The Annual People’s Choice Award from the Houzz Community Highlights Home Remodeling and Design Professionals with Most Popular Designs and Top Ratings

Spectrum Painting & Paper Hanging, LLC has won a “Best Of Houzz” award for Best of Service on Houzz®, the leading platform for home renovation and design. This is the seventh year in a row the company has received this Service honor.

The Best Of Houzz badge is awarded annually, in three categories: Design, Service and Photography. Design awards honor professionals whose work was the most popular among the Houzz community. Customer Service honors are based on several factors, including a pro’s overall rating on Houzz and client reviews submitted in 2020. Architecture and interior design photographers whose images were most popular are recognized with the Photography award.

A “Best Of Houzz 2021” badge will appear on winners’ profiles as a sign of their commitment to excellence. These badges help homeowners identify popular and top-rated home professionals in every metro area on Houzz.

Check out our website to learn more about the services we offer, including interior and exterior painting, power and soft washing, cabinet refinishing, deck maintenance and concrete floor coatings!

If you’re considering painting the interior of your home one of the most important decisions besides choosing a contractor is which color to choose. Color trends come and go, but what remains true is that color can dictate the entire mood of a room. Regardless of current fashion, you’ll want to choose a wall color that you can live with for years to come.

This is one of the reasons that the color white has been so popular over the years. Its classic look can be paired with almost any furniture and accessories, and its reflective quality makes a room appear larger and airier. Sounds like the simplest color choice, right? Wrong!

There are over 150 shades of white paint. Why so many? Each white has an undertone, or a tiny speck of color that is almost undetectable, but makes each white a nuanced, situational color. These undertones are red/pink, blue, yellow, and green/gray. How do you know which is best for your interior painting project?

To help you choose among so many shades of white paint, we’ve identified important factors to consider:

The Amount of Natural Light

Geography, and the light that is inherent in different regions of the country, is an important factor to consider. Northeasterly locations like New York and New England tend to emit a lot of gray light, so it’s best to find a shade of white paint that balances the cooler gray. In the south and southwest, in places like Miami or Phoenix, the light has a lot of blue filtered through it, causing some whites to take on a pinker cast. In these locales it’s best to choose a cool white paint to temper that warmth.

The direction of a room and the natural sunlight that comes through the windows also affects how white paint appears on a wall. In a room facing north, the light tends to be on the colder side with gray and blue hues, so a warmer white will work best. In a room facing south, the sun is much brighter, perfect for a cooler shade of white paint. In eastern- and western-facing rooms, the light changes throughout the day. They are both typically brighter in the morning and dimmer in the afternoon, but rooms facing west tend to take on a golden hue as the sun goes down.

Once you’ve determined the type of natural light that comes into the room, you want to consider the amount and type of artificial light you use. Rooms without a lot of natural light do well with a white that has gray or greige (gray-beige) undertones. A room with a good amount of sunlight will do better with a cool or true neutral white, which will keep the room from taking on a yellow or pink tone.

Matching Your Room’s Function and Existing Color

How you plan to use your newly painted room is an important consideration when choosing white paint as a color. Kitchens and living rooms are more conducive to warmer tones than an office or a bedroom. The style and color of your furnishings should also be considered, as the reflective quality of white paint can pull from the furniture and return those colors back into the room. The color of your floor can also affect the looks of your white walls.

Don’t Forget About Trim

A good rule of thumb is to keep your trim shade simple. The differences in whites are hard to detect on trim. Choose a white that has an undertone of your wall color. Some people prefer to use an un-tinted white, feeling it will add depth to the room and make the wall color shine. However, that contrast against colored walls can be jarring, and can actually make the room look smaller.

If you plan to paint your entire room white, it’s not necessary to choose a different shade of white paint for the trim and ceiling. Instead, consider a different finish. A popular finish combination is semi-gloss trim with matte walls and a flat ceiling, but a general rule is to give the trim a finish with more shine than the walls. If you do choose a white with a glossy finish for the trim, remember that whites can take on a yellowy tone with lacquer finishes, especially if it already has a yellow undertone.

In rooms like kitchens and living rooms, you might consider choosing different shades of white paint, one for the walls and one for cabinets or bookshelves. The contrasting whites will add interest and depth, highlighting some of the room’s most important features.

So, How to Choose The Right White Paint?

