List of Top Skills Every Professional Painter Must Have
Painting jobs seemed to be a superficial task for some others. However, for a professional painter a good paint job makes a huge difference in the appearance and ambiance of buildings, office space or a home. You may not want to agree or not, but in most states, in the U.S. a license is a requirement. It would be best if you had a permit and must know how to paint expertly to obtain authorization. Insurance is also necessary to protect you from any liability should something may go wrong.
Painting either interiors or exteriors is usually the case. Painting contractors prepare and paint various surfaces and can work on commercial or residential properties. In many ways, interior and exterior painting are two different jobs but these pro painters have one similar goal — to deliver professional-quality finish. Actually, one of the many ways they can able to deliver a successful painting job is to have a particular set of skills.
All painting jobs require a depth understanding of preparation techniques for exterior and interior surfaces, ventilation safety and many others. Whether you’re an employer who wanted to hire one or a newbie painter in the industry, this blog will help you figure out what it takes to be a skilled and experienced Pro Painter.
General List of Skills for Professional Painters
If you have a painting business and seek to find the ideal painting contractor for your company who will be an excellent addition to the team, you should review this list of skills before hiring one. Skills often vary based upon the position for which the candidates are applying. Hence, you must also start checking the list of skills listed by the type of skill and job.
Here are some of the greatest assets you need to look forward to:
· Aesthetic sensibility
· Attention to detail
· Aligning wallpaper patterns
· Calculating quantities of materials required
· Cleaning surfaces before painting
· Calculating quantities of wallpaper
· Cleaning up workspace and equipment right after job
· Coordinating patterns and colors
· Collaboration with others
· Covering spaces not subjected to painting
· Filling holes and cracks with caulk and putty
· Hiring helpers and maneuvering ladders
· Following directions from decorators/designers
· Interviewing clients to ascertain preferences
· Arm and hand strength
· Physical stamina
· Purchasing supplies
· Assembling scaffolds
· Actively listening to customer preferences
· Promoting services
· Assigning work to assistants
· Organizational and prioritizing important tasks
· Baseline a project accurately
· Priming surfaces
· Purchasing supplies
· Training helpers
· Scheduling multiple projects in collaboration with other contractors
· Teamwork and securing references
· Working independently
· Time management
Top Painter Skills
If you are interviewing for a job, ensure that you address several topics relating to the job. There is a strong likelihood that one or most of these topics are to be discussed in many cases. But for someone who is striving to become excellent in this career, do a quick self-check to determine if the following skills below are, or can be, among your most significant strengths:
1. Aesthetic sense
Most customers usually need you to make some judgment calls to your work. Some clients directly ask you for advice regarding the matter. Professional painters should need to have a strong sense of what looks great. That is why it’s making sense why the job similar to a work of art.
2. Detailed-oriented
What makes a good or even an excellent paint job is in the details, like clean edges, coats, crisp and even well-adhered layers. Minimal errors can delicately but meaningfully alter the look of the building or room space.
3. Physical Dexterity, Balance and Strength
Painters should have the excellent manual dexterity to achieve a better, cleaner coat. However, there’s also a need for ergonomic skills and strength to move equipment efficiently and safely. A strong sense of balance is required as well in order not to fall off ladders and roofs.
4. Familiarity with required materials
Paints differ not just by colors, but also by luster, texture, drying time, viscosity and other factors. And then there are primers, sealers, finishes and varnishes, which also vary widely. If you choose the wrong mix on the wrong surface, the paint will instantly crack, washed away, peel and eventually look bad.
5. Familiarity with Required tools
Painters utilize a range of rollers, brushes, wire brushes, sanders, texturing tools and scrapers to create different effects. You should know which ones to use for every different situation. It is also necessary to understand how to utilize each correctly and efficiently. Tool choices usually differ between exterior and interior painting. Additional tools may also be required for painting in various textures and tiles.
6. Time Management Skills
You will most likely spend your workday alone. Supervisors aren’t always there to check every time, but it’s not a valid reason to procrastinate. First, you should be able to work well and efficiently without direct oversight. You may be given some project management responsibilities in some cases, so be sure to anticipate that.
Most self-employed painters today are expected to have the ability to determine estimates. It is crucial to give accurate estimates in every painting job to know how long it will take to complete it.
Some Other Important Things that Matter
You need to take a deeper look at some other vital things in the profiles of some potential commercial painters before even deciding to hire them for the job. Here are additional insights and tips that can help you decide:
· Safety and Training
Painters have to be very well-trained and have awareness about safety requirements necessarily required for commercial painting projects. Additionally, it is also crucial that pro painters are updated with the latest painting innovations, techniques, and industry trends. They need to have the ability to incorporate their knowledge in any painting projects.
· Competency
Anyone can tell that pro painters are experienced and credible by the project portfolio or gallery they present from their recent painting projects. A portfolio should include all painting jobs, whether residential or commercial. An evaluation should come next where some decisions are to be made. The skills should match a certain painting project to find excellent, high-quality, and long-lasting painting jobs.
· Environmental Concerns
There are various types of environmental concerns involved in commercial painting jobs. Clients are most concerned about the local regulations. A skilled and experienced painting contractor knows all about environmental regulations leading the local council, reducing concerns and limiting legal liability. Expert painters who are knowledgeable about the local environment can determine what type of paint lasts longer without chipping and peeling the local atmosphere.
Nothing can ever make buildings look ignored faster than peeling or chipping paint. If the painter himself is a local renowned painting association member, clients will not have anything to worry about.
· References of Similar Work Experiences
Several credentials are particularly important in some commercial painting jobs because these things can help anyone involved to avoid legal entanglements by having everything up to code. Make sure to check for testimonials and references to ensure that the painters work decently as they claim. In fact, third-party services like Trades Monitors verify any contractor’s compliance with insurance, licenses, safety cover and registrations.
The NSW Department of Fair trading provides sound advice on compulsory registrations and licensing for industry-specific trades.
Why You Need a Construction Scheduling Software for Your Painting Business?
Just like all businesses today, the painting business has its own unique set of challenges. Regardless of everything, the goal to offer the best painting service to your customers has never changed. Now, if your team is working on anything beyond a simple painting job, you may want to deploy specialized software for scheduling and project management.
Having this software tool deployed brings much desirable transparency into how a painting project progresses and escalates contractor accountability. A project management solution like this can speed up the flow of info among all parties involved. More generally, it results in improved quality and customer satisfaction.
You have to pick the right software solution that best meets your needs when managing construction and Pro Crew Schedule is a great choice! You have everything you need to supervise your crew and manage your business more efficiently, taking your business to the next level.
Below are the benefits of using Pro Crew Schedule:
· All-in-one platform
· Real-time updates and integration
· Document control and file sharing
· Effective task delegation and scheduling in construction
· Time-tracking and monitoring
· Accountability and transparency
· Data-driven decision making
· Improved team collaboration and productivity
· Consistent communication
· Cloud-based storage
· Faster and easy accessibility
You can now experience PRO CREW SCHEDULE by simply requesting a FREE live demo! Enjoy a 30-day trial for FREE.
Key Takeaways
Any painting jobs, whether for commercial or residential purposes, take some major painting skills. It is always highly suggested to do in-depth research even before adding someone to your company and your team. Make sure to check and verify the above-cited points to determine if the pro painter is qualified enough to carry out the intended painting tasks with the best results.
