Dispute with Painter - Opinions?

dclee12 on 28/01/2024 - 21:51

Had mid set 1960's 3 bedroom painted, not happy with several aspects of the job. Place is a rental property, but is being sold this year as getting difficult to cover costs. Wasn't a budget price job, and we had both inside and outside done.

The quote stated they sand and fill all gaps/uneven surfaces and then apply 2 coats of "high quality" paint.
A lot seems like the painted straight over it with minimal prep, they've said the issues ive highlighted are standard for older places and cant be avoided. Many of the doors/windows were also stuck after painting , which then ripped the paint when opened, again told this is nothing to do with the painter or wet paint and is caused by old doors/windows sticking.

Its been raining on and off in QLD for weeks and weeks, I suspect half the issues are them rushing the job due to the weather. Thought I'd get a 2nd opinion before taking it further. Ive uploaded a few pics of window frames, sills and eaves as that's where things are most obvious.

eaves
frames
sill
internal
sill2
sticking

Home & Garden

Comments

  • Kaz0551 on 28/01/2024 - 21:55
    -3

    Being a 1960s you wouldn't want to sand the eaves they'd be asbestos.

    As for the other stuff… What price are we talking for the paint job?

    • deme on 28/01/2024 - 22:02
      +8

      Not necessarily, go get it tested first.

    • coffeeinmyveins on 29/01/2024 - 14:55
      +2

      There's a high chance the eaves are asbestos but it's not a guarantee unless you get it tested.

  • CodeXD on 28/01/2024 - 21:58
    +1

    On the pc, it looks like you took a picture and then a screenshot of it before uploading.

    A few of them look like you cropped it too?

    I do agree that based on the photos the paint job does not look like a new coat of paint. Do you have any before pictures?

  • dclee12 on 28/01/2024 - 22:10

    yeah was trying to minimise upload size but probably overdid it.

    In terms of eaves, yes on thinking about it, good possibility of asbestos as the place has plenty of it , is filler an option over sanding?

    No question its been freshly painted, Im just having issues with the quality of prep and in some places the old colour is still coming through, so seems more like a "one coat" job.

    External price came to 18k

    • bobbified on 28/01/2024 - 22:58
      +18

      External price came to 18k

      I would definitely be expecting a much better finish than that for that price. And if there's concerns about things such as asbestos, he should let you know that before anything is even agreed to.

    • jv on 28/01/2024 - 23:17
      +1

      yeah was trying to minimise upload size

      why?

      • dclee12 on 28/01/2024 - 23:25

        pics taken on iphone, huge size is often an issue so i screenshot them first. Might be an old habit thats not necessary anymore?

        • DogeConomy on 28/01/2024 - 23:46
          -3

          lower your camera quality in settings???

        • bigbadboogieman on 30/01/2024 - 07:56
          +1

          Better take really high quality pictures for record if you decide to take legal action.

    • pwnd on 29/01/2024 - 15:27

      External, did you do the whole house? Sides etc?
      We recently had our house painted, inside and out. Externally we only painted front and front fence.
      3 bed one bathroom cottage in Forest Lake. Quoted 12k. I wasn't happy with the finish in a couple of areas as the painter did rush the end, but it's of a higher level finish than in your photos. We ended up paying $800 less due to the areas we were unhappy with and fixed it ourselves.
      Depending on how much exterior you painted, I would have expected better work for 18k. A lot of those photos look like skipping prep work.

    • iguana on 29/01/2024 - 21:10
      +7

      Those are the worst quality photos I've seen this millennium. 148 x 320 pixels in size. Are you kidding?

    • Rear CreviceEruption on 30/01/2024 - 09:09
      +1

      18k?? I would have done it myself at that price.

      • cameldownunder on 30/01/2024 - 14:39

        My wife paints worse than that, and I have to clean up splatters afterwards.
        Maybe should ask the painter to do 1 part first to see how good it comes out

    • Worf on 31/01/2024 - 07:42

      External price 18k! What type of surface are your external walls (brick, concrete render, weatherboard, etc).

      Also, how much was the internal price? Assuming internal walls were painted as well… or was it only internal door and window trims?

  • resubaehtgnolhcs on 28/01/2024 - 22:25
    +18

    For $18k you'd expect better paint prep than what is shown in your pictures.

  • AustriaBargain on 28/01/2024 - 22:26
    +1

    If you live in a high land value area then the buyer is probably going to demolish your 65 year old house anyway.