You’ve assessed the natural light in your room and the function of the space. Now, it’s time to look at paint samples. Whether you go to a paint store or ask us to bring color samples to your home, we like this simple advice: bring a piece of white paper with a square cut out so you can focus on the color you’re considering without being influenced by those around it. The undertone of any white paint should show up just fine against the plain white of paper. Putting up multiple sample paint chips near the trim of the door can help as well. This is an area you walk in and out of each day in most cases and you’ll start to gravitate towards a color naturally. Also make sure to test out the chips in different rooms that have varying light.

Spectrum Painting can eliminate your stress since we provide a free color consultation with your interior or exterior project! Just let your estimator know when we’re out at your home that you need a helping hand. Give us a call today at 973-706-6033 to schedule an estimate.

The Annual People’s Choice Award from the Houzz Community Highlights Home Remodeling and Design Professionals with Most Popular Designs and Top Ratings

Spectrum Painting & Paper Hanging, LLC has won a “Best Of Houzz” award for Customer Service on Houzz®, the leading platform for home renovation and design. This is the sixth year in a row the company has received this Service honor.

The Best Of Houzz badge is awarded annually, in three categories: Design, Customer Service and Photography. Design awards honor professionals whose work was the most popular among the Houzz community. Customer Service honors are based on several factors, including a pro’s overall rating on Houzz and client reviews submitted in 2019. Architecture and interior design photographers whose images were most popular are recognized with the Photography award.

A “Best Of Houzz 2020” badge will appear on winners’ profiles as a sign of their commitment to excellence. These badges help homeowners identify popular and top-rated home professionals in every metro area on Houzz.

“This year’s Best Of Houzz awards go to an incredibly talented and service-oriented group of home remodeling and design professionals, and we’re proud to highlight the winners on the Houzz website and app,” said Liza Hausman, vice president of Industry Marketing for Houzz. “This award is particularly meaningful as it reflects the sentiment of the millions of homeowners in the Houzz community who are hiring home professionals for their projects across the U.S. and around the world.”

Check out our website to learn more about the services we offer, including interior and exterior painting, power and soft washing, cabinet refinishing, deck maintenance and concrete floor coatings!

As northern New Jersey’s only certified installer of Penntek products, we are excited to offer a variety of exceptional floorcoating systems for your home or business, regardless of season.

Every flooring surface is a little different, and has its own set of unique needs and environmental conditions to consider. From a sun-drenched pool deck to a hard working garage, you need a flooring solution that offers a high level of performance in a cost-effective, low-maintenance package. We can help! Look at just some of the benefits:

• 4x Stronger Than Epoxy
• Cleaning Is a Snap
• Non-Slip Surface
• Will Not Crack or Chip
• 1-Day Installation
• 15-Year Warranty

We’re able to install garage and basement floors year round, thanks to a special blend of the products we use that are specific to the season. We’re able to install your new garage floor or basement with temperatures as low as 20 degrees or your pool patio up to 100 degrees!

We can even do custom colors so you can represent your favorite sports team or motorcycles, complete with distinct chip colors and logos! Call us today to learn more about how Spectrum Concrete Coatings can help with your project and to take advantage of limited time special pricing!

Award reflects company’s consistently high level of customer service

Spectrum Painting is proud to announce that it has earned the home service industry’s coveted Angie’s List Super Service Award (SSA). This award honors service professionals who have maintained exceptional service ratings and reviews on Angie’s List in 2019.

“Service pros that receive our Angie’s List Super Service Award represent the best in our network, who are consistently making great customer service their mission,” said Angie’s List Founder Angie Hicks. “These pros have provided exceptional service to our members and absolutely deserve recognition for the exemplary customer service they exhibited in the past year.”

Angie’s List Super Service Award 2019 winners have met strict eligibility requirements, which include maintaining an “A” rating in overall grade, recent grade and review period grade. The SSA winners must be in good standing with Angie’s List and undergo additional screening.

Spectrum Painting has been listed on Angie’s List since 2008. This is the eighth year Spectrum Painting has received this honor.

Service company ratings are updated continually on Angie’s List as new, verified consumer reviews are submitted. Companies are graded on an A through F scale in multiple fields ranging from price to professionalism to punctuality.

For over two decades Angie’s List has been a trusted name for connecting consumers to top-rated service professionals. Angie’s List provides unique tools and support designed to improve the local service experience for both consumers and service professionals.

We might be halfway through summer, but that doesn’t mean it’s too late to upgrade your backyard. Here are a few ideas to take your backyard and patio or pool area from boring to awesome! Take a look at the photos below of a few projects we’ve done this summer!

