MudDuck

I don't have pics as of yet but I did a large deck the other week with Olympic Max Natural Cedar 5yr. simi trans (water based) It was impossible to get it to come out even, has some blochy spots. ( It was stripped with F18 and neutrilized and brightend then sanded. I brushed one board at a time and back brushed. I tried to pump up spray it but determined it would not work then went to brush. The verticals even look like crap. It came out looking like some dance strippers had a mud match using Hooters BBQ sauce up there. Really that exact color. It's been over a week and has not toned down any. I went and got some sample packets of the same thing at the same store and the color doesn't match. Has anyone ever had problems with Oly Nat cedar? Or can a stain be bad? this was my first try with Oly but brushing it I don't see how I could have done anything wrong. I'm at the point I'm going to have to redo the entire thing again. Second story deck 13ft X 32ft...I would at least like to find out if the stain could be bad so I could make that argument with Lowes and salvage that cost by getting it replaced. Thanks.

:yoda:Don't do anything high pressure until you know what your doing. Never use the red zero tip. :lgbonk:Research the forums on "What happened" and or "What could have made these marks":banghead: :lgangel:get insurance and an M5 X jet w/ at least 4gpm machine. :lgangry:Never do anything free unless its for your parents or another company your training with.

Or "C" after you talk them into forking up six or eight grand "to do the job right" they will expect a brand new deck. So you better know your stuff and what you can do and set expectations before accepting the job. Tell them it's just going to depend on how well it strips as to what can be done with it. Factor in a possible cost overrun in the "estimate" and see how they take it. Dont low ball the job because you want the "challenge" or afraid you wont get the bid. Make it pay or walk away.

No I don't usally do the gutters seporate unless they don't come out clean. Which isn't often. I might hit a spot or two on one side but normally don't have to do too much unless they have been stopped up for awhile overflowing. Be sure to watch for this during your walk around estimate and charge for cleaning it out if you have too. I've got this little green pump up that holds like a pint or two from Lowes, was like six bucks. Ajustable nosel, I keep it on hand to mix alittle f13 if needed. Note that they don't work very well unless you put some water in it and pump it up and let it sit with pressure in it. It will leak pressure at first but keep pumping and it will start working properly. I think the seals are just dry. Using the preportioner allows you to mix the mix more strongly and it draws less allowing the bucket to last longer between fill ups keeping the same chem strength in the flow. Thats all it doe's. Using it with base mix just makes your mix weaker. It's six one way half a dozen the other.

Yea were somewhat close. I'm over in the Wilkes Jefferson area and will go West to Tn and North to VA. Where do you get your AC? Does AC spray well and with what sprayer? I've got to start spraying. Hard to make any money with a one man show doing everything manual in between rain showers. This dang weather up here in the high country creates its self. It rains somewhere up here EVERY day. Or the wind, 40 to 60mph is fairly common. Had it clocked at 86mph back in the spring and it wasn't during a storm. Just windy day. I came home and found my giant stainless grill w/ full LP tank blown 20 yrds uphill, rolled it at least 3 times. Tore it all to pieces. Havent seen my trash cans since.

Did anyone ever get a current addy for Rowletts wet wax? I'd like to try some with no way to get it.

I wouldn't think it should be any different if your using chems on it. HD80 wood stripper is supposed to be good for cleaning concrete but I haven't tried it myself. Check with Sun bright or Pressure Tek and see what they have for concrete. I'm sure it's all just about as good as anything else as long as you let it dwell a good while and keep it wet with solution. It's just a trial and error thing. At least it's concrete so you can't hurt it really. Watch overspray on plants, cars ect...

Hey Rick, I've never used the proportioners. I usally do an average size house with two buckets maybe three at most. I wash from the bottom up and let dwell 5 or 10 min. Just get it wet and allow the chems to do the work. I also normally blast the gutters pretty good with the same solution, let dewll and blast again then rinse and it works with little or no scrubbing. If your doing much scrubbing with the preportioner i'd go to 6oz of F13 and another gallon of SH. I'll try using the red preportioner this week to see if it still works like I'm used too. If nothing else it will allow the bucket to last longer if you don't like mixing so much. I don't mind and usally ready for a break when the bucket goe's dry.