    • dclee12 on 28/01/2024 - 22:33

      I wish it was that kind of area. Most of the places around it are original 60's-80's.

      • cameldownunder on 30/01/2024 - 14:41

        For the moment. I see it around my place, when the sqm is around 4K the house itself has no value anymore.
        On the other hand, land with an old house fetch higher prices with a newer house. Why ? No clue. Because people are stupid maybe ?

        • WhyAmICommenting on 30/01/2024 - 20:05

          Cheaper to get rid of an old house than a new one probably.

    • rogerwilko on 29/01/2024 - 18:35

      McMansion?

  • BeamMeUp on 28/01/2024 - 22:44
    +3

    Standard for older places? Ok so whats the benchmark for older 20, 50, 100 years? Thats BS, if the quote says sanding and patching then you sand and patch you dont just paint over cracked paint. Were the windows sticking or binding before hand, if so the painter isnt going to fix that, if not and the window or door has been closed on soft paint it will stick. New paint can take days to harden and you shouldn’t firmly close a door/window until it does. Just looks like a minimum effort job to maximise profit. Need to discuss the detail with trades otherwise some will pull out crap excuses. All issues can be avoided with the right level of prep and quality of final work, it then comes down to how much you want to pay, the detail you go into defining the job and the integrity of the trade.

    • larndis on 28/01/2024 - 22:52
      +6

      Agree, the age of the house isn't relevant. It looks like they just skipped the prep

    • dclee12 on 28/01/2024 - 23:20

      Some of the windows did already stick, in some cases the new paint made it worse so i’ve sanded slightly in corners to help this. I understand this is not the painters fault in any way.

      The issue im having is what youve described , windows and doors that have been closed while paint was still soft, then get stuck and paint tears off when opened. Its a one off problem, it doesnt continue to stick , it just ruins the paint job.
      Again i suspect the issue is weather, lots of rolling storms so tricky time to painting.
      But instead of discussing this the painter seems to be fobbing it as a problem of jammed windows/doors.

      • WhyAmICommenting on 30/01/2024 - 20:06

        Terrible time to be painting in BrisVegas, my condolences.

  • Tee Rex Arms on 28/01/2024 - 23:04
    +26

    Looks like an Airtasker cash job and 18k is fvcked

    • dogboy on 29/01/2024 - 12:30
      +3

      Yeah agreed, $18k for that is unacceptable.

  • jv on 28/01/2024 - 23:14
    -2

    Dispute with painter - opinions?

    Use turps.

    • Ocker on 29/01/2024 - 07:44
      +1

      "Use turps" for what - set fire to the place and claim insurance (lol)

      • Domingo on 29/01/2024 - 08:50
        +16

        Standard jv - drink the turps, then start spout random comments on ozbargain that help no one.

        • jv on 29/01/2024 - 09:17
          -4

          random comments

          They're not random.

      • jv on 29/01/2024 - 09:16
        -5

        for what

        To clean up the mess.

  • angywoo on 28/01/2024 - 23:23

    Are you able to count the coats of paint on the photos. Usually when paint sticks it will leave a layer and just take the top one off. I don't know about you but on the sticking photo it doesn't look like 2 coats…

    • jv on 28/01/2024 - 23:30
      +2

      doesn't look like 2 coats…

      Doesn't look like any sanding was done either…

      I'd be contacting A Current Affair…

      • DoctorCalculon on 29/01/2024 - 19:42

        I'd be contacting A Current Affair…

        Will Tracy Grimshaw be returning soon?

  • Ghost47 on 29/01/2024 - 02:34
    +3

    Shocking, cowboys everywhere.

  • JIMB0 on 29/01/2024 - 06:45
    +7

    There's an old saying that if you want something done properly you have to do it yourself.

    • TrustNoBody on 29/01/2024 - 08:28

      yes usually but come on $18k for painting ..my mums in government housing and even those cowboys paint better then this

  • EightImmortals on 29/01/2024 - 07:16
    +6

    Yeah that looks crap. I painted our 60's home a few years back and it had the same issues, cracked paint etc so I spent a lot of time sanding and filling area with spakfiller. And I'd never even painted a wall before. Look like this guy has just gone in and slapped on the paint without even sanding.

    Not sure what you can do as he already has your money. Maybe leave a review on his web page, with pictures?

  • Hoju on 29/01/2024 - 07:32
    +5

    For $18k I would expect significantly better work
    Have they been paid in full already?

