PressurePros

Take Brent's advice. Don't throw good energy after bad. Its a learning experience we all went through.

Good job. If you determine it is clear cedar, you could look for KD15 stock. I would then strip it and apply acid. You will artificially age it quicker and it will be a closer match. If you need help on tinting or mixing up the wood tux or anything, shoot me over an email pressurepros@mail.com

With gas prices and workload I have to do the presentation on site. It is much easier to take the measurements, then ask when you can meet with both decision makers if that is the case. I only do this on large jobs that I want for my picture portfolio or if I have 5+ estimates and it is in the middle of a workday. A rolling office like Greg described is a great marketing tool. It makes you really look like you have your stuff together.

I would use EFC-38 for the job. It will clean up the solid and won't affect its integrity as well as strip whats left of that semi. The WTW will clean up quick off of anything as it is slower to dive into anything. My advice if you are doing this as a "deck-in-a-day" is to wait until the wood dries at least half a day or better yet come back the next day.

My ex wife was a registered nurse. She bought all of her own scrubs, equipment etc. An old girlfriend was a waitress, she bought her own uniforms, shirts etc. I supply all PPE, but is it neccessary to pay for all gear. I have three guys now and adding a fourth as soon as college classes end. It's a large outlay I want to reduce. I notice that since I am paying for gear, my guys are sloppy (wiping hands on shirts etc) Thoughts?

The apron got veto'd. I'm such a wuss. I am debating a uniform allowance. It will be a set number and when they use up their allotment, it comes out of their pay. Is this legal? A little sidenote: One of my guys will wear a shirt with eight colors of stains and bleach holes, so I know he will already be thinking "loophole".

Every PM, HOA and anyone offering bulk work all do the same thing. What's our price for fifty units? Oh clean one to see how we like your work. Or.. there is only five to do right now, but if we like what you do you could get all 50. It's the oldest scam in the book. Grab your dignity and tell the lady to put her "demo" where the sun don't shine.

Thanks Beth, good lead. Your guys didn't gripe? I have the testosterone gang on my payroll. I'll have to make sure they don't draw breasts on them. Jon, I have supplied everything. Pants, shirts, boots and hats.

Make sure you get a tint kit from Russell. Wood Tux is a great product, the more I use it, the more I like it but on cedar, the warm honey gold makes it turn orange.

Most sealers are not compatible with one another. As far as I know, those two definitely are not.

No exagerration there, huh Anthony? It takes about one minute tops to clear a hose. What size machine are you running?

I agree with Jon. If you are booked out three months you need to increase your productivity or raise your prices. I do deck restoration and housewashing. While each can have its level of craft, it isn't luxury home building. I can't see telling a customer tommorrow, "I can fit you in the first week of August" Beth how do your customers react?

HD can work but you have to add antifreeze to it. Your dwell time will be in the range of 4-12 hours so you also need something to keep it wet. ESI makes a product called Hang Time. Even then you will be reapplying several times until the wood is saturated. Your best bet would be to give it a soaking at sundown, wrap the entire desk in plastic and let it sit over night. Are we having fun yet? Aren't acrylics great? This is the worst case scenario (but a likely one) Do a test spot and see for yourself.

I find most people won't wait long for deck restoration. Maybe a month at most. You may need to hire help if you are only doing two decks per week.

Forget stripping it unless she is willing to pay at least $7 per square foot. Acrylics require extremely expensive strippers ($40 per gallon). You have to apply them by hand or with heavy duty airless, wait overnight for them to work and you can guarantee you will still have to sand in many places. Your best bet is to clean flaking solid, oil prime and recoat with solid.

I agree 100% with Greg. My minimum deck job is also $350. I would do this deck if I were able to schedule another complete "deck-in-a-day" with Wood Tux nearby. Yes, the cost would include materials. The Wood Tux and cleaner would be under $35. There are clowns out there that would wash and seal this deck for a hundred bucks.

I think you are looking at a type of cedar. The second picture actually looks like knock off mahogany. The fake mahogany that is called Phillipine.

I think your number is on target. That should take no more than an hour to clean and another hour to seal.

