Oxfordlawn

Why sneak...because I would never experiment with something on "my" customers property. First it gets tried on someone elses unknowingly, just in case.:eek: Whenever I try a new weedkiller on different grasses, I always test spray on a neighboring property of one of my customers so I can watch the progress or destruction. If it screws up and kills the grass as well...not my fault:banana:

Thanks..does that effect the color of the concrete where applied. Sould it be applied to the whole drive for an even finished product look or is spot application good.

Im wondering if the acetone is safe for the plastic float thats in the fuel bowl....Im not saying it isnt..thats just a thought I had, is it? I dont know

Many bowls on carbs now-a-days have a drain screw in the side at the bottom of them. Try removing that screw and draining whatever water/fuel is in there and see if that helps. If not then go farther with removing the bowl and cleaning the small jet orifices with a can of spray carb cleaner. sometimes the jet is in the bolt that holds the bowl on.....other times its in the center of the carb and take the carb cleaner straw and stick it up in there and squirt away. Good luck.

I am a newcomer to the house powerwashing scene. Most houses here are single story with some tall peaks, and an occasional 2 story. I do use my x-jet for the 2 story and for the houses with the higher roof peaks. I wouldn't mind getting awayy from the x-jet, but not familiar with different nozzle sizes. I have a 4000/4 gpm unit. What if any nozzles will suck the solution through my DS fitting, but still allow me to shoot up 25-30 feet?? Im not sure what size the "black" soap nozzle is that came with the machine is...but it definately wont reach very high. Thanks for any advice or suggestions. Also, I do have a copy of a nozzle chart I found on this site. What is the pressure range where a DS stops sucking...this may help me figure out some nozzle size options as well So many questions but I'm getting there :)

Thank You everyone. As time goes by and I am getting a few washes under my belt, I am starting to figure out what I like and don't like. I do like the XJet but not lugging the bucket. I don't like the DS'er because I cant seem to get the soap high enough, but thats what I'm trying to work on here. Thanks

Please...thank you Tom@oxfordlawn.com

I am working with an online logo service to give me a fresh new logo for my business. Its been time to get a better nicer image, shirts made and new signage for the truck and trailer. What the heck its only money right these were their first proofs submitted for review...what do you all think??

I like #3 as well, but Im kind of torn between #1 & #3. I asked for some variations on #1 to see where they take that one.

Do you mean this is a cinder block construction house? Does it have stucco over the block?? Be careful on getting screwed into doing a whole house wash under the ploy of only doing the window sills. If that house is like the houses here, theres no way to wash the sills and not get a clean area under the windows...are you going to leave the house like that??? I doubt it, so you will be in actuality cleaning the whole house. Is it 1 story or 2 ?? How many GPM(gallons per minute) is your unit. I have very recently myself started washing houses in my area, received great help from some great members here, so I will pass along what info I can. I have not looked into roof cleaning at all, but as stated above, it is a whole different ball game..not done with a power washer.

great job. i have been playing with Gimp software the past couple days, since I saw it posted on your first thread about the logo design...nice simple program. Again, nice job on the logo....now how about you work on mine LOL...everyone needs a side business right ?!?!

OK so I have been reading this forum for a couple weeks now, wanted to add pressure washing to my landscaping business. I had a couple basic newbie questions but only had minimal help before..oh well no biggie. Bob Weir saw my newbieness and was great enough to call and offer some basic help..greatly appreciated and priceless. I PM"d a couple other members who were also very helpful..again THANKS GUYS. So today I washed 2 residential customer houses and everything went great. Im not going to lie, I was nervous as hell on the first one. I was so nervous, that I forgot to flip the on/off switch on the washer and I was pulling that darned piull start for a while before I realized LOL. I used the soap nozzle for 1/2 the first house and then switched to the mixture I made up for the X-JET and switched to that,,again nerves kicked in. But, Holy Crap! I do like the X-jet setup for soaping down the whole side of a house in a matter of seconds. So anyway--I just wanted to say thanks to all those that helped to get me on the way and thanks for sharing the invaluable information.

I just rememebred this and wanted to ask for some ideas... ALL the houses here have automatic sprinkler systems and they run along the foundations with heads that pop up and spray outward in a 180 deg. sparay pattern. One of the houses I did today was vinyl sided and 2 of the heads must have been out of adjustment because there was an orange rust colored tint to the siding where the water would be hitting the house. the area was only on the lower row of siding and maybe 2 to 3 feet in length. I had a real tough time getting the stains off with the regular house soap/bleach mix I use, and even scrubbing with a vrush wasnt helping. I was able to get it lighter after a lot of work but it never totally went away. Any ideas on what I could have used to help get this stain/discoloration off with less work. I was wondering about mixing up some of that CLR stuff I have seen and used around the house in the past, but Im affraid to test it on someones house without asking for other ideas here first. Thanks, Tom

Thank you, Thank you for the replies..so I guess Oxy acid is what I want huh??? LOL seems y'all agree

after some more searching, I think I found my answer...White Ox Rust stain remover??? sound good? Easily purchased online as well.

