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Proclean

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Posts posted by Proclean

  2. Posted · Report reply

    Hi all,

    I always say that I will only post exception decks. This is 1/2 of an exception deck from today. The screened in porch is to the right, The other half of the deck is behind me and the steps going down are about 10 feet and are not shown. What makes this deck special? It was finished just like a inside hardwood floor. The guys sanded on it for 1 day. Not my guys, but guys who do indoor hardwood floors.

    Also WTW is the answer. We get to the job site this moring and it is misting. No worry. We start with the porch. As the morning moves on, the misiting stops and we finish the deck. The week's forcast - possible rain on anyday at anytime. I used to worry about scheduling, but no more.

    How does this tie in with ATO. I have an Ipe deck from 1 1/2 years ago that is being changed to WTW in about 2 weeks.

    The customer was more than pleased.

    I guess if I attach the picture it would help. LOL

    post-514-137772162721_thumb.jpg

  7. Posted · Report reply

    Ditto to Ken

    Never give a price over the phone (unless last result). Salesmanship is all about customer relationship. Anyone who calls me and ask how much do you charge for a deck so & so. I explain to them that there are too many variables involved and that I would love to meet with them and discuss there needs.

    People who shop by price alone are not or should not be your customer base. Why, because there is always a cheaper price out there. I love it when they call me back and say I was the most expensive quote. But note, they are calling me. You are providing professionalism, knowledge, and experience to the job.

    Key point. Build the relationship.

    This was passed on to me, but everyone should have the paperback book, “Customer Loyalty – How to earn it, how to keep it.” by Jill Griffin. This book is the Bible as far as customers.

    Paul Dinos

    Pro Clean Specialists, Inc

  8. Posted · Report reply

    Jon,

    Your it. I may even be heading to Nasheville in a several weeks. It is a great deal. The bigest problems are the roll size and that you have to cut it. I love the 6 foot rolls, but at 500#'s, it is quite a problem. The less than 200 # rolls are easier to work with. Can you imagine how much money several thousand square feet of 3 mill plastic costs. Private email me and we'll hook up.

    Paul Dinos

    Pro Clean Specialists, Inc

  9. Posted · Report reply

    Thanks for the ear shane.

    Jon, yes, free plastic - 3mils. But as always a catch. You have to pick up north of Atlanta and depending on width it has to be cut in half.

    Let's say the roll is 4 feet. That means if you cut it in half you get 8 feet. The roll could have as much as 1000 yards or more. Think about this for a minute. The rolls are only limited me the weight issue. But here is the biggie. I get this stuff for free.

    Opps.

    Paul Dinos

    Pro Clean Specialists, Inc

  10. Posted · Report reply

    This is the deck in plastic.

    I keep reading about you guys - and gals - that are slow. Get out there and sell. I'm not even returning second phone call's and can't catch up. Slow season??? I haven't stopped since Feb. This economy is rocking.

    If I get more of these composite decks - look out shane. I have more plastic than you. But I've got about 11K of Ironwoods to stain before Jan.

    It's all good and the good Lord is watching out after my family. I can't stress that enough.

    Paul Dinos

    Pro Clean Specialists, Inc

    post-514-137772161367_thumb.jpg

  11. Posted · Report reply

    Job completed today. All in one day.

    Heavy rain yesterday afternoon. No problem. WTW is the solution. 15 man hours to plastic off and about 15 man hours to stain. I'll post a picture to show the plastic. Used 3 mil - 2 deep. The homeowner used to work for porter paints and was 100% happy.

    Plastic cost me nothing and can get it for free with enough timing - you pick up and comes on huge rolls.

    I thought a lot about this one and it came out perfect. Big pay day.

    Paul Dinos

    Pro Clean Specialists, Inc

    post-514-137772161362_thumb.jpg

  12. Posted · Report reply

    Hey Neil,

    It won't be easy in the beginning. But if it was so easy, everyone would be doing it. We've talkd on the phone and you should be fine. You have my number and can call anytime. I certainly call others when I have issues.

