Cost Factors & Estimates for Exterior Commercial Painting

Does your business need a refresh? Giving your building a new coat of paint can improve customers’ first impression or mark a significant rebrand for your business. A quality paint job also serves as a new set of armor, protecting your building against the elements, mold, rot, and more. This post will break down the factors involved in estimating how much exterior commercial painting costs.
Your total costs for commercial painting jobs will be influenced and determined by four major deciding factors:

1. Paintable Surface Area

Exterior commercial painting is often more expensive than residential projects due mainly to the building’s size.
Multiplying width by height of each wall and adding those measurements together is all there is to it for determining the exterior surface area’s square footage, right? Well, it’s an important start, but surface area and square footage alone doesn’t tell a building’s whole story.
The cost to paint the exterior of an apartment building will differ from a retail space, warehouse, or industrial facility, even if they have the same square footage. Details including windows, doors, trim, and other exterior features or specific materials can affect the prep work, application techniques, or type of paint and primer required.
Items such as the intricacy of trim details, any required repairs, safety tasks, or other outdoor obstructions can add complexities to exterior commercial painting estimates and should be taken into account. But, ultimately, the largest factor in a commercial exterior project’s price will be the paintable surface area—with the size and scope affecting both the amount of materials needed and how much labor is required.

2. Amount & Type of Paint

Selecting the best paint for commercial buildings will depend on factors including your location and climate. For example, waterproof paints rated for repelling moisture in areas prone to heavy rain will be more expensive.
Typically,one gallon of paint will cover 300 to 400 square feet of a building’s exterior. Outdoor painting projects should receive two coats of paint in addition to primer to increase the quality and lifespan of the results.

3. Labor Requirements

The next factor on exterior commercial painting costs is the price of labor.
Professional painters are highly skilled, bring the right tools for each job, and can work fast. On average, a skilled and experienced professional painter can cover approximately 150 to 300 square feet in one hour. Additional tasks will include all prep or necessary repair work, scraping away any chipping or peeling old paint, and post-painting cleanup efforts, all adding to time and labor requirements.

4. Surface Conditions

The overall condition of the building and its exterior surfaces will affect the amount of prep work and labor required, as well as how much paint is needed.
Paint best adheres to clean and undamaged surfaces. Any cracks, holes, blemishes, cosmetic flaws, or other exterior elemental damage will need to be repaired so as not to interfere with the final results. A thorough power washing will help ready the surface for new paint.
Standard cleaning efforts and quick fixes to small imperfections are typically factored into professional painters’ initial prep work estimates, but extensive cleaning or significant repairs above and beyond light patching can add hundreds of dollars, if not more, to labor and material costs. Major siding damage could reveal more repairs or replacements in the building’s framing substructure are needed.

Consult the Commercial Painting Pros at ONiT

For nearly 20 years and across more than 4,000 commercial projects, ONiT Painting has built a reputation of reliability, professionalism, outstanding results, and extraordinary customer service.
Every exterior commercial painting project is unique, and ONiT will give yours the personal attention it deserves to keep your business looking well-kept and professional for years to come. Contact our team today to schedule an initial meeting and assessment of your facility.
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