Interior painting in Montreux

Are you looking for a painter in Montreux to freshen up a flat on the lakefront or a villa in the hills? Interior painting in Montreux is prepared as it is anywhere else, but the Riviera’s buildings, its blocks from different periods and its tiered neighbourhoods add parameters that a serious quote must take into account. This page helps you describe your project before comparing offers.

Interior painting in Montreux: the most common jobs

A house painter, holding a CFC (the Swiss federal vocational certificate) as a painter, does far more than simply roll on paint. In Montreux, requests most often revolve around a few situations:

• repainting a flat before moving in or after a departure;
• redoing the ceilings and walls of a living room or bedroom;
• hanging or removing wallpaper;
• smoothing plaster on damaged surfaces;
• treating surface damp in a bathroom, kitchen or hallway;
• painting a stairwell, when the co-ownership decides to.

In every case, preparing the surfaces accounts for a large share of the work: filling, sanding, plaster, undercoat. A quote that only mentions “two coats of paint” without referring to preparation is incomplete.

Lakefront, slopes and villages in the hills: what Montreux changes on site

Montreux rises in tiers from the shores of Lake Geneva to the villages in the hills, Glion, Caux or Chernex. This geography has very concrete effects on an interior painting job.

On the slopes, access. In a town built in tiers, some streets are narrow or steep, and parking near a building is not always easy. This affects the transport of paint tins, light scaffolding and equipment. Mention the floor, whether there is a lift and the parking options: this is information the painter cannot guess.

By the lake, a mild climate. The canton runs from the shores of Lake Geneva, where the climate is mild, to the snowy Vaud Alps. At lake level, the main concern is to ventilate properly during and after the work, so that the paint dries well. Higher up, winter is harsher: premises that are poorly heated or only occasionally occupied, such as a second home, call for careful choice of when to do the work, because a cold room slows drying.

Residences and buildings of varying sizes. A town known for the Montreux Jazz Festival and the Château de Chillon is home to rental blocks, co-ownerships and detached houses side by side. A rented three-room flat, a villa with woodwork and a commercial unit do not call for the same specification. Say what type of property it is.

Older buildings and rented homes: two points to watch

Before 1990, a survey before sanding

If your building dates from before 1990, old coats of paint, old plaster or coverings may contain asbestos or lead. This is not systematic, but the possibility exists. Sanding or scraping without precautions releases dust that you need to protect yourself from. Ask for a survey before tackling the walls, and tell the painter what you know about the building’s history: year of construction, past works, layers of wallpaper.

Tenants: lease, consent and restoration

If you rent, ask the landlord or managing agent for consent, in writing, before repainting, especially if you are changing the colours. At the end of the tenancy, restoration follows the rules on normal wear and tear: paint that ages with time is not necessarily your responsibility, whereas damage beyond normal use may be. If you are preparing a move-out inspection, have the quote drawn up before deciding what needs repainting.

Permits and rules to check

Repainting the inside of a home does not, in principle, require a building permit. In the canton of Vaud, however, the building permit is issued by the commune’s municipality, and the file goes through the cantonal permits centre (CAMAC) when cantonal services need to give an opinion. For simple interior work, you will probably not need to go through it; as soon as you touch a facade, a protected building or a listed ensemble, the question arises.

On this point, the facades of old towns are a special case: their colours are sometimes set by the commune. The canton has old towns, and the Lavaux vineyards are a UNESCO World Heritage site. If your property is in a sensitive area, or if you also plan to redo the exterior woodwork or shutters, enquire with the commune of Montreux or the relevant cantonal service before choosing colours.

In a co-ownership, the common areas (stairwell, facade, balconies) are decided collectively. Inside your own unit, check the co-ownership rules all the same, as they may set conditions on noise, working hours or use of the lift during the work.

Preparing your request and comparing quotes

The more precise your description, the more comparable the quotes will be. Gather the following:

1. the approximate address, the floor, the lift and vehicle access;
2. the year the building was constructed, if you know it;
3. the rooms concerned, with an estimate of their size and ceiling height;
4. the condition of the walls: cracks, signs of damp, old wallpaper, flaking paint;
5. what you want: colours, finishes, painting of woodwork and radiators;
6. your status: owner, tenant, co-owner, and any consent obtained;
7. the time you would like the work done and whether the rooms can be emptied.

A good quote details the preparation (protection of floors and furniture, filling, plaster, sanding), the number of coats, the products planned, waste disposal and the working conditions in an occupied home. Compare these lines rather than the total alone: a low figure may simply leave out the preparation.

The cost depends on the surface area, the condition of the surfaces, any wallpaper to be removed, the number of coats, the ceiling height, access and any surface damp treatment. There is no universal figure: only a quote based on your description gives a reliable basis.

To move forward, you can request a quote: you describe your work, your request is passed on to tradespeople and firms in the region, who contact you for a free, no-obligation quote.

To continue your search in Montreux

• The trade: interior painting
• The commune: work in Montreux
• The canton: canton of Vaud
• Other work in Montreux: tiling in Montreux, masonry in Montreux, windows and double glazing in Montreux