Estimate
The first step toward the Collegiate Entrepreneurs experience begins when you call us and let us know that you want an estimate. Someone in your area will return your call promptly to set up a time to come out and meet with you. We will ask questions and welcome you to voice your concerns about the property so that we have some background knowledge before we actually start the estimate.

Once we are at your home, we will take the time to walk around the entire house, once with you and then more thoroughly alone to accurately calculate the cost of the work we will do. Once we have the estimate calculated, we will go over the entire contract with you, making sure you understand all of the parts to be included with the work. For your convenience, we only require a 20% deposit, much lower than most contractors. The deposit is payable by check, cash, Visa or MasterCard.
During this meeting, you will also discuss the start date and get scheduled in for the summer!

Surface Preparation
Surface preparation is the most important aspect of any successful paint job. The majority of customer inquiries/complaints can be directly related to the lack of proper surface preparation. When a Collegiate Entrepreneurs crew comes out to paint your home we will do a complete review of the area to be painted. The prep work on a home results in about 2/3 of the jobs cost because of the time that it takes. The following is some information on the specifics of prep work:

Powerwash:
Powerwashing your home is a process that you can have done preceding a paint job or simply to clean your home. It rids the siding of your home of chalking, mildew, mold and algae that can build up over the years. The powerwash will be completed 10-14 days prior to the painting of your home. If there is still a residue of the elements, it will be washed with a light bleach solution before the painting takes place.

Scraping: Scraping involves removing loose paint and in some cases, solid-color stain that is not properly adhering to the surface. Depending on the age of your last paint job this can take anywhere from a few hours to a few days.

Sanding:
Here is where we will smooth out the paint edges to prepare for the priming of the siding. Keep in mind, that it is sometimes impossible to get the edges marble-smooth but they will look smooth after the priming and painting.
Sometimes if the substrate is wood that has softened, this can be a key procedure in ridding the surface of the dead wood cells and rejuvenating the area.

Priming:
All bare wood areas need to be primed before being top coated. Paint does not adhere to wood without a primer in place. Primer penetrates several layers deep into the wood while leaving a residue on the surface that the topcoat hangs onto. Galvanized metal and other metal surfaces besides aluminum and steel siding also need to primed Primer can be applied by brushing, rolling or spraying.

Caulking:
During the estimating procedure, the manager will note the condition of the caulk. Caulking is placed between joints, where the siding meets trim boards, around window and door trim and where siding meets brick or cement. If the caulk is very old and loose, we will pull off the bad caulk and replace it with new caulk.

Glazing:
This is something that only applies to houses built more than 30 years ago. Glazing is basically caulk for windows. Glazing is placed at (approximately) a 45-degree angle from glass and the wood trim on which the glass is placed. Glazing serves to hold the glass in place and seals the window to keep out the elements.

Painting
The paint on the exterior of your home should be stripped and replaced every 5-7 years. Here at Collegiate Entrepreneurs we have an advantage over most other contractors in terms of supplies costs. We purchase such a high volume of paint and supplies from our vendors that we are able to take advantage of some of the lowest prices in the industry. In addition, we only use top quality supplies from top leading manufacturers, Sherwin Williams and ICI Dulux Paints.
There are no comparable contractors in the area who are able to take advantage of such volume discounts!

Once the job is completed, we will invite you to walk around with the manager and/or crew chief to inspect all areas of the property. If you are not completely satisfied, we will continue to work according to your contract to be sure you are satisfied.
An integral part of your paint job comes at the end of the job where we will ask you to fill out a customer report card. Our student managers enjoy having an evaluation of the job they and their crew have completed. This report card is designed for you to analyze the job and tell us exactly what you think of our services. This is yet another way Collegiate Entrepreneurs differs from other contractors; we care what you think and want you to receive the best service possible!

Now that you have what our services will entail, take a look at some of our past customers homes and what they have to say about us!