Harbor Painting, Plastering, and Wallpaper Blog

Permanent Solutions for Rotted Wood on Long Island

Posted by Mark Clayton on Thu, Aug 4, 2011 @ 23:08 PM

Wood Rot RepairProtect your investment by replacing rotted and worn out wood before the winter months arrive. Rotting wood should be replaced before additional structural damage is caused by water infiltration into the home.  At Harbor Paint we employ the best solutions for making repairs and replacements for rotted wood on trim, fascia, rakes, sills and soffits.

Wood that is located less than eight inches from the ground should be replaced with rot resistant wood (cedar or PT) or today's revolutionary PVC materials such as Azek.  Azek looks like and is installed the same as the existing trim wood and can be painted to match any color scheme.

Other areas that tend to rot easily or show signs of carpenter bee damage or wood pecker damage should also be replaced with a PVC product making the repair permanent.

Sections of wood that have minor damage can be repaired with an Epoxy compound especially formulated for exterior use.  This type of "filler" does not soak up water like typical less expensive wood fillers used by inexperinced trades-people.  Selecting the proper materials can ensure that susequent painting life is enhanced on these failure prone areas.

Consider the overall costs of all repair options so that repairs are permanant and seamlessly integrated into the home.  Avoid the temptation of using "finger-jointed" or common pine that tends to fail in as little as two years causing the repair process to be repeated.

 

Get a free estimate

Topics: wood rot repair, rotted wood repair, azek repair

How to Choose the Right Painting Contractor

Posted by Mark Clayton on Sun, Aug 1, 2010 @ 22:08 PM

 

How to Choose the Right Painting Contractor

 Most Property Owners and Homeowners

Only Paint Every 7 to 10 Years and Many Don’t Know

What Questions to Ask to Evaluate a Painting Contractor.

 The following information is provided to assist property owners and homeowner’s in choosing a painting contractor. This is not an exhaustive list and all of the questions may not apply to your situation.

  Here are 3 areas we recommend you consider in evaluation every painting contractor you talk to:

  1. The Reputation and Business Stability of the Painting Company
  2. Their Experience and Methodology
  3. Their Service Before, During and After Your Project

 For each area simply ask the questions and ask the painting contractor to provide the evidence to support their answers.

 Reputation and Business Stability of the Painting Company

 Are you licensed in Nassau and in Suffolk Counties for painting and home improvement and will you provide us with a copy of your licenses?

  • Will you supply a copy of your current insurance certificate?
  • Will you provide a copy of your business registration for your current company? (This is proof of how long they have been in business under this name.)
  • Can you provide me with a reference list with at least 15 recent customers?
  • Will you provide us with a reference from you bank and your key suppliers?
  • What professional organization(s) of painting contractors do you belong to?
  • Do you or have you ever held an officer position in any organization of professional painters? PDCA
  • Have you ever filed for bankruptcy for any company or organization in which you were an owner that did painting or home remodeling?
  • Will you provide me with certificates that prove that your company and at least one member of your crew is certified in the new EPA Law on Lead Effective April 22, 2010?

 Experience and Methodology

 Will you provide a detailed breakdown of the service you are providing?

  • Do you have specific experience in glazing, stenciling, Venetian plaster, color washes and other decorative methods?
  • Do you have a written policy regarding the use of drugs and alcohol by your crews?
  • What screening procedures do you use before hiring an employee?
  • Do you hire part-time employees or subcontractors to work in your crews?
  • Do you require your employees to wear uniforms?
  • What type of training do your employees receive on domestic and security issues?

 Service Before, During and After the Project

 Will you provide me with your warranty in writing?

  • Have you ever repainted or repaired a project that was out of warranty?
  • What is your company phone policy?
  • How often do you meet with the homeowner to review job progress?
  • Do you provide a price guarantee?

We hope these questions give you the information you need to make the best choice when it comes to hiring, evaluating and working with a professional painting contractor to paint your home or install new wallpaper or wall coverings.

 The Biggest Reason Why

Homeowners Shouldn’t Hire a Handyman to Repair Painted Surfaces

 Proper surface preparation is the most important part of any paint job and the smart move is to hire a professional painter painting contractorto do it NOT the handyman. A professional painter does this every day not once every couple of weeks or months. This is especially important for interior painting and repairs.

 Many times homeowners will call a handyman service to repair a crack in the plaster or fix the trim or replace a door etc. These projects will require painting to complete the repair and the handyman will “volunteer” to do the painting.

