings as I work around them. I will always leave your home in a clean and orderly condition. o I will respect your money. o You work hard for your money. I promise to give you a top quality job. I want you to feel that every penny you spent was well worth the results. §