Hiring a painting contractor means trusting someone with one of your most significant investments, whether that’s your home or your business. The quality of the work will be visible every single day for years to come, and your experience throughout the project depends heavily on the professionalism and communication of the team you choose. With so much at stake, it pays to ask the right questions before you sign anything.
Greg Unseth Painting & Exteriors has been providing professional painting and exterior services to Colorado Springs homeowners and businesses for over 40 years. As experienced professionals inside the industry, we know exactly which questions separate the best contractors from the rest, and we’re sharing them here so you can make a confident, informed decision on your next painting project.
There are roughly ten questions worth asking any painting contractor before you hire them: seven focused on the quality and process of the work itself, and three focused on how the business operates to protect you as a client.
7 Questions About Painting Quality and Process
1. What Is Your Prep Process?
Preparation is the foundation of any quality paint job, and it’s where less experienced or less committed contractors most commonly cut corners. A professional painting team should be able to walk you through their entire prep process in detail, including how they protect floors, furniture, and adjacent surfaces, how they tape trim for clean lines, whether they fill cracks and perform cosmetic repairs before painting, and how they handle surfaces that need sanding or previous paint removal.
What you want to hear is a thorough, specific answer that reflects genuine experience and a commitment to protecting your property and setting the surface up for the best possible finished result. A vague or dismissive answer to this question is a red flag worth taking seriously.
At Greg Unseth Painting & Exteriors, our prep process includes power washing all exterior surfaces, scraping and wire brushing all loose and peeling paint, priming bare wood and delaminated surfaces, caulking all gaps and joints, and carefully masking everything that isn’t being painted. For interior projects, we move furniture, cover floors, and mask all woodwork before a single drop of paint is applied. Learn more about our exterior painting and interior painting processes and what sets our preparation work apart.
2. Do You Subcontract?
Some painting companies take on contracts and then hire a separate, often lower-paid crew to actually perform the work. This practice, called subcontracting, is not uncommon in Colorado Springs, but it comes with real risks for the homeowner. Subcontracted crews may not share the same training, standards, or accountability as the company’s internal employees, and the quality of the finished work can suffer as a result.
Ask directly whether the contractor subcontracts, and look for a clear, confident answer that they do not. A contractor who values their reputation and their clients’ trust will have internal employees with proper training, consistent accountability, and a vested interest in delivering excellent results on every job.
Greg Unseth Painting & Exteriors does not subcontract. Every project is performed by our own experienced team, and that consistency of quality and accountability is something our Colorado Springs clients have come to rely on for over four decades.
3. What Is Your Communication Process?
A painting project involves your home or business, your schedule, and your vision for the finished result. Clear, consistent communication throughout the process is essential to making sure everything goes smoothly and that you have the ability to give feedback as the work progresses.
Ask your contractor how communication is handled, who your primary point of contact will be, and how quickly you can expect responses to questions or concerns. Every team’s process will be a little different, but the answer should give you confidence that there is a clear process and that you won’t be left wondering what’s happening on your property.
4. What Happens in the Case of Bad Weather?
For exterior painting projects in Colorado Springs, this question is particularly important. Colorado’s weather is notoriously unpredictable, and a professional exterior painting contractor needs to have a clear plan for managing weather-related disruptions.
Ask how the contractor handles rain, high winds, and temperature fluctuations. Do they build weather contingency days into their timeline? How do they protect freshly applied paint if conditions change unexpectedly? The answer should reassure you that they understand the impact of weather on paint application and curing, and that they will never paint in conditions that would compromise the quality of the finished result.
5. What Are Your Practices Regarding Lead Paint?
If your Colorado Springs home was built before 1978, there’s a possibility that lead paint is present on some surfaces. This is an important safety consideration that any reputable painting contractor should be prepared to address. Ask whether the contractor has a procedure for testing for and safely removing lead paint, and whether they have at least one lead-certified professional on their team.
According to EPA regulations, contractors who disturb lead paint during renovation work are required to be certified and follow specific work practices to prevent lead contamination. A professional contractor should be able to confirm their compliance with these requirements without hesitation.
6. What Type of Paint Do You Use?
Paint quality varies enormously, and some less scrupulous contractors will specify one paint in the estimate and substitute a cheaper product on the job to increase their margin. Ask specifically which paint brands, product lines, and finishes they use, and why they choose those products for different surfaces and applications.
