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here is a little job I did to day to jump start the season

I am seeking flat work this year in pavers. Last season I found a supplier for a water based sealer that gives a gloss finish to pavers. I hope to sell more of this type of work if I can. I have yet to try the product since it was too cold when I got my sample last year. Pavers are an untapped market in this area IMO. In Fla. they are a whole industry. Many of us do this work but I want to push it!!! Great to still feel the anticipation of the new season even after 17 yrs.

luckily I have been carrying over jobs from the previous yrs for the past few. Just waiting for some 60s to knock off a few small jobs beforre the big ones. daylight savings time helps me next week too.

Hope to network with ya'all this season. I tend to send the southern end of montgomery co. your way. We're still small time in a big time way on purpose. Good luck this season!!

Olympic 3yr stain fit my model this year. I plan to try the 5yr in 08 as well.

Midwest pro wash , NICE WEBSITE!!! Yeah! ditto to the minimum price for one side I just told a client thurs $250 for one side and $450 for the whole house . he went for the whole house for next spring.

To the homeowner, Maintenance is the key as was previously noted. Even if a product could seal your deck from water damage for life you still will need a good maintenance company . They can wash away the outer gray UV damaged wood as well as the mold and mildew. Vinyl siding was supposed to be maintenance free too but we wash it all the time. Pick your maintenance company based on a value formula that includes refferences , photos of work , knowledge of wood care , dependability, as well as price. New start up companies are trying to carve into the market and can do a good job for a lower price , but will they still be arround when you need them again?

$275 for the fence??? that has to be wash only and even that is low. UNbelievable!!!!???? $1675 for the deck is OUTRAGEOUS $4 a sq ft. ???

just did a simular job 3 wks ago $866 for the deck and $1,000 for the fence and $100 for repair

nice!!

I used the cedar on 2 decks in the spring and it was too dark for my taste but the customers picked the color. I just did one with the honey gold cwf uv5 and even my own deck. I'll try and post a picture If I can get my camera working. It looks great. The color looks very even for a water based stain and the coverage is very good per gallon. It is a thick stain . Anyone else use this product? I will add the honey gold[looks more like oak to these eyes] to my choices but not the cedar. I find the olympic cedar to be less red than the cwf. Just my 2 cents.

6 month up date on cwf uv 5. I'm beginning to see some leaching of color on the floor of the deck. Not much but the first hint of it. I'm basing this on my own deck and one of my regular lawn customers I 'm able to see close up . My deck gets heavy usage w/ partial sun and the lawn customer heavy direct sun but little use. The olympic max 3yr seems to be the better of the two products I took for a test drive this year. The olympic shows no signs of fading or leaching out so far. I'm estimating this to be a 2yr product .

In this business? once I learned my techniques they have stayed the same for many years. I liked inovating and perfecting my process but it has leveled off for many years. I'm not complaining since it produces a predictable income stream , just wondering if anyone out there has any NEW methods. I would understand if you don't want to share them!!!! Just let me know how your secret saves you time and increases your $$$$ I get most decks washed and stained in 1 day and have been doing that for 11years now. I know its an unorthodox method but it works for me and my customers.

yes ,I use olympic max 3 yr semi. I have not tried the 5 yr or a solid stain. I use a sprayer to apply. I can't say about how well it holds up since april 07 was the first time I use it. The april decks still look good though!

I've seen this thread comming to the top several times so lets see if we can revive it!?? what's your business model? Large company with multiple crews? wash crew and seperate stain crew? one man[woman] show? I mostly target deck wash and stain jobs. I do a few houses[vinyl sided] and a few fences and some concrete and brick. In the future I would like to have some concrete cleaning and gum removal commercial contracts but my time is limited now. I considered roof washing but a little voice says thats a young mans game .

I would sell the customer on solid white acrylic stain on the railings and the vertical step risers and outer frame boards. I would recoment to them a semi-trans parent honey gold or cedar natural finish on the decking and top rail cap IF and I mean specify _IF_ you can remove the white from the horizontal surfaces with a stripper and power washing. IF not then a white acrylic will do as well. I would not try and price a job to remove the white from the rails as they look like the paint is holding . If they want it all removed ask them if they have deep pockets.

