If you are the owner of a hotel, motel or some other type of large commercial building then when it comes time to paint there are some special considerations when you are going to hire a professional commercial painting contractor to complete your painting project. In this article we will look at some of the most important areas.



The first thing that you as the owner should consider is the experience level of the painting contractor that you are considering hiring. Painting a large commercial building is much different than painting smaller structures. This not only includes the various application techniques that painting a commercial building has, but also includes the different safety issues, materials, paints, licensing and proper insurance that the painting contractor will need for a large commercial building. We will look at some of these a little closer.

There are several application techniques for painting a large commercial building. The most basic are of course brushing, rolling and spraying. But there are other techniques used for painting commercial buildings. On many newer buildings today more and more people are opting for using knock-down on interior walls. Basically, knock-down is just joint compound which has been diluted and sprayed directly on walls to give it a stipple effect. Knock-down also has a very nice look and is becoming more and more popular. On the exteriors of commercial buildings the most popular coating is a elastromeric coating. It is a very durable coating which expands and shrinks with the various tempatures and last longer than ordinary paint. It is also very good to use on split faced block because it helps to seal the block from water. Using knock-down on interiors and elastomeric coatings on exteriors are both best done by hiring a painting contractor who has experience in commercial settings using both of these techniques.

Insurance should also be a concern when you are going to hire a commercial painting contractor. The contractor should carry a minimum of two million dollar liability insurance as well as workers compensation insurance on all of their employees. This is the absolute minimum and may require more according to the size of the job. Also, you should be certain to obtain a certificate of insurance from the painting contractors insurance agent. This is the most common way to verify insurance and the agent can fax you a copy with all of the insurance information that you will need.

Always take at least three bids from commercial painting contractors so that you can see the difference in pricing between the different companies. Make certain that you make the specifications of your job very clear to each contractor and always keep the communication line open in case any of the contractors have questions. You do not want to have someone complain that the bid process was unfair because they never got their question answered.

Always ask for references from every contractor you accept bids from and always check those references. You do not need to check references on every contractor that supplies you with a bid, but you will always need to check the references on the painting contractor that you are planning on awarding the job to.

These are just a few of the most important considerations when hiring a professional commercial painting contractor.