Thanks...that was my understanding 5 inches per 1 GPM--the Classic is either 18 or 19 inches and I will be only using on cement driveways and walkways. I have not measured the driveways but the biggest they get are 2 cars wide and about 1 1/2 cars deep, some have a little apron area for golf cart parking---nothing big at all

I have been doing some research on the Whisper Wash classic, which came highly reccomended. After doing some reading on the unit...seems to be a very long lasting machine. I would rather spend the extra money once..rather than buy a $200-$300 machine and have to replace it in 6 months to a year.

Im sorry but you lost me on this one...Im so new I have a 4 GPM 4000 PSI machine...How would I flow without the wand..Im willing to listen and learn

OK washed 2 more house today and HOLY CRAP my arms are killin' me:lgsideway I guess sitting on that mower while someone else did all the trimmiing and edging has made me soft LOL I even turned the PW machine on today "before" trying to start it...so much easier...whatdoyaknow!?

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uASVzkrEKgs]YouTube - Rocky Balboa Speech[/ame]

although I am new to power washing, I am not new to being a business owner. I owned an auto repair/gas staion for 12 years and now landscaping for the last 2 years. I did the same as you with the auto repair business, got comfortable when times were good, and then, uhhohhh-where did everyone go? Luckily one of my customers was a small business consultant that was always willing to talk and we had a good relationship. Your recovery is going to be based on your frame of mind. Its going to be like starting a business all over, but now you have tons of experience and equipment thats already paid for. You will make it, I know it is hard and seems easier to throw in the towel, but time goes by fast and you will suffer for a short while, while you regroup and rebuild your business. It may be you have to swallow some pride and get a job on the side to keep some cashflow and things rolling no matter how slow. But basically, what I am saying is, go at it as if you were starting a new business, new attitude, you have the experience and went thru the learning curve, the equipment you already have...so you are ahead of the game. Keep the chin up. I am going to try to post a youtube link to a Rocky movie clip when I find it--its about getting knocked down and getting back up and moving forward. I am speaking from experience here. I survived, made it thru, rebuilt and sold several years later...good luck.

Thanks:) I believe the next purchase will be a surface cleaner for doing driveways and walkways--they are all concrete driveways in the area I work. What can a 4 gpm 4000 PSI unit handle in size of cleaner--eg. 20"?? Just asking for future reference because a customer asked the other day how much to clean the driveway as well--and I was able to convince him not to do it this time, but we will get it next time in 6 months. Most people wash homes here every 6 months like clockwork. This was done to buy me some experience time, and also some time for the business to make enough money to purchase the surface cleaner. Mostly the first reason though:D ....and tomorrow I go do 2 more---and 1 on wednesday....and not so nervous anymore

I have been doing a lot of research and although somewhat confused by all the options..Im somewhat keeping up.:D I work in central Florida and majority of houses we will be cleaning are one story vinyll sided with white vinyl facia covering and white gutters. I have a 2600 PSI cold water unit with a downstream adjustable chemical injector. I think my first question, which I understand is a question of personal opinion, is on house wash. I have seen a lot of posts regarding ESpec products. To get this show on the road, what do y'all feel would be the best house wash product to get on the way. Powerhouse looks like the one, but I would prefer some experienced opinions. The biggest problem on the siding I see is the mold/mildew buildup, and the stains on the gutters....but the houses are only a few years old and nothing horrific. thanks for helping a newbie get started...I hope not to ask to many stupid questions that many of you feel elementary.:cheers:

Thanks everyone...I do appreciate the info. i am a member of a couple other non-related forums and am very heavy poster and comfortable on those, and understand the newbie feeling now. My plan here is, instead of being just a lawn maintenance business, I have been planning on being able to offer house cleaning as well...so I am actually trying to grow my company in another direction. The lawn side of company growth has been great and pretty much we are stable now, so I am ready to put some time/money/effort to rest of my plan of property maintenance--house washing. the only thing I will be offerfing is residential house washing, driveway/walk and gutter cleaning. I sent flyers to all our customers with this months billing a few days ago, and have several cleaning jobs lined up already. I have been all over this forum reading and reading trying to learn, but I know I just need to get out there and go. I asked another local power washer if I could ride with him on a few house washing jobs..and he said sure. We both agree that with the rate of growth in this area...there's plenty of work to go around--I was very happy to hear that. Well thats long enough for this post--just telling a little info on myself--THANKS AGAIN!!! TOM

OK I have a couple contacts that I can call about local chem. supply for the 12%. I thought they were throwing me a hint with the comment of "also known as pool shock". Thanks for setting me straight. I thought that was too easy, the place was literally 1/2 mile away at most LOL