I hear you on the tank!!! My problem is storage of my equipment in my neighborhood. I also have a lawn business[14 yrs] and that trailer fills one side of my garage. I diversified many years ago and in a drought year like this ,deck cleaning saved us. I also have a full time job as a mailman and can see the light to retirement on that job. Then I can ramp up to full time at my business. Then I will rent a storage unit to store surplus equipment but I can't justify the expence in my current situation. Don't get me wrong, I run my business as if I were making a living soley on its income. I price my work at the mid to upper end of the spectrum and have been doing decks for 16 yrs. I should probably know this already but does WTW clean up with soap and water or is it a mineral spirits clean up?

hey I'm back from vacation!!! well rested and sore legs from standing up on a jet ski jumping waves!!! My unorthodox method is simple. I ignored the directions on the can 12yrs ago that said let the wood dry before application. one sunday I just washed my own deck and as soon as I had put away the pressure washing equipment I stained it with a water based stain. The sun had dried the surface and I figured the rest could still get out from the back. Tured out to last as long as the ones I waited to stain. So for 11 yrs that was my method. simple! I have considered the hose reels and a trailer mounted rig but I would need a remote on-off ele.start since we turn our machines off several times in some opperations. WE run 2 machines and some houses won't run them both due to low restriction water pressure on energy saver homes or wells. I usually bring 200ft of hose to connect to a neighbor if I can. My plan to create a cart to haul my stuff is just more efficient but not innovative. On vacation I watched a home show where these knuckle heads were going to wash and stain a deck they just replaced the railings on. I think they tried to copy American Chopper with their kidding around with each other. Anyway, they use cabbots deck wash and a scrub brush to clean the deck. Some spots looked fairley clean but maybe 35% got clean to my satisfaction. THAT would be nice if we could spray on a cleaner and skip the every square inch pressure washing time but that stuff wasn't it. What they showed as the finished stained deck was horrible. Blotchy stain and obvious areas where the dirt was still under the stain.

one of the ideas I had for improving my onsite time was a scaffold that attached to the deck and gave me a walk way on the outside of decks above 8 ft. I've looked into the possibility of a small cherry picker type hydraulic boom that I could tow with my 4 wheeler to the back yard. $$$ price of that would need me to be full time to make it cost effective. The one thing I might try is pump jacks like the siding guys use . They are portable and cheap. I turned 50 this year and realized I need innovation to make this work easier on my body. I'm just not ready to hire a helper. I currently use portable pressure washers with their own carts. Lugging all the equipment arround back is a chore. I am going to convert my garden cart to a pressure washing cart this winter to mount my equipment to and tow with my 4 wheeler. My homeowners association doesn't allow trailers to be parked outside . I have a landscape trailer for my lawn business that is in the garage that I use to haul my p-wash equip. I plan to store the p-wash cart in the shed and just drive it onto the trailer with the 4 wheeler. Save load time and back stress.

I would think a new and improved cleaner or a stain are the only true horizons that could give my onsite time a jolt. I employ a cleaner w/power washing and apply a water cleanup stain[olympic] to achieve an in and out in one day program. beyond that I know that multiple decks in a day or a crew is out there but that is not innovative just more productive.

YES the innovation comes in other aspects of the business as mentioned. I am a sole proprietor with help from my wife and son. The next true horizon for me is to hire and train crews and step up to that challenge . I opperate my business just like a full time business however, I have a full time job as well and am limited by time. I was just wondering if anyone out there has made any strides in their start to finish times or found a product that seperates them from others. I'm not asking for anyone to divulge thier COCA-COLA secret but to simply say they have a better way. I once saw a online video of a 5-minute fence stain that I bet many homeowners tried. Innovative- yes !It hooked up to a garden hose and splashed the stain on is minutes.I still wouldn't use it if it didn't have a quality finish. I'll bet the stain doesn't last and the finish is blotchey but they probably sold many to cheap homeowners not willing to pay a pro. I see roof washing in it's infancy in my area just like deck washing was 16 yrs ago when I started. Selling new services to existing customers is a warm up sell but not innovative. I am open to any product or technique that will increase profit as long as the quality of the job is maintained.

HOT AGAIN TODAY check in hand at 1:39 pm Dark spot still a little wet but dried ok to customers liking. deck box located there .

nice before and afters!!! looks like a sears home improvements deck . They used the pre-manufactured floor sections for the parque look. keep up the good work!!

do your self a favor and sell them on the frame of the railings[posts and stringers] white and the pickets natural. the outer frame of the deck and step stringers should be white too. you could also do the top of the rail too. A solid acrylic STAIN WILL do the job you are asking of it. NO primer is necessary . I would do the semi- trans stain first then the white. tap the pickets away from the frame slightly and the solid will go easier. when your done just tap them back and touch up where necessary. Use a wood block and hammer to tap.

guy needs the black stains on his guters cleaned . HOA gave him a letter of compliance. Says about 75 ft. of gutters 3 story townhouse . My price just to travel there will probably have him say no.