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Rick2

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Posts posted by Rick2

  3. Posted · Report reply

    Oh, little things count too such as the pool area of that house. I took the extra 15 minutes to use the brush clippers (I always keep in the trailer) to remove the plant growth on the outside of the pool concrete. The homeowner said she was very impressed that someone still gave that type of service. You know, it only takes a few extra minutes to do the job the right way and it really does make an impression on the customer.

  4. Posted · Report reply

    Earlier this month I bid on a tennis court and pool area concrete of a very nice home but never heard back from the owner for several weeks. They did call back and asked if I was still able to do the job for the price I quoted. They had gone with the lowest bidder and were not at all happy and didn't let them finish the work. When I lfinished the job they were so excited and asked for as many business cards as possible to give they to their friends. They also tipped me with a bottle of expensive wine. (I wish I still drank).

    Once you get a reputation for knowing what you're doing and don't charge a crazy price you don't have to worry about the lowballers.

  5. Posted · Report reply

    Last week I bid a average ranch house for $230, a very fair price. When I got done with the bid and got back into the truck I noticed I wrote down 130, not 230. ^$%^%%* I thought to myself,nothing I can do now, I already gave the bid to the HO. I was driving past a few days later to see someone else washing it. Can't believe someone underbid my mistake. However... it was at least funny to see the guy using a zero tip about ten feet from the siding.

  6. Posted · Report reply

    I had to write a note to him letting him know it was alright to leave it there. On that note I had to write the order number, print my name and sign it. I wrote it on a company envelope and made sure there was evidence that this was the the correct for Pro=Power. (You know, a few yard signs and other items with the company name on it). I had the truck and trailer with me so I had to leave something behind. He had already gotten the message that I would not be there. Those sprayers are great. eh?

  8. Posted · Report reply

    I had R and L deliver mine also. They called me twice to confirm what time they would be here within a 2 hour window (very good). I to;d them I would not be home and they gave me very explict instructions on how to leave a note for the driver so he could leave the machine on my property without me being here. They were very good about the whole thing. Excuse any spelling errors. This little laptop is driving me nuts.

    I put a PS on the note telling the driver to help himself to anything on the little bar-fridge on the deck. He took me up on that.

  9. Posted · Report reply

    I got to use my new sprayer and it is beautiful! What a great investment! I really am impressed how quickly I can lay down a chemical with this sprayer. Normally I would avoid bidding on a deck because they took too long... not anymore. Looks like it will be hard at work this weekend because 30 minutes ago I won the bid for part of the flatwork at the Basketball Hall of Fame. Also picked up 3 decks to clean and one to clean and stain. Looks like I'll be using Ready Seal, I haven't read anything bad about it. In a few days I'll be posting a few questions about methods of staining (If I cant't find it in "Search.")

    Got to get back to cleaning the house. The wife's comming back from Bulgaria tomorrow and the house is a wreck. I don't give her enough credit for keeping this place clean.

  11. Posted · Report reply

    Got done washing a nice home in a nice area and the owner invited me in while she wrote the check. While waiting her dog jupmed up on me a little. She said "Shelby, down boy." I told the dog "A famous auto designer shares you name." That's when she told me her late husband and Carol were good friends and that's whom she named the dog for. You never know who you meet.

    Anyone out here ever meet anyone famous?

  18. Posted · Report reply

    I do not know of anyone offering a structered training in PW. Most of just blundered along, learning the hard way. You newbys at least have the BBS now. Adrian's suggestion is a good one, but I would never help a competitor in my area. You might get a better response by contacting someone in a different area.

    There's a lot of truth in that! Geeze, thinking back when I first started out knowing almost nothing. Maybe we can share some of the mistakes we have made. I remember one of my first major ones... I was finishing a house when I noticed I was about 5 feet short of gun hose so I simply moved the machine because I had plenty of garden hose. Too bad I wasn't thinking when I moved the machine because I has the exhaust pointed right at the siding of the house about 5 feet away. When I came back to shut the machine off a huge section of the siding was melted. Good thing a close friend is in the siding business and, after he finished laughing his butt off, fixed it for a case of beer.

    Another friend of mine, Timmy, is an electrician who wired my house when I was building it. He told me a story about a man that worked for him once. He was getting ready to take the ladders off the van. When removing the bungi (sp?) cords holding the ladders to the rack one of the cords whipped around striking him in the eye and PULLED HIS EYE RIGHT OUT OF HIS HEAD! I think of these two thing (and others) everytime I'm moving a machine or taking a ladder off the trailer.

    We learn best through our mistakes.

  19. Posted · Report reply

    Thanks for all the replies, now I know what I'm doing a little better. I run the deep cycle from by boat (has a Chevy motor) to run my Fat Boy pump for roofs almost every day. It holds up well until the end of the day when I notice the pressure dropping. I thought with such a little Pumptec pump I could get away with a smaller battery but it looks like I'll be picking up another deep cell. Thanks for the replies and help.

  20. Posted · Report reply

    I got mt new Magnum 500 sprayer in today with the Pumptec. These guys really know how to wrap a package. Aside from a small leak (easy fix) it seems to be fine. Here's my questions: 1) Whan the machine is running I'll adjust to pressure to, say, 100 psi. When I pull the trigger it'll drop to 50 psi. Am I shooting at 100 or 50 psi? 2) What pressure do you guys usually shoot at when staining a deck? And finally 3) Which battery can I use, a lawn tractor sized battery or something bigger, similar to a car. I don't plan on doing more than one job in a day (and mostly just Precarb and acid rinse) so I guessing I'm asking how many hour(s) run time can I plan on getting out of a smaller battery?

    Thanks in advance. I've never been let down here before. Rick.

    PS Wish my trailer wasn't at a job site tonight. I'd love to grab some chemicals and start playing with it. One section of my stockade fence is the poor ginnie pig for new chemicals and toys.

  24. Posted · Edited by Rick2
    spelling     · Report reply

    post-2213-137772334425_thumb.jpgI buy my SH from a place called Astro Chemicals here in Springfield, only 10 minutes away from my home. They only sell it as 15 percent (which is fine with me) at 2 dollars a gallon in 15 gallon drums with a 50 dollar deposite. I've got ten empty droms behind my garage I have to return someday. I was looking at their website the other day and saw they sell oxalic acid for only a dollar a pound sold in 50 pound containers. I've got to pick up one tomorrow for that concrete job I was going to do today until I found out today is still considered a holiday.

    Here are some pictures I took about 1 minute ago. Let's see if I can upload them right this time. One picture is of the 15 gallon drums. The other is the tanks on the truck I mix them into. The tank closest to you is the SH mix. The other tank is just for plain water.

    If you look up Astro's website you'll see they have lots more to sell. The warehouse is very easy to get to, right off Rt.91 or the Mass Pike. Real easy to find.

    post-2213-137772334447_thumb.jpg

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