Devany Painting

OK,
Below, there is a transcript of what I submitted to Angie’s List a few weeks ago. Since then, I’ve come to the realization that this guy should NOT be hired. If you look him up on Linked In, he lists his profession as a voice-​over artist, etc. Nowhere does it say painter. Plus, he charges a lot and is sloppy. We hired him out of desparation because no one else was available to paint some built ins (recommended by our realtor who I’ve since informed). I will NEVER hire him again. He paints as well as any homeowner can. He’ll tell you that he has 20+ years of experience, but he obviously doesn’t learn because he does poor quality work, leaves drips everywhere and doesn’t do even coats of paint even though he’ll tell you that he is going to do «seven» coats of paint. He’s a nice guy, but he doesn’t take criticism well at all. He didn’t appreciate it when we called him back to fix all of his mistakes. Of course, he was courteous, but he didn’t feel he had made any mistakes or goofs even though he agreed on some of the ones we brought up. Anyway, I think you can get much better painters for the same amount or probably less. If you go with him, you’re really only paying him to do something you can probably do better even if you’ve never painted. Anyway, save your money and be patient. If you’re looking for a painter during the busy season, you’re better off waiting until the fall or winter for quality workmanship. Hope this helps.
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Angie’s List Review
1. Name of Company: Maurice Devany
2. Address of Company: Unknown
3. Phone Number of Company: 303−902−6495
4. Did the company/​individual perform services? YES
5. What date was the service completed? 7÷11÷2014
6. Approximately how much did you spend? $ 3880.00
7. Please describe (in detail) the services performed (10,000 character limit): I had a TV built-​in cabinet, a dining room built-​in cabinet, stair hand rails, built-​in shelves and a built-​in desk with shelves all painted. They were primed and brush-​painted.
8. How did it go overall? Tell us the story from start to finish (10,000 character limit): Everything went well. He painted the living room and dining room built ins and then came back a month later for the second-​floor stair hand rails, built-​in shelves and built-​in desk with shelves.
On the initial project, he was very professional and initially did an excellent job of prepping and taping off the built-​ins. He brush-​painted/​primed them. There were no drips on the floors or walls in the living room or dining room. On further inspection by my fiancé and a contractor friend, there were drips on the living room and dining room built-​ins. I had him come back and touch those up. He did come back and do those after my fiancé and I pointed them out. In addition, some of the cabinet doors had an edge that was unpainted. It is an unexposed edge, but I felt that it should’ve been painted regardless of whether it is ever seen.
On the subsequent project, he did what looked like a great prep job on the upstairs bookshelves, but it was when he left that I found faint paint splatters on the wood floors which had just been sanded and redone 3 months prior. Apparently, he was cleaning his brushes in the guest bathroom sink, but he carried them back to the area he was working with and they dripped on the floor along the way. The paint was diluted, but I could still see it on the floor. I called him back and he came to remove the spots. There were just a few that could not be removed to my satisfaction. They are very faint, but they should not be there on brand new floors that were expensive to redo. In addition, it wasn’t until after he’d left that I realized that he did not paint the top of the built-​in bookcase/​desk. Even though the top is 10 feet high and cannot be seen from the ground, this should’ve been painted.
In conclusion, our contractor friend explained that most people use high-​volume, low-​pressure (HVLP) guns to paint. In addition, he said that most people would’ve charged less for a better job. He explained that the quality (prior to the touch ups) was comparable to an unexperienced homeowner painting the built-​ins themselves. Unfortunately, lack of patience and lack of competition got the better of us. Better references were unavailable due to Denver’s building boom. However, the low season (Fall, Winter) provides a better selection of painters if one can wait.