    You've done your homework & have hooked up with the right people to learn from. Man, 3 years from now you will look back and say "I gave you 50-60 hours a week and this is what you paid me."

    Of course with Rodger & Celeste near by you're covered. If you ever want to come down this way for wood stuff let me know. I found out this week, besides everything else, I going to be cleaning & staining about 11K square feet of new Ipe before 2007.

    Paul Dinos

    Pro Clean Specialists, Inc

  13. Posted · Report reply

    Ken, you are right on for color with WTW on cedar. I would not reccommend WTW honeygold on Cedar - too orange - add black or use a different product. I realy only see cedar on lattice, arbors and posts(4x).Not to much cedar down here for decks. A whole nother discussion why and there are a couple of reason. PTP rules in the south.

    "Fool proof and foolhardy are not synonymous"

    I agree 100% with this statement.

    Paul Dinos

    Pro Clean Specialists, Inc

  14. Posted · Report reply

    Fuuny thread.

    If you stand back and look, what this thread is saying is the product is soo good it is almost impossible to remove. Forgive me for saying this, but isn't that what we are looking for in a stain. Color aside (and be fixed to any color you like - I offfer brown, red, and honeygold), it lasts a long time. doesn't peeel or flake.

    OK. I reread the stripping thread. I have no idea why I wood stip the stain off after applying to a whole deck.

    #1 I always show a sample board to the customer. They also "sign off" on the contract about the color selection.

    #2 I also apply a small sample on the wood after it is washed so they see what the color is like on their wood.

    At this point, if the homeowner wanted the stain removed, no problem. Pay me now for what the contract stated and you signed off on, and I'll more than happy to give you another quote on removing it. BUT I know this would never happe due to the up front understanding we had going into the project.

    I can't take credit for this saying (got it from a wood class). CUSTOMER EXPECTATIONS.

    Paul Dinos

    Pro Clean Specialists, Inc

  15. Posted · Report reply

    As you know I don’t post much – read everyday.

    Ditto to what Rodh said.

    For maintenance I use more efc-38 than hd-80. Depends on several factors.

    If you are not using WTW due to thinking this is a “film” stain and/or stripping is required for maintenance, stop thinking this. Also, come to think of this, I don’t know where this got started about having to strip this product for maintenance.

    It is not the easiest product in the world to use (but know more difficult than some other stains on the market), but the performance is one of the best stains on the market. And as we all know, maintenance is a key component to a good stain.

    Bottom line of the post. I’m staining while it can rain and does rain whenever and at anytime. I’m on schedule & getting the check at the end of the day. Try your sample boards and see for yourself. I’m here to tell you it works and you don’t have many options if your deck can get wet at anytime and/or you can’t get 2 days of dry weather.

    As I'm posting this I see the thread of "stripping WTW". I'm going to read this and maybe give me some insight on this whole "stripping" subject

    Paul Dinos

    Pro Clean Specialists, Inc

  16. Posted · Report reply

    How WTW can make you more money.

    Here in the Atlanta area the forecast is the same every day. Chance of rain anywhere, anytime. If I looked at the TV news or online weather forecast, I would never seal decks.

    Case #1. The guys are staining a deck. I am ½ mile away and no rain. They call me a say it is pouring down rain. They stop the rain passes over and the bright sun comes back out. They blow dry the deck, finish staining - job completed

    Case #2. Different deck. We arrive at the job site first thing in the morning and I see it has rained here in the last several hours. Blow dry and they start to stain. About 3pm I get another one of those phone calls that it is raining again. They go below and stain the posts while it is raining. The rain passes over. They blow off the deck – job completed.

    I’m not going to debate the quality of WTW (I’m bias), but if you have not tested this product or do not have this product in your arsenal, you are going to lose money if your main service is cleaning and sealing decks due to weather. Because I was able to stain everyday AND finish the job, it was a great week. If this past week would have been weather dependant, I would have made about 2K, because of WTW I made 5K and still on schedule for the next 4 weeks.

