Ted's Painting

We had many painters to choose from on Angie's List, we were lucky to pick Ted. He is honest, conscientious, pleasant and a great painter. His price was very reasonable in comparison to other bids. We were so happy with his work, we recommended him to our son and we are now recommending him to you!

Ted did a great job. I like to paint, but I hired Ted because I needed someone who cuold do a much better job than me and not get paint on any of the wood cabinets and granite in the bathroom or wood firelpace in the family room. He did a fantastic job cutting a clean paint line and didn't get paint on any of those areas. The paint job looks great. I still don't understand how he was able to do such an amazing job with very little taping. He was on time, very easy to have in the house, kept everything clean, and got everything done in time for Christmas. I also felt that his price was very competitive and felt that I got more than my money's worth.

I got my bid from Ted and reserved the job a year in advance. I was pleased to do so given the high rating from Angie's List & good price. When I got the bid, I emphasized the age of the house (92 yrs) & the need for a lot of prep. The painting season got a late start & Ted had a couple of jobs right before mine, the last of which went much longer than expected. So when Ted started he was already behind schedule for his summer's worth of jobs, and perhaps that's why it seemed to me that corners were being cut. I was surprised that he was scraping and sanding this old house (with high likelihood of lead-based paint in underlayers) without putting down ground protection, but he put plastic down when asked. He seemed to have trouble assembling a full crew and there were several different people working with him at different times. He did not seem to have the same idea about "sanding and feathering" and prep that I did, and he wanted to charge me for much of the filling and sanding work that I would have thought was part of the job (I did pay for some of this work). Even so, the level of prep on the back was inadequate. There were, and are, several areas where the edge of the old paint is clearly visible, and the use of primer seemed pretty sparing. In fact one area has already cracked and the new paint can be chipped off. Ted did not seem to have some basic equipment that one would expect of a professional painter; for example he did not have a power drill and borrowed mine to attach some shingles that were loose (this after one of his crew first tried the repair with nails and split the boards). A friend of mine was on site and did some major repairs that were needed, but Ted seemed unprepared to even the most minor level of carpentry, which again I thought was a part of any painter's job description. The bid included two coats but I don't believe two coats were applied on portions of the house. He had to be asked to put a second coat on some trim that looked streaky. He had to be stopped from applying the porch paint over visible dirt and grime (my friend who was on site had him wait while he scraped off the excess dirt). (The porch had been power-washed, but two months earlier and in the meantime there was much traffic from workers' muddy feet.) He or his workers painted right over things like old stick-on house numbers and pieces of tape. One of his workers cracked a window on the front porch but since Ted didn't see it happen it was not his responsibility. I believe that the job turned out to be bigger and more complex than he expected and that, in combination with him being rushed, led to him cutting corners in order to get through the job as quickly as possible. I think also he may not have much experience with older homes in rough shape. But, since he saw the house and bid the job, it seemed to me that this should all have been taken in stride and handled more professionally.

Ted gave me my estimate back in January, and we'd hoped to get started before March, but the weather wasn't cooperating. Finally, in April we were a "go." Ted did an excellent job and paid attention to detail.

Overall - we could not be happier with the way things went. We contacted Ted's Painting at the beginning of the year and he came out and gave us an estimate right away. His schedule was already pretty full so we were anticipating a July painting, but told him we were flexible if something opened up eariler. The weather cooperated and we were able to start the job in April. Ted was always very clear about what he was doing and why. He was willing to make an extra trip to the house to help us with paint color when were unsure. He then started the job and kept us informed of the nuances of the work when they made an impact on the look of the house. I trusted him completely, and am very happy that I did. The house looks fantastic! He, and his business administrator, Susan, are easy to work with: clear and prompt! When Ted's working it is clear cares a great deal about the quality of his work and our satisfaction with how things looked when it was done. He's the only painter I would have work on my house now! You can't go wrong!

I contacted Ted's Painting about prepping and painting the 950 square foot house I just bought. It has scored cedar shakes for siding. The house has been neglected for a long while, and it needed quite a bit of prep work. I talked to Ted about the job, and he came out to look at the place. He made his assessment, took measurements, and we discussed his approach. We shook hands and he promised to email a bit within a few days. Things seemed promising. True to his word, I got an email. However, it read "When I got back I looked at Ted's schedule and realized that he is booked through Sept. 2009 and wouldn't be able to do your job when you are needing it to be done in May." It seems strange that Ted wouldn't have known he was booked for the entire summer before he drove to my place to look at the house.

He painted three floors of our house and all the trim. It was great. He did it in parts instead of all at once. He did a wonderful job. It was very easy to have him here. I could not speak more highly of him. He is careful, thoughtful and he will fix anything. He is great. He cleaned up after himself. It was great.

I left a message for Ted on a weekday evening (after 6 pm) and his wife, who handles his scheduling, called me back at 8 am the next morning. They were always very quick to respond to my calls. He came by for an estimate within a few days and was able to schedule the job within two weeks. They shuffled Ted's schedule a little to help us get the job done quickly. Overall, he did a really nice job with the painting. We had a hole in the wall from a thermostat that was removed, which he had to patch and paint over. The material he used for the patch was was very rough and noticeably different from the rest of the wall. When I asked if he could fix it, he came back, sanded it down and used a wall texture that blended much better. He fixed it at no extra cost. Despite this little hiccup, it looked very good in the end. It's also worth noting that he was always very punctual. We would hire him again, and in fact have asked him to give us an estimate for the exterior of our house.

