All Aspect Painting

As the prep work proceeded and the painting had begun I continually had to intercede and ask that it be done properly. The windows had old clips that used to hold the storm windows on long ago. Once the clips were removed it left  rough areas where they had been and the window trim was supposed to be scraped  and sanded to receive paint, as we had previously agreed. Instead, rather than doing the prep properly, the window trim was painted over without sanding the places where the clips had been. I pointed it out to Tristan and had to insist that they be done properly. Once told Tristan would do the work, but it was always on me to be the one to point it out. Tristan began backpedaling on his original statement, twice saying that he was “giving me a good deal”, as if to say that I shouldn’t expect the good job that he had promised. I replied that it was not a good deal at all if the work was not done properly. In order to protect my deck cover, which is made of a Poly material and susceptible to breakage if stepped on, I provided a four by six piece of plywood and a smaller piece to shift to help shift the larger piece around. I asked that the workers be careful to use the large plywood to step on to prevent breakage. Rather than honoring my request however, I observed one of the workers hop down from the roof above from about two feet onto the smaller plywood piece, which cracked the roofing material, leaving me with a leaky deck, which I now have to replace the panels to stop the leaks. I have a stress related condition (PTSD) which I brought up to Tristan in the beginning, telling him that I needed for the job to go smoothly as I don’t deal well with stress, which he assured me that it would. Needless to say, this has been extremely stressful to me , with my home in total disarray for over a month. Throughout the entire process I was careful to remain calm, always treating the workers with respect and dignity, providing drinks and snacks, while calmly insisting that the work be done properly. I was focused on the details of the job as mentioned and when the painting began in earnest, I was still having to point out mistakes that had been made to Tristan, who would have to backtrack and correct them. Tristan’s stepson was put on painting the trim around my windows and was getting paint all over the window frames and running over onto the body paint. He was missing complete areas of the trim and gutters and generally doing a poor job. It was not his fault, as he had been given no training and should never have been put in the position of trying to do finish work. Tristan was frustrated in having to go back and correct the mistakes as well. In the end the painting was finally finished, but not before the rains had begun and the painters having to apply paint to the house over wet wood after a rain. The South side of the house, which needed to be sealed and painted first, was not done until the last and areas which were needing to be sealed with caulk were not done until water had been pushed behind the wood by the wind and rain.The entire process, from beginning to end has been very traumatic to me and I now regret ever having contracted with Tristan. The most distressing problem of all is that, in the end, I have discovered that the paint that was applied to my home is completely wrong, which I did not realize until I had paid Tristan. I paid him with the understanding that he would return and correct some of the mistakes. I had told him that I wanted him to finish the work, rather than send someone else, which he promised that he would do on the following Saturday. In the meantime, while examining the house on a sunny day I finally realized that Tristan had painted the entire house in glossy sheen paint. I wanted to discuss the problem with Tristan in person, so when I spoke with Tristan on the phone during the week I told him that I would like to discuss something with him when he came over. Tristan assured me that he would be here the following Saturday and I took him at his word. However, when Saturday arrived, Tristan sent over the same worker that had made the mistakes I wanted corrected. I tried to call Tristan numerous times at that point, but he would not answer the phone. The worker said that he was going to see Tristan from here, so I showed him the problem I was concerned with and he agreed to tell Tristan and have him call me. He took the paint sprayer that they had stored in my garage, which I now realize that I should have not allowed to be removed until the work was corrected, as I felt uneasy.  Tristan has never called me since that day. I have called him numerous times expressing my concern and requested him to please call me, but as of this time he has refused to return my calls. I left a several messages telling Tristan that I was willing to take partial responsibility, as I had not discovered the problem earlier. I stated that I would pay Tristan what he asked to come and only respray the main body of the house with the proper paint, and leave the garage the same as well as the trim on the house. Tristan has refused to answer any of my calls. In order to verify that the problem is not my mistake I have driven around Bellingham and viewed over two thousand homes and I have yet to discover one home that has been painted with a glossy sheen paint. The problem with glossy sheen paint is that it reflects every little defect, crack, or rough spot in the sun, especially on an older home that the wood has weathered over the years. It is my belief that anyone who knows anything about painting a home, in particular, a professional, should know that one does not paint an exterior of a home in glossy paint for the very reason I have pointed out. I reread the contract between All Aspect Painting and myself and it specifically states that the color and sheen would be determined by me. Before he started the job I showed the colors I had selected to Tristan in the order that I wanted the paint applied. The colors were flat with no sheen on the paint samples and at no point did Tristan ask me if I had any preference or if I wanted anything different than the norm. I had no idea that I had to specify that I wanted anything different than what all the other houses in Bellingham are painted. Once again, I did not discover the problem until I saw the paint in the sunlight and saw every flaw being reflected in the light. It is a horrible situation and I am now put in the position of finding and hiring another painter and paying for a job that should have been done correctly to begin with, as well as put up with the stress of having my home in disorder for even longer. I am seventy years old on Social Security so this is no small issue for me and creates a severe financial hardship for me as well as a taking a huge emotional toll. I am hopeful that Tristan, from All Aspect Painting will “man up” and work with me to correct the problem, but if not, I will be taking action with a small claims court action, which will create even more stress for me. I am very discouraged about this issue, as I trusted Tristan and treated him as a friend. I realize now that he misrepresented himself as a friend and as a professional and is not to be trusted. I understand that there are more people who have had issues with All Aspect Painting and I hope that, after reading this review, they will step up and speak out in order to prevent other people from having to be victimized.   Regretfully Submitted,   J. Dean Majors