Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's)

Do I have to hire Maryland ProFinish for all three trades: drywall, finish carpentry and painting?

The short answer is no.  However, there are quite a few advantages you will miss out on.  First, there is what we call “the power of ONE”


It is hard to overemphasize what a huge advantage this is for our customers:  significantly less stress, noticeably better quality, and a single source of responsibility for punch-out and/or repairs to the three most visible trades.  Additionally, the primary way we are able to offer significantly better quality along with quicker completions, is by working on all three trades concurrently.  We start painting trim pieces and assembling window casings and coping trim ends while the drywall is being hung and we paint the walls and ceilings before we put up any trim.  We can't do that if we aren't there for all three trades.

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Can I hire Maryland ProFinish to work in my house?

No.  Maryland ProFinish does not do work as a prime contractor (with the exception of large scale painting projects for commercial property owners).  In order to avoid competing with the builders we work with, we only work as sub contractors.  However, if you are looking for a great contractor, we can still help...Just use our contractor referral form.

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How do your prices compare?

GOOD, FAST or CHEAP   Most times in life, you can only pick one.  At Maryland ProFinish we've got the first two nailed down tight.  And as far as CHEAP goes (although we really do hate the word), when compared to our peers (finish carpenters, drywall mechanics and professional painters who all do excellent quality work) we are almost always LESS EXPENSIVE. Plus, here's the kicker, even when our prices are a little higher, our builders still make more money by hiring us.   It's the power of ONE.


Get your rough in inspections and give us a call.  Spend the next month or so working on getting your next few projects up out of the ground or looking for more work.  

Of course, if you are currently using "Joe Banana and His Bunch" to get your work done, our prices will be higher...they'd have to be.  And let's be honest, there are lots of builders out there who want to hire the very cheapest subs they can find regardless of the quality of their work or the amount of time they have to waste babysitting.   But if that's not you, give us a call today.  You'll be glad you did.

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Will I have a different lead man for each trade?

No, that's part of "the power of ONE".

ONE sub to schedule.
ONE point of responsibility.
ONE accounting entity.

Not only will you only need one cell number for the finish phase of your job, but you'll be able to login to our web application anytime and see an up to date job journal, as well as an updated schedule.

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How will I know when to schedule other trades that complete their work after you?

Well, you'll know because you will be able to login to our web application at anytime and see an up to date job journal as well as an updated schedule.  These are updated by your job leader every evening.   Also, if you wish, at no extra cost, you can give us the cell numbers and email addresses of your other subs and every Friday (or any time the schedule changes), your other subs (and you of course) will get an updated reminder of when they are scheduled to do their work sent to their phone and/or email address. It's entirely up to you and it doesn't cost anything extra.

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How do you handle touch-up/punch out?

The power of ONE...it's pretty sweet.  Call us up and we take care of it.  Whether it's installing shoe molding over the ceramic tile, the baseboards that butt up to cabinets, touching up the paint or repairing the drywall (and then touching up the paint!), we take care of it.  Of course, you'll still need to call your other subs like the tile man or plumber for their punch out. But if it has to do with finish carpentry, drywall or painting, we deal with it.  Plus, most of it is included in our initial price (with obvious exceptions like changes and/or repair work to drywall or carpentry made necessary by other trades).

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If you do a better job with all three trades, how do you manage to complete them quicker?

First, by making sure all our field personnel have the very best tools available at all times.  Second, by constantly tweaking our production methods to improve efficiency.  And most importantly (the first two mentioned speak more to how we manage to keep our prices super competitive), by working on all three trades concurrently .  While the drywall is being hung, we are busy pre-coping all of our base, crown and other flat trim.  Plus, we are assembling all window casings and extension jambs.  At the same time, we are priming and applying semi gloss to all the trim boards.  Then, before we install any of the trim, doors or window jambs, we prime, point up and finish coat all walls and ceilings.  Therefore, by the time we install the trim, the job is almost complete.

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Why is coping corners better than using a miter saw?

There are three primary benefits to coping corners instead of using a miter saw.  First, coped corners always look good, it doesn't matter if the corner is a perfect 90 degrees or not (very few are), the coped end fits like a glove, providing a much better finished look.  Additionally, properly coped joints require much less caulk, since you're not trying to hide bad, poorly fitting joints.  Finally, as your trim dries and looses moisture, it is much less likely that the caulk will split at the inside corners, which is almost inevitable when inside corners are mitered.

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What is the benefit to using screws for extension jambs and in window sills?

In a word...strength.  Pneumatic finish nailers are great, but they don't provide for much structural strength.  Installing screws in extension jambs helps to ensure they don't warp as they dry in the sun, while screwing through the window sill into the wall studs makes the window sills exponentially stronger (people have actually been known to lean on window sills!).

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What benefit does putting screws through the door jambs offer?

In a word...strength.  Pneumatic finish nailers are great, but they don't provide for much structural strength.  We use flat spacers at each hinge and at the strike plate, then we put a screw right through the jamb into the wall stud.  Not only does this help initially secure the door in place, but helps deter future movement (whether from moisture loss or overly energetic children).

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What do you mean by "routing the ends of window sills"?

We feel chopping off the ends window sill stock with straight cuts is very unattractive.  We use a router bit that matches the front profile, to route the ends. If we don't have a matching router bit, we'll cut the sill at a 45 degree angle and return the trim to the wall so the front profile is on the sides of the sill as well.  We also cut the ends of our aprons at 45 degrees and return them to the wall as well.

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Why use staples in crown as well as in window and door casings?

