LyonsPressureWash

Looking to replace my extension wand. It doesn't get used often, but it's time. I looked into getting a Coress wand at the end of last year. I was told they went out of business. But then I got a call saying a couple guys are still making them in a garage somewhere. But now I can't get that supplier to email me or call me back. Anybody have any phone number or links to them? Thanks.

Now I am having ZERO luck with extendawand.com Is anybody in business anymore that sell a quality 24' wand ?

ATB Cup Brush - Flat Trim

They make a rotary attachment for an angle grinder. Once you use one of those, you will never go back to those easily ripped pads. Maybe someone will chime in with a link.

I bet that wood felt like a rough cut sawmill plank when it was done being blasted. Geesh

I use the xjet and a 15 gallon drum strapped to a dolly and wheel around the cleaners. I've never downstreamed. My first machine I bought back in 1994, the guy said it wasn't the way to go. So you guys that are downstreaming, do you have to go back to the machine every time you want to start soap/stop soap? I like the remote control idea, but if I remember right, they're pretty salty. Any links?

We do all of our stuff. Almost everything is reflective vinyl which pops at night big time. Spend time and layout your stuff on the computer first. That's the hardest part.

Agreed. Best stuff you'll find.

If it's dust, why not just let the rain take care of it? But yes they can be washed. Use very low pressure so you don't wash the sand mix out of the cracks. I wouldn't use a surface cleaner if they're new and no need for chemicals.

Yep, carpenter bees. Just had the same problem on one yesterday. Had to scrub to get it clean.

What's the trick to clean the weatherseal around garage doors? I only come across that a few times, but it frustrates me when it won't come clean.

Anyone know of a website where they offer this? I really like the look of this.

I used to work for a nationwide construction company that also used the pay per hour plus incentive for speedy work. Let me tell you, it works and works well. You know you only have so much time to get the job done. If you have a slacker on the crew, the other guys will get him to pick up the slack because they're losing money. And yes we did sign the proper paper work before being hired that allowed them to do so. I will only give one word of advice. Remember that no matter who you have helping you, will not work as hard as you the owner to make sure every job is done the best possible way. And if you can find one that can, pay him well and keep him like a son. Good luck and let us know how you make out.

Call forward to your cell phone is how I do it and it works great. I get a lot of business just because the people reach a real person and not a machine. Elderly people for the most part do not want to leave a message on a machine. They will hang up and call the next guy.:lgmoneyey

Castrol Super Clean. Automotive section of Wal*Mart. Purple jugs sold by the gallon. Prewet Gutter, put it on straight. Very little, if any scrubbing is ever required. No dwell time needed. You're welcome.

I read somewhere if you land all of your estimates, you're not charging enough. If you're not landing very many, then you're overpriced. I thought long and hard about this after reading it and I decided to put it to work (during my busy season of course). Anyways, my backlog was better then usual this year, so I tried this theory out. I measured the house as usual, then started adding 10% to the total bill. I was still landing 8 out of 10. So then I added 20% to the job totals. I was still landing about 6 out of ten. This was still a good percentage due to the backlog. I figured I could cold call them late in the season and give them a discount if I needed the work. It never happened as the backlog was still strong and total income grew nicely this season. As far as charging for estimates, I often think about doing that. Think about it, if you want to weed out the price shoppers and the wanna be's, a ten dollar estimate fee will at least cover your gas. If I was a real customer (ready for cleaning now and have the money to do so) and I was told that their is a ten dollar estimate fee, but will be waived if you go ahead with the cleaning, what would be the big deal? But if you're a price shopper, or just wondering what your neighbor just paid, and you're told about a ten dollar estimate fee, they'll lose interest quickly. But that's ok because that just saved me mileage on the truck, two dollars a gallon for fuel, time, and hassle. What I'll never understand is how some professions come together and charge as a whole, like my lawyer has a breakdown of what it costs per phone call, what it costs to go to court, what it costs to send out each piece of mail. If I sit down with him and have a consult, it costs me big time. He gets paid for EVERYTHING THAT IS DONE OUT OF THAT OFFICE. You call a plumber and they have a service charge of xxx amount of dollars no matter how long they are there. Call Sears and ask them what they charge to come look at your fridge. I think these other professions at one point were on the fence like we are now and came together as one to start charging. Why can't we come together as a group and set up our charges as a whole? I've been told several times this year (after the job was done and they did the math per hour) that I was making hourly rates like what they were paying their lawyers. I always look them straight in the eye and chuckle, saying at least with us you got something out of the deal. Look at your house, it looks like new again and you can enjoy it for years to come. With your lawyer, you probably just got a consult that didn't do much for you anyways. They usually respond with yeah you got that right. OK getting off topic a bit, but let's do another poll and ask, if we came together as a whole, what would you charge for an estimate, 1. still nothing because I'm scared to get reimbursed for my time, money and maintenance costs. 2. still nothing because that's how I have always done it. 3. nothing because that's how everybody else is doing it. 4. I'd like to get paid for my time and I would try charging $5 5. $10 6. $15. 7. $20 8. More then $20 Don't get me wrong, I'm still not charging for my estimates, but after setting up a Saturday to do my estimates and running a full tank of fuel (over $50) it makes you wonder about charging.

Great thread....To go back to the original question. Get the x jet for applying soap to houses. Flojet or shurflo pump for applying cleaners if you want full strength. I held off getting an x jet because I thought $159 bucks was a lot for a nozzle and a short hose. Well now that I"ve used one, I kick myself in the backside because I didn't do it sooner. I've cut my time almost in half. Most houses are now done in two hours, that's cleaned up and in the truck. I'll be ordering another before next spring, just in case this one somehow gets broke. No way do I want to go back to the old way of applying cleaners with flojet. I still use the flojet for roof cleaning, but only because I don't think the x jet will apply it strong enough. But then again, I haven't tried it yet. Still learning on the roof cleaning part. But have had great results lately without rinsing (thanks to heavy rain).

The strangest thing we've washed has to be Christmas trees. The tree farm was along the river and the high waters brought in everything from cans, shoes and packed in mud. Hauling 500 gallons around, up and over tree stumps was interesting. The owners said they looked so good they didn't have to spray them with their coloring spray. I didn't know they did such a thing. They spray a green mix on the trees to make them look more appealing before Christmas time. After washing those grease filled quarry trucks, we stood arms out and cleaned each other off. Thank goodness we no longer do those anymore.

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