    4 bed 3 storey house requiring boom lift for access cost us $12k
    We paid half at the beginning then asked for any obvious areas to be sorted before paying the remainder

    With tradies I always hold some of the money back otherwise they can finish as quick and crap as they like then disappear…

  • dclee12 on 29/01/2024 - 07:45
    +1

    no not paid in full, painter is actually based in expensive area , 5 star reviews , professional website.

    • infinite on 29/01/2024 - 23:13
      +4

      Publish your photos in a google review of them and watch that star rating take a nose-dive.

    • kctt on 30/01/2024 - 12:55

      It could be fake reviews

  • azonki on 29/01/2024 - 07:52
    +1

    The painter has gone for the apocalypse finish. It's all the rage in the UK. YouTube
    But from someone who is currently restoring an old house, and has done plenty of restoration work in the past, you seriously underestimated the overall condition before you engaged the painter and the painter has quoted accordingly.
    A quick sand and two coats of a premium paint will not fix the defects that you have pictured.
    18K for the outside is probably half of what a real job would cost.

    • TrustNoBody on 29/01/2024 - 08:31
      +8

      what ? $36k for outside paint on 1960s home ? my god i thought $18k was expensive

      • S2 on 29/01/2024 - 21:50
        +5

        I would be painting houses too if I got $36k per house. One house per month would be $432k per year. Sounds like most of the time is spent sanding too.

    • atwilliams on 30/01/2024 - 13:04

      I agree. The effort here (should have been) in the prep / restoration. The condition of the underlying timbers / panels looks so poor that no amount of scrapping and sanding is going to fix this. You probably would have been better hiring someone purely for the restoration aspect, then asking a painter to splash paint on it when that was done.
      If this was my property I would also have been "testing" progress very early on (and as soon as the first paint was down) to set expectation on what was acceptable, and what was not.

  • TrustNoBody on 29/01/2024 - 08:23

    my mum lives in a 1950s or older fibro government house and even the government painters do better work then this and they never prep haha

  • Muzeeb on 29/01/2024 - 08:49
    -1

    My potato takes a clearer pictures than these.

    • RSmith on 29/01/2024 - 15:54
      +3

      Must be iPotato.

    • DoctorCalculon on 29/01/2024 - 19:39

      Your potato probably knows how to reduce the file size of a jpeg file rather than taking a screenshot of the photo. 🤦🏻🤦🏻🤦🏻

      • dclee12 on 29/01/2024 - 23:28

        the potato probably knows its heic not jpeg. 🤦

  • Shpox on 29/01/2024 - 08:52
    +2

    You’re not getting answers but that quote is seriously overpriced. What was the paint specification?

    Honestly you could do a better job yourself.
    Wouldn’t pay this guy a cent. Once you pay a trade, dont expect to hear from them again

    • eek on 29/01/2024 - 11:33
      +1

      Absolutely. Once they have the cash they're probably just going to keep dragging out any rectification as long as they can and hopefully you will give up. As for quality of the work - it's shocking. I had quotes of around $25k to paint my weatherboard 2 storey house. Eneded up doing it myself for about $1000 of materials and a lot of time climbing up and down 8m long ladders.

      • coffeeinmyveins on 29/01/2024 - 15:00
        +3

        I had quotes of around $25k to paint my weatherboard 2 storey house.

        Mate they gotta afford their 120k Ford Raptors somehow.

        Everytime I go to bunnings there's more and more people there doing their own stuff, and this is exactly why.

        I reckon we're in for a period where tradies realise that they aren't as special as they think they are when people are capable of doing their own work for a fraction of the price.

        • Rear CreviceEruption on 30/01/2024 - 09:24
          +1

          Absolutely true. You'd be surprised what you can do and the level of quality you can achieve if you take it slow, get advice, or watch tutorials. Do some paving/landscaping yourself, and save $5k-$50k. Paint the entire interior of your house for $1k-$2k depending on size. It's not rocket science, and doesn't require a PhD or 20 years experience to do a lot of this stuff. We are being ripped off by people whose knowledge would not fill a 50-page A4 book.

          • coffeeinmyveins on 30/01/2024 - 12:44

            @Rear CreviceEruption:

            Do some paving/landscaping yourself, and save $5k-$50k.

            Yep. I just redid a laundry by myself and saved probably $8000, doesn't look any worse or better than if we got 'professionals' to come in.

