Comparing Offers for Bathtub Refinishing
a guide for consumers comparing offers for bathtub refinishing. by Joy of St Croix
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Remember these questions? We’ve already addressed #1 on the previous page
1 * What are your expectations? 2 – What is the tub refinisher actually offering? 3 – Are you being overcharged?
What is the tub refinisher actually offering?
~ or ~ What are you agreeing to pay for?
An offer and your acceptance – the essential ingredients of a contract
It’s important to note that neither the author of this article nor any of Botteghe Cipolla’s associate members and affiliates are offering legal advice. This article is on managing your expectations while comparing offers for bathtub refinishing. If you want legal advice go to a legal professional, if you want advice on how to sift through vague offers to refinish your bathtub then read on. Written or spoken, all agreements are contracts if they are made by free consent of the parties who are competent to enter into a contract, a lawful exchange of goods and/or services takes place, and that no part of the contract is illegal according to the laws of the area in which the agreement was made. In other words, if two competent people make an agreement to exchange goods and/or services and no part of what they’re doing is illegal then you have a valid enforceable contract. OFFER + ACCEPTANCE = PROMISE PROMISE + CONSIDERATION = AGREEMENT AGREEMENT + ENFORCEABILITY BY LAW = CONTRACT
On the previous page you began to define your expectations about how you want the coating to look like and whether you want a new drain and new caulking. Now you have to turn your attention to what the bathtub refinishing offer actually includes. Does the offer to refinish your bathtub specifically address your expectations or will you have to compromise? This is so important – if you agree to less than you don’t a right to expect more. Some bathtub refinishing websites have a lot to say but never get around to saying anything of substance. They’ll tell you how important it is to have your bathtub refinished, or reglazed, or whatever they want to call it. They’ll tell you how trusted they are and how much they enjoy working with you. Somewhere in the midst of all that marketing language is supposed to be a concrete offer for you to accept. Somewhere in there is what you should expect for your money. What you agree to is all that they are legally obligated to perform. If it’s not clearly explained in writing then you don’t really know what to expect and have nothing to reference if you have a complaint. We’re going to take a look at the website of a bathroom remodeling company that advertises bathtub refinishing services on their site for some examples. The information they provide about bathtub refinishing and their offer is limited to one page, and all of the quotes provided are from that single page. The purpose is not to denigrate, but to highlight the difficulty in finding a company’s offer through marketing hype, especially when that hype is what you want to hear. A website claims to be “The most trusted bathtub refinisher in our city”. Note that the subject is missing: trusted by whom? What are they being trusted to do or be? Maybe there are only two or three refinishers in your area and they’re trusted by the local building community to be quick and cheap, even if they’re also trusted to do poor work. The point is that you have to rid the sentences and paragraphs of flowery fluff to find out what the actual offer is. e.g., ~ FLUFFED UP: Our team of highly trained professionals will expertly apply high tech acrylic polymers especially designed for the bathtub refinishing industry to your bathtub. ~ STRIPPED DOWN: We’ll paint your tub. This may sound silly, but I recommend that you watch The Tale of Mr. Morton to remind yourself of how to break down a sentence. ~ This is the tale of Mr. Morton. Mr. Morton is “who”. He is the subject of our tale, and the predicate tells what Mr. Morton must do. Mr. Morton walked down the street. Mr. Morton walked. Mr. Morton talked to his cat. Mr. Morton talked. (Hello cat – you look good). etc. (watch the video )
Finding an offer on a refinisher’s website.
So, let’s look at a web-site offer to refinish a bathtub and see what we can expect the final project to look like and what their process is. On a local bathtub refinishing company’s website is the statement “A tub that is solid, clean, and aesthetically pleasing can set a great tone for the day and provide a welcome relief at the end of a long shift at work.” We can all agree with that – so far so good. The site states that “bathtub refinishing by [the company’s] experts helps to ensure that your bathroom is not only safe and clean, but beautiful as well.” It goes on to claim that they can “really revitalize the look of your bathroom and allow you to create a whole new aesthetic”, to “really make them pop again”. You may not realize, they say, “how incredible it could look instead” if you “have an old, unpleasant-looking bathtub refinished to look amazing”. They inform you that “refinishing a bathtub is an easy way to show that your house is modern, high quality, and will serve its new owners well for many years to come.” …but, what does all of that mean?
aesthetically pleasing – sets a great tone – a whole new aesthetic – makes it pop – incredible – beautiful – amazing – modern
Those are emotional marketing words that, at one time, applied to avocado green appliances, purple shag carpet, and mullets. Is there anything definitive on their website about what it will look like?
WHAT DO THEY ASSURE YOU IT WILL LOOK LIKE? : “We invite you to browse our gallery of projects to see what’s possible with a bathtub refinishing!” “In the end, you can be sure that your dingy, damaged bathtub will be unrecognizable after it’s refinished professionally by our team.”
