Twelve questions to ask any painting contractor, including us

This is the uncomfortable truth at the centre of the trade. A brilliant repaint and a bad one look almost identical on the day the sheeting comes down. Both are the right colour. Both smell of fresh paint. The difference shows up in year three, and by then everyone involved has moved on.

Which means the only real quality control you have is the conversation before anybody starts. These are the twelve questions worth asking, in the order we would ask them, and what a good answer sounds like.

1. 1What condition are my surfaces actually in? A good answer names things: chalking on the north wall, hairline crazing on the gable, enamel over PVA on the trim, rust bleeding at the balustrade fixings. A bad answer is fine, just needs a wash and two coats.
2. 2How will you prepare, step by step? You want a sequence: wash method, scrape and sand, cut cracks open and fill, treat rust, spot prime, full prime where needed. Vagueness here is the single biggest warning sign in the trade.
3. 3Which primer are you using, and where? Every substrate needs its own. If the answer is that primer is not needed on a repaint, walk away.
4. 4How many coats, on which surfaces, and why? Two on sound work, three over colour change or porous plaster. It should differ by surface, and they should say so.
5. 5How much material is coming to site? Get a litre figure. Then photograph what arrives. This is the strongest check a homeowner has.
6. 6Are you diluting the paint, and by how much? Manufacturers allow a specific maximum. Anything beyond it thins the film and voids the system.
7. 7Is anything on this property going to undermine the repaint? Roof, gutters, parapets, damp, raised flowerbeds against walls, blocked downpipes. A contractor who says nothing here has not looked up.
8. 8Who is actually on site, and who supervises? Names, crew size, and who I phone on day four when something is not right.
9. 9What is the guarantee, in writing, and what voids it? Ask for the document, not the promise.
10. 10What happens if it rains? Cape winter is real. There should be a plan for wet substrates and a rule about minimum drying time, not just a hope.
11. 11How do payments work? Materials deposit, staged payments against progress, retention on completion. Not half upfront in cash.
12. 12Can I see a job you did five years ago, not five weeks ago? Anybody can show you fresh paint. Five year old paint is the whole test.

Ask the five year question last, and mean it. It is the only question in the list a corner-cutting contractor genuinely cannot answer.

• A price given without measuring anything.
• A quote that arrives as a single WhatsApp line with a total.
• Large cash deposit demanded before any work.
• No physical address, no company details, no VAT or registration information.
• Discomfort when you ask about primer or dilution.
• A price that drops dramatically the moment you hesitate. Something just got deleted from the scope, and it was not the profit.
• Pressure to sign today.

We inspect first, in writing, with photographs. The report names what the surfaces are doing, what has to happen before paint, and whether anything on the property will undermine the work. Then one fixed price for the whole job.

If our answer to any of the twelve is weaker than someone else's, hire them. That is genuinely how we would want you to decide.