Paint estimating is more of an art than a science. There’s no price that’s exactly right for every job and for every bidder. That’s because every painting job is unique. No single material cost, no labor estimate, no pricing system fits all types of work. And just as every job varies, so do painting companies. No two painting contractors have the same productivity rates, the same labor burden, the same overhead expense and the same profit requirements.

The best paint estimates are always custom-made for a particular job. They’re based on the contractor’s actual productivity rate, material cost, labor cost, overhead percentage and profit expectations. No estimating book, no computerized estimating system, no estimating service can possibly account for all the variables that make every job and every painting company different. Only a skilled estimator using professional judgment and a proven estimating system can produce consistently reliable estimates on a wide variety of painting jobs.

So, Why Buy This Book?
That’s easy. This is the most complete, authoritative and reliable unit cost guide ever made available to paint estimators. No matter what types of work you estimate, no matter what your costs are, this book will help produce consistently accurate painting cost estimates in dollars and cents. But it isn’t a substitute for expertise. It’s not a simple way to do in minutes what an experienced paint estimator might not be able to do in hours. Instead, this unit cost guide will aid you in developing a good estimate of costs for any painting operation on any project. Think of this manual as one good estimating tool. But it’s not (or at least shouldn’t be) the only estimating tool you’ll use.

For most jobs, I expect that the figures you see here will prove to be good estimates. But anyone who understands paint estimating will understand why judgment is needed when applying figures from this manual — or any other paint estimating guide. It’s your responsibility to decide which conditions on the job you’re bidding are like conditions assumed in this manual, and which conditions are different. Where conditions are different, you’ll need good professional judgment to arrive at a realistic estimated cost.

Inside the back cover of this book you’ll find an envelope with a compact disk. The disk has National Estimator, an easy-to-use estimating program with all the cost estimates in this book. Insert the CD in your computer and wait a few seconds. Installation should begin automatically. (If not, click Start, Settings, Control Panel, double-click Add/Remove programs and Install.) Select ShowMe from the installation menu and Dan will show you how to use National Estimator. When ShowMe is complete, select Install Program. When the National Estimator program has been installed, click Help on the menu bar, click Contents, click Print all Topics, click File and click Print Topic to print a 28-page instruction manual for National Estimator.

How to Use the Tables
The estimating tables in this book show typical costs and bid prices for every painting operation you’re likely to encounter, whether paint is applied by brush, roller, mitt or spray. Selecting the right cost table and the correct application method is easy. Tables are divided into four parts:

 

Part I: General Painting Costs

Part II: Preparation Costs

Part III: Industrial, Institutional and Heavy Commercial Painting Costs

Part IV: Wallcovering Costs

Each section is arranged alphabetically by operation. If you have trouble finding the tables you need, use the Table of Contents at the front of the book or the Index at the back of the book.

Once you’ve found the right table and the appropriate application method, you have to select the correct application rate. For each of the application methods (brush, roll, mitt or spray), the tables show three application rates: “Slow,” “Medium,” or “Fast.” That’s a very important decision when using this book, because each application rate assumes different manhour productivity, material coverage, material cost per gallon, hourly labor cost, labor burden, overhead and profit. Your decision on the application rate to use (or which combination of rates to use) has to be based on your evaluation of the job, your painters and your company. That’s where good common sense is needed.

Figure 1 shows crew codes, labor costs, labor burdens, material discounts, and profit for each of the three production rates for painting.

The “Slow” application rate in Figure 1 assumes lower productivity (less area covered per manhour), a lower labor cost (due to a less skilled crew), a lower labor burden (due to lower fringe benefits), a lower discount on materials (because of low volume), higher overhead (due to lower volume) and a higher profit margin (typical on small repaint or custom jobs). Figures in this “Slow” application row will apply where painters with lower skill levels are working on smaller or more difficult repaint jobs.

Look at the “Fast” row in Figure 1. These estimates will apply where a skilled crew (higher hourly rate and larger fringe benefits) is working under good supervision and good conditions (more area covered per manhour) on larger (volume discount on materials) and more competitive jobs (lower profit margin). Figures in the “Fast” application row assume high productivity and lower material coverage, (unpainted surfaces absorb more paint), like that of a residential tract job.

Each of the three application rates is described more completely later in this section.