Day to day operations of a business involve more than just getting out there and performing the work. You have to be constantly evaluating your numbers. How efficient are you? How realistic are your estimates for time? Are all your fixed expenses as trimmed as they can be without sacrificing work quality? Is your marketing giving you the right rate of return? Have you shown consistent growth year after year? I agree with the axiom, “If you aren’t growing, you’re dying” How does one continuously grow income as well as well as grow customer count? I am a believer in maximizing each and every customer. While a customer is telling you about his deck, have one eye on him and one eye scanning the property. We can clean/strip the average deck in a few hours. It makes more sense for me to sell a customer on a house wash and flagstone cleaning and sealing and spend the whole day there. It’s more efficient and I can blend high margin and lower margin services together and only have to travel to one job. The customer comes out ahead. He is getting one competent contractor to perform several services he needs and I can offer him a package deal because we are already there. This is one reason I use the word “exterior cleaning contractors” in my advertising. I don’t want to come across as a handyman service, but if you need something beautified outdoors, PressurePros, Inc is the company to call. Evaluate the services you are offering. If you are a niche business, let’s say 100% wood care.. are you able to sustain the high rates necessary to compensate for the lack of repeat service? I am not saying one cannot perform maintenance work but it is usually at a lower margin and still takes up time. It is, at best, a once a year service call. For most it probably a biennial service (every two years) Other wood restoration contractors and I have spoken about the money in wood care. It is probably the lowest paying of all PW’ing services. If you truly love wood care, you are going to spend extra time getting each and every project just right. Make sure you compensate by making up on maintenance done efficiently. Next season I am setting up a 4 gpm machine in the back of a small pickup that will be an exclusive wood maintenance rig run by one employee. I have spent way too much time this year running from maintenance clean to maintenance clean. That’s working hard not smart. I am a firm believer in doing the opposite. Another way to keep your name in front of a customer is to use a newsletter. “Hey, look what service PressurePros just added! Get your name on the schedule for that fall gutter cleanout before you miss out” In the past I have only sent my newsletter to existing customers but next month I am sending out the summer issue to a larger audience. It’s going to cost a bit more to print pictures and make it more colorful but I think when a new potential customer gets it, they will wonder why they haven’t already jumped on the wagon and become a PressurePros customer. After all, all of their neighbors have, right? The key to making all of this work is target marketing. Choose higher income areas, those that care about their property. Communities where there are many contractors in the area performing some type of maintenance service. And by all means, when a new customer calls you, go meet him! You are going to be this guy’s go-to man for exterior cleaning. You are going to be the guy he calls when he needs a plumber and trusts your expertise to recommend one. He is trusting you with most prized possession, his home. Don’t start things off by spewing out numbers over a phone. Take the time to build your relationship and the money you spend in gas will pay for itself many times over. I started falling into the trap of qualifying people over the phone. That is an area in which you want to tread lightly. Explain that you offer a top notch service and that your customer base is above and beyond satisfied but that you are not the lowest priced guy. Here is what I have started doing. This is a total trial and error and may bite me in the behind so if you do it, it is at your own risk. PP: "Hi, Mrs. Meranti, Ken Fenner calling from PressurePros. You called about a deck that needs service? MM: "Yes, Hi Ken" PP: "Would you mind if I asked you a few questions about it?" --- Followed by questions pertaining to deck itself.. be sure to find out if they are happy with the way the deck (house/fence/sidewalk) looks -- PP: "That sounds like a project we would be able to perfom for you Mrs Meranti, but I'd also like to be straight with you. We are a professional business. We carry a million dollars in liability insurance and our employees are covered by Workman's Compensation Insurance. We do a job, one way, and that is the right way. We offer a two year written guarantee on our work and we do not take short cuts. While our rates are fair and competetive, often times this quality of work makes us one of the higher priced companies out there. As you know with everything in this world, you get what you pay for. Does this sound like the type of service you are seeking, Mrs Meranti?" MM: (pauses or is unsure) "I would like to have it last more than a year." PP: "Let me come out and show you some pictures of my work and explain more about why I can offer a two year guarantee and have had hundreds of happy customers" What have I done here? 1) I have showed interest in the customer and her project. 2) I showed her I understand wood care and am professional. 3) I let her know in polite terms I am a straight shooter. 4) I have changed the ceiling price she was willing to pay for mediocre service to a higher one for a quality service. Now when I get there in logo'd gear, professionally designed cards, take pictures and measurements of the deck, show a picture portfolio and go into an educating but soft toned sales pitch, she is already halfway to saying yes.

Roger, how could you get results when water, whether high flow or high pressure cannot kill mold spores unless it is very hot? Very hot water will raise grain and destroy wood furniture.

I covered much of this in installment 1.. here is the link for those that haven't read. http://forums.thegrimescene.com/showthread.php?t=5597

Is it because you end up "signing" those shutters with nice curvy lines?

I get them from the paint store. MAB to be specific. I think they are $10 or so.

I feel "How to Beat Your Competition II" coming on. I will try to cover as much as I can. A little coffee first to get my brain workin'.

Jeff, I think you missed Mike's point (or maybe I did) The point is if you are ending up with the same dilutions by mixing, proportioning, dragging extra hoses and buckets, worrying about poly braid hose id's, etc, you are better off downstreaming to achieve the same result. Save the X-Jet for when you actually do need a 2:1 ratio