A knowledgeable contractor should be able to explain the difference between product options, help you understand which finishes are appropriate for each surface, and work with you to find the right balance of appearance, durability, and cost for your specific project. If they can’t speak intelligently about the products they use, that’s a concern.
Greg Unseth Painting & Exteriors uses only professional-grade Sherwin Williams products on every project, including Duration, Resilience, and Super Paint for exterior applications. We’ll walk you through all available options and help you choose the right product for your specific needs during your free estimate.
7. How Many Coats of Paint Do You Apply?
Many painting estimates are calculated on a per-square-foot basis, but the number of coats included in that estimate matters enormously for the quality and longevity of the finished result. A proper professional paint job typically includes a primer coat and at least two finish coats, which provides superior coverage, color consistency, and durability compared to a single-coat application.
Ask your contractor how they determine the appropriate number of coats for your specific project. The answer should reflect an understanding of how the number of coats is influenced by the surface condition, the color being applied, and the durability requirements of the space. A contractor who automatically quotes single-coat applications to keep prices low is cutting a corner that will show up in the finished result sooner than you’d like.
3 Business Questions to Ask Before You Sign
1. Who Will Be Overseeing My Project?
The person you meet during the estimate process may not be the same person leading the crew in your home or business during the actual project. In larger companies this is normal, but it’s important that you know who that on-site manager will be and that you have the opportunity to meet them before work begins.
Ask specifically who will be overseeing your project day-to-day, ask to meet them, and make sure you feel comfortable communicating with them directly. This meeting also serves as a useful check to confirm that you’re working with in-house employees rather than subcontractors, since a contractor who uses their own team should have no hesitation introducing you to the person who will be leading the work on your property.
2. Do You Have Insurance?
This is non-negotiable. Any legitimate painting contractor operating in Colorado Springs should carry two types of insurance: comprehensive general liability insurance and workers’ compensation insurance.
General liability insurance protects your property in the event of accidental damage during the project. If a ladder slips and damages your gutters or paint gets on surfaces it shouldn’t, the contractor’s liability coverage handles the cost of repairs. Workers’ compensation insurance protects the painting crew in the event of an on-site injury, ensuring that you as the property owner are not exposed to liability for injuries that occur during the project.
Always ask for proof of both types of insurance and verify that the coverage is current before signing any contract. A contractor who can’t provide this documentation is not someone you want working on your property.
Greg Unseth Painting & Exteriors is fully licensed and insured, and we’re happy to provide proof of coverage at any time. Our Colorado Springs clients have peace of mind knowing that every project is covered from start to finish.
3. What Is Your Warranty Policy?
A contractor who stands behind the quality of their work will offer a warranty, and asking about warranty coverage is one of the most effective ways to gauge how confident a contractor is in what they deliver. A workmanship warranty means that if the paint shows significant defects attributable to the application, the contractor will return to fix the problem at no additional cost. Many contractors also pass along manufacturer warranties on the paint products themselves, which cover product defects for a specified period.
Most paint defects related to workmanship or product quality become apparent within the first two years, so a one to three year workmanship warranty is a reasonable baseline. For longer warranties, from ten years to lifetime, consider how long the contractor has been in business and whether they have the track record and stability to back that guarantee meaningfully over time.
Always get your warranty in writing and keep a copy. Greg Unseth Painting & Exteriors offers some of the strongest warranty options available in Colorado Springs, including a 10-year labor warranty with a Lifetime Paint Warranty through Sherwin Williams on qualifying exterior painting projects. Our warranty is provided in writing at the time of your free estimate so you know exactly what you’re covered for before any work begins.
Ready to Ask Your Questions?
The right painting contractor will welcome every one of these questions and answer them with confidence and transparency. If a contractor becomes defensive, evasive, or dismissive when you ask about their process, insurance, or warranty, that tells you something important about how they’ll handle things if a problem arises during your project.
Greg Unseth Painting & Exteriors has been answering these questions for Colorado Springs homeowners and businesses for over 40 years, and we’re proud of every answer we give. Contact us today to schedule your free estimate, meet our team, and get the full picture on what working with us looks like from start to finish.
In addition to interior and exterior painting, we offer a comprehensive range of exterior services including stucco installation and repair, siding and trim replacement, window and door replacement, deck installation, and fence installation throughout Colorado Springs and the surrounding Front Range communities.
