When should the final walkthrough happen?

After the last coat is dry and the masking has come off, in good daylight. Mid-morning to mid-afternoon is best for an exterior, when the light shows the walls fairly. Inside, open the blinds and turn the lights on. Walk it with the painter, not on your own after he has gone.

How closely should I inspect the paint?

Look from where people normally stand: a few steps back from a wall, from the street for the front elevation, from the doorway for a room. Any finish shows marks if you press your face to it with a flashlight. Then look closely at the details that matter: edges, trim, repairs and anything you use every day.

Should the painter leave leftover paint?

It is worth asking for. A labeled can of each color, with the room or elevation, the color name and the sheen written on it, makes future touch-ups possible and tells the next painter what is on the walls. Store it somewhere that does not freeze or bake.

The Final Walkthrough Before Sign-Off

Q: What if I find something after the painter has left?

Tell him. Some things only show in a certain light or after a few days. At Lemoon's Painting the guarantee is plain: if something is not right, Ebenezer comes back and repairs it. Take a photo of the spot or note where it is, rather than sticking tape on fresh paint, so it can be found again.

At the final walkthrough, look at the work in daylight from a normal viewing distance and check five things: even coverage with no missed spots, clean lines where colors meet, no paint where it should not be, repairs that blend into the wall, and everything that was removed or masked put back and working. Mark anything that is not right before you sign off.

The last day of a paint job is when the house looks most finished and when it is most tempting to say thank you and close the door. Take half an hour first. A walkthrough with the painter, while the ladders are still on site, is the moment anything that is not right can be put right without a second visit.

When and how to look

Do the walkthrough when the last coat is dry and the masking is off, in good daylight. On an exterior, mid-morning to mid-afternoon gives the most honest light. Inside, open every blind and turn on the room lights.

Then look from the distance people actually see the work from. The front of the house from the street and the walk up to the door. A room from the doorway and from where you sit. Any painted surface will show something if you press your nose against it with a flashlight held flat to the wall, and that is not a fair test of anyone’s work. What is fair is that from normal viewing positions the finish looks even, the lines are clean and nothing is out of place.

After that, get close where closeness matters: the edges, the trim, the front door, the repairs.

The order to walk it in

Start at the front. Stand at the street and look at the whole elevation. The color should read evenly across the stucco, with no lighter patches where a coat was thin.
Walk the perimeter. Go round the house in one direction, looking at each wall and then at the trim, eaves and fascia above it.
Check the details on the way. Windows, doors, hardware, fixtures, the ground below each wall.
Then the inside, room by room, if the job included it.
Finish with the paperwork: leftover paint, anything to mark, and what happens next.

On the outside

Coverage. Look for missed spots, called holidays, especially behind downspouts, under eaves, around hose bibs and light fixtures, and at the bottom of walls near the ground. Look along the wall from a corner as well as straight on.

Lines. Where the body color meets the trim, the line should be straight and crisp. Look along fascia and at the top of walls under the eaves.

Repairs. Patched stucco cracks should disappear into the wall, with the texture matched, not show as smooth stripes. Look at repaired areas with the sun across them. Repaired wood at sills and fascia should be primed and painted like the rest.

Overspray and drips. Check the windows, the roof edge, the walkway, the driveway, plants close to the walls and anything parked nearby. Fresh paint where it should not be is best cleaned now.

Metal and hardware. Near the coast, in places like Imperial Beach, check that railings, gate hardware and exposed fasteners were cleaned and coated as agreed, because salt air finds any bare metal.

Things that move. Open and close the windows, the gates and the doors. None should be painted shut or sticking to fresh paint on the weatherstripping.

Things that were taken off. Light fixtures, house numbers, hose reels and anything else that was removed or masked should be back and working. Sprinklers that were turned off should be turned back on.

On the inside

Ceiling lines. The line where wall meets ceiling should be straight, with no wall color on the ceiling.
Even sheen. Look across each wall toward a window. Patches that look shinier or duller than the rest show where touch-ups did not blend, which painters call flashing.
Trim and doors. Smooth, with no runs or heavy brush marks, and no paint on hinges or hardware.
Cover plates and fixtures. Switch and outlet covers back on, vents back in place.
Floors and furniture. Nothing spattered, nothing scuffed while being moved.

On the slopes of Spring Valley and in homes with high stairwells, look up as well as across. The highest surfaces are the ones nobody checks until the light catches them in the afternoon.

Marking what needs attention

Point out anything you want looked at as you walk it with the painter, so he sees exactly what you mean, and keep a list or photos rather than sticking tape on paint that has only just dried. A clear list at the walkthrough is better for both of you than a vague call a week later. Most items on a walkthrough are small touch-ups, and a careful painter expects them.

What signing off should mean

Signing off means the work in the scope is done and you have seen it. It should not mean the end of the painter’s responsibility. Ask, before the walkthrough, what happens if something shows up later. At Lemoon’s Painting the answer is plain and is written on the guarantee page: if something is not right, Ebenezer comes back and repairs it.

Ask too for a labeled can of each color, with the room or wall, color name and sheen written on it. It makes future touch-ups possible and tells the next painter what is on the walls.

A walkthrough with the person who did the work

Ebenezer manages every project personally, so the walkthrough is with the person who has run your job since the estimate, not a stranger reading a checklist. If you are planning a repaint and want to see how a job is run from the estimate to the last walk around, read the process or ask for a free estimate. You can also read more about exterior painting.