“The estimate listed every room, the sheen on each wall and which day the trim would be done. The trim was done that day.”
Suzanne CrossHomeowner, Clintonville
Interior painters in Columbus, Ohio
A painting estimate should fit on one page, in nine lines.
Ray Gallardo and a crew of three paint the inside of Columbus houses. Every estimate we write states the same nine things, so you can hold it next to anyone else's.
- Nine-line written estimate
- The same four people on every job
- Daily cleanup
Ray GallardoOwner and lead painter
Nine lines
What a good written estimate states
Hold ours beside anyone's. If one of these lines is missing, ask for it before you sign.
| The line | A vague one says | A good estimate says |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Surfaces and areas | A vague one says"Interior painting." | A good estimate saysEvery room named, with what gets painted in it: walls, ceiling, trim, doors, closets. |
| 2. Repairs | A vague one says"Minor prep included." | A good estimate saysCracks, nail pops and holes listed by room, with how each is patched. |
| 3. Coats | A vague one says"Paint as needed." | A good estimate saysPrimer where the wall needs it, then two coats of finish. |
| 4. Products and sheens | A vague one says"Premium paint." | A good estimate saysThe paint line and the sheen for each surface, with the data sheet on request. |
| 5. Number of colors | A vague one saysA color count nobody wrote down. | A good estimate saysHow many colors, who chooses them, and by what day. |
| 6. Protection and cleanup | A vague one says"Cleanup included." | A good estimate saysWhat gets covered or moved, and that the crew cleans up at the end of each day. |
| 7. Schedule | A vague one says"Done in a few days." | A good estimate saysA start day, the days on site, and what happens if a repair or the weather slows it. |
| 8. Payment schedule | A vague one says"Deposit to hold the date." | A good estimate saysA deposit and each later payment tied to a stage of the work. |
| 9. Warranty | A vague one says"We stand behind our work." | A good estimate saysWhat it covers and what it doesn't, with the terms written on the estimate. |
What we paint
Walls, ceilings, trim and stairs
We paint the inside of houses and nothing else. Exteriors and cabinets are other trades' work.
Living rooms and halls
Walls and ceilings in two coats, with the trim cut in by hand.
Interior painting
Bedrooms and nurseries
Furniture to the middle of the room, covered, and put back before you sleep there.
What's included
Kitchens, walls and ceilings
Painted around your cabinets, with counters and appliances covered.
Kitchen walls
How a job runs
About a week for a three- or four-room job
Your estimate has the real dates for your rooms. This is the shape of it.
- 01
Walk-through
Ray goes through every room, writes down each surface and repair, and asks the year the house was built.
- 02
Prep
Floors and furniture covered, holes patched, caulk and primer where the wall needs it.
- 03
Two coats
Ceilings, then walls, then trim, with the first coat dry before the second goes on.
- 04
Walk-through again
We go through each room with you, touch up, and take the covers out with us.
Who paints
The people who show up are the people who wrote the estimate
Ray Gallardo walks your house, writes the estimate and paints beside the crew. Tomeka, Chauncey and Marely are the same three people on every job, so you know whose boots are in the hall.
Ray looks at every room before he writes a line.
No one else's crew is sent in his place.
Ask for any of the four by name.
Finished rooms
Rooms we've painted
Showing 6 of 6
Sample photos.
On the record
The registration, the certificate and the insurance
The firm
Veteran owned
Registration
Business registrationVerify
OH Registration 000000 · Ohio Secretary of State
Registered to do business in Ohio
Certificate
Lead-Safe Certified Firm (RRP)Verify
US Certificate 000000 · U.S. EPA
Trained for paint work in homes built before 1978
Insurance
General liability
Carrier name added by the owner · Policy # 000000
Covers damage to your home from our work
What clients wrote
Notes from the last few jobs
“They found the cracks in the stairwell plaster, wrote down where each one was, and told me what the patching would involve before they started.”
Herbert AguirreHomeowner, Whitehall
“We stayed home the whole week. The furniture went back where it was and I couldn't tell anyone had been in the kitchen.”
Belinda RamirezHomeowner, Pataskala
Sample reviews.
Towns we paint in
Columbus and the towns east and south
Franklin County, with Licking and Fairfield counties to the east and south. If your address isn't listed, send it and we'll say.
- Columbus neighborhoods: Clintonville, Beechwold, Olde Towne East, German Village, Merion Village, Victorian Village, Hilltop, Linden
- Franklin County: Whitehall, Obetz, Marble Cliff, Groveport, Urbancrest
- Licking and Fairfield counties: Pataskala, Johnstown, Lancaster
We don't take work in Delaware County or west of I-270.
Questions
Before you ask for an estimate
How long will it take?
Most three- and four-room jobs take about a week of working days. Your written estimate gives the start day and the days on site for your rooms, and says what happens if a repair or the weather changes them.
What if my house was built before 1978?
Federal rules apply to paid work that disturbs paint in homes and child-occupied buildings built before 1978. Tell us the year when you ask for an estimate. The firm's EPA lead-safe certification number is under Credentials, and we use lead-safe work practices on those homes: plastic containment, wet scraping and a HEPA vacuum, never dry sanding.
Do I have to move out or move the furniture?
No. You stay home. We move furniture to the middle of the room, cover it, and put it back at the end. Heavy pieces and anything fragile are best moved by you ahead of time; the estimate says which.
What prep is included?
Covering floors and furniture, filling holes, patching cracks, caulking trim and priming where needed. Bigger repairs, like a section of plaster or a water-stained ceiling, are their own line so you can see what they cost to fix.
What does the warranty cover?
Peeling and blistering from our prep or paint, written on the estimate. Terms, limits and exclusions are in your written warranty.
The walk-through
Ask for a written estimate
Tell us which rooms and when the house was built. Ray writes back with a time to walk through, and the estimate follows in writing.
Phone(614) 555-0102
Hours
- Monday – FridayToday
- 7:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
- SaturdayToday
- Estimates by appointment
- SundayToday
- Closed