Frequently Asked Painting Questions

We’re a husband-and-wife team with over 20 years of experience providing interior and exterior painting in Nanaimo. With no other employees, every job is handled personally by us, ensuring a truly personal, high-quality service.

We combine professional skill, attention to detail, and premium materials to deliver a flawless finish, while respecting your home, communicating clearly, and completing projects on time and on budget.

Our clients keep coming back because they know they can relax, confident that their home will be painted efficiently, correctly, and beautifully. We provide references with every quote. You can read more about us, view our interior and exterior portfolios or read client testimonials.

We’re fully licensed, insured, and WorkSafeBC compliant, so your home is protected every step of the way.

Yes! We provide detailed, no-obligation quotes so you know exactly what to expect before work begins.

We source our paints and supplies from trusted brands like Benjamin Moore, Sherwin-Williams, and Cloverdale Paint, all of which specialize in supporting professional painting contractors. Working with these companies gives us high-quality products, precise tinting, and reliable local support, with a dedicated contractor representative available in Nanaimo for any questions.

We use only premium paints from the top product lines of each of these paint manufacturers. With over 20 years of professional painting experience, we evaluate surfaces and conditions to choose the best paint for your home’s interior or exterior, ensuring long-lasting, beautiful results.

There’s no single “best” paint across all manufacturers or product lines. Even well-known brands offer ranges from economy (builder’s grade) to premium, and the right choice depends on your needs. Paints are designed with different balances of coverage, stain resistance, adhesion, resistance to burnishing and scuffing, flow and leveling, fade resistance, mildew resistance and overall durability.

For Nanaimo homes in our west coast climate, choosing a high-quality paint from a reputable brand—without necessarily buying the most expensive option—will deliver excellent, long-lasting results for both interior and exterior surfaces.

It depends. While paint companies frequently match each other’s colours, it’s not always precise. Stores use devices to create tints from chips or samples, but these often require manual adjustments by someone with experience. In some cases, it’s best to buy the paint from the original manufacturer. Experienced painters can advise when colour matching isn’t ideal—for example, with whites and off-whites.

Yes, we can provide help, guidance and offer feedback in colour choices, advise on trending colours, complimentary shades and finishes to suit your home and style. Our guides on choosing interior colours and choosing exterior colour can get you headed in the right direction.

There’s no standard of pricing in the painting industry and with the exception of a few types of painting there’s no mandatory training or certification required. This creates a wide range in skills and quality of work. Our guide on painting cost variances dives deeper into the reasons why painting quotes can have drastic price differences. We provide transparent estimates reflecting your home’s unique needs. Find more here: Parnell Painting Estimates

In most cases, you don’t need to be present. Many Nanaimo homeowners have trusted us with access while they are at work or running errands. We have numerous references from clients that have handed their home over to us while they go on vacation. We respect your comfort and can arrange access in a way that works for you, ensuring the job gets done efficiently and safely.

For interior painting, we use dedicated drop sheets to protect floors and cover furniture with plastic sheeting. For exterior projects, we protect driveways, sidewalks, decking, and nearby shrubs, gently pulling them back or covering them as needed. During interior and exterior painting items are masked and taped as necessary for a clean finish.
See our interior house painting services and exterior house painting services for a detailed look at our process.

Minor drywall patching and sanding is included in our interior quotes. This covers filling in scratches, dings and holes left from wall decor. Our quotes also include filling holes from drywall anchors, removed mirrors, curtain rod hardware and shelving as long as this has been shown to us at the time of the quote viewing and agreed upon.

Depending on the degree it may not be something we can address if there is failing tape or drywall issues like irregular mudding.

Major repairs, we don’t tackle bulging drywall or large areas of drywall that require a complete skim coat or replacement. We leave this type of work to the drywall professionals.

Yes, as long as the cause of the water stain has been resolved before we start painting. We use a sealer to ensure the stain will not bleed through the finish coats .

Yes, but usually we paint ceilings in conjunction with painting the walls.

If the ceilings are textured we will need to check if they have been painted before. Depending on the type of texture, extra steps may be required. In some cases we can prepare the space to spray the ceilings, otherwise they are cut in and rolled with a large scale roller.

Yes, but if the goal is to eventually paint the entire house, budget to have a few rooms done at once.This will be more cost effective than the painter repeatedly returning to do one room a time. The key with this option is to have a overall colour scheme to ensure the house will flow seamlessly once it’s all complete.

