Maintaining customer satisfaction is a crucial aspect of any business, but it’s even more important for painting contractors that have earned the prestigious Diamond Certified award. For Valencia Painting & Sons Inc., keeping clients happy comes down to one key factor: making sure they have a positive experience throughout every step of the painting process. “We care a lot about customer satisfaction—it’s always our first priority,” confirms co-owner Emelia Sanchez. “We really feel a connection with our clients, so we focus on solving their issues and providing them with amazing results.”

Valencia Painting & Sons has been providing interior and exterior painting services for residential and commercial clients in Marin, Sonoma, and Napa Counties since 2013. In addition to its wide-ranging painting capabilities, the family-owned and operated company cleans gutters, stains decks and patios, performs dry rot repairs and seals surfaces to prevent future dry rot damage, and more.

Unlike less experienced painting companies that make mistakes and simply paint over them, Valencia Painting & Sons takes a detail-oriented approach on every job to ensure the best possible results. “For example, we make sure the wood we’re painting over is in good condition, and if it’s not, we’ll let the customer know and give them some options,” explains Ms. Sanchez. “Our careful attention to detail is the reason we’re able to offer a five-year warranty on all of our painting services.”

To further differentiate itself from its competition, Valencia Painting & Sons only hires expert painters who are trained to follow industry-best methods and techniques. “We really focus on training our employees because they’re the ones who go out to the jobsites and maintain relationships with our customers,” says Ms. Sanchez. “Beyond that, Jose [Valencia, co-owner] visits every jobsite multiple times throughout the project to make sure the work is going smoothly and everyone is happy.”

When it comes to working with painting contractors, only choose a company that guarantees its work.

All paint jobs are investments, and nobody wants to waste money hiring a company that does substandard work or won’t back up its services. But once you’ve verified that your contractor is licensed and insured, what else can you do to protect your purchase?

“Warranties are very important, so your contractor should tell you about your warranty and include it in your original estimate and contract,” says Emilia Sanchez, co-owner of Valencia Painting & Sons Inc. in Santa Rosa. “Some people who say they’ll paint your home don’t have a license, which means they can’t offer a warranty and you won’t have any recourse if you encounter problems.”

Why warranties are important
Experts say you can expect a warranty from any quality painting company, and California law requires licensed contractors to provide at least a one-year warranty. Typical warranties cover paint cracking, peeling, bubbling and fading for a certain amount of time after the work is done.

A manufacturer’s warranty can cover the paint itself, but that’s different than a contractor’s warranty—you also want a labor warranty that covers the application. If the product fails, some manufacturers won’t honor their guarantees if the work wasn’t done correctly in the first place. And even if they replace the product, if you don’t have a labor guarantee, you’ll have to hire another company to paint your house again, which basically negates the savings from the guarantee.

A warranty in and of itself is a good thing, but the presence of a warranty can also assure you that you’ve hired a quality contractor. Companies that don’t offer warranties might use substandard materials, have poor preparation and application techniques, paint when the weather isn’t optimal or not apply enough product. But companies that offer valid warranties are more likely to do a good job because they don’t want to come back and do warranty work. So, your warranty may act as a kind of double insurance—proof that the contractor will do a good job and come back to repair the work if they didn’t do it correctly the first time.

Q: What paint brands do you use?
A: We use Kelly-Moore, Sherwin-Williams and Benjamin Moore paints. Each of those manufacturers has different types of paint, so we’ll use whichever product is best for your job.

Q: How long will it take to complete my painting project?
A: It depends on a few factors, but we’ll give you a specific timeline once we know the details of your job. Depending on the size and scale, most exterior painting jobs take five to six business days to complete. If there’s any reason for a delay, we’ll let you know right away.

Q: Will you be careful not to damage the plants around my home?
A: We’ll do our best to cover trees and other plants that are near your home, but depending on the location and the weather, it can be difficult for us to have zero impact, regardless of how careful we are.

Q: Will you protect my furniture?
A: Absolutely. We cover all furniture (including outdoor furniture for home exterior projects) to prevent damage from overspray or drips.

Q: Will you move items in my home?
A: We usually don’t move pictures or anything that’s hanging because glass can break, so we ask that you move those types of items before we arrive to prevent damage. We also recommend that you move any heavy furniture toward the middle of the room. We’ll cover everything with plastic and brand-new canvas to prevent overspray. We’ll also cover floors, appliances and any other items that can be damaged.

Q: Do you seal holes on the outside of homes before painting?
A: We’re well-known for our waterproofing skills, and that means we apply caulking and seal up holes, corners, and other areas where water can get in. That prevents water damage, which a lot of homeowners are worried about because water can lead to damaged wood and dry rot.

Q: Can you repair dry rot and other damage before you paint?
A: We can repair small pieces of siding or trim before we paint, but major repairs are not in the scope of what we do. If large portions of your home have dry rot or wood damage, you’ll need to hire a contractor to make those repairs. If we find damage while we’re preparing your home to be painted, we’ll let you know and walk you through your options.

Q: How often should my home be repainted?
A: We recommend repainting before the paint starts peeling and chipping, and that varies for different homes and microclimates. Once we look at your home, we’ll be able to provide a specific recommendation for how long you should wait between paint jobs.