LIVING COLOR PAINTING

I like them; this was the second or third time that I have used them. You have to be careful because there are some other companies out there with exact same name but are not this company. I use the one from Maynard and his name is Tony. They are the best. He is very good and very busy. He is there for most of the work. He knows what he is doing. The price for quality is excellent. He is one of the few that will point out spots and repair the area before he paints them. He also does carpentry work. We do have to book early.

We weren't looking for someone who could paint. Anybody can paint. We were looking for someone who would do the appropriate preparation and do it correctly. In talking with Tony, it was clear that he had experience with cedar siding and understood the importance of preparation. After selecting Tony, it took a while for us to make it to the top of his schedule, which was a little frustrating, but ultimately well worth the wait. The entire house was power-washed, but it was clear that the siding needed more work; staining over mold-darkened areas would trap that discoloration in permanently. Tony and crew applied a Benjamin Moore brightner and scrubbed and power-washed all areas; some required more than one application. No stain was applied until I was satisfied with the preparation. I had selected a semi-transparent stain, but made the mistake of letting Tony talk me into a semi-solid stain, which, admittedly, will protect the house better but wasn't the look I wanted. After semi-solid stain was applied to a small area, I realized my mistake; the area was stripped and the entire house was stained with the semi-transparent. In addition, the overhang and trim were painted and the deck was cleaned and stained. Prior to initiating the project, it seemed that communication wasn't good; we were anxious to start but the schedule was dependent upon Tony's other work and the weather, neither of which was cooperating. However, once the project was underway, Tony was very good at communicating. Due to the late start, we were under a time constraint and Tony scheduled his crew to finish the work on time. They worked hard, were respectful of the landscaping, and cleaned up at the end of each day. The house looks much brighter and healthier with its new coat of 'paint'. (Before & after photos have been posted to illustrate the improvement.) It was a big (and expensive) project because of the extensive cleaning required. However, we plan to protect the siding with a new coat of stain every 3-4 years, so that extent of cleaning should not be necessary in the future.