aquabob

sodium hydroxide isnt just a degreaser. i can be used for other things. it is used for making the crap on dirty roofs come off fast with very little pressure, it has the same effect on dirty concrete. have you ever hit the side of a dirty house with hydroxide in your mix? you see how it makes the dirt loosen itself from the siding, almost jumping off. i also use it in my homebrew exterior window cleaning solution, removes bug deposits and even paint overspray without having to scrape.

for really dirty driveways i like to use sodium hydroxide (deck stripper/roof cleaner) but it is not plant safe. i usually bleach after washing to get rid of mildew stains.

something to consider...whenever you do a job no matter what it is be mentally prepared for it, in the case of gum plan on standing there and picking it off piece by piece, it will probably take forever but that is the way those jobs go, and therefore the reality of the job. git er done, or pass on it if you dont feel like f-ing with it. hope this helps.

the few, the proud, the POWER WASHERS! it is a lifestyle, i love it wished i would've made the commitment years ago...finally found my thing to do in life. with some luck and help from others in this biz you can make it. go for it. if you are lazy forget it. good luck.

i use a 20" with a 4gpm machine, works fine.

so in the future....you end up having to get your pwer emissions inspected every year...make sure your egr valve and catalytic converters are working properly. the price of a motor will go up.

too hot water can damage the seals, and if you damage them you could be liable and have to replace all of the windows. too much pressure could also damage them. i had a window job h.o. called and said she had her house pwed and now all of her windows were foggy, he used hot water. i told her she would have to replace all of her windows, she wasnt very happy.

i use an electric pump to apply gutter cleaner, but i dont use gutter zap. its really fast and easy at 1gpm. i have to brush when the temps get below 60 no hot water. spray it on and rinse it off. houses without alot of gutter i brush since its easier to than running a seperate hose around the house. its worth having the seperate set up on large houses with alot of gutter. alot faster and easier than brushing.

jeff, one question...how are you going to feed the 5.6 gpm portable unit? you would need 6.6 gpm out of the spigot. you might not get that much flow out of every spigot.

sounds like a cool idea, let us know if it works.

you wont get that much draw with 100ft or more of hose on the out side of an x-jet. the back pressure will reduce the amount of draw.

you can do that, but you can also take advantage of the suction from a self priming chem resistant pump. build a manifold on the suction line and use stainless needle valves to gate the draw from the chem tanks. i switched to this way of getting chems in i like it alot better than using injectors. only things is you have to measure your draw and make your own increments. takes some doin to figure the ratios but very smooth. mine works great for ratios between 1:6 and 1:20 with 1/4" needle valves on a 3/4" suction line. with larger valves 1.1 would be possible. this will eliminate the need to pre-mix and gives you control over the ratios on the fly, rather than being stuck will the pre-mixed ratios in the tank.

jeff, what ratios are you trying to get with the chems you are using?

i use about 18oz per gal mixed in seperate tank then mixed it with bleach and soap through injectors at 10:1 and into float tank, then hit it at 10:1, i think the overall ratio was about 20:1 with the hydroxide. i had a house today alot like you are describing but not as old. it came clean with regular mix but with more rinse time with webs and bug deposits. it will get it clean, if you need to add it for one job go for it, just remember to take the plants and your eyes in consideration.

the problem i have with the sun burn thing is ending up with the "redneck suntan", doesent look too cool when i go to the pool or in bed with my girl...ya know.

yes, i have...it will cause the dirt and mildew to "fly" off the house as soon as it hits the siding, the problem is though that it can turn the grass yellow and do plant damage and you would need eye protection and a chem suit. plus, the added cost of using it. not a good idea, i think, if your bleach soap mixture gets it clean then why do you really need to add it.

jeff, if you want to make double sure your suction line stays full of water you can install a foot valve inline between the tank and pump, it will keep the water from flowing back out of the hose. lowes has them for about 8 bucks.

maybe when spring comes and people get busy again there will be more post at tcn, just my guess but it has been dead for the last 5 months or so. i know ive been slow lately and havent had much pwing to talk about.

yep...bleach...i usually apply it wth a pump up sprayer, (straight) which work best and is the most efficient way of spot treating stains. if it is a large area downstreaming or x-jetting would be the fastest way of covering it. the stains will usually come off with a 10:1 application.

can you not just let the chem sheet down the side of the building from the roof? use a downstream injector and run an open hose?

i use a solar panel to keep my battery charged. have had no probs with it going dead. the electric pump is only used a few hours a day though.

gutters are standard with me, if the homeowner is on a tight budget i will tell them i can do it for less without cleaning the gutter stains, but only one person in 5 years has said they didnt care if their gutters were still black, it makes a world of difference in the end when the gutters look like new, and overall the house will look cleaner and your biz will look better. kinda like washing a car and not washing the wheels. wouldnt it make you feel cheap if you payed someone to wash your car and you didnt feel like paying more for the wheels, your car is clean but your wheels are still black?...if they cant afford to get it done right then do what they are willing to pay for, but most ive worked for want those gutter stains cleaned and they pay for it.

why are you asking, if you dont mind me asking...lol how much gpm would you consider to be large volume... i use a hypro gas powered pump for chemical application and rinsing, or for washing anything where high pressure isnt required. most of the time i just use the garden hose with flow rates between 5 and 10 gpm and psi betwen 60 and 150.

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