5 Differences between Residential and Commercial Painting

A hefty majority of painting companies boast that they are experts in painting for both residential and commercial painting. What’s the difference? Aren’t the steps in each similar? Not always. The painting industry makes a clear distinction between the two for several reasons. Here are 5 differences between residential and commercial painting.

Number of Painters

Larger spaces require more hands on the job. Commercial spaces can have larger square footage, by having more painters on the job, the schedule can be maintained. Painting projects like apartment buildings, restaurants and other commercial spaces typically have larger walls, vaulted ceilings and bigger footprints. Maximizing the number of painters minimizes the time on site for the crew.

Because residences are smaller, the amount of crew members at each space is smaller. Too many ladders and extension poles will just cause collisions instead of helping the process along. For a couple of bedrooms to get painted, you’re only going to need a painter or two. For this reason, painting companies that specialize in residential projects will employ less painters.

Amount of Paint

Covering a large area with a lot of paint requires specialized tools for the job. A commercial crew is more than likely going to come into a space with sprayers, scaffolding and potentially hydraulic cranes. These tools may seem like overkill, but will allow the painters to get the best finished product in the shortest amount of time. Commercial painting companies will have these items on hand, or know where to get them to facilitate your painting along. The crew is usually more adept at dealing with the challenges that can come along with a commercial space. This means they can breeze through projects that residential painters might stumble on.

Experience

Normally, a painter’s career begins in residential and moves to commercial. A beginner or DIY painter can get a reasonable outcome on a home bedroom, but a retail store or restaurant requires more skills and knowledge. Once a painter gets the experience (and endurance) to take on commercial jobs, they move up the ranks. Finding a company with experienced painters on their commercial teams.

Communication

While working with a painter or crew for your home project takes some communication, it is typically just from the crew to the owner. When it comes to a commercial space, communication is much more crucial. Schedules, expectations and needs will need to be communicated clearly to a much larger group of affected people. That means planning and putting out the information ahead of time. Commercial crew chiefs will be used to these needs and happy to assist in getting information disseminated to appropriate places.

Schedule Availability

by virtue of being bigger teams have more scheduling ability. They also are comfortable with offering off-hours or weekend production times. Businesses might find that painting interferes with business 100% and therefore need to work around the business hours. Others will work in predetermined sections through the project.

Range of Services

Commercial painters, because they are bigger teams, can gain from the pool of knowledge among the painters. They will be able to address less common service options that aren’t needed as often in residential properties. Services like epoxy flooring, sandblasting, electrostatic painting and faux finishing are normal requests for these crews.

If you are thinking about rejuvenating the look of your home or business, schedule a free, no-obligation estimate now.