PressurePros

Jon, it came out very sweet. You really can't go wrong adding red. The stain is very forgiving, so its hard to add too much. Mixing that tone that you made 1/2 & 1/2 with WRC probably would have given you a tone more to your liking.. more like ipe looks like when it is wet.

Sounds like a bad arrangement. You bid the job to him then he bids 20%-30% on top of that to the customer. This guy could lowball to get a job and you will be busy, making no money and hating life.

You too Andrew! Thanks.

Carlos, I would love to see that. I am not a jet fan. But I am even less of a Cowboy fan.

Enjoy your holiday everyone! In case of tryptophan overdose, seek the nearest recliner, switch on the tube and watch Dallas roll over the Jets. (yuk)

Beading water has nothing to do with a good finish, thats a marketing myth.

You shouldn't stain when the night time temps are below 40. The daytime highs should be in the 50's+. The stain will not penetrate, may cure very slowly (if at all) and when the wood contracts at night, it will squeeze out whatever you put into it.

I have added a new "contractors only" forum to my DIY Chat home improvement forum This forum is hidden from the public. You can rant, you can rave but more importantly.. you can learn in the privacy of just your peers. Advanced business techniques will be discussed. If you have already mastered the wand and want to make money and learn how to market, sell, open e-commerce stores, rank high in Google, and close your sales, this will be the place to ask questions. Anything goes in this forum. It is now and always will be FREE. I don't want it to rank in Google so what you type there, stays there. Anything Goes The forum is not limited to business discussion though that is its main focus. If you want to type a rant about a job that drove you crazy, go for it. I will post articles covering the basics to advanced stuff. Its an open discussion so feel fre to ask questions from the most basic. If you are ready to take your pressure washing business to the next level come sign up. How To Join Follow the link above and sign up like you would any message forum. Click the "usergroups" button and select the "contractors only" group. I have to approve your membership. I will positively not allow any homeowners or DIY 'ers in that section. Once you are approved you will have access to the private forum. You'll find it at the bottom of the forum list.

100 contractors and growing! I went through the member d-base this morning and added the profiles that were contractors I know. If I forgot to add you please let me know. I know its a little tricky to sign up for the private forum.

Lets say everything else is equal in terms of company professionalism, prep technique and work quality. What is most important to you and more more importantly your customers when judging a finished deck? Homeowner's reading this post, please feel free to respond with your thoughts.

Thank you, Beth. I will be opening the DIY Discount Warehouse in mid to late 2008 (already have the URL) which will include just about everything DIY so the diy forum was established to tie that and Restore-A-Deck together.

Beth, I think thats a great idea for you here. The reason I setup the approval process was to assure noone would slip under the radar. It may not be a bad idea for you to do the same for a similar forum here.

If you have wondered why you have poor results from your direct mailing efforts, I have written a three part article that you may find interesting. Sign up at the DIY Forum and register for the contractor's only usergroup (there is a button at the top marked "Usergroups") to read more. Look forward to seeing you there!

American vet cutting down a Mexican flag that was hung above an American flag at a bar in Reno. [yt]<object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_kj8WnzYpc&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_kj8WnzYpc&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>[/yt]

Dane, We use it in the field exactly as it is sold to homeowners.

Kevin and his damn theories LOL.. just teasing you Kev. Any type of oil stain hitting it makes the asphalt darker. It happens.. drips from a sprayer line.. drips from a brush.. overspray that catches a a funky updraft and just floats away. Sometimes you think you have tarped enough area and you miscalculate. You don't do it often but like I said, it does happen. You end up with the demarkation (sp) line where tarp met driveway.

Pressure wash only? Hot water or cold? Moldy? What chems do you plan on using? Whats under and around it? Is it part of a larger job or is this the job itself? How many people working on it? Whats your overhead? What demographic do you target? What's you water access? Do You have to tote water? Pricing questions shoudn't really be what this forum is about. Too many variables. Its like asking "whats the going price for a new car"? You charge as much as you need to stay in business.

Hi Dane. I'd be happy to anser any questions you may have. Shoot me an email if you wish sales at restore-a-deck.com or you can call (800) 791-9890 and hit dial Ext 300 Mon-Fri. We have some cool contratcor programs available that might interest you.

Those things do rock (no pun intended). Its an abrasive, so you are actually polishing the stains out of the surface. They work awesome on windshields too. Just make sure you keep it wet.

Neil what you have could very well be some type of extractive bleeding. (as evidenced by acid removing most of it). The mold I am speaking of laughs at straight 5.5% and returns with a vengeance. I have never sugested nor tried 12%. I imagine that would be a death zone for even the most hardy strains or spores.

And you don't get major discoloration from the goof off? Are we talking about asphalt or concrete? I have found that everything from mineral spirits to stripper to hydrogen peroxide discolors driveways. Forget about if you get silicone from Armor All on it.

Adrian, I think it came in with imported lumber. Everything in a rain forest is nastier, stings you worse, kills you faster and thrives under varying conditions. It probably isn't a stretch to think it lies dormant until it gets back into rain. I have had reports of it showing up on over half of an ipe deck two days after a rain. That's not random spores finding some pollen and colonizing.

It is impossible to remove oil based stain from asphalt. Recoated two driveways this year because of it. Can you Ready Seal the rest of the driveway?

Neil and Jim. I am convinced there are new strains floating around. I have had Restore-A-Deck customers reporting and sending pictures of mold that looks just like your pics, Neil with the same bleach resistance. This is a complete long stretch and only my theory. I think the importation of all these hardwoods have introduced new mold strains into the US. I hve heard reports from every stain manufacturer (including Ready Seal) that have had strange stuff growing on them. Very bizzare.

Kareem.. the best advice one could hear is "let the professionals do what they do best". Your logo looks cool but it lacks the professional flair a graphic designer would give it. Spend $225 with KBK GraphX - Homepage You positively will not regret it.