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zapp

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Posts posted by zapp

  1. Posted · Report reply

    I've already started the Boston Masacure design and the I survived the longest game in history (was there)design. As a Red sox fan I have survived all the letdowns and have very thick skin.. as a former ball player I just love great competion and close games.. Bruno I was drinking beers with your firefighter brethen from the bronx friday night in the bleachers we were ALL choked up when they sang God Bless America.You guys talk tuff but are really softies.. Gotta love the rivalry.GO PAPI>>ps he sholdn't touch a glove just that big bat..

  3. Posted · Report reply

    Can someone please tell me exactly how and what products they/you are mixing so i can stop waisting my time with the big box store cleaners.

    Call Steve Rowlett he's got a great line of cleaning products and FREE advice ..Great Guy.. (Cascade is for dishwashers ).He sells special detregents made for housewashing..

  4. Posted · Report reply

    I have realized that my magic number for a one man operation is that I should be grossing about $100 per hour for my whole day. From when I leave my house until I get back the clock starts. If I am gone 8 hours and make $800 I did good and will be able to pay the bills and have the extra cash on hand to enjoy things, anything over that, which is more often than not, is a bonus.

    Hmm Mike I guess your not slow any more ??? Tis the season

  7. Posted · Report reply

    This problem does suck in Newengland I gave up decks two years ago because of all the rain and schedualing problems I now market emergency gutter cleaning, guaranted to be there within 24 hrs with all the torential rain this year my spring gutter cleaning has trippled and it has led to other work ( fall gutter cleaning, house washes & roof cleaning ) This is why Cabots has invented SPF that can be applied to damp wood Joe homeowner can was and seal his own deck on the same weekend.

  8. Posted · Report reply

    On vinyl, we will not use temps any higher than 115* because of the potential for distorting or melting the siding.

    On aluminum, we go as high as 150* to help remove oxidation and it helps to get the mildew/algae to come off easier with weaker chemicals including bleach.

    Hot water softens water, increases it's solvency and expands the molecules which allows chems to go into solution easily and perform better with less precipitate.

    Rod!~

    Ok I understand all of this But don't understand something else If I x-jet my mix 35 ft onto a peak of a house at 130 degrees what is the actual temp at the surface? and after I shoot the whole side, to rinse off the fragil petunias and marigolds what is the surface temp these plants can handle ??anyone ever figure this out? I dont want to experiment on my next million dollar house .

    And no one has mentioned what happens when you run HOT hoses across a nice green lawn = Dead grass

    I understant that hot cleans better than cold ,and I have used hot when the conditions are right ,but with all the possible things that could die , is it worth the stress or a little more chem ??

  9. Posted · Report reply

    Hmm good thread , Here in the North East , hot is nice for house washing in March and April when theres still snow on the ground, but I can't justify the added expense and the possible killing of fragil flower and plants for the added speed.

    What does everyone else do about plant rinsing and hot water ? It doesn't seem to save time if I have to keep shuting off the burner everytime I want to rinse plants and bushes.

  11. Posted · Report reply

    I've got a downstreamer from Bob that I measured for my machine, it does 10-1. I use gutter cleaner with a pump up when needed, you don't hardly use any cleaner and a lot less mess, and you don't have to worry about getting it on something that you don't want. You don't have to buy any of the specialty gutter shock or gutter zap, it's as simple as getting some purple power and mixing it 1:1 or 1:2 and spraying it on, same thing. No shipping costs easy as stopping by Wal-Mart or an auto parts store.

    Yeah the pump up works for ranches , but what do you do about two and three story Mc Mansions ?? , X jeting the Zap is a pain in the butt and messy (besides costly) I did a sample yesterday for a customer that had two other contractors tell her they wouldn't be able to get rid of the streaks

    I hand cleaned with Zap and she marveled at the results I explained I charge $1.00 per lin ft to hand clean the streaks besides my normal washing price and she didn't care just wanted the house to look new again thats $180.00 on top of the wash price. I now advertise streak removal from gutters and roofs...

  12. Posted · Report reply

    There ARE some instances where the Xjet makes things easier. Downstreaming doesn't work well on a REALLY filthy white aluminum pool enclosure, for example. It does have it's place, but that place isn't typical housewashing, unless you just like dragging buckets and extra hoses and you're so sold on the idea that you're closed minded to alternatives. I know a couple guys who were that way, and slowly got sold on downstreaming!

    I guess I'm one of the closed minded, seeing I work alone, the x-jet is my helper, I can soap down one side of a house (around here Mc mansions) and with a flip of a switch 2 seconds later rinse the windows and bushes before the mix drys, on a hot day in the sun that is crucial. I can make my mix hot for real dirty , or lighten up on the bleach if I have light mildew. How do you downstream gutter zap ??

    I have a seperate hose in my zap bucket and just connect to my x-jet, hit the gutter first then rinse the house quickly . I guess it all depends on your buisness and what you are comfortable with ..

  13. Posted · Report reply

    Oh yeah, and then you get the check, after sending them a late notice three weeks out, and it is back dated to a day or two after you did the work! I've gotten more of those this year. Irritating. In prior years, the vast majority paid within a week. This year, I'd say more pay 2-3 weeks out than pay on time.

    Just sent out two late notices this morning both over 30 days both for residential house washes.

  14. Posted · Report reply

    Are you guys washing houses or windows ????

    I always explain to customers when I hand them the proposal that I use a rinse aid in my mix that will leave the windows almost totaly spotless but I am not responsible for leaky storm windows that I cannot control , If they have any known leaks or problem areas (usually entry doors) to please let me know first, I also explain that powerwashing isn't the proper way to clean their windows. A window washer is , then hand them my buddies card..If you didn't explain this or have it in writing , suck it up and wash the window (it's only one) it's good PR (and learing experience)

    Wait till you get the customer that holds the payment 30 days to make sure you didn't kill her flowers those are real fun.....

  18. Posted · Report reply

    I have a 18 ft enclosed rolling billboard 6.3 gal per min landa with a 325 gal tank ,30 in steel eagle ,cones and all hoses stay on the trailer .3.5 gal MITIM cold stays on the truck (Dodge 2500) as a back up and for tight spots ,chems are loaded onto the truck daily as needed per job I try not to drive around with any extra weight if I don't have to. Going from 6.3 to 3.5 is such a huge difference in time savings .Time is $$$ Keep the rig

  22. Posted · Report reply

    I'm curious about what the average cost of cleaning out gutters is around the country. This would be for those of you that clean them out by hand, not blasting them with high pressure. Do you charge by the foot? by the hour? by the house? How much?

    Thanks

    I charge By the house , ranch 100- raised ranch 125- Mc mansion 150 and up + tax 6% hand cleaned (with ladder and stabliser bar not to bend gutter) downspouts un blocked if needed.leaves put in bucket and dumped in woods at end of job gutterface wiped clean of all dirt, do between 5 and 10 a day. quality is the seller, no leaves on ground NO MESS. always leave magnetic buisness card .95% return customer rate. may sound alittle cheap but quality and neatness brings in other work and return work .
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