Bryan C

RV-Marine antifreeze. Cycle it through your unloader. I add windshield wiper fluid into my holding tanks. Blow air through your water supply hose to drain it or you will crack your hose reels.

Our hours were from 4-8. Went through 45 pounds of candy - I didn't know there that many kids in our development. Should have thrown in some business cards...

Yeah, well I price my deck work a little high anyway. Especially if I am concerned about multiple strip jobs on a 15 year old, neglected deck. I don't lower my price to compete against hacks - never have, never will. You get what you pay for and unfortunately, this HO will probably learn that shortly. I also take into consideration the lead source. I got it through my website and the email was titled "Free Estimate". That right there tells me that this woman is a tire kicker. Hard to sell your service to someone when they don't want to meet you personally or provide a phone number for follow-up. It is what it is. I don't sweat not landing work because of my price. I am a professional who provides professional results. I have no problem with homeowners who put trust their property and homes to hackjobs.

Okay, here they are... Lowballer - $550 plus materials for deck. $275 for fence. Me - $1675 for deck. $1100 for fence. I am no where in the ballpark as far as price - hope my materials that I left have an impression...

Ken - Is this a multiple strip job? Looking at the stain, is it Behr? I want to price it right so I don't lose my ass if the stripping is a PITA. Would you recommend a semi after removing this? I hear ya on the price thing - I don't come down on my price to compete with the hacks. Thanks.

A few more...

I was thinking the same thing when I saw the height of the railing. Seems somewhat useless, almost like a DIY job. Nice work though Jon.

Hey Guys - Got a call to clean up a few restaurants - six to be exact - on Friday afternoon. Apparently the Corporate people will be arriving to tour the stores on Tuesday and I was asked if I could get them done on such short notice. I did not have the opportunity to walk the property with each individual store manager and had to do the work overnight due to other scheduled jobs, including a large strip/seal deck job. I quoted each store the same - all concrete, drive-thru area, dumpster pad, and awnings. Of course, I got the "If you do a good job, I will have 22 other stores for you to clean on a regular basis". Knowing that the stores had not been cleaned in some time, I made no promises and told them that it would take several cleanings to get up all the oil spots and gum. I was told that they did not expect miracles and that they completely understood. So over the course of the weekend, I put in about 4 hours at each store, cleaning every square inch and being meticulous about removing the gum. I get a call this afternoon requesting that I revisit 4 of the stores to touch up some areas - faded gum spots, faint tire marks on curbing, oil spots - and they need them done by tomorrow morning. The best part is that the stores are located all over Indianapolis - some 45 minutes from each other. I tried to explain my position that these stores have gone untouched for years and miracles don't happen overnight. I also offered to visit the stores again over the course of the week - at my expense - but it wasn't going to happen tonight. I also mentioned that if they were concerned about the work, there was plenty of time to notify me prior to cleaning all of them, thus eliminating the request to return. Just curious how others handle situations like these. I feel that I went above and beyond and then feel my work quality was questioned. I came very close to telling them that if they weren't happy with the work, don't pay me, but I am moving on, additional stores or not.

Chris - Email me at bdcorns@yahoo.com and I will forward you some pics of my van set-up. I can't figure out how to post pictures on this site...

2 hours? 45 minutes max, 15 of that set-up/tear-down. $300.

I work with a local real estate company here and I pay $1200 a year to be listed as a "Preferred Vendor" on their website. I receive about 5-6 calls a month from them, either from a current homeowner or an agent. I then have to bid the work like anything else, however, my company and a local start-up get 99% of the calls on the north side of Indianapolis. I then pay a 5% fee on all finished work to the real estate company. The company sends out all of my marketing stuff to over 650 of their agents. Some agents know the value of curb appeal but still others are price shoppers. Since they are usually responsible for paying the tab, don't expect big dollar jobs. I really push the wood restoration jobs and the concrete driveways to them - they can really improve the appearance of a home when it is on the market.

SW has them too.

Definitely a 2 person job IMO. Always goes much smoother with another person than alone, regardless if you are both cleaning or not. It is a big job - bid .07 a foot and feel confident about it. Just hope some hack with a HD machine doesn't underbid you. How do you guys get lined up for apartment buildings? I always get the "We have a maintenance crew that handles it."

My Water Jet hooks to the left so I just turn "with" the hose at the end of each pass. Do all your cutting in and edging of the driveway near grass first - my unit has a wand attached to the SC so it ideal in these situations. I usually only wet 1/2 at a time, let my chem dwell, and then clean and rinse, then do the other 1/2 the same way do prevent anything from drying and to prevent a hot hose from hitting grass. I love cleaning concrete - it is a relief after carrying a wand all day on residentials.