It was an excellent price and excellent job. It was done in the estimated time and the quality of the work was good. Ted and crew were very easy to work with.

Ted and his crew are fantastic. We called him months ago to get an estimate to paint the exterior of our house during the summer. He came right out and sent me a written estimate in a day or two, and showed up for work exactly when he said he would. I would hire them again and recommend them to anyone who needs the outside of their house painted. Ted is easy to work with, professional, cleaned up before leaving every day and was utterly dependable. He showed up when he said he was going to (on time), called to let us know he wouldn't be coming due to adverse weather, discussed any issues that cropped up with us for a quick resolution, and was very careful to ensure the high-quality of his work. He has a small, reliable, well-trained crew, and I can't recommend them enough. Ted is, hands-down, the best contractor I've ever hired. We couldn't be happier with everything he did for us!

They are very professional and everything was beautifully painted. They were clean and courteous in our home.

I called a couple of companies and Ted was very responsive to my request for an estimate. My job included painting the walls, trim, and spray painting a "popcorn ceiling". I moved most of the furniture out, but Ted was able to work around/cover a tall and heavy headboard with side cubboards (which was moved to the center of the room). This was a great help! The quality of the paint job around the window was not satisfactory when Ted and I evaluated the job (which was done by his assistant). Ted then came back to correct this.

After we made a a mess of the bedroom paint job, my husband and I called Ted to do the living room and dining room. We called him the day after the 4th of July and not only did he answer, but he came right over to take a look and get us an estimate. We needed the painting done within 5 days, as we had movers scheduled for the following weekend. He got us an estimate quickly and got the work done by the end of day on Thursday. It looks fantastic, he was great to work with and we will definitely call him again in the future.

He was very nice and was very professional. He couldn't do the work because he was really busy. He was really nice about telling us he can't do the work.

Very well. The project was somewhat delayed due to Seattle weather (needed three straight days of sun for the coats of stain to dry out), but once weather permitted Ted's Painting and his crew did an excellent job. Work was prompt and thorough, and site was cleaned up every day. Cheerful and easy to work with. We would definitely go with this company again.

They arrived on time. He was able to book me quickly. He got it done in the amount of time that he said it would. He was very neat. He was very professional.

They were professional, reliable and punctual. They worked in a timely fashion and were careful. They cleaned up when they were finished. I would recommend them and would use them again.

He was very quick to respond, also graciously redid a couple of minor flaws that we thought we had immediately. We thought the price was extremely competitive.

We had been left in a lurch by another painter who had done some very poor work. Ted came to our rescue! He did extra sanding, patching and cleaning up of the area that the previous painter had left. He was very communicative about what needed to be done and how he planned to proceed. The work was done very well and on time - just before the snow and rain came! If he had not been so prompt, we would have been waiting until Spring to have this work done. Thanks, Ted! You saved us from looking at a "patched" house for several months!

I was grateful that Ted was able to squeeze my job in very late in the season and was able to work around the weather in October and November. He was very busy finishing other projects but always called to let me know what the status of my job was. Ted and his crew (excellent folks) worked a couple of Saturdays to get the job done. His estimate was actually the lowest of three and I can't imagine getting better quality work or service. The attention to detail was evident as we did the final walk through- he did a great job.

Ted returned my email quickly and came out to give me an estimate within a week. He showed up on time and was very personable and helpful. He examined the area closely and outlined the different types of work that could be done. For specialty products that he wasn't familiar with, he told me who to call to get expert advice. Other painters I have hired have tried to guess on the spot about which specialty products to use (and been wrong) but Ted was very honest, gave me very helpful information, and showed that he wanted to do high quality work. When he came out to pressure wash, he made sure to protect the nearby cars from being sprayed and also suggested that I tell my neighbors when he was coming, so they knew to expect him there. The weather did not cooperate with our plans and he was very good about informing us about potential schedule changes. His work was excellent and we are very satisfied. I plan on hiring him for interior work and recommending him to my neighbors.

Ted's bid was done promptly and professionally. He is very easy to get along with. The exterior of the house was new Harie Plank siding. The interior was a 'well worn' 1908 house that needed a lot of prep. Ted and I found a good and reasonable level of prep that I think led to the best possible solution without going completely nuts. Ted had a couple of helpers but was pretty much always on the job himself. He seemed to be a bit overextended in terms of my job and others but was still very responsive to my timing needs. I had some trouble with windows and tile work that impacted the painting schedule and forced some return work and re-work; Ted handled that all very reasonably and at no extra cost. I made a few significant changes throughout the process and Ted was very flexible. He did charge above the estimate for the added work but that is to be expected.

This has been a tremendous relief for me because I did not think this building could ever look this good again. Thank you Ted & Susan.

Dealing with Ted and Susan was a very positive experience and we have already recommended their services to several of our neighbors and friends. The painting job was performed very well and we are very happy with the outcome. Next, we hope to get Ted to paint the interiors of our house.

I called Ted on June 12, 2007 at 2:07 p.m. and left a message with the person who answered the phone as to why I was calling. As of this date, June 21, 2007, I have not heard from Ted.