The Easy Case: No Adjustments
Let’s suppose the “Slow” application rate fits the job you’re estimating almost perfectly. Your crew’s productivity is expected to be low. The labor cost will be $13.50 per hour. Labor burden (fringes, taxes and insurance) will be 29.5 percent. Discount on materials will be 20 percent. Overhead will be 19 percent and profit will be 16 percent. Then your task is easy. All of your costs match the costs in the “Slow” row. No modifications are needed. The same is true if your costs fit the “Medium” or “Fast” rows.

But that’s not always going to happen. More often, the job, your crew and your company won’t fit exactly into any of the three rows. What then? More evaluation is required. You’ll combine costs from several application rate rows to reach an accurate bid price. I call that customizing your costs and it’s nearly always required for an accurate estimate.

Customizing Your Costs
Every company has a different combination of worker speed and experience, taxes, benefits, spread rates, equipment needs, percentage for overhead, and profit margin. These are the cost variables in paint estimating. This book is designed so you can quickly and easily adjust estimates to reflect actual costs on the job you’re estimating. It’s important that you read the rest of this section before using the cost tables in this book. That’s the only way to get from this manual all the accuracy and flexibility that’s built into it.

In the remainder of this section I’ll describe the assumptions I’ve made and the methods I used to compile the cost tables in this manual. Once you understand them, you’ll be able to combine and modify costs in the estimating tables so your bids fit the job, your crew and your company as closely as possible.

When you start using the cost tables in this book, I suggest you circle numbers in the “Slow,” “Medium,” or “Fast” application rate rows that best fit your company and your jobs. To improve accuracy even more, write your own figures in the blank row below the “Fast” row in each table, like I’ve done in Figure 2.

A Practical Example
Figure 2 is part of an estimating table taken from Part I of this book, General Painting Costs. I’m going to use it to show how to customize estimates to match your actual costs. In Figure 2 I’ve circled some of the costs I plan to use in a sample estimate and calculated others.

In column 1, Labor SF per manhour, I’ve circled 675 because I feel the journeyman painter assigned to this job can paint walls at the “Fast” rate of 675 square feet per hour. That’s the number I plan to use for my estimate.

In column 2, Material coverage SF/gallon, I’ve reviewed my past performance and I expect coverage will be about 275 square feet per gallon of paint. So I’ve circled that figure.

In column 3, Material cost per gallon, I’ve circled 21.90 for my cost per gallon for flat water base latex (including tax and an allowance for consumable supplies), based on a 30 percent discount from the retail price.

So far, so good. That completes the first three columns, what I call the pricing variables. Now we can begin on the unit cost estimate, columns 4 through 9. Each of these columns show a price per 100 square feet of wall.

We’ll start with column 4, Labor cost per 100 SF. Notice that I’ve entered 3.11 for this column. Here’s why. Look back at Figure 1. Throughout this book the painting labor rate for “Fast” work is assumed to be $25.75 per hour. See page 29 for the wallcovering application rate. I can’t use the labor cost per 100 SF for “Fast” work because the journeymen on my job earn $21.00 per hour. That pay rate is between the “Medium” and “Fast” pay rates as shown in Figure 1. To calculate the labor cost per 100 SF, divide $21.00 by 675 and multiply by 100: 21/675 = .0311 x 100 = 3.11.

In column 5, Labor burden 100 SF, I’ve entered .92. This figure is a result of my labor cost at $3.11 x 29.5 percent, my labor burden (taxes, insurance and benefits) from the “Slow” row of Figure 1. Even though the labor rate is “Fast” and the labor cost is between “Fast” and “Medium,” for this example labor burden will be most like work done at the “Slow” rate because this company doesn’t offer many benefits.

In column 6, Material cost per 100 SF, I’ve circled 7.96, the number in the “Medium” row. Since I’ve used numbers in the “Medium” row in both columns 2 and 3, I can take the figure in column 6 for material costs directly from the table, without any calculations.

In column 7, Overhead per 100 SF, I’ve calculated the overhead dollar value by adding the labor cost, labor burden and material cost then multiplying that sum by the “Medium” overhead at 25 percent: $3.11 + $.92 + $7.96 = $11.99 x .25 = $3.00.

In column 8, Profit per 100 SF, I’ve calculated the profit dollar value by adding the labor cost, labor burden, material cost and overhead then multiplying that sum by the “Medium” profit at 12 percent from Figure 1. The result is $3.11 + $.92 + $7.96 + $3.00 = $14.99 x .12 = $1.80.

Column 9, Total cost per 100 SF, is the bid price — it’s the sum of columns 4 through 8 for each row. Because I’ve circled costs that fall in more than one row, I can’t use any figure in column 9. Instead, I simply add the circled or calculated figures in columns 4 through 8: $3.11 + $.92 + $7.96 + $3.00 + $1.80 = $16.79. That’s my bid price per 100 square feet on this job. It’s the combination of costs that fit my company, my painters and the job.

