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Contractor Checklist

We have a unique perspective that quality competition is a good thing. It elevates our industry, and the more customers having good experiences with contractors makes for a better environment for everyone.

Here are some helpful things to consider:

  1. License – Make sure the company you hire has a contractors license & it’s listed as active & in good standing with the CSLB. You can check your contractor here: https://www.cslb.ca.gov/onlineservices/checklicenseII/checklicense.asp
  2. License Class – The only acceptal contractors license in CA for Epoxy Flooring installs is a C-61 D12. If the company has a Painting license, concrete license, tile floor license, or any other license other than a C-61 D12, they are not legally allowed to perform Epoxy Flooring installs. We all know there are some people out there who do great work and are not licensed. The bigger risk, is you have very little recourse if something goes wrong with job, and they are unlicensed. The CSLB is a regulatory body who helps ensure customers don’t get taken advantage of and will go to bat for you. If the company is not licensed, you will have to fight it out in civil court, track the person down, hire an attorney, pay legal & court fees upfront all before you know if they even have the money to remedy the work. The CSLB handles all of this,
  3. Workers Comp – The great thing about hiring a properly licensed company is, the CSLB requires them to have Workers Compensation Insurance to have a license. This is especially important if the worker/workers at your property get injured. If they do not have Work Comp insurance they can sue you personally. Some companies are exempt from workers comp. This is only the case when the owner of the company listed on the license is the ONLY person on your property doing work. No other worker, helpers, or “friend” can be there with them.
  4. License Name – It’s also important to be sure the name of the company listed under the contractors licences with the CSLB, also matches the company name they are advertising on their website, truck, mailer, yard sign, etc. There are always a handful of contractors listing other companies contractors license, which is not legal. Believe it or not, there are currently 5 Epoxy Floor install companies in San Diego operating without a contractors license or listing another companies contractor licence number (which by default is also considered operating without a contractors license).
  5. Online Reviews – Ok, you found a compliant contractor, wooo! We have a funny saying “the people have spoken”. Nothing is more reliable than online reviews as long as the company has at least 100. This is probably the single best thing to happen for customers next to the CSLB. If a company is consistently delivering at a high level, they are going to have a star rating of at least 4 or higher. 4.5 to 5 stars being the most ideal, and they should have at least 100 reviews. Once a company has over 100 reviews, you can rely very highly on the legitimacy of those reviews. Few things to keep in mind. Don’t just look at 1 review platform. Some companies will have a 5 star rating on 1 platform, but 4 star rating on another platform. For example, we have a 5 star rating on Facebook, a 5 star rating on Thumbtack, and 4.9 star rating on Google. Unfortunately, online review platforms will adjust star ratings for companies if that company signs up for their paid marketing plan/ads. So look at 3 platforms minimum. Facebook & Google reviews seem to be the most honest and reliable, but it’s also good to check yelp, BBB, Thumbtack, & Angi List. Regardless of any shenanigans, if the company has a 4.5 to 5 star rating across all platforms with over 100 reviews, you can probably hire them blind.
  6. Product – Science Not Sales is the winning ticket! Even in the internet information age, you can still come across disingenuous sales reps and owners from time to time. Thankfully every product we all use has what is called a manufacturers technical performance data sheet TDS. Sometimes also referred to as spec sheets.  That performance data falls under an international standard called ASTM. That ASTM standard covers hundreds of things like tensile strength, flexural strength, compressive strength, adhesion strength, pencil hardness, water vapor transmission resilience, scratch resistance, chemical resistance, and stain resistance. If you’re confused because someone is telling you their product is better than someone else’s, simply ask for the data sheet, look at the ASTM numbers and compare. You’ll never have to take someones word for it. On a side note, you may have companies tell you 100% solids coating products are the best. This is NOT AT ALL reliable data by itself to determine a products quality. A very poor coating can be both 100% solids while being manufactured with very low quality raw materials, and most importantly, low quality resins. There are WAY more factors in the chemical formula of concrete coatings that determine whether it is a good product or bad.
  7. Installation Experience & Methods –  10+ years in business seems to be the magical mark when a company is installing Epoxy Floors at the highest level. With a little bit of homework, you can find the best products and a highly rated company. The question really becomes, who is installing a floor that doesn’t just look good, but looks absolutely stunning. Pictures can be reliable as long as the company has a TRUCK LOAD. It’s easy to grab a photo off the internet or only take pictures of the absolute best looking floors they installed. So the volume of photos a company has is very important. Keep in mind, these floors ALWAYS look better in pictures. The human eye in person is just far more accurate when looking and feeling these floors.
  8. Responsiveness & Customer Service – Does the company / contractor pick up the phone when you call? It’s simple, but a very powerful filter. Organized contractors who are running a reliable business, are great about answering the phone when it rings and also returning messages the same day. There are certainly some 1 off exceptions when contractors / companies have a busy day, but the mark of a reliable contractor, even during exceptionally busy days and weeks, they will always get back to you in 24 hours.

Whether you hire us or one of our quality competitors, we hope this buying guide helps you the next time you hire a contractor!