Howard Fine’s hundreds of “1234-radio commercials” made him a household name from 1966, when he founded Armstrong painting, and for the 30 years that followed. As a connoisseur of music, art and literature, it isn’t difficult to understand why our founder decided to leave his home in Pittsburgh to find inspiration for his artistic passion in the Golden City. According to his son Mitchell Fine, Howard always admired an artist’s ability to create something beautiful but since he lacked the talent to create on a canvas, he did the next best thing. Howard used the city of San Francisco as his canvas by applying his excellent sense of aesthetics and his obsession with bringing beauty to the world. The natural beauty and the unique man-made structures of San Francisco inspired him to create one of the most highly regarded companies in the painting and construction industry.
Our Mission
Armstrong’s mission always comprised of more than providing high quality residential and commercial painting, our founder’s aim was to preserve the stunning Victorian homes and San Francisco’s landmarks. Consequently, in time, these structures were representative of the high-quality work Armstrong provided to all its customers and helped our company establish its highly regarded reputation in the Bay Area.
Preserving San Francisco
Our passion for preserving this unique city has motivated our relentless pursuit for the best possible products and the most effective practices to achieve the highest quality results. Armstrong has worked closely with manufacturers to develop new products and protocols in order to maximize quality and minimize cost. For example, Howard worked with the founder of Tex-Cote USA to develop a revolutionary coating material to prevent moisture infiltration in the interest of preserving San Francisco’s stucco, asbestos tile and concrete structures. We were also one of the first roofing companies to use Spray Polyurethane Foam (SPF) because we were aware of the need to find a method and material that would offer the thousands of flat-roof structures in the Bay Area more than just a few years protection. Today, SPF roofing systems are considered to be the highest standard for protecting Bay Area treasures like Eichlers. Even the windows and doors we install must adhere to San Francisco’s strict city codes regarding styles and material.
It’s not a secret that Armstrong is a business which, like all businesses, must make a profit to survive. However, since its inception, the number one priority of this locally owned family business has been to preserve the beauty of this truly Golden City!