Doug Dahlke

I use F-13. A quick tip is to mix it up in a bucket with a lid. When you finish one house put the lid on and use that on the next one. Even though it is dirty and nasty looking it still works good. You can do several houses with a gallon mixture.

Possible deck job in Hampton Georgia. Post if you are inetrested.

The only problem I have had with those is that they wear out and fail usually in the closed position. Twice I have closed the ball valve, changed to a different tool and then the valve would not open. Now I am stuck with 3,000 PSI in the line and no way to relieve the pressure. Both times I VERY slowly loosened the pressure line from the hose reel. As soon as it started to leak I would stop and let the pressure drop. I kept repeating this until the pressure was gone. Fortunately on both occassions I was running cold water. Is there any other way to relieve pressure when that happens? I have used the other valves with the long cast handles but drop it once or twice and the handle breaks and then you are using vise grips like Jim said.

I became a DS believer this year. I did a restaurant I have had for awhile and DS'd my degreaser. So much better than hauling the bucket around.

I guess I am just stubborn. Been reading posts about downstreaming for two years but never tried it on a house or building. I had some time today so I did a test on a nasty tree house. Pictures one and two starting on the left are before and afters downstreaming on a 50/50 mix of 12% SH and water along with some Dawn. Had 150' of hose on and used about 1/2 gallon of chem. The other two pictures are a different side before and after with an x-jet. Used a 50/50 mix of 12% SH and water with some Power House in there too. Used about the same amount of chemical. I would never have thought downstreaming would put enough chemical on there to clean something that bad. I will definitely need to try this out on some houses. The siding on there is vinyl.

If it is the one Bob at Pressure Tek sells he should be able to get you hooked up. Give him a call.

I have a 5.5 GPM machine but my guns handle 12 GPM and DS fine.

There should be a sign somewhere on the property with the management company name and phone number. If you can't find that ask one of the store managers for the PM companies contact info. Pricing for this type of work varies widely. Figure out what you need to charge and submit a bid. If you submit multiple bids and don't get any work you are too high.

The down side I had with the proportioners was I would use one for say applying acid, finish the job and leave it in the x jet. On my next house wash I couldn't figure out why my chems weren't working. Forgot the proportioner was in there. I never use them anymore. Dilute to where I want in the bucket and go from there. It sounds to me like you are going through the chems too fast. I could do a 2500 sf house with about 7 gallons. Maybe your mix in the bucket is weak.

Well we are far enough into the year now that I can say the economy is definitely affecting my business. I had multiple contracts with a PM company for shopping centers at the start of this year. A couple of weeks ago they were all cancelled due to the economy. It took me two years to get to that level and I had them priced out higher than others were getting because of the quality of our work. In both painting and power washing it seems everyone this year is getting multiple bids and even on jobs where I have been recommended people are shopping price. I have never been the low priced guy in my area but now I am getting undercut routinely by 30% or more. On a deck I just quoted I was under bid by two companies who only wanted about one third of my bid. This same customer came back to me with his proposed price for me to PW and paint at his house. I respectfully declined to do the work because I could not do it for that price, with employees and turn a decent profit. He was amazed that I didn't jump all over his proposal because the economy is bad and he is offering me in his words "fast and easy money." I know he wants to use my company for the work because he left his offer open until Monday. I was also recommended to him by two other individuals he has done business with. Obviously he was impressed with me or he wouldn't keep pursuing this but if he sees a difference between my company and the others that bid why isn't he willing to pay for it? I guess that's the million dollar question right now.

Got one of those calls last week. I'm sure more are to come.

My wife got me a colon exam for my birthday this year.

Hey Keith. When my kids were younger we had a boat and spent some time out that way on Lake Oconee. I imagine that area has changed quite a bit over the last ten years.

Never heard of it before but it looks like a great idea.

Sorry to hear about the problems but sounds like you are ready to move on. Good luck.

I have actually had the best start to a year that I have had in what will now be my fourth year. That is all due to some commercial accounts I picked up that had their first cleaning in January. We will see what the rest of the year brings. Residential has been picking up and hopefully the warmer weather will keep things going. I have also been pushing my painting again and have done a few jobs already this year. Not booked out very far so when I get back from vacation I need to sell, sell, sell.

One of the PM companies I work for won't let you even bid work without verification of WC coverage. This year I picked up a few more properties from them that are not near a large city where the local guys won't pay to have the coverage. More work for me. If I can get some additional contracts on properties along the way it could start to pay off big. If you have any plans to do commercial you need the policy.

Belt drive is better. Better check the fine print on the warranty also. Some have disclaimers that void the warranty on machines used for commercial purposes. Especially the ones that the box stores sell.

We lost a Linens and Things, Goodys, a few restaurants, Circuit City, a furniture store and I am sure a few more I am forgetting. What is strange is that they keep building retail space around here. A new mall is nearly finished right across the street from a mall that has only been open for two years that is still half empty.

Use a CPA.

Can't you put a lein on the property?

I don't do alot of wood but have run into the same thing. People see the quote and can't believe the price. I quoted a pool deck for an above ground pool. Wood right next to the pool around half the circumference, several different stains on it in different stages of failure, lattice around the outside of the whole thing and part of it had what looked like a polyurethane coating. I did several test areas and some of this stuff didn't want to move. I figured there would be a lot of sanding invloved plus extra prep to protect the pool and water. Gave them the quote, they declined and this is a customer I have done other work for including a complete exterior repaint a few years back. People just don't get it when it comes to wood.

Twelve years ago. Man the time goes by. I don't have much of anything from my band days. In 97 I was already married for 12 years and had a ten year old son and seven year old daughter. When I was playing nobody had video. I do have some stuff on DVD from trips I made to Brazil with my church. We took a band and played at several places outside. If I could figure out how to load it I'd post some of that.

I have a gut feeling people at all income levels will be spending more on their homes this year. Not necessarily for improvements like additions but for basic maintenance and repairs. Home owners have been on a spending spree for all kinds of stuff and I know many homes around here need cleaning, painting, etc. I think this economy will get people focused on what is important and things like home maintenance will be given more of a priority. With homes still not selling many will also want to fix up the house they have knowing they will be in it for awhile. No facts to prove it, just a feeling.

Merry Christmas everyone!!