For an interior painting job, let's say a room measures 8 feet long x 8 feet wide x 8 feet high. For a commercial construction paint company, an accurate estimate of the paint job is critical to building and maintaining a successful business. Once you know your customer's square footage and how many gallons of paint and primer they need, add these painting costs to your total cost estimate. Because paint estimates are always personalized estimates with many variables, we've developed a step-by-step guide for new and experienced contractors on how to prepare an accurate painting budget for any job, saving you time, winning more bids and increasing your margins.
For example, some historic districts have strict color guidelines, while other areas may require low-VOC paints for environmental reasons. However, more materials will be consumed if you first need to repair and prepare the surface before painting. It simply means that you must thoroughly review and understand the variables that go into each paint estimate or that you must outsource your estimate to a construction cost estimation service. Here's how to estimate the amount of paint you need and how to accurately measure your paint site for interior and exterior painting jobs.
You can determine the need for preparation and cleaning by visiting the site and evaluating the condition of the surfaces to be painted. This is especially important for painting contractors who are involved in new construction or renovation projects. However, how many painters you will need and for how long depends largely on the unique conditions of the job. Being able to accurately estimate the cost of a painting job will go a long way in making your business profitable. After all, you should be compensated for your time, not just for the paint and materials you purchased.
It needs a little more primer than paint. A gallon of primer will only cover 200 to 300 square feet. While it's always a good idea to visit the job site before making a painting budget, you can save time and money by thoroughly reviewing the project plans or the specifications of the structure you need to paint. When it's time to charge your customer, use a paint bill generator to easily add your services as items to your bill.
It might seem like a lot of work before the job even starts, but knowing how to estimate a paint job accurately to account for all the costs can make the difference between reaching breakeven and making healthy profits.
