Celeste

Oh....gotcha. Well, I gotta stick up for John on this one. He is about as above board as anyone I've ever seen on the bbs......and that's on all of them. If there is confusion going on, in all honesty, some of it may be misconceptions just through typing...things can get out of context ? You think one thing, type another and at the same time, while you may be thinking in one emotion, someone will read a completely different emotion. Celeste

Don, I don't think that it's necessarily bad to have vendors involved.....it is all about bettering business no matter which way you slice it. Discounts to members is just an additional perk. If the vendor is making sales because of it's affiliation with an organization, it's good business. If a member is doing more business because of it's affiliation with an organization, it's a good investment....if they get a discount from another member who happens to be a vendor, it's a perk. Maybe I have a naive point of view here and am missing something devious? Using Beth & Rod and Steve as examples.....if Beth & Rod or Steve started an org and their company offered discounts to their members, would that be a problem or would it be a way to increase membership? Increased membership numbers - with the proper goals and objectives - is what will make an organization successful, right? But like they say, membership has it's benefits. If no vendors are involved, where are you going to get benefits? Celeste

John, Nope......life's more fun in the silver lining :) Celeste

This is all leading back to the same answer........if an organization can benefit your own company in any way, then by all means, join it. If not, spend your dollars where they will help you the most. With that said, I do know that it takes a certain type of person to contribute the passion necessary to make any organization work. If there is dissention among those who are a part of an organization - and that goes for the members as well - the organization is going to suffer. Whether or not I feel like the PWNA is being run well or below par should never change the fact that the BoD is made up of volunteers that are voted into office by the members and, while the members do vote, these folks do have companies to run and family lives to lead. It is extremely disheartening to feel strongly about something, invest your own personal time in volunteering and then be bombarded with complaints or insinuations. It's kind of like watching the news.....you never see good stuff on the news, only bad. Doesn't anyone else ever wonder why the reporters don't look for happy stories? Recently too much time has been spent talking about what's wrong with the PWNA....it's counter-productive to the positive that can be happening. If another org does begin, it would be good to see a strong positive member support system. It's late - I'm rambling. Celeste

Pick ME! Pick ME!

Which clearly includes you, Henry. All Don asked was for him to clarify his reasons for supporting an organization that has purportedly done what he is against. Not unreasonable. With regard to a new org having a hard time finding support for themselves as well as offering as much as PWNA does.......As a PWNA supporter, and soon to be BoD, can you honestly say that the PWNA offers that much to the members? Keep in mind that I am an active member of the PWNA as well, not ashamed to admit it...but I'm not terribly impressed with the "benefits" that you are referring to. Granted, they keep saying that "great and exciting things are coming", but hadn't seen them yet :) Celeste

I think that deciding whether vendors/distributors, etc.. should be allowed to do or not to do would be putting the cart before the horse here.......what needs to be decided first, IMO, is WHAT the goals of the organization would be. This is where the input of the members would be vital to the success or downfall of the org. John, I don't actually totally disagree with the competitive thing....I do acknowledge that it could benefit each org to try to continually raise the bar and frankly, maybe that is what the industry needs as a whole. Pressure washing is just not viewed as a "real profession"...not be most of the folks that hire us, not the by the insurance companies or (ACK!) any regulatory agencies. But again, let me reiterate my bottom line position on organizations......it/they is/are tool for a business to use to their best ability. To the established veterans who have become and remained successful, they are less of an appeal, but to new companies, I think they can be very important. It's only going to be what you make of it. I firmly believe that there should be minimum standards to join one though. The organization is putting their reputation on the line when they allow the logo to be used and if just any Joe Power washer can join, well, you can imagine what could be the outcome there. Celeste

Thank you Howard.....I've not posted yet because I don't want to get into a political battle again, but you've echoed my feelings. There is room for another organization - there's room for several. Different organizations will serve different people/companies differently. IF another organization were to spring up, I personally would not like to see a "competitive" organization, only one that is different...that would reach the group that doesn't see a benefit to the PWNA. My position is simply - I'd be members of both if it would serve my company. I would not be choosing one or the other. I would hope that they would both have their place. Celeste

Mildew food!!!!!! Listen to Jon - he knows what he's talking about :) Celeste

We have been asked to clean (not stain yet) a redwood home. The last pressure washer left quite a mess behind 2 years ago as well as removing most of the sealant. The house sits on a pond (not that living in the mildew capital state of the world isn't enough) so there is a definite mildew problem. We are also to wash the roof. They just stained their deck last year and do not want it touched. So......suggestions? At this point, we're thinking that a sodium hydroxide product for the roof will cause more damage to the deck below than bleach so the roof gets the bleach treatment. We're thinking that the house is already so bare that a percarbonate cleaning will be the way to go (also less chance of altering the deck) This house is on the market so I really doubt that they're going to go the way of a proper prep treatment for staining. The biggest thing we're questioning is that it's redwood - is there anything special that has to be done to redwood that we would normally do or not do with our standard PT wood experience? Here are some partial pics of the house as well as one of the "signature" of the last P/W there. Any help is much appreciated Celeste