That’s it. After sifting through the fluff, that’s all that could be found on their site about what you should expect your bathtub will look like after their company refinishes your bathtub: It will be “UNRECOGNIZABLE”. Sure, they encourage you to look at their gallery to “see what’s possible”, but are any of those pictures in the gallery of refinished bathtubs? It sure doesn’t look like it…the pictures in their gallery appear to be representative of their remodeling services – especially since the exact same pictures are used in their remodeling gallery.
As you’re comparing offers ask the bathtub refinishing company if the pictures on their website (that are supposed to showcase their skillset) are of bathtubs that they have personally refinished. Ask them if your bathtub will look like the ones in the photos. Be sure to clarify what you mean by “look like the ones in the photos”. Manage your expectations.
Based on what they presented what should you expect it will look like?
What will a bathtub look like when refinished by Joy of St Croix?
~ The finish will be sanded to remove any dust, drips, sags, or orange-peel and then polished to a mirror-like reflection. ~ The existing caulking, drain basket, and overflow cover will be removed at the beginning of the project and replaced with new caulking, a new drain basket, and a new overflow cover after the finish has been sanded and polished.
What process does the bathtub refinisher promise to follow?
The process that a company uses to achieve their results can help you to manage your expectations. If their process only takes a few hours then they are leaving your home with the paint still wet. Dry paint is required to install caulking, so if you are expecting new caulking you better find out when it’s being installed – before or after they paint. The same goes for installing a new drain basket or overflow. No one can sand or polish wet paint, so it stands to reason that if a company leaves you with wet paint that you will have at least some dust in the finish. The process helps you to know what to expect.
WHAT IS THEIR PROCESS? :
“Some tubs are in good condition still and just require some touching up or minor refinishing to really make them pop again.” “The bathtub restoration process can be fairly tedious and time-consuming” “While bathtub refinishing only requires a short service visit, it takes several days for the reglazing to cure.” “The process of refinishing a tub heavily depends on exactly what is going on.” “We offer various refinishing options based on the material of your tub, its amount of use, and other factors to make sure you end up with a tub that will serve you well for a long time.”
It’s confusing, isn’t it? They mention “minor” refinishing as if to imply that they offer “major” bathtub refinishing as an option – Do they? What’s the difference? It’s either tedious and time consuming or it only requires a short visit – Which is it? They want you to believe that they are so meticulous and serious that they have developed “various bathtub refinishing options” depending on whether your tub is porcelain or composite. The only difference in the process should be acid etching for porcelain and mechanical etching for composites. What are these “various options”? Ok, that one sounds sketchy. So, what can you expect from them based on their published process?
What is Joy of St Croix’s process for refinishing bathtubs?
Since 1980, Joy of St Croix’s bathtub refinishing process provides a consistently predictable restoration of porcelain and composite bath finishes. Standard five foot residential built-in bathtubs require two 6 – 8 hour days for refinishing. If the unit has been previously painted it will require one additional 6 – 8 hour day to be stripped. That’s 2 -3 days for stripping and refinishing; additional repairs require additional time that may extend the project’s completion date. Standard two day process with no stripping or repairs: DAY ONE: On the first day of the project the bathroom is cleaned and masked off to create a rudimentary spray booth with an exhaust tube leading out of the house. The caulking, drain basket, and overflow cover of the bathtub is removed. The tub is thoroughly cleaned to remove soap scum and mineral deposits. The surface is acid etched for porcelain and mechanically etched for composites. The drain and overflow area are addressed as required, e.g., rust or chips. A silane adhesion promoter and an epoxy primer is applied to ensure a solid bond between the old surface and the new finish. An acrylic urethane top-coat with Sterlion (silver ion) additive is applied. DAY TWO: The new coating has dried overnight and is inspected to ensure that proper curing has occurred. The new coating is wet-sanded by hand thus removing any dust, drips, or orange peel and then machine polished to a smooth touch and a mirror-like finish. A brand new and unused, solid brass body, chrome plated drain basket and overflow cover is installed in replacement of the old ones removed on day one. New acrylic latex Microban caulking is neatly and expertly installed. The spray-booth is disassembled and the job site is cleaned.
How does our written process compare? We don’t have “minor refinishing” but our refinishing of clawfoot bathtubs could be considered “major” as that process takes up to two months. You can read about that on our website. Our process is time consuming and tedious. 2 -3 days is not a short visit. We are meticulous and serious. We actually do have varied processes and materials for standard residential built-in bathtubs vs. tile refinishing vs. clawfoot bathtubs. Again, tile and clawfoot bathtubs are discussed elsewhere.
A short FAQ review of WHAT IS THE ACTUAL OFFER?
How do I know if an offer to refinish my bathtub is legit?
An offer to refinish a bathtub should be written in clear language with no superlatives.
How long does it take Joy of St Croix to refinish a bathtub?
Joy of St Croix – Tub Repair and More’s bathtub refinishing process requires a minimum of two 6 – 8 hour days to refinish a standard five foot residential built-in bathtub.
Next page: What is the refinisher actually offering?
on the next page of “Comparing Offers for Bathtub Refinishing”: Are you being overcharged?