The Kitchen remodel is still putting along. I didn't post for a long time because most of the work that was done was little stuff (like finishing the sheet rock behind the fridge, removing cabinet doors, etc.) that wasn't really interesting. Now, we are finally in the homestretch.
The kitchen was painted a couple of weeks ago and it didn't go swimmingly. I think perhaps my expectations were too high, you be the judge.
When it came to painting the cabinets, I decided to call in an expert for a few reasons. First, I know how long it takes me to paint and I knew that a professional could get the job done more quickly. Second, I wanted the super smooth finish of an airless sprayer. These tools are awesome pieces of equipment that require experience (that I don't have) to operate. Third, by the time I rented all of the tools and masked everything off, it would be worth my time and money just to hire someone.
Expectations: I got a couple of estimates from guys with good reputations. (All of the painting done on my house had been performed by me up to this point so I had to rely on other people's experiences for guidance.) I ended up hiring the less expensive guy because he was more confident that he could get to me in less than 6 weeks. (Apparently the painting business is good right now.) I expected the results to be better than something I could have done myself. I expected a near flawless, glossy, smooth finish. I expected that they would do all of the necessary prep work (which I had pretty much spelled out when the estimates were written). I expected the job to take about 3 days (less than 8-hour days) of work.
In order to avoid going into every detail, they didn't prep nearly as thoroughly as I do, used equipment that was in need of repair and consequently had to basically start all over. They had to sand through the paint, primer and previous finish to get down to bare wood in many spots because they hadn't prepared the surface properly. The work took over a week to get finished because of all of the extra work that had to be done. The cabinets didn't come out as well as I had hoped. I am now having to come behind and touch up (something I was really hoping to avoid.)
Things the painter did right: he was good about staying in touch with me and communicating his plan. He never ducked my phone calls and was professional about everything. In the end he knocked $100 off of his original estimate because he was disappointed in how the job went. I'm pretty sure he ended up losing money on the job as a result.
Is this a case of if you want the job done right, do it yourself? Should I have used a different painter? Should my expectations have been less lofty? The short of it is that I have been mulling this over for a while and I still don't know. Everybody has a bad day, I know that. This guy didn't react badly when things didn't go his way, which is something that many contractors do. He lowered the price in the end because he knew that he and I were both disappointed in the job.
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that he also painted the sheet rock I had just finished, the trim I had just installed, the pocket door to the laundry room and the sheetrock on the bar/peninsula; all things that were not included in the estimate. Also, don't get me wrong, the pictures will look good. The flaws are relatively small but numerous and noticeable close up.
By the way, I'm better at finishing sheet rock that I thought. It did take me considerably longer than it would a professional, though.
Don't forget to check out the pictures on Picasa.
