Adrian

Wow. Got off work today, get home, turn on CNN to hear about FtHood Shootings today. My oldest Sister works 4 buildings from where it happened. She is not allowed to use her cell phone at her civil service job. Of course I'm freaking. Got a hold of my Mom, she said my sis is good to go but on building lockdown. My sis called from a pay phone inside. Ironically My Mom was eating lunch at the Lubys in Killeen ( Ft. Hood Basically) when the last gun massacre in Texas took place in '94 that killed 20 something. My mom was smart, she just climbed ( quickly) under the table and waited for it all to stop. Then she ran like He l l, without paying the check lol. I have one blessed family. What the heck is going on these days? Freaky times man, freaky times.

Really doesn't matter if it is hot or cold JKevin, the SH will take care of the tannin.

Well hopefully she will change her mind. I will be happy to go back and finish it for her. Of course at a min. setup fee. ( which is not 50.00). Oh well. Right on.

People are just wierd. That's what it is. I would have finished it for a 50 spot. But she was happy with what she got. Of course the flatwork is worth more as a single job. I only charged 3 bills for the resi. Should have been a 100.00 driveway wash alone. With the demo and the 50 spot, THAT'S A DEAL MAN.

Here's how it looked before.

At Southside. I won't go into details, but Russ knows his business very well. I had been having carb troubles until today ( replaced entire unit ). Overcoming the carb troubles "seemed" to cause other issues with my setup. Bottom line is that Russ walked me through a situation I completely didn't understand. I did what he suggested, and my setup is like new again. Lost 1 job I had to farm out, but maintained the customer. The books are stacked up and I am rolling again. No one is angry at me for the disruption in service. Of course my brain is fried after all of this because I certainly am not a mechanic. But I also will not pay a mechanic if I think i can tackle the job on my own. Russ' words are like magic. He really knows his ( rhymes with spit). Everything turned out exactly like he said it would. Of course the poor guy had to listen to me freak out before he could get me on the right track. Russ, the biggest "Thank you" from the bottom of my heart. I will be in touch soon for the after market parts you suggested. yay!!!! Thanks again my man. You are the best.

Is NMD80 weaker than OX? I have never heard of it. I have used OX on eifs that was painted and had rust. It worked fine. Of course it was not a really strong mix, but it worked fine removing rust.

Right on Scott. You got that right. He really knows his business. I was ready to start pulling heads off of my block and replacing gaskets. He told me how to get through the smoke "literally". The man is a Prince among thieves. He should be on everyone's Christmas card list. He is the man. period, point, blank.

Not trying to sound rude at all, but, that just won't work. It's either one or the other. The 2 won't work in sync if that is what you are saying.

Need help. My main PW, won't stay running. ( my backup isn't going to pull off the job I have (had) today). Fuel lines are clean and flowing. Oil is topped off. All electronics are in tact. I start it,.... it runs for 3-5 secs thens dies as if it has been turned off. My morning customer is understanding of the situation, but I have to get this thing up and running. Please help. I pulled the tank and the lines are clear. It has flow. Briggs 16VG 4/4 electric start.

I have decided to replace the entire carb for this unit. I have it ordered, and it is mounted by 2 bolts from the underside of intake manifold. Sounds easy enough. It really is easy to unbolt the thing. Already have the old one off. The downside is, that to get to these "2" bolts, I had to disassemble things I don't even know the name of, and there were only 793,000 other bolts to undo to get to the carb mounting. I am pretty sure I can get it all back together, but what a nightmare. $250.00 for the carb installing myself and losing a few hours. Vs. 500.00 plus to have a tech do it. I am as stubborn as some of these "DIY" homeowners. Before I disassembled everything this afternoon, I took it out to the jobsite this morning and it crapped out on me again. Talk about frustration. I had backup, and the job got completed. But what a headache. I decided I would just replace the whole carb instead of taking my chances on a rebuild kit. The new carb should arrive tomorrow, and I give it 3 hours labor to have it back together. Hopefully. Wish me luck.