Bid submitted to the realtor.....we figure we won't hear anything since they were probably looking for a $200 housewash but oh well.....after all of the advise, we wouldn't have dreamed of doing it for near that :) We also submitted a bid for a proper job to the homeowner with a cover letter of why we felt a housewash was not sufficient, blah blah blah. If they don't sell, they may call this spring. On to the next biggie bid.......a large deck with a wood walkway to the dock & boathouse and an owner that knows it's gonna be EXPENSIVE! (:)) Celeste

We also keep an "Ov Glove" in the tool box - those hoses get hot for helpers every now and then :) Celeste

What a great website! Very detailed and informative and more importantly, user friendly :) Celeste

Make sure you have a small (or large depending on your temperment) container for a "Cuss Jar" . Everytime something goes not quite right and you cuss your machine, throw in a quarter. If your luck is like ours, that jar fills up quick enough to pay for whatever went wrong that day :) Celeste

Where's Reed when we need him.......oh yeah, I think he's probably viewing a new grandbaby right about now :) www.readyseal.com is their site. Pierce Fitchett is a good one to talk to. Celeste

Bad Deckscapes experience here as well......if you use it, make sure you put a mildewcide additive in it.!! Celeste

If we run into really nasty gutters that are going to require brushing, we put the gutter cleaner into a spray bottle, spray the brush itself and apply as we brush. Our brush is waterfed so we can continue brushing as we rinse as well. This also seems to control how much gutter cleaner goes where it's supposed to :) Celeste

Jon, I absolutely understand what you are saying and I sincerely appreciate your willingness to speak with us. I don't feel you have talked down to me - again, I appreciate your candor and will in all likelihood be calling to speak directly with you. You cannot do a job over the internet through a keyboard....no one has the time to even try it. I'll give you a call for certain :) Celeste

Hi Eric, One flyer idea that was around recently was in targeted neighborhoods - don't place on mailboxes (run into Fed problems there). Leave on doors or in the boxes some have for newspapers. If you do neighborhoods, you can keep track of where you're working and line up multiples at a time, saving travel time & gas. Good luck :) Celeste

You're right as far as longevity in the business - less than two years still leaves us subject to the second year failure statistic, however, we clean on average of 4-5 houses per week (year 'round). We have established a reputation in our area as the leading brick cleaner.....but, as admitted, we've never dealt with redwood siding as it's just not common here. My reason for ending my question about what to do in this scenario was not that I didn't want help but more of trying to avert any further disagreement with what to do or not to do. This is one thing that I do find frustrating when questions get posed - and I'm not only speaking of mine when I say this. Quite often, there is more than one method of achieving good results. It is great to hear you have options, especially when someone takes the time to fully explain, whether it be to an asker that has no experience in an area or to an asker who may just be looking for another way. This actually has nothing to do with whether one is a veteran or not, however, if a newbie is asking and those that have all the experience are arguing about what is okay and what's not......it gets folks confused! There. That's why I said we'll do it our way and thank you. Between posts and phone calls, we were no closer to our solution than when we began the post because on any direction, someone had a problem with it. Sorry to continue ranting. Celeste

Art, We (a) don't consider ourselves "newbies" anymore, except where cleaning redwood siding is concerned. (b) My question as originally posted produced as much information as we needed to make a decision as to how to proceed with the BIDDING. © We don't conduct all of our business on the bbs - we speak with others on the phone. Most folks who frequent this board know that I accept advise readily, however, this thread began an age old debate that had nothing to do with our question. Thank you for your insight. Celeste

We'll just let all know how the project turns out....it seems that no matter what product is suggested or asked about, someone will have negative remarks or experiences. If the bid is accepted as we propose it, we'll do it. If not, we'll move along to the next project. Thanks, Celeste

Shane you need to clone yourself with the jobs you get :) Nice job! Celeste

Thank you for your candid view, John - it much appreciated and we have taken it as an option as well. In our search for a solution to this we have now come across another chemical from Permachink that we can wash with - diluted down, it will not harm the deck at all, it will remove the mildew, it is safe on glass and it's very affordable. There is no bleach nor percarbonate and no risk of lopsided coloration upon finishing the wash. The only disclaimer we will need with this process is that it is not a substitute for correctly prepping the wood for restaining. YIPPEE - persistence pays off :) Celeste P.S. Thanks for the cheering section Carlos :)

Yep - but I think if we take your approach (after further conversation w/ you) we'll be presenting the el cheapo wash with disclaimer to the agent and the full service project to the seller. I'll call you tomorrow about it if that works for you :) Celeste