DAVE CASTEEL QUALITY CUSTOM PAINTING

So far, it's been great. He's been very accommodating. He's really informative in terms of what kind of paint to use.

They were on time and did the job I asked them to do. They were also pleasant to work with. They cleaned up after the job and did not leave a mess for me.

Did a beautiful job. Customer service from beginning to end was excellent. Dave returned all calls promptly, answered all our questions and even gave us references for other trades. His English speaking crew was great. We will use them again when needed.

The last time I painted the entire house; stucco and trim, it cost about $3800. So I was surprised when the bids for just the trim were from $2200 to almost $3000. I chose Dave Casteel because he was very personable during the estimate and first meeting. His bid was also the lowest and I didn't see there was very much difference. His company also received very good reviews from Angie's List. Unfortunately, while the bid came in fairly quickly, the work kept getting delayed. From various telephone conversations, I think he'd taken on a lot of work and might have miscalculated the time required. Once they got started, one worker (Nick?) did the pressure wash one day and then the painters didn't show up for another few days. The two painters seemed to do very little to prep the wood in general except for a really badly chipped frame at the dining room window. I expected a lot more preparation - scraping, sanding, putty - based on my previous conversation with Dave during the estimate phase. However, I figured they knew their business better than me. When they finished the first day, they'd left cans and bottles around the house instead of putting them in the garage. It wasn't a big deal - not a lot of garbage - but it wasn't what I expected. Also, they'd taken the screens off - expected - but misplaced the metal holders at the bottom. I found several on top of the electric panel, several more in the dirt under the windows and another, obviously run-over and squashed, in the driveway. Again - not helpful or professional. The second day I pointed these out and they said they'd take care of it. I also pointed out the front door and screen door paint was uneven, the putty showed through (it hadn't been sanded) and generally needed another coat. When they left that day they said they'd need to have someone else come back to finish. By then, Bill 'was going on vacation' and Nick was in charge. He did his best and was very personable but it took awhile to get things finished. By then I realized all the windows had been painted shut! Nick did his best to fix that too, but in the process, broke one of my windows. He replaced it by the next day - no charge. Overall, it was a frustrating process. I am satisfied with the paint job - it looks good and so far has held up. But all the interruptions and mistakes were frustrating after I expected a more professional and responsible job.

We obtained a quote and scheduled the work for the following week. The painters did careful prep work (painter's tape, drop cloths, etc) and showed attention to detail as they worked. They were very polite throughout their time in the house. They completed the job in two days, even though we changed our minds about one of the room colors after we saw the first coat (understanding that there would be slight additional charge.) Dave himself came and joined the crew to help them finish.

Dave provided a prompt estimate and was able to schedule the work quickly. The painters arrived as scheduled and provided a complete and professional job. Clean-up was well done. I am very pleased with the service provided and the crisp clean look which resulted.

Dave is great at returning calls, came and gave me an estimate, recommending a paint that he feels give the best coverage and is the best quality. His paint supplier was able to match colors from other vendors. Dave and his helper showed up when he said that he would, covered everything and cleaned as they went. I was comfortable with leaving them alone in my home while I was at work. I love the finished job and will use Quality Custom Painting again in the future (I have more rooms and more colors!) The final bill was exactly the same as his estimate and the work was completed in the time frame he had indicated.

The entire experience was great. The contractor provided me with the large fan of colors for two different manufacturers. In addition, I had picked up paint chips from a variety of sources. He assisted me in selecting colors and making decisions about finishes, walls that should receive color, and those that should stay neutral. I wound up with eleven different colors on the walls. He arrived on time, and cleaned up at the end of each day so that I was not stumbling over painting tools and supplies during the few days that it took to finish the job. The quality of the work is excellent. The contractor took care of all wall prep (which was a bit of a challenge in my home, I have lots of pictures hanging on the walls!), made suggestions on finishes, trim, etc. I'm presently in the processing of changing the furnishings in my family room, and have contacted him to get put on his schedule.

Dave really helped me. I was under a deadline to get my house painted. He squeezed me in with no extra charge. It went very smoothly from the beginning phone call in getting an estimate all the way through to the clean up. I would definitely recommend them and will be hiring them fairly soon to do some interior painting for me. They painted my parents home about 10 years ago, and it still looks great. They use ICI Fortus paint, very high quality.