 If you need any of these interior painting services call a professional painting contractor:

  • Dry Wall Repairs and Plastering
  • Skim coating
  • Staining and Varnishing New and Existing Woodwork
  • Door Refinishing
  • Decorative Painting Including: Glazing, Color Washes and Venetian Plaster

 

 Get a free estimate

 Serving: Suffolk and Nassau Counties, New York

Topics: hiring a painter, find painters

Painting Azek Trim - Yes or No?

Posted by Mark Clayton on Sun, Aug 1, 2010 @ 16:08 PM

Should I paint the Azek trim on my house?  It's a common question today.  In the past exterior trim was made of wood (typically pine) that was subject to rot, insects, and maintenance painting every few years.  Contractors have been specifying to homeowners and property owners PVC trim more and more with Azek as the leading choice.  Azek is a very good product that is impervious to moisture and insects but it is more expensive.  To keep the additional cost of the trim material in the project budget, some contractors are "selling" homeowners on the idea you don't have to paint azek.  Homeowners appreciate saving the expense on paint, but are often suprised a couple of years later when there home looks like it needs to be painted.

Azek does not "require" painting but it is highly recommended for the following reasons:

  1. Azek doesn't have a finish and that leaves the material subject to dirt, smudges, hand prints, mold, and mildew.
  2. Many contractors install trim only and don't fill the nail holes or clean the trim when finished.  You must use filler, caulk, and glue specified by Azek.
  3. Properly prepared and painted trim with even brush stokes gives the appearance of finely painted wood.
  4. A properly painted finish will last for years protecting the substrate from mold, mildew, and the uv rays from the sun.

 

Get a free estimate

 

Painting Specification From Azek:

• AZEK Trim does not require paint for protection, but accepts and holds paint very well.

• If you choose to paint use a 100% acrylic latex paint with colors having a Light Reflective Value (LRV) of 55 or higher.

• For darker colors (LRV of 54 or lower), paints specifically designed for use on vinyl/pvc products such as, but not limited to, Sherwin-Williams VinylSafe™ coatings. These paints/coatings are designed to reduce excessive heat gain.

• Follow the paint manufacturer’s recommendations for use and compatibility with AZEK Trim and Mouldings.

• AZEK surfaces must be clean, dry, and void of any foreign material such as dirt, oil, grease or other contaminates that may come from normal handling, storage and/or installation prior to painting.

• Moisture cycling is a main reason for paint failure on wood. Since AZEK material absorbs no moisture, paints last longer on AZEK products than it does on wood.

• Since AZEK products have almost no moisture absorption, paints may take longer to cure on AZEK material than on wood. Generally paints on AZEK products will be dry to the touch quickly, but may take up to 30 days to fully cure depending on the humidity and temperature.

 The Paint Quality Institute offers a similar specification

In most cases Azek will require a properly painted finish in a couple of years for cosmetic reasons

painting azek

 

For more information contact Harbor Painting.

    Above is a photo of Azek installed in 2008 and has not been painted.  There are rusty nail holes, dirt blemishes, and settling.

Topics: painting azek, painting azek trim

Harbor Painting Receives 2010 "Best of Huntington" Award

Posted by Mark Clayton on Thu, Jul 1, 2010 @ 18:07 PM
  •  

Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE best house painters in huntington

Harbor Painting Receives 2010 Best of Huntington Award

U.S. Commerce Association's Award Plaque Honors the Achievement

NEW YORK, NY, June 23, 2010 -- For the second consecutive year, Harbor Painting has been selected for the 2010 Best of Huntington Award in the Painting Contractor category by the U.S. Commerce Association (USCA).

The USCA "Best of Local Business" Award Program recognizes outstanding local businesses throughout the country. Each year, the USCA identifies companies that they believe have achieved exceptional marketing success in their local community and business category. These are local companies that enhance the positive image of small business through service to their customers and community.

Nationwide, only 1 in 70 (1.4%) 2010 Award recipients qualified as two-time Award Winners. Various sources of information were gathered and analyzed to choose the winners in each category. The 2010 USCA Award Program focuses on quality, not quantity. Winners are determined based on the information gathered both internally by the USCA and data provided by third parties.

About U.S. Commerce Association (USCA)

U.S. Commerce Association (USCA) is a New York City based organization funded by local businesses operating in towns, large and small, across America. The purpose of USCA is to promote local business through public relations, marketing and advertising.

The USCA was established to recognize the best of local businesses in their community. Our organization works exclusively with local business owners, trade groups, professional associations, chambers of commerce and other business advertising and marketing groups. Our mission is to be an advocate for small and medium size businesses and business entrepreneurs across America.