Thanks Douglas. I have 2 fire exstinguishers on my rig. One, the small "under the sink" kind, and one that is really really heavy and large. I don't know what classification it is. But it will suffice for any PW related incident. I learned my lesson when I got caught in the middle of a "flash" fire while refueling my pw not too long ago.Some excess fuel landed on the exhaust. One second I am enjoying life, the next I was running for my life. I will never get caught with my britches down again like that. ....unless of course it is with Cindy Crawford. kidding. Thx.

Guys thanks for all of the feedback. I lost a day to this problem but have it worked out enough to get back up and rolling I think. It was the floats stuck in the bowls. I disassembled, put it back together and got more fuel than I needed. Fuel everywhere. I started over and found the plate for the floats was not properly attached to the needle thing under the plate. That why I was getting too much fuel EVERYWHERE. Disassembled again, got it on properly this time. However it is very sluggish on starting. High speed it runs fine, low speed not so fine. Hopefully it will fire up tomorrow for the job that was supposed to happen today. The customer is very forgiving. If in fact it gives me trouble starting in the morning. I have a backup guy I can call. Whole week is booked and I don't need this crap. BUT, I would like to say a big THANKS for those of you that called today offering assistance. After this rush of jobs, I may do what Philip said and just get a new carb setup for this thing and be done with it. Have the old one rebuilt for standby. Just for the record, it is much harder working on a PW than it is using one. For me anyways.

...........and that's how it rolls [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FprQEGc3Za4&feature=related]YouTube - yoda rap[/ame]

Right on !!!

Really, no one liked my milkman joke? :)

I feel your pain Ken. Ike did a number on us last year as well.

I definately know that chapter of life. I have managed to get several instructors to believe that I slept the night before clinicals, HAHA. Sleep, what is sleep? Ok then, first an honest response would be that you need more "$$$$$" 700.00 will cover a yr of ins GL of maybe 100k coverage, maybe a bit more. Now you will need the gear, because that civic ain't gonna get you there. Truck, trailer, pressure washing unit, surface cleaner. Once you get all of that, you need to learn how to use it properly. Which is why you should read first before you purchase anything. This site is where you will get the most help. PW is a much larger field than you can imagine. Find out exactly how to perfect your niche' ( graffitti I think you mentioned). Read up. there is alot of graff info here. Or do what Ken said. That is the most surefire way to see if this industry is for you. Find someone in your area. Just like a clinical "ride out" on an ambulance. You see if that is the area that interests you. Good luck.

I guess no one liked the "milkman" joke. :)

Welcome to TGS. Please go to your "my controls" and complete your signature line. House rules. Much respect to the nursing industry. I was an EMT for many a moon in Austin. The hours for credit that you are about to log in Nursing school will not support the time you will need to run a company on the side. Just keep that in mind. BUT, it is doable. You will just have to learn to live as a zombie and NEVER be home at all. I actually went to school 20hrs a wk at night while performing in 3 different bands and full time job. With clinicals. BUT again, ZOMBIE all the time. Not good for your patients you will be practicing on. Just like your nursing skills are specialized in different areas of the field. The same goes forpressure washing. There are many categories. Specialty areas. But, most importantly search your deepest part of your soul to be sure you really think you can handle that type of a schedule. Pressure washing is a full time full functioning industry that ALOT of rookies think is a quick way to make extra cash. We know how that story ends. Welcome to TGS, again, pls. complete your signature line and read read read and use the search function to learn. Do what ken said, he's like Yoda around here. :)

AquaPro, Please go to your " my controls" and complete your signature line. House rules. You will get better responses when people know who they are talking to.

Above the roar or under the radar, whatever it takes to keep your name out there.

Insurance, commercial grade equipment and this forum.

Nice post Dan. I have definately taken notes this yr. It has been an interesting year to say the least. Alot of great projects large and small. As well as some rethinking of models. I don't think there has been a "next easy wave", it's all been work and progress. However, you do know that rock and roll pays all my bills. :) I just clean and restore for the love of it. At least I will hold off from being a milkman for another week.

You got it Justin. It's also a good place for your company info as well. Have you looked up Univar or Harcos. Maybe they have a branch in your area. Buying in bulk will bring the cost per gallon down alot.