1. Install a Spectrum Concrete Coating– Did you know that our concrete floor coatings aren’t just for garages or basements? Spectrum Concrete Coatings can be applied to your pool patio or brick/concrete patio area. Out coatings do not heat up in the summer sun, do not chip and are easy to clean!
2. Paint or Stain Your Fence and/or Deck– Take your boring, faded wooden fence and stain it one of the many colors Benjamin Moore Arborcoat has to offer, or just keep it simple and paint it white!
3. Powerwash Your Deck and House– last winter and even all the rain this summer has been pretty harsh on our exterior elements, causing a lot of dirt and mildew to accumulate on your deck, patio and even your home’s siding. Spectrum can help out with our power and soft washing techniques and trained crew!

Spectrum Painting and Spectrum Concrete Coatings can help you with all your home improvement needs, including:

• Interior and Exterior Painting
• Power and Soft Washing
• Concrete Floor Coatings
• Cabinet Refinishing
• Carpentry
• Handyman Services
• Aluminum Siding Refinishing
• Paper Hanging
• Deck Maintenance
• Drywall Repairs

Call us today at 973-706-6033 or email us at info@spectrumpaintingllc.com for more information or to set up an estimate!

After living in your home for a while, it’s easy to get used to what you see. And that means that after a while, it’s even easy to ignore blemishes and unsightly mistakes. Your floors could be wearing down, but you’re so used to their look that you hardly pay attention. Or your appliances are outdated, but you don’t even think about them. It might be only when someone important is coming to visit, or when you redo another part of your house, that you begin to look at the existing flaws with new eyes.

But don’t worry — this happens to everyone! And fortunately, you don’t have to get bogged down by every single thing that needs improvement; there are some simple fixes that can really improve the look of your house in dramatic ways. Take a minute now to look through your house and see what paint mistakes could easily be fixed up. Spending some time repainting in these four specific areas will brighten and spruce up your home, letting you see things with new eyes.

Doors

• You walk through your front door every day, but do you stop and notice how it’s looking? Has the paint faded or discolored over time? Is paint chipping? Is the color outdated? Repainting your front door will give your home an instant boost of curb appeal and freshness. Try a red, blue or yellow door with white or black trim to really change the look of your entrance.
• Now, look at your interior doors. Are they smudged? Is the paint worn? Freshen up your interior as well!
  

  

Trim

• How is your interior trim looking? If it’s been a while since it was painted, chances are that it’s looking grubby — and the grubbiness is more than can be attacked with a Magic Eraser. Repainting your interior trim can give your home a beautiful fresh look.
  

  

Hallway/Foyer

• If you have small children or animals, get down on their level and take a glance at the hallway walls. Kids seem to think the walls are made to be handled — and frequently. Like the trim, there’s only so much you can do to clean off the grubby finger or paw prints. After a while, it’s simply time to repaint. Because of fading over time, it can be nearly impossible to match the exact color of your wall. Touching up typically won’t do the job properly. Repainting the entire hallway is normally the best way to go.
  

  

Bathroom

• You may find that your bathroom needs to be repainted before the rest of your house. Why? The regular moisture, heavy use, dust, and harsher chemicals in cleaning products combine in this small space to really do a number on the paint. Luckily the space is typically smaller than the rest of the house, and so you can likely repaint the bathroom in an afternoon. Try using a specialty paint, like Benjamin Moore Aura Bath & Spa, which is specifically formulated for a high moisture area and will hold up much better than standard paint.
  

  

Garage

• It might not be the most visible part of your home, but your garage gets a lot of use. Besides painting your walls or cinder block with formulated high-traffic area paint, what about the garage floor? Using latex paint on your garage floor is not only a mistake, but will make a mess and cost you more money in the long run. Instead of painting, try a Spectrum Painting Concrete Coating. Our coating is poly-urea, which holds up better than epoxy and latex paint. It can be easily cleaned and is antimicrobial, as well as chip resistant. The best part? Most garages only take ONE DAY to install!
  

  

Call Spectrum Painting and Spectrum Concrete Coatings today at 973-706-6033 to set up an appointment with an estimator to review your project scope, whether it’s just painting a door, your whole exterior or coating your garage floor!

You’re stocked up on cleaning supplies, the windows are open and you’ve officially retired your winter coat. Hello spring! However, spring home maintenance goes beyond deep cleaning and organizing. Work your way through this checklist to make sure your home is ready for the change in seasons.