Using Your Good Judgment
Of course, judgment is required when using these tables, as it is when making any estimate. For example, if your journeymen painters earn the top rate of $25.75 but work at the “Medium” production rate or slower, your labor cost per unit will be higher than the highest cost listed in column 4. An adjustment will be required.

Because figures in columns 7 and 8 are percentages of figures in columns 4, 5 and 6, you have to be careful when you blend costs from different rows. Let’s look at an extreme (and unlikely) example.

Suppose you use costs from the “Slow” application row for columns 4 (3.38), 5 (.99) and 6 (8.37) of Figure 2. The total of those three costs is $12.74. Then you decide to use overhead from the “Fast” row because your overhead is about 31 percent of cost, not 19 percent of cost as in the “Slow” row (Figure 1). “Fast” overhead is listed as 3.99 in Figure 2. The correct overhead figure is $3.95, 31 percent of the sum of “Slow” costs in columns 4, 5 and 6. Be aware of this small discrepancy and calculate figures for all the categories yourself if extreme accuracy is essential.

Converting Unit Prices
The last column in Figure 2 shows the total cost per 100 square feet of wall. Some estimating tables in this book show a total cost per 100 linear feet (such as for baseboard) or total costs per unit (such as for doors). To convert a cost per 100 square feet to a cost per square foot, move the decimal point two places to the left. Thus the cost per 100 square feet for the “Fast” rate in Figure 2 is $18.06 or about 18 cents per square foot.

General Qualifications
It’s important that you understand the conditions the tables are based upon. I call these conditions the job qualifications. A qualifications statement follows each estimating table to help you understand what’s included and what’s excluded. Please read those qualifications before using costs from this manual in your estimates. The following points apply to all tables in this book:

Included Costs

• Minor preparation, both time and material. Normal preparation for new residential construction is included in the “Fast” row and for new commercial jobs in the “Medium” row. Minimal preparation is included for repaint jobs in the “Slow” row.
• Minimum setup and cleanup
• Equipment such as ladders, spray rigs and brushes are included in overhead for the “Fast” rate (residential tracts) or “Medium” (commercial) work. Add equipment costs at their rental rate for “Slow” (repaint) jobs.

• Equipment costs such as ladders, spray rigs, etc. for “Slow” (repaint) jobs. Add these at their rental rate whether or not you own the equipment.
• Extensive surface preparation. Add the cost of time and materials needed for more than “normal” preparation work. Also add time to remove and replace hardware and accessories, protect adjacent surfaces, and do any extensive setup, cleanup, or touchup.
  (See the discussion of SURRPTUCU on the next page.)
• Mobilization or demobilization
• Supervision
• Material handling, delivery, or storage
• Sample preparation
• Mixing coatings
• Excessive material waste or spillage
• Equipment rental or placement costs
• Scaffolding rental and erection costs
• Subcontract costs
• Contingency allowance
• Owner allowances
• Commissions, bonuses, overtime, premium pay for shift adjustments (evening work), travel time or per diem.
• Bonds, fees, or permits
• Additional insurance to meet owner requirements
• Work at heights above 8 feet or beyond the reach of a wand or extension pole.
  (See the table for High Time Difficulty Factors on page 139.)

Surface Preparation
The Preparation estimating tables that follow Part I: General Painting Costs, apply to both interior and exterior surfaces.

Surface preparation is one of the hardest parts of the job to estimate accurately. Any experienced painter can make a reasonably good estimate of the quantity of paint and time needed for application. But the amount of prep work needed will vary widely — especially for repaint jobs. Some will need very little work. Others will take more time for prep than for painting.

Preparation work for new construction jobs is relatively standard and consistent.You’ll have to mask cabinets before spraying sealer on wet area walls, caulk at the baseboards, putty the nail holes in wood trim, and occasionally use a wire brush to smooth and clean a surface. The time required for this work is fairly predictable.

Labor cost for normal preparation of unpainted surfaces in new residential construction is included in the “Fast” labor costs and for new commercial construction in the “Medium” labor cost. The cost of materials for normal surface preparation on unpainted surfaces is included in the sundries allowance that’s part of the “Fast” or “Medium” material cost.

But if more than normal surface prep work is needed, estimate the extra manhours and materials required and add these costs to your estimate.

