From Quote to Kickoff: Exterior Painting a Point Richmond Waterfront Home

Hello, I'm Chad with Cutting Edge Painting. I run a painting company out of here in the Bay Area and have been painting for almost 20 years myself at this point. I grew up in the Bay Area and trained in a company based in the East Bay. Today I want to walk you through a project we recently completed in Point Richmond, California — and give you a look at exactly how we work from the very first conversation to the moment we break ground.

The first step is our conversation between our potential client and me. We want to make sure that we're the right fit for them, that we will provide them with what they are looking for, and even go beyond what they're looking for. After having a brief conversation to address what is needed, I then schedule a convenient time for the homeowner to have me come by so I can take a look at what their project needs are. This is an integral step and may be one of the most important, as my potential client and I see if we're a good match for their project. For me, this is where the project relationship begins. Being invited to someone’s home can be a personal experience, creating trust from the beginning; listening to concerns and showing attention to detail in all phases is so important to having a successful project. Homeowners are putting their trust in someone else’s hands, and I don’t take that responsibility lightly. It’s the start of a project relationship, and I value building trust between my clients and me as soon as I can.

Once at the property, I walk around the premises and assess the condition of the project is paramount. I need to see what the trouble areas may be and what all substrates involved are, from metal to concrete and all in between. Looking for damaged areas and engaging in talks on how we address them. Speaking with my clients through it all and making sure I am listening to their concerns and what they're looking for, along with recommendations to give the best outcome. I make all my notes, then sit down, take my time, and produce a quote. I pay attention to make sure I address their concerns, as each project is unique. I want our potential clients to have confidence in their estimate experience and know that they are going to get the very best from me.

After walking the property and discussing the project with the homeowner, I take all of my notes and sit down to produce the quote. I want the estimate to reflect what we have actually discussed. I want the property owner to have confidence that I understood their concerns and that the scope of work accurately represents what we are proposing to do. Attention to detail is important in this stage. I take photos of each side of the property and highlight areas that need more attention. All of those are included in the estimate I send. The photos are great, as they can be reliable notes on what is to be done in an area, as I am able to add captions to each photo.

Once the estimate is completed, I then send it over to the homeowner so they can review it, make sure everything is accounted for, and if agreeable, we continue on to schedule the work. For this particular blog series, I'm going to focus on a full exterior painting job of an East Bay Area waterfront home.

A House Above the Water

This house is located in Point Richmond, and it sits above water on three of its sides. Two of those sides have either a deck or a walkway, which gives us access to put up ladders and reach the taller parts of the house. But one side has no walkway, no deck, and no ground of any kind for us to stabilize a ladder. Bringing ladders simply won’t cut it, and as a contractor, I then go into safety mode, as our record carried no accidents for a reason, and plan to maintain that. The equipment needed needs to be able to work with the architecture and challenges of the home. This waterfront home introduces challenges that aren’t easily remedied, but luckily, we know the right people to call.

So I subcontracted a scaffolding company to come out and give us a quote for what it would cost to install scaffolding along that side. Having worked in the world of painting for about 20 years, I have made strong connections to professionals that aid us in what we do every day. The scaffolding company is the highlight; I have used them for all the projects that are necessary for, and they do each project without fail. Having that confidence, knowing the scaffold is done right and safe in every inch of it, is something we will never take for granted.

Erecting the Scaffolding

Once that was arranged, the scaffold company came in and erected the scaffolding. On this house, they had to trudge into the water and build it from the bottom all the way to the top. It was amazing to witness — and very clever how they built and balanced it for weight by attaching it to the back of the house. They engineered a way to gain access while maintaining safety, and this is the foundation of being able to begin our process. Now scaffolding typically bolts into sturdy parts of the house in order to stay stable as we work from it. This is extra security, giving us the ability to work without fear.

With the scaffolding complete, we were ready to begin our process. But getting access to the house is only the beginning. Before any painting happens, there is an extensive preparation process.

In Part 2, we'll walk through the prep work that goes into a waterfront exterior in the SF Bay Area — from pressure washing off salt buildup to repairing water-damaged wood before a single drop of paint is applied.