EXTERIOR MAINTENANCE

• Check the roof: If you’re comfortable on a ladder, inspect your roof from up high. If not, use binoculars. Look for damaged or missing shingles and signs of rusting, cracking or leaking. If you find issues, call a professional to assess the damage.
• Clean out the gutters: Clear all leaves and debris out of the gutters and downspouts. If they’re sagging, reattach the gutters, or replace them with new hardware. Use caulking to seal holes and prevent leaking. Make sure downspouts face away from the foundation of your home for proper draining.
• Inspect the concrete: Take a walk around your property to look for cracking in the driveway, walkways or pool deck. You can fill cracks with concrete filler or silicone caulk, but if the concrete is severely damaged, you may want to replace it entirely.
• Check outside faucets: Inspect hose faucets for freeze damage by turning on the water and placing a finger over the opening. If that stops the water flow, the pipe may be damaged. Call a professional to inspect your pipes and determine if they need replacing.
• Inspect the air conditioning unit: Remove debris from around the cooling unit, and change the filters. To help your unit run properly in the upcoming months, follow these steps to make your system more efficient. Spring is also the ideal time to schedule a professional HVAC tune-up.
• Give the deck some attention: Check the deck for signs of water stains, discoloration and warping. Look for rusty or loose nails, and make sure the railings and stairs are safely secured. Replace rotting or lifting boards.
• Repair and reseal woodwork: In addition to the deck, you’ll also want to focus on wooden fences, railings and trellises if you have them. It’s important to give these wood structures some TLC as they are prone to rot and decay so it’s a good idea to learn how to maintain a wood fence.
• Run the sprinklers: Turn your sprinklers on to check if the system is still working properly. Look for leaks or broken sprinkler heads. Adjust them so they spray the grass rather than the house, sidewalks or porches.
• Inspect windows and doors: Check for cracks or holes and repair as necessary. Use a screen repair kit to fix holes or tears that bugs can sneak through.
• Spruce up landscaping: Clear your landscaping of debris, trim overgrowth and plan fresh additions. As spring rains can cause flooding and foundation damage, so use compacted soil in low areas of your yard.

INTERIOR MAINTENANCE

• Open the windows: With the welcoming warmth of fresh spring breezes, you might be inclined to do this regardless. Opening the windows is also an effective way to naturally aerate your home and may improve air quality. Take this opportunity to wipe down the interior of the window sills as they have most likely collected dust, dirt and mold over the winter months.
• Inspect the basement and attic: Check the walls and floors for water stains, mold and leaks. Remove unwanted moisture that can lead to mold issues or serious water damage.
• Perform routine home safety checks: Change the batteries in smoke detectors, make sure fire extinguishers are still intact with the needle in the green zone and check that exhaust fans are working properly. Replace anything that isn’t working immediately.
• Clean the furnace: The furnace worked overtime hard these last few months, so make sure you clean the filter system, blower and motor. If you’re not comfortable doing it yourself, call a professional.
• Consider upgrades: Spring is the perfect time to revisit your appliances, lighting and other essentials that may need replacing. If it’s time for an upgrade, consider energy-efficient options to help reduce waste and lower your bills. Refer to the Department of Energy for guides to the best home energy improvements.

Give Spectrum Painting a call today at 973-706-6033 to help you with all your interior, exterior and deck needs for painting, power washing and even gutter cleaning, inside and out!

If you are thinking about selling your home in the near future, you really should consider having the exterior of your home painted by a professional painting company.

In this article, we are going to run through just a few of the ways exterior painting can boost your home’s value, curb appeal, and more.

Does painting your home really boost its value?

Well, this might not come as a surprise, but the answer is yes! Here’s something to consider first: a home that’s painted today is one the buyer doesn’t have to paint tomorrow. Since good exterior painting work doesn’t have to be re-done for a decade or more, you are removing a “But, we’d have to…” from the buyer’s list of doubts.

If you’re trying to sell, curb appeal matters

If you talk with a realtor, they will tell you this: curb appeal isn’t just some piece of random jargon. It matters. If your home doesn’t look good on the outside, you are not going to attract buyers.

Think about it this way: when you are shopping for homes online, you often see the exterior of the house (typically from the street) first. In fact, that might be the only photo included on a realtor’s brief. If your home isn’t making a good first impression, you’re going to have less people who even make it to the point of seeing what the inside looks like.