If your trim or ceilings require painting, it’s best to do them at the same time as the walls. Ceilings are almost always painted first and we typically paint the trim next and then cut the wall paint in against it for the cleanest looking finish. See our guide to learn more cost saving tips: How To Save Money On Painting Costs

A fresh coat of paint makes your home look clean, inviting, and well-maintained. Repainting over bold or unique colours with lighter neutrals helps buyers envision themselves in the space. Damaged or dingy walls and trim can be a turn-off, while a freshly painted interior or exterior adds curb appeal and can increase resale value—making it a smart investment according to most realtors. See our guide for more information: Painting Is An Excellent Way To Increase Resale Value.

The best paint sheen depends on the room’s use and desired look. Eggshell is common for most walls, while matte finishes have also become popular. Modern paint technology allows the use of lower sheens in bathrooms and kitchens like eggshell and matte. Ceilings are almost exclusively flat sheen, while doors and trim work are satin or pearl.

On exteriors the body of the house can be painted in flat or satin depending on the substrate and trim work and doors are most often painted in a satin sheen. Learn more in our guide: Paint Sheen Choices.

Painting frequency depends on room use and traffic. Low-traffic spaces may go years without repainting, while high-traffic areas like hallways, entryways, and recreation rooms need repainting more often. Visual tolerance for scuffs, dings, or deteriorating caulking also plays a role.

There are times when it makes sense to repaint your walls and/or trim work – for instance, when you are doing a home update like flooring or cabinet changes.

Exterior paint goes beyond aesthetics, it protects your home from the elements, so timing is crucial. Don’t wait until peeling, cracking, fading, or bare wood appears, as delayed painting increases prep and repair costs. If you end up with dry rot and need repairs and wood replaced the expenses can be substantial. Learn more on our Exterior Painting Frequency page.

Paints are regulated by the Canadian government, they set limits on volatile organic compounds (VOCs) making that the industry standard now for most paints. We offer many options that are environmentally friendly and safer for your family and pets. VOC’s are most prevalent while the paint is drying or off gassing, but they can continue to evaporate into the air for a period of time after the paint has dried.

Solvent, oil based and some hybrid paints have higher VOC’s and a strong odour. Thankfully paint technology has advanced to create options for situations where these types of products were the only suitable choice.

In the Nanaimo area you can take paint to one of the Nanaimo Recycling Depot locations. Check their website for the restrictions of what type of paint they will accept. It must have it’s original label and be identifiable. In the Parksville area paint can be taken to the Parksville Bottle and Recycling.

Properly stored latex paint can last two years or more. Keep cans in a cool, dry place away from strong heat sources, not in direct sunlight or where it can freeze. Metal cans can rust if stored in humid environments, including moisture coming up through cement floors in a garage. Ensure lids are fully sealed—avoid causing dents, use a rubber mallet to close them or place a piece of wood on top and hammer on it.

Clearly label each can and write the date on it. Write the room and surface that the paint was for and put a dab of the colour on the lid. Snap a photo of the this information and the label for easy future identification. This keeps a record of the paint type and tint formula in case the can is misplaced.

Paint can separate during storage, which is normal. If stirring blends the solids back in, it’s usually fine. Discard paint if it has hardened or has a sour or foul odor, visible mold, or a jelly-like texture. Paint can lose it’s beneficial properties over time, so if you suspect it’s quite old it’s best to dispose of it and start fresh.

Small dry bits can end up in paint cans, typically pouring paint back into it from a rolling tray or cut bucket that sat out too long. If paint has bits in it, but is otherwise fine you can strain it through a paint sock. Empty paint cans and paint socks are available at paint stores for a small cost. Don’t put the paint back in the same can or it will pick up the bits again.

There are many factors that affect house painting costs, so a quick ballpark quote isn’t reliable and is a bad way to compare between painting contractors. Accurate estimates depend on the overall complexity of the work, preparation needs, trim and window details, number of colours requested, existing colours and how much protection your furniture and space require. Every home is unique, which is why professional painters in Nanaimo provide customized, on-site quotes.

We don’t do a lot of new construction painting anymore. We’ve never had an interest in painting for quick build spec homes that have no time or budget for high quality painting. This is not a fit for our company. We can consider doing a quote for a custom home being built by a thoughtful contractor with integrity that is looking for high quality painters. Contact us to find out our process for new construction painting and what information we will require from you.