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September 6, 2008
Cost of painting bedrooms?
Can anyone suggest what a reasonable quote would be for painting the two bedrooms in my brownstone co-op? One is 12X12 with two windows, the other 8x12 with one window, both have crown molding and sheetrock walls, in good shape. I spent $3500 doing the rest of the apt last year, that painter quoted me another $2000 for the bedrooms and would like to spend a lot less. Is that possible?
Comments
If you don't have to skim coat and the prep work will be straightforward, $100 in paint and supplies if you do it yourself. All it takes is attention to detail and a steady hand and you'll be fine. If you are going to skim coat or there is a lot of other prep work then $2000 doesn't strike me as an unreasonable quote.
In interior painting there is an enormous spectrum for the cost of any particular job, but generally not an enormous spectrum of results. If the walls are in decent shape and you are using a color that hides imperfections, you can slap up a tinted primer and a couple of coats of paint by yourself and call it a day, and only a picky real estate nerd or a buyer looking for an excuse to lowball will notice. Or you could have a team of professionals come in and skim coat everything and then prime and apply three perfect quotes. Difference in cost: thousands. Difference in results? Frankly, not that much, unless you decide to be OCD about it just to show what a perfectionist you are. There are tons of other home reno projects where double the cost will actually get you double (or more) the product, but in my humble opinion this just isn't one.
Christ, if I didn't have kids I would come over and paint your damn walls for $500 bucks and a few beers.
Posted by: lechacal at September 6, 2008 12:52 PM
Painting drywall in new construction with union labor runs around $0.95/SF. Assuming you have 9' 0" ceilings, your rooms would be about $800. Add $200 for the base (at about $2.50/LF) and $100 for each of the two doors and you're up to $1,200. Given that you're painter is probably a non-union contractor, maybe even more of a handyman, It really shouldn't cost more than $1,000 (assuming, as lechacal points out, there's no substantial prep work required).
John Ife
Posted by: johnife at September 6, 2008 1:47 PM
Painting is such a DIY gig. It's all in the prep.
I just got the primer up on my first floor entry/mud room/hall, staircase and second floor hall this afternoon. I'd probably pay a painter two grand for this job. My cost: $100 and three days' labor. And, frankly, given what I've seen pass of professional paint jobs I'll frankly do a better job of it.
Posted by: Steve at September 6, 2008 5:16 PM
I totally agree with Steve. Except of course that one should not be painting on a day when a tropical storm is coming through. Pick a nice dry day when the paint will dry well. Steve, I wouldn't wake up tomorrow morning and throw the first coat of paint on. Wait until the afternoon (assuming the air dries out tomorrow morning).
A couple of friends of mine just paid about $1500 to have two bedrooms painted (in new construction, so NO prep work or skim coating), which completely blew my mind. I painted about 3/4 of the rooms in a 5000 square foot house last year for less than that in materials, and it was fun to do.
Posted by: lechacal at September 6, 2008 5:38 PM
Thanks everyone. The walls are in good shape, and I'm basically repainting the same color. I'm a little intimidated doing it myself because of the crown molding, dtailed baseboards, radiators, etc, (gad do I sound like a girl). But maybe I'll at least try one wall and see how it goes. Although, lechacal, I'll pay you $500, two six packs AND watch your kids if you'd do it for me.
Posted by: westernnygirl at September 6, 2008 5:42 PM
The A/C keeps the humidity down so the primer dried well. Unfortunately, it also dried well on right side of my black Newfoundland who decided to run down the stairs past my ladder with wet paint on the wall.
I don't particularly enjoy painting (it's pretty by-rote) but it rarely throws you any curves.
Westernnygirl: effective painting is all about the prep: emptying the room, laying down tarps or rosin paper, scraping/cleaning the walls (I use TSP), filling holes and dents. With your drywall, it's a breeze. My old plaster took quite a bit of extra work:
http://www.brooklynrowhouse.com/node/130
Otherwise, cut everything with a brush first that you can't roll. Don't saturate the brush, keep a wet edge on the wall, watch for drips, use a side light to look for missed spots.
Posted by: Steve at September 6, 2008 6:10 PM
Steve -- I'm gobsmacked! Your house is gorgeous, can't believe all the work you put into it. Love the dining room, and the kitchen and the yard--even love the dog. Now I'm totally intimiadated because as far as DIY is concerned, you've made it to Mt Olympus and I'm down in the seventh circle of hell. Can I just move into your guest room? Or hire you to paint? $600, 3 six packs of your choice, and I'll watch your kids and your dog (sorry lechacal).
Posted by: westernnygirl at September 6, 2008 6:49 PM
I've been outbid!!! Or wait, I guess I am the lower bid but Steve offers a better product... Damn competition. :)
Steve, love the website. And I agree that painting is all about the prep. I actually enjoy skim coating (I get a little Zen thing going on when I do repetitive physical tasks). And I love the almost instant gratification of a new color in an old room. I have never worked with plaster like you have (the house I reno'd was built in the 1960s and all drywall). I understand plaster presents its own set of challenges.
Posted by: lechacal at September 6, 2008 9:20 PM
Thanks, folks.
I'm not terrific with plaster either but I'm slowly learning. The main issue with plaster is knowing how to mix it and work it. Also which kind to use: gypsum vs. lime vs. finishing vs. structolite, etc.
There's a lime plaster seminar at Howard Hall Farm (http://howardhallfarm.com/) in Athens, NY this winter that I've been thinking about taking.
Posted by: Steve at September 6, 2008 11:01 PM
Wow Steve!
Not sure how you found the time to do all that work yourself but your skills are great. Love the woodwork!
Posted by: Rick at September 7, 2008 7:49 AM
Hi Westernngirl, I know I'm new here and all but if you are still looking, I have a cousin that recently opened her own contracting business. Her husband has been in the field for 6 years and knows pretty much everything about home improvements. Their business number if you need it is, 347-227-5834 (Eagle Construction). Thanks
Posted by: nightingale at September 7, 2008 2:07 PM
Hey there,
I just had my entire brownstone hallways and two floors of rooms replastered and painted by Junior Prates and his team. A great job = reasonably priced, very fast (two days), super clean and easy to work with.
Call his wife Aida at 508-567-5432 or email them at aida_barbosa88@hotmail.com to come by and give you a quote.
Cheers
Faye
Posted by: feelyng at September 8, 2008 2:21 PM
Could some of you throw up some actual numbers in terms of what you paid for painting? I'm looking at having a 1600sqft duplex totally painted and have had a very difficult time nailing down a realistic price, even with a few estimates! There is not too much wall damage, and some of the trim has deep colors that need to be lightened up, so more coats than usual in about 1/4 of the area. Has anyone else had an experience like this and willing to put down hard numbers?
Once I get past that, I have to navigate the mess of brownstone facade redoers. I wish there were a better set of info on what these two things cost. They both seem to vary dramatically. Everything else had estimates that came within 10% of each other.
Posted by: justinm at September 10, 2008 5:50 PM
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