Raynham Call - August 6, 2008
By Dick Sherman - Correspondent
Raynham House Painting can color your world
"As the sun moves," says Steve Beddia, "so do we."
Beddia, the proprietor of Raynham House Painting, was making a point about one of the many caveats associated with his work.
"There's a lot to it," says the veteran of 30 years in the business. "There's the age of the house, the location of the sun, prior paint jobs... if you paint on hot wood, (the paint) it will dry prematurely, and will lift. That's why we work in the shade. As the sun moves, so do we."
Another nemesis, he adds, is moisture.
"If we pressure wash a house, we have to give it at least a week to dry."
And pressure washing is a routine procedure for Beddia and his crew. Raynham Painting uses an environmentally safe cleaner, taking special care to remove all traces of mildew, lest it return and mar the job.
Beddia took a circuitous route to his present role as one of the busier painting contractors in Southeastern Massachusetts. A graduate of Stonehill, he entered the workforce as the manager of a seven-building, 130-apartment housing in Rhode Island. Since maintenance was a big part of the job, gravitating into the painting business was sort of a natural extension of that initial career experience.
The switch from management to maintenance has worked out well. Beddia now oversees five full-time and five part time employees, handling a busy schedule of projects throughout Southeastern Massachusetts.
Working in New England calls for a response to the changing seasons. The best time to apply exterior paint, he says in the period between mid-summer and early fall. Between November and March, the crew generally works inside.
Not surprisingly, things have changed during Beddia's years in the business. The style of interior work, for example, has morphed to "deeper, more vibrant colors like merlot."
As tastes have changed, so has the quality of the paint. Until six months ago, he points out, deeper pigmented colors (like merlot) would require three coats. Now two coats will do the job.
And bright hues are becoming more common.
"People want to introduce color into their lives," Beddia observes.
When they do, Beddia is on hand to help.
"I coach the customer on color," he explains. "If I see someone making a mistake, I get involved."
Beyond his availability for consultations, Beddia offers an extensive laundry list of routine procedures to protect the customer's property and assure a durable, professional job.
For example, Rayham House Painting:
- Cleans and prepares all surfaces to be painted, thereby helping the paint adhere to the existing surface while removing all harmful oxidants, pollutants, and dirt
- Protects the property with drop cloths and poly plastic in all areas
- Removes vents and switch plates, fills nail h oles, treats and primes water stains
- Removes loose paint, sands and applies primer
- Caulks cracks throughout
- Uses only quality materials.
It all adds up to the kind of effort that prompted a recent customer to pay Beddia and his crew the highest of compliments:
"The work," she wrote, "is beautiful. You were professional, efficient, and courteous. It seems more like artwork than a paint job."
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