            Even Bunnings has employed staff who will help you with your projects on their Workshop forum, it's a crazy good resource from people who actually know what they're talking about.

            It's not rocket science, and doesn't require a PhD or 20 years experience to do a lot of this stuff. We are being ripped off by people whose knowledge would not fill a 50-page A4 book.

            Can't wait for the tradie to come in and tear this apart in order to justify their latest jet ski purchase, slab of beer every other day and 5 packs of smokos.

            I can appreciate the skill that goes into a lot of trade work, and some of it is an art form, but like you said, a few videos and some common sense and you'll be surprised what you can achieve.

        • CrypticM on 30/01/2024 - 15:33

          absolutely true. YouTube is a great help for many many things. quite elaborate and informative videos on many DIY jobs.

          except plumbing and electrical, everything should be able to done if you are willing to.

  • GangGang on 29/01/2024 - 09:47

    Will be a larger issue soon if the painter didn't prep & used "high quality" Water-based paint on your existing oil based paint.

    • smpantsonfire on 30/01/2024 - 00:01

      I think you can see that in the sticking picture. There was no prep whatsoever.

  • Nicoletta on 29/01/2024 - 09:53
    +2

    I had my 94 year old house painted a few years ago for a similar price. The paint wasn’t in great condition - lots of peeling on the west side plus water damaged eaves. A crew was here for almost 3 weeks filling and sanding before they started applying paint. While the finish isn’t perfect, it’s a lot better than what you show! I’d definitely be taking it further.

  • bbinc on 29/01/2024 - 10:02
    +2

    Hourly rate plus materials. I usually discuss the paint and buy it for them, Sure they can probably buy cheaper, but they’ll add in their time. Both of these things leave you the option of assessing the work as it progresses, and exiting if not unable to negotiate improved prep etc.

  • Odin on 29/01/2024 - 10:02
    +6

    18 (profanity) thousand dollars?

    How many painters? Were they there for 2 months?

    (profanity) me that is a ridiculous amount of money and that is a terrible job.

  • mikzter on 29/01/2024 - 10:05
    +1

    My wife and I painted our old unit. We avoided painting when it was raining, sealed all gaps and sanded where it was necessary. Took us months (very high ceilings ) but both worked full time. Job ended up looking very professional. Far better than the other units. The job you depict in the photos looks like a slap happy budget job and someone is hoping you'll accept it so they can maximise profit …

  • dclee12 on 29/01/2024 - 10:18
    +6

    Did have a few quotes from high rated established painters in area and that price was around the going rate.

    Had a further look and its rough all over, for internal painting they just painted straight over the door latches, strike plates etc. It now gumming up from the door being opened/closed.
    Never seen that done before.

    Starting to suspect he chucked a couple of cheap subbies on the job and is looking to talk his way around it.
    Theres other issues , but wont waste any more time, thanks for the opinions. Will look at lodging a dispute via QBCC

    • jonkvh on 29/01/2024 - 12:34
      +1

      Agreed. He more than likely subbed it out, thinking it was being sold, who gives a fig.

    • coffeeinmyveins on 29/01/2024 - 14:59
      +1

      Starting to suspect he chucked a couple of cheap subbies on the job and is looking to talk his way around it.

      99% sure that's what has happened OP. You've gotten some teenager apprentice or someone doing uber eats + painting and they've done this job and move onto the next one.

  • JimmyF on 29/01/2024 - 12:58
    +1

    The quote stated they sand and fill all gaps/uneven surfaces and then apply 2 coats of "high quality" paint.

    If the quote said that, they clearly have not done it!!

    Looks like zero prep work before painting.

  • coffeeinmyveins on 29/01/2024 - 14:58

    That job looks like it was done by a 12 year old who plays splatoon and has no idea how painting surfaces work.

    He's blaming everything except himself. I'm by no means a tradie and I've done better jobs than that on my own place. A professional would understand the affect of weather, substrate etc on a surface.

    Just to squash his comments about it being old, I've just finished up painting a balcony and rooms that are from the same era, haven't had any of those issues.

  • huwcar on 29/01/2024 - 15:29
    +1

    I paid similar for an external paint job a few years ago - 3 br 1950s weatherboard in Melbourne.

    At least 3/4 of the work the crew did for painting was prep work, for a few weeks, prior to the actual painting. That's what I would expect and that's why the job is (should be) expensive.

  • Drakesy on 29/01/2024 - 16:48
    +1

    $18k should be 3-4 weeks for 1-2 people.