SOURCE: U.S. Commerce Association

Topics: painting contractor, exterior house painting, interior house painting, house painting estimate

Harbor Painting Completes EPA Lead Class For EPA Certified Renovator

Posted by Mark Clayton on Tue, Apr 13, 2010 @ 13:04 PM
  • Lead safe certified firmThe EPA now requires companies who engage in renovation, repair and painting in pre 1978 housing and child-occupied facilities to be trained and certified as "certified renovators". The EPA adopted the RRP rules to protect residents and especially children from lead exposure during renovation activities by educating, training and requiring lead safe practices when lead paint is present. This new law presents a number of challenges (it will cost a little more for some projects) and opportunities (for certified companies) and should not be taken lightly as the EPA fines are substantial, but more important is the fact that these rules are in place to protect children and failure to comply can lead to liability and negligence claims that could break a business. Ironically, many of the contractors in our area are ignorant of this law and many others don't plan to comply and homeowners need to understand this.

  • Harbor Paints completed EPA certification earlier this year. We plan to have all of our people certified as a minimum standard to work here. All of our people currently have the OSHA 10 hour safety training and we will include this as part of our ongoing and onboard training.
    The implementation of a couple of systems will determine those opportunities for us:
    1. Our employees will be certified and know the law
    2. Our clients will know the law (without creating so much fear that they choose not to hire us)
    3. We will line item the cost to comply with EPA safe lead practices in our proposals (full disclosure)
    4. We will document all tests and include photos
    5. We are working with our attorney and rewriting clauses for change orders and trade interference as it pertains to safe lead practices and creating a client sign off form that states we complied with the law
    6. We have set a decision model to determine what jobs we will do and what jobs we can't in compliance with the law 
    7. Even in this economy, it's OK to walk away from certain jobs 
  • On April 22, 2010 this will become the law of the land.
    http://www.epa.gov/lead/pubs/renovation.htm
  • We welcome your thoughts.

Topics: EPA certified renovator, safe lead practices

Color Consulting: My Room Is So Bright, I Need To Wear Shades

Posted by Mark Clayton on Tue, Mar 16, 2010 @ 16:03 PM

color consultingEven as the economy appears dull and gloomy, the winter doldrums cast a dark shadow, designers and homeowners are creating rooms and home environments that are anything but. The paint colors for 2010 are bright and optimistic. Benjamin Moore's color experts even chose a zippy apricot yellow as a top interior décor color for 2010.

The painters at Harbor Painting agree. "People are making bolder, richer color choices," says Mark Clayton, president of Harbor Painting in Huntington. "Rather than safe whites and beiges, homeowners are selecting colors that make them feel good. Bright yellows, corals, teals, violets-colors that make a statement. As long as a room has the right type of lighting, there's no reason to be afraid of color."

Green, a trend that's been gaining momentum for several years, remains strong for 2010.  Some of the shades are going grayer or more yellow, but Mark sees green increasingly used as neutral and paired with almost any other color.  Green is becoming the new beige.

Black and dark grey paint, once forbidden, has been a choice color for some of Harbor Paintings' clients and is expected to make a strong showing in 2010. "The look is opulent. Especially in faux finishes such as Marmorino plasters and our own version of "antico damasco," explains Mark. "And when it's paired with a neutral trim, the final result can be outstanding," he recalls proudly describing a dining room he recently completed.

When Mark, President of Harbor Painting, consults with clients about wall treatment choices, he encourages them to imagine a room with everything it's ultimately going to have. "I ask to see samples of the carpet, rugs, curtains, fabric choices for furniture-anything that's available. The more information we have, the easier it is to choose the perfect color.   I try to help clients understand that it's easier to find a wall color to match a fabric than to find a fabric to match a wall color."

With the slow housing market, many homeowners are redecorating rather than moving and that can mean reinventing or working with what one already has.  "We are doing quite a lot of cabinet and built-in furniture refinishing, applying a fresh, new color to what's there," Mark says.  "People are reinventing their homes with paint."

Whatever the color scheme, Harbor Painting emphasizes the importance of proper product selection, application and preparation.  "Choosing the perfect colors for your home is an important part of the process, but preparation is the key.  Inspecting, skimming, patching, sanding and priming, whether you do it yourself or hire experts, is essential for a dramatic and professional result". 

Founded in 1993, Harbor Painting provides homeowners, designers and high-profile commercial establishments with high-end decorating services.  Widely regarded as a leader in the fields of painting, plastering, faux finishing, and exterior and interior maintenance, Harbor Painting customizes our repertoire of finishes and wall covering techniques to create unique environments and reflect the personality of our clients. 

 

Get a free estimate

Topics: color trends, color design, color consulting