It is hard to believe, until you do a side by side comparison, how much stronger a narrow crown staple is than any size finish nail.  Their holding power is amazing.  We use narrow crown staples in all crown molding and in window sills, and around the inside perimeter of casing, which adds an amazing amount of strength.

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Everybody glues and screws, right?  So why do I keep getting nail pops?

Hanging drywall is one of the most physically demanding and fiercely competitive areas of the construction industry.  To make a living, you really have to produce.  With that in mind, it is easy to understand why most hangers don't start their sheets with screws (and why some, if you're not watching, skip using glue).

Conventional screw guns require two hands to operate, however, any experienced hanger can nail a sheet with only one hand (if you haven't seen someone do it, it might be hard to picture...they push the nail in with their thumb and then whack it with the hammer...all while holding the sheet up with their other hand).  As a result, almost all hangers start their sheets with nails and then come back and "screw the sheet off".  We deal with this problem by making sure all of our jobs have a duraspin screw gun, which can be easily operated with one hand.  Additionally, we also see to it that their is a Rigid battery operated caulk gun to make gluing the sheets as easy and fast as possible.

There are still plenty of other problems you can have with sheetrock, but if there are no nails, there can't be any nail pops.

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How do you do your corner bead?  Is there anyway to keep it from splitting?

There is no way to guarantee against split cornerbeads.  But you can stack the cards in your favor.  The best way to strengthen your cornerbeads is to use a setting type, dry mix joint compound likeUSG SHEETROCK brand Easysand.  Setting type compounds provide much stronger bonds and are virtually shrink free.  We use Easysand for our first coat on all cornerbeads.  We still use ready mix for the second coat, since Easysand just produce a real smooth finish.

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What about point up?

We schedule it and we are responsible for it being done well.  That's part of "the power of ONE".

ONE accounting entity.

As to "How do you get it right?":  VERY bright lights and attention to detail.

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Will you apply texture or knockdown?

Yes.  The pump we use to fill our drywall finishing equipment is the same pump we use for application of texture or knockdown.  So if you want texture or knockdown on your job it is always an option.

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How do you do your sanding?  Do you use power sanders?

Yes, we use Porter Cable drywall sanders.  Many builders have a bad feeling about this tool, which is a real shame.  It is a great tool.  It is really unfortunate how the reputation of a good tool can be ruined by few "slop artists".  When used properly, a Porter Cable Drywall Sander produces a great job.  However, it seems many drywall contractors are using 80 grit discs for sanding drywall (Porter Cable shouldn't even sell them).  For the record, it really doesn't matter whether you use a Porter Cable Power Sander or sand by hand, if you use 80 grit paper, you will get a lousy job, full of deep scratches.  We use only150 grit discs and fine grit sanding sponges to sand drywall.  As a result, we give you a good looking drywall job.

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What kind of paints do you use?

We recommend and use Benjamin Moore Paints.  Having said that, we will of course, use any paint our customers request.  For a Level Two finish on walls and ceilings, which is by far, the most common finish for new construction, we recommend Benjamin Moore Super Spec flat finish paint.  It is way better than your average "builder's grade" paint.  And while it is more expensive than builder's grade, because the actual cost of paint material represents a very small part of a projects total budget, The difference in paint costs is almost trivial.  Super Spec has a "new construction friendly" dead flat finish and touches up well, yet will not come off on your customer's sponge when they go to clean up finger prints. For trim, we apply one coat of Zinsser's Bull's Eye 123 Sealer Primer and one coat of Super Spec. semi gloss.  Zinsser's Bullseye has fantastic benefits for new construction wood:  it can be used for interior and exterior wood, it sticks to all surfaces, even hard, slick surfaces (like freshly machined finger jointed wood trim), seals stains and tannin bleed, is mold & mildew resistant, has fantastic hold out for semi gloss finishes and provides an excellent surface for caulk to adhere to.  

If you would like additional paint recommendations, don't hesitate to call our office.

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What brand of caulk do you use?

Talk about a really dumb place to try and cut costs! On a decent sized project, you might use two cases of caulk.  The difference in cost between Duron Magnum Caulk, which is what we use, and cheap caulk is about $0.80 per tube.  So, to save $19.20, you risk the integrity of all the finish carpentry and the interior paint job.  It makes no sense to skimp on caulk and other sundries.

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Why don't you use painters putty?

Painter's putty is designed with only one goal in mind:  to make a painter's life easy.  While we spend a ton of money to make life easier for the folks in the field who help make Maryland ProFinish a success, we won't do something that hurts the quality of our work.  Painter's putty is terrible.  It looks good when it is first applied, but over time, it shrinks and leaves little divits all over the place.

We use light weight spackle to fill nail holes.  It's a pain, because you have to sand it and prime it, but when you're finished, it is almost impossible to tell where the nail holes are.  And it doesn't shrink over time.

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Do you sand the walls between coats?

Yes, we sand the walls and ceilings with a Porter Cable Power Drywall Sander.  Not only does this give us super smooth walls and ceilings, it also really helps with the adhesion of the second coat.  Additionally, we also spend a large amount of time hand sanding all trim, windows and doors.  When we are finished, your job not only looks good, but it will feel good as well.

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Do you back roll the walls?

Yes, of course.  We also back roll the ceilings and back brush all door casing, window casings, flat trim and crown.  Back rolling and back brushing helps to mask imperfections, improve touch-up, improve the finish quality of the job and also improve adhesion.

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What about natural finish? Do you guys stain and poly?

Yes.  As a matter of fact, our production method (painting walls and ceilings before installation of trim) is ideally suited for stain and natural finish.  In addition, the way we handle inside corners (by coping), requires no change for natural finish wood.

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