    And yes that is a sub par finish.

  • Poor Ass on 29/01/2024 - 17:15

    usually if you ask them to come back to touch up the affected areas they should

  • Brick Tamland on 29/01/2024 - 19:02
    +1

    Thats a terrible job. I am hopeless at painting and I could have done a better job.

  • DoctorCalculon on 29/01/2024 - 19:40
    +1

    How much are they fleecing from you for the inside paint job?

  • lltravel on 29/01/2024 - 20:01
    +1

    lol wow, thats literally the worst painting job ive seen. This paint looks like it was bought from crazy clarks or something?

  • mrvaluepack on 29/01/2024 - 20:31
    -1

    Sorry to say but from your pictures, sanding wont cut it. You'll actually need to scrap to bare wood and either replaster or put like 3 to 4 layer of paint. So your painter might have sanded but you didnt specify to get a paint scraper and scrape the old paint off.

    Doors and windows in old houses stick. You'll need to take them off and shave them so that they close without sticking

    Inside and outside for 18k is reasonable.

    • legendary-noob on 29/01/2024 - 23:56

      Even if the above is true, wouldn't you expext the painter to have warned OP?
      Kinda dodgy to accept the job without any advice provided to OP

      • mrvaluepack on 30/01/2024 - 06:54

        Could be dodgy, could be maybe the painter thought that the house just needed a fresh coat of paint and not any fixing.

    • dclee12 on 30/01/2024 - 18:50

      18k was outside only. I did initially discuss the poor condition of the house and windows on the most exposed side with the painter, we agreed it would need a lot of prep work done.

      This discussion was verbal but i understood it as being reflected in the 18k quote i then received.
      Im not expecting a back-to-timber restoration, but it seems like nothing at all was done in many areas.
      The sticking isnt from old windows catching, its also happened with internal doors as well, either the door or frame hasnt dried when closed and its stuck together once dry.

      • mrvaluepack on 30/01/2024 - 19:04

        ok yeah 18k for just outside is expensive lol bad luck..

  • legendary-noob on 29/01/2024 - 21:50

    Dad and mum recently painted our investment property
    Was not perfect paint work but I reckon was way better than the pic
    Definitely need to pursue further or people think they could charge 18k, do a dodgy job and still get away

  • Daddy Chill on 29/01/2024 - 22:44
    +3

    You could have got an Afghan in Sydney to do it for 5K

    • kiitos on 15/02/2024 - 18:34

      How do they hold the brush? In their paws?

  • infinite on 29/01/2024 - 23:12

    The quality of the job is so appalling I wouldn't have paid them a cent until they'd come back and done the job properly.

    It would be nothing short of hilarious if they attempted in any level of consumer tribunal or claims court to get you to pay, knowing an entire list of photos of their job would be publicly published. This is the sort of trashbag tradie behavior that Current Affairs shows go to town on.

    Good luck hiring a reputable painter to re-do the job for you now, OP. Hopefully it won't cost you too much more.

    • coffeeinmyveins on 30/01/2024 - 12:45

      Good luck hiring a reputable painter to re-do the job for you now, OP. Hopefully it won't cost you too much more.

      oh they'll be happy to do it.

      The first step in the job order will be "remove existing paint" and cost OP.

  • Jugganautx on 30/01/2024 - 18:26

    F*****kkkkk meeeeee.

    my 240k 780m2 block housing trust house I bought in 2019 Paint job looks better than that and I had to scrape every window hinge with a butter knife to open them up holyyyy fuuuua**** 😬

  • ashftc on 30/01/2024 - 20:10

    That’s a terrible job tbh. Ask him to fix it. If he doesn’t, go NCAT.

  • blitz on 30/01/2024 - 22:27

    OP, sorry to say it, but as the others have said, that paint job is completely crap. I've had a number of 'older places' painted, and they all look excellent. Either they can do it for 18K, or they can't, and from the looks of it, they really, really can't.

  • GuitarXXX on 30/01/2024 - 23:22
    +1

    I am not handy but I did a better job for my own house than this!!!!

  • jerjergege on 31/01/2024 - 13:53

    Can I ask you how much the job was, I just got a quote for a 4 bedroom home, exterior, 3 coats and caulking for 29k…

    • blitz on 03/02/2024 - 15:41
      +1

      If you read OP's replies in this thread, he states the price was 18K. Too much for what OP received!

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