    I still get comments that when I book a deck 4 weeks out and show up that day they can’t believe it. And talk about poor scheduling, I’m scheduling decks 6 days a week.

    Now granted, it does not rain over the entire city everyday like with some of you. I can really feel for you guys. But, if the window opens up for a day, WTW is ready to go.

    Newbies – Hang in there and keep at it. It just takes time. Also remember this very important info – You only have 1 time to impress your customer.

    My .02.

    And as successful as my company has become, God is really looking after me and my family.

    Paul Dinos

    Pro Clean Specialists, Inc.

  17. Posted · Report reply

    Beth,

    Thanks, I have done jobs like this. You are 100% correct. More time protecting than staining. Homeowner did not even think of staining until I meet with them today. I hate jobs like this and will price accordingly. It is worse than a 2 tone. With a 2 tone you can sand on wood, not so with composite. Taping, plastic, & water are a great friend. But it is hard to tell a home owner owner how much it is going to cost after they have gone way over their budget.

    Jarrod,

    Thanks, I'll let you know the end price.

    Thanks,

    Paul Dinos

    Pro Clean Specialists, Inc.

  20. Posted · Report reply

    Hi all,

    Hopefully the attachment will show.

    Unique deck. Composite on floor and handrail.

    Staining Cedar posts. Cedar top fascia and PTP arbor. Arbor is the pain because of protecting the rest of deck.

    More time will be spent on protecting versus staining. I am curious to see what others would charge. I know this is a loaded question, but maybe answer could be more than $800, but less than $1200. As I am looking for a 1 day job with 2 guys.

    You can send PM if needed.

    Thanks,

    Paul Dinos

    Pro Clean Specialists

    post-514-137772159206_thumb.jpg

  21. Posted · Report reply

    "Many types of wood are soft, such as cedar, redwood and PT. A surface cleaner is not recommended for cleaning decks as the pattern the cleaner cleans in cuts across the grain and can cause splintering and damage. When washing you should always be going the direction of the grain, not side to side against it."

    Exactly.

    Plus, when I am pressure washing, I am adjusting pressure and/or moving the tip from the surface. Mind you not all the time, or radically but I don't see how you could pressure wash a soft material (wood vs concrete) with 100% constant pressure. An example would be knots. They always require a little more attention.

    I would never try this (using surface cleaner) on a customers deck, but if someone would let me see this in action and prove it works, I would love to see this as this would save a lot of time as we start our 81st deck this year.

    Paul Dinos

    Pro Clean Specialists

  22. Posted · Report reply

    WTW has it's place. We did this Cambara deck today with WTW. Cleaned and pressure washed this morning. Stained after lunch. Then laughed at the clouds and showers. Customer thought the finish looked like a piece of furniture. Wanted to go with Sikkens, but explained to him how much better WTW is.

    The deck was 45 miles from our location. WTW makes the 1 day deck possible.

    You could have stained this deck the same day. But if close by, follow up with stain the next day. This is what makes WTW a great product to have on hand.

    Paul Dinos

    Pro Clean Specialists, Inc.

    post-514-137772157176_thumb.jpg

  24. Posted · Report reply

    OK. This picture might not look that great, but here is the story.

    8am picture perfect day in Atlanta. Off to the job site. By 10am staining deck. By noon showers are moving around Atlanta. At 2pm the showers hit this deck. The guys move to staining the posts below as the rain comes down. After the rain passes I move up top to blow the puddles off the floor - Yes, I still do some work. After the sun comes back out, the guys move up to finish the deck. BTW, this is the customer that has the rental home in NC.

    Bottom line - deck stained, check collected, customer happy, move on to next deck on Monday. The next week in weather is more of the same. No problem, I have WTW

    THANK YOU WTW.

    Paul Dinos

    Pro Clean Specialists, Inc

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