It goes without saying: a repainted home is something you get to enjoy, too. Even if you’re not selling your home, you get to come home to a beautiful, appealing house every single day. That sounds like a win!

Fresh exterior paint sends a message

What do you want prospective buyers to think when they see your home? New exterior house painting says something about your home and the care that’s been paid to it over the years. In the same way that a front yard full of weeds would, old, peeling paint might send the opposite message. That’s not what you want.

If the exterior paint on your stucco is faded, peeling, or splotchy, it’s time to call in the professionals to re-paint your home. If it even attracts one more buyer, it’s worth it—that can start a bidding war over your property.

Colors matter—except when they don’t

When it comes to colors, it’s better to go with the flow than to stick out. For example, if every other stucco home in your neighborhood is a light red color, you probably don’t want to have yours painted a bright gold. Any realtor will tell you: nobody wants to buy a “unicorn,” a term used to refer to a home that doesn’t fit the neighborhood, is too overpriced for the surrounding area, or otherwise does not match the homes around it. Most of the time, going with a neutral color is your best bet, as some people might not like a blue or green house, so sticking with a tan or beige allows for a neutral pallet. This can be fancied up with a brightly colored statement door, shutters, or bright color flowers and fun foliage.

However, many neighborhoods are governed by Homeowners Associations (HOA) and rules about what color homes in the neighborhood can be painted. Just keep in mind that the color recommendations listed above might not fly if you’re in such a neighborhood, and you are probably better off going with the palette they provide.

Hire the right team- HIRE SPECTRUM PAINTING

This isn’t quite the same as painting an accent wall in your living room. You want to hire the professionals for this project.

Why hire professionals? Well, for one, they know how to complete the prep work needed for a successful project. Second, you are only going to see that boosted home value is the project is done right. Any shortcuts that result in a less-than-stellar exterior painting job are going to be major turn offs for prospective buyers. Call Spectrum Painting today at 973-706-6033 to help you with all your painting needs, as well as power/soft washing, deck maintenance and carpentry. We can even help you with color anxiety by providing a free color consultation!

Do you have an ugly garage floor, basement or laundry room? Want a smooth surface that doesn’t get hot in the summer around your pool or your patio? Spectrum Concrete Coatings has product just for you! Here are some of the differences between our Penntek polyurea product versus those big box epoxy products:

• Why Choose Polyurea over Epoxy?

  1-Day Installations (Epoxy takes 3 days minimum)
  98% More flexible than epoxy floor coatings
  4Xs Stronger than epoxy systems
  2Xs Better adhesion
  Walk on in 4 hours – Drive on in 24 hours (Epoxy up to one week)

• There is a Difference

  Epoxy never fully cures, perpetually hardens and the coating becomes brittle
  Epoxy peels, chips and flakes after only a couple of years
  Polyurea cures quickly
  Polyurea expands and contracts with the concrete, preventing peeling, chipping and flaking

• The Equipment

  All of our professional equipment is designed to ensure the best application of your coating
  Profiling the floor for permanent adhesion
  Large and small grinders to reach all areas

• Applying Mender

  After the floor has been reprofiled and vacuumed, a two-part liquid mender is used to repair cracks and pits
  The mender cures in 10-15 minutes to twice the strength of concrete

• Applying Base Coat

  The polyurea base coat is applied onto the floor in small sections
  Ensures even coverage
  The polyurea cures in about an hour
  The base coat is a proprietary formula exclusive to Polytek

• Applying the Color Chip

  The acrylic color chips are generously broadcasted to ensure even coverage
  They provide a non-slip surface to ensure safety
  The chips are UV stable; your floor will not fade as a result of sun exposure

• Top Coat Application

  After the floor has cured, the excess chip is scraped and vacuumed off
  The polyaspartic top coat is UV stable; your floor will not yellow over time
  The top coat is chemical, rust and abrasion resistant. It is also antimicrobial and antibacterial

• Warranty

  Lifetime Warranty on UV Stability 15 Year Residential Warranty on chipping, peeling, and delamination
  5 Year Commercial Warranty on chipping, peeling, and delamination
  Warranty does not cover substrate failure i.e. cracks or crumbling concrete

Check out our concrete coatings page to learn more about our service and to check out a video that further explains the process and benefits. Fill out the estimate request form or give us a call at 973-706-6033 to set up an appointment for your concrete coating needs!