Order some Simple Cherry and F-13 from PressureTek. It's cheap. I mix 3gal of regular bleach to two gallons of water with about 10oz of Simple C and 4oz of F-13. If you can get the 12% where you are you only need about 2gal of it to 3 h2o. In my opinion you don't need 12% for house washes. It doesn't hurt it's just over kill and harder on the surrounding plants. Figure out which is cheaper for you 2 gal of 12% or 3 of Clorox. The 12% cost a lot more in some places and cheaper in others. The F-13 is gutter cleaner and works great on black streaks. I use it to boost the house mix. What your explaining about the mixing at the nozzle is called Down Streaming. X jet isn't a Down Streaming its X jetting. There different. I use the X jet as well. Mix your solution in the 5er with water then run it through the X jet. Just do that and you can chunk the colored proportioner's that came with the x jet that are for limiting the solution draw. Doing what your doing is making the solution too strong unless your using the proportioner's. All that doe's is make your 5er last longer between fill ups.

Yea I've offerd to redo it. Even told him I wanted to re do it. The guy wants me to come to Charlotte and wash his house there and two or three other rent houses for him there so I want to make it right. The HO picked up that stain because another neighbor said thats what he used and he liked his deck. I wanted to use RS. Will new stain strip pretty easy? The original strip looked perfect like it was new wood.

How the heck do you come up with $191.95? Sounds like a 190.00 or 200.00 job....191.95? How you figure the .95 air in the tires? lol

I probably would get a new one at 300.00 but I just wanted some feed back as to if anyone used the base Apex or knew of any reason not too. Also there are 3 or 4 different guns used with the Apex's and was wondering if the one that came with the base model was ok or needed tossed and up graded. What did your re-con cost if I may ask?

Don't forget to upsale PW'ing that retaining wall and steps!!!! Looks like a quick 50.00-60.00 there with no extra effort which will help cover your chems / brushes, tarps, ect..cost. Use the same chems to clean it WHILE spraying (stripping) the deck, F18-HD80,,,never missing a step or changing chems. Just walk down there and spray it too...Almost too easy...Pay for ALL your chems cost right there...They don't have to know it's only about 5 more min of your time. Your there anyway, equipment, chems already set up. Pays for gas, chems or whatever you want to call it. It's 50.00-60.00 profit for 5 min of your time. Always look for the upsale. Do a walk through with them and mention while looking at the deck from that cam angle,,"A clean retaining wall and steps there (while pointing) would make that deck REALLY POP!" "I could do that for oh..60.00" Let them drop you to 50.00 if they ask and the'll think they got a deal. Good luck.

While your on the horn Russ I'd like to thank you for the HD 80 sample you sent me last week for the contractor sign up. Haven't used HD 80 yet but plan to very soon on a couple of decks at a bar / grill that have everything from stain to paint to god knows what slapped on (over) it. Multiple strips for sure. Looks like a job specific for HD80 resolution and a ton of sanding. Might try one of your stains on it. Doe's it work well on pressure treated board? Just had kind of a bad 1st experiance with 5 yr Oly Max. Nat cedar. (blochi, too orange) Trying to find my go to. Will give you a call if the bid goe's through. Again thanks.

No one has cominted on the Apex from Lowes...Hmmm..It was like 300.00 for the cheapo. I tried to put Oly Max 5yr Nat Cedar on a deck last week w/ a pump up and it just didn't work so I went to brush. Wheeew!!! 700 ft plus rails... Still didn't like it, it was too orange, blochi and ran after shines like an olympic trainer..The cust didn't like it either but I had most of it done before he saw it. (note he picked it out and brought it to location which is 2nd home, said thats what he wanted) Don't want to do that again and thought the airless would work better next time. Thanks for the help guys and gals. Keep it coming I still am confused some what.

:cheers:No thank you Rick for passing the good fortune along. Hope they refer you 10x to those of us who live on the "other" side of the tracks. LOL,,, Not too many would have passed the free bee along like that. I'm sure that young couple greatly appriciated it. It will come back to you. As well thanks to Russ for providing the oportunity had by all. Haven't used the Woodrich yet but it looks great, did it go on easy.

I was at Myrtle Beach SC, Wal Mart last weekend and they didn't have it there (was the nastiest Wal Mart I've ever been in too. I mean WoW Mngr should be fired nasty,,Ugh) nor here in NW NC.

