We lose a few jobs every month to cheaper quotes, and we win a few back six months later when those ceilings sag or glow unevenly. Both outcomes trace back to questions nobody asked at the first meeting. Ask these five — of us, or of anyone else you invite to quote.
1. What Exactly Does the Warranty Cover?
“Ten-year warranty” can mean the imported sheet only — not the welds, the track or the workmanship. Ask for the coverage in writing, per component. Ours covers membrane, seams and track under one document, with a 48-hour response commitment.
2. What Is Above the Membrane, and Who Checked?
Old wiring joints, aircon condensate trays and roof leaks don’t disappear because a beautiful surface hides them. A proper survey inspects the void and fixes what needs fixing first. If a quote arrives without anyone stepping on a ladder, that inspection never happened.
3. How Are Lighting Apertures Reinforced?
Every downlight, fan hook and sprinkler needs a thermal reinforcement ring bonded behind the membrane. Skipping rings is the classic invisible cost-cut — the ceiling looks identical on handover day and tears at the aperture two years in.
4. What Is the Real Timeline, Door to Door?
The installation day gets all the attention, but fabrication is the honest bottleneck: measurement to fitted ceiling is typically 7–10 working days for plain finishes and up to three weeks for printed artwork with proofing. Anyone promising a printed ceiling “this weekend” is outsourcing the print — ask where.
5. Is the Quote Fixed or “Subject to Site Conditions”?
That phrase is where budgets die. After a genuine survey there are no unknown site conditions — which is why our quotations are fixed. If a variation genuinely appears (it happens perhaps twice a year), we absorb it or discuss it before work continues, never after.
Run any contractor through these five and you will hear the difference between a salesman and a surveyor within minutes. Naturally, we’re happy to be tested: the checklist came from our own site visits.