Add for Repaint Preparation
The “Slow” unit costs include no surface preparation other than a quick wipedown. Preparation on a repaint job may take longer than the painting itself. That’s why you have to estimate surface prep as a separate item and add that cost to your estimate.

A misjudgment in estimating preparation work can be very expensive. That’s why I recommend that you bid surface preparation by the hour, using your shop rate for “time and material” jobs, or some other specified hourly rate. That protects you against cost overruns if the preparation takes longer than anticipated. But there’s a danger here. Owners may be angry about the cost because they don’t understand what’s involved in preparation and why it takes so long.You can avoid this with a “not to exceed” bid that contains a maximum price for the prep work. Your bid should define the scope of preparation work in detail and list exactly what’s included and excluded. Be sure to consider all the labor, material, and equipment costs involved.

If you have to bid repaint work, be sure to include all the miscellaneous costs. The acronym I use to identify these miscellaneous costs is SURRPTUCU: Setup (SU), Remove and Replace (RR), Protection (P), Touchup (TU) and Cleanup (CU). Add these costs to your repaint estimate if they require anything beyond minimum attention.

1. Setup includes unloading the vehicle, spreading the tarp and setting up the tools — everything that has to be done before prep or painting can begin.
2. Remove and replace everything that will interfere with painting, including door and cabinet hardware, the contents of cabinets, light fixtures, bathroom accessories, switch covers and outlet plates, among others.
3. Protection for furniture and adjacent surfaces such as floors, cabinets, plumbing or electrical fixtures, windows, and doors. Protection methods include masking, applying visqueen, laying drop cloths and applying a protective coating on windows.
4. Touchup time varies with the speed and quality of the painting job and how fussy the owner is. The more careful your painters are, the less touchup time needed. You can estimate touchup time accurately only if you know how well your crews perform. The Touchup table in this book is based on a percentage of total job cost.
5. Cleanup time is usually about the same as setup time, about 20 to 30 minutes each day for repaint jobs. Cleanup time begins when work stops for the day and ends when the crew is back in the truck and ready to go home. It includes cleaning tools, dismantling the paint shop and loading the vehicle.

Subcontractors
Painting contractors don’t hire many subcontractors. But once in a while you’ll need a specialist for sandblasting, waterblasting, wallcovering, scaffolding or pavement marking. Subcontract costs are not included in the estimating tables. Add the cost of any subcontract work that will be required.

Figure 3 shows some typical rates quoted by sandblasting subcontractors. Of course, prices in your area will probably be different. You could also figure sandblasting unit costs from the sandblasting estimating tables included in Part II, Preparation Costs, in this book. Figure 3 - Sandblasting Pricing Table is included in the book but not shown here.

Figure 4 shows typical subcontract bids for pavement marking. Again, prices in your area may be different.

If you do much repainting, you’ll probably want to buy a waterblasting rig. Even if you own the blaster, include a charge in each estimate for the equipment as though you rented it from a rental yard just for that job. Figure the unit costs for waterblasting from Part II of this book, Preparation Costs.

Consider using a waterblasting subcontractor if you don’t need the service often. Figure 5 shows some typical rates for waterblasting. Make up a table like this based on quotes from subcontractors in your area. For a more detailed table, see Sandblasting in the Preparation section, page 303.

When you hire a subcontractor, make sure the quoted price includes everything that contractor has to do — all labor, material (with tax, if applicable), equipment, overhead and profit. Add your overhead and profit percentage to the subcontractor’s bid price when you enter that item on the estimate.

Contingencies
Occasionally you’ll add a contingency allowance on bids for repaint projects where there are unknowns that can’t be forecast before work actually begins. Contingency allowances are rarely needed when estimating new construction. When necessary, the contingency amount is usually from 3 to 5 percent. It can go higher, however, if there are unusual conditions or unknowns that make it hard to produce an accurate estimate. Include a contingency allowance in your estimates only if you have reason to expect:

• An uncertain scope of work (unknown job conditions)
• An inexperienced owner or general contractor
• Incomplete drawings
• Delays in beginning the project
• Owner involvement in supervision
• Below-standard working conditions

Don’t use contingency allowances as a substitute for complete estimates. Include contingency only to cover what can’t be estimated, not what you don’t have time to estimate accurately.

We will stop the chapter sample here on page 13. The remaining 28 pages of this chapter thoroughly cover the topics of:

labor productivity,

supervision,

material coverage,

material pricing,

material costs,

labor costs,

overhead,

equipment rental rates,

profit,

profit margin,

risk factors,

bidding variables

and total cost - including many charts and figures.