If it's rubbery and stains are permeated into the stuff and 12.5% wont bleach it out any I'd guess re coat too. I wouldn't want to damage it or blow holes in it and have to pay for the re coat myself. That would suck. Would suggest to the owner that if re coated make sure to get something that can be cleaned and with what. Setting myself up for the future cleanings. Doesn't Ron M do this kind of stuff?

I found it pretty helpful although I am not doing any job for 39.99. I have three town home buildings to do today (same location) that are 90ft by 45 ft two story with vinyl on top half, brick on bottom half. (just washing vinyl and gutters) All flat ground with little vegetation. I got the bid at 200.00 per building and got a 50.00 bump for wax additive. (which also paid for all my materials cost) Was going to shoot it at 250.00 but I knew the grumpy old HOA guy was shopping the job and I wanted it because it was easy 4 hr job. Will net 600.00ish for 4-5 hrs time or less. That sound about right to you guys? Would like to have gotten the 250 but it's been slow and this was pretty much a walk around.

Rubber type? Like cool seal type stuff?

I'm open for correction if somebody knows for a fact different but IMO "outdoor bleach" is nothing more than regular bleach with dish soap or the like added. And that regular bleach and Dawn is the same and much cheaper. It's just a marketing scam aimed at weekend warrior HO dad's. A successful one but still a scam for the HO's buck. I have never been able to find out what % of SH is in it, It's not on the label, just that the active ingredient is SH. duh...If it were anything "special" it would be on the label not the name. Note that it doesn't say that it's "stronger" it just says "Outdoor", hence the added surfactant to make it bubble and stick to whatever your spraying. It doe's really foam up and works great but too expensive for what it is.

I talked to a gentleman the other day about deck maintiance on his mountain summer home and he "informed me" that he had just re-built his deck with Trex to the tune of almost $50,000.00 (yea 50k) so he would "never have to touch it again". Of course I tried to explain he would and gave him a card anyway. He seemed dismayed that I would even suggest it needing washed off ever again. I informed him that the only thing he could count on in the high country is the never ending NC "mountain mildew". Were at 3k to 6500 ft and the weather creates itself up here perfect for mildew. Lot of wet, lot of shade. LOL

Put a few drops on some skin and see how fast it heats up. The faster the better. You live too close to Greenville and Anderson to not find 12.5% at a good rate somewere. Stay away from the pool stores if you can, there way high $$$.

As far as the recipe I mentioned it won't hurt the windows don't worry. As far as wetting down the windows prior I don't think is necessary unless the surface is really hot from the sun. Just be sure to keep any landscaping plants watered "a plenty". (Your from upstate SC you know what that means I'm sure, LOL) If your using 12.5% be more careful with every aspect. Some may disagree but I don't think 12.5% is really needed for basic house washing. For roofs go get the 12.5%.

I like to use the F-13 with the simple C too, and bleach. I've had it take off algae and mold that was caked and scaled on the side of a house in layers. Melted off before I could rinse it. Just keep the landscaped plants watered before during and after. ( the OTC 6% isn't as harsh as the 12.5%, I've about decided 12.5 isn't needed for house wash) Another reason I like that M5 x jet is because of the adjustable pressure / spray pattern tip. You can have a big fan spray for soft watering plants then go back and forth with pressure stream for house and fan for keeping plants nice and wet. The DS would be nice if your set up to where your just pulling hoses from the truck. I plan to set up that way next year but the x jet is worth the money. But don't beat Bryan up too bad Jeff once you do a few houses with the equipment and chems you'll see how crazy spending that much time and effort on a house wash sounded. Equate it to stripping a deck with a wire hand brush and a bucket of paint thinner. You get those chems in and I promise you you'll be questioning your own sanity. LOL PS. I say this with all respect and I believe you know your stuff to the point I myself have asked advice from you in the past. I don't know what your experience with HD80 is or isn't and I'm not a chemest but I would not under ANY circumstances use HD 80 on a house wash. That stuff mixed at working strength can / will burn the heck out of your skin and blind you on contact. I can't imagine standing under the over spray of a house wash. Be sure to do the research on it. Especially if you use it on a dock because I'm sure it's very toxic.