Aplus

I use a marine battery as well. The only down side is weight. By the end of the day, they get pretty heavy when loading back into the trailer. But they do have capacity, I've run mine for 8 hours with no problem.

OK....gotta ask this question. If you leave the customer some stain for touch up, how much do you leave, and in what kind of container? TWP makes some nice little aerosol spray touch up bottles, maybe an ounce or two. I used to give those out, with a sticker on the side with my company info. I think they were about $2 each.

Some truck wash detergents contain metisilicate and can be used in house wash mixes if proportioned right.

I too have been considering the electric wind option for my reels. My rotator cuffs just can't handle all the manual winding anymore, especially when it's colder outside. Anyone else have info to share?

I always keep a couple pump ups in the trailer for use as backups incase my 12v system fails and I can't easily field repair it.

Regarding not killing plants..... Often times, the damage to plants is not apparent for 1-2 weeks (or more) after the plant has been exposed to the chems. Even after prewetting the plants, and rinsing afterwards, the effects of strong caustics can still be a problem, thru root absorption, etc. Often times, the homeowner won't even make the connection that anything we did could have caused the plant to die. I've seen this happen at condo complexes, because often times I'm in and out of the complex throughout the whole summer, so I get a chance to see effects even months later. So unless you follow up and check them out after extended times, you can't always say you never kill plants.

INteresting........

This thread really shows the differences in housing between regions. I'd estimate that the calls for houses here break down like this: 1 story...30%, basic 2 story....60%, and high in the sky.....10%. On the "high in the sky" houses, many of the gutters are 2.5 - 3 stories up, and are too high for any brushes I have. Also with the fancy roof lines, and dormers, etc, I too have a hard time with those. In these cases, where the gutters are too dangerous to reach, I tell the customer up front that I'll clean those the best I can, but they won't be perfect. I then explain the saftey issues as to why that is. Actually the higher gutters are usually not as noticable as the lower ones anyway, so if I get the reachable ones completely clean, and the uppers half as clean using just my xjet, it normally looks very acceptable in the end. For me the bottom line is eduacating the customer exactly what I can do, and paint a picture for them of the results, so there is no surprise. In doing so they can better understand why my prices may be higher than other estimates they get. Almost always, the customers tell me I explained my processes very well, and most of the other competitors didn't even discuss those things, or the results to be expected. This is a great thread!

When I checked last, the bidding was at $2,024. That would be an absolute steal. In fact, if it could be had for $2500, it would still be a great deal.

I would have to say that you hired painters to paint, and they did just that, they weren't hired to clean the windows. Now if they would have left any trim or moldings unpainted because they didn't upsell trim work, that's the difference. A car wash is just that..... washing the car. Of course it doesn't include wax and armor-all. Those are upsells, just like we would upsell cleaning the concrete, or applying a premium sealer/wax on a house. I'm sorry but I have to say your examples are comparing apples to oranges. But like we've all come to realize, different regions of the country, and differences in expendible income play largely into what we as contractors can or have to do to stay in business. Just my .02, not trying to be mean spirited....so don't take it wrong Ken.

Thanks for providing this site!! Look for a Paypal.

Only one way to prep, and I have two different stains that I offer.

Another good reason to use a dual lance, so you can instantly dial down the pressure and reduce the back splash.

My thought is the outside of the gutters are part of the house, and therefor should be cleaned. It's built into the price. To me, not cleaning the gutters/fascia, would be like getting a car wash and them not cleaning the bumpers. It's part of the car and so the whole thing should be cleaned completely. However, if your sales advertising is set at a low price to get the call, then you go there and upsell to get the price you need to be competitive, then that's another story. An example that comes to mind is, around here carpet cleaning companies offer cheap deals like $19 per room for a general cleaning. Upsells include spot removal, pet odor removal, and even scotch garding upon completion. That's my take.

Here's a couple pertinantint sites regarding oxalic acid: http://www.jtbaker.com/msds/englishhtml/o6044.htm http://alsnetbiz.com/homeimprovement/oxalic_acid.html

Most pressure washers with the 11hp Honda are 4gpm @3200psi. If that's what it is, and it's in good shape, it may be worth buying to get started. In the future when you upgrade, you can always keep the machine for an emergency backup.

If you used a sureflow, it would need to have at least the same output as your powerwasher, if not a little more. Do they even make sureflows 4gpm and above?

When I followed the link, it came us as $299, and no mention of free shipping. Looks like a fairly decent unit, but I'm partial to Steel Eagle myself.

Well I'm not sure what Plymouth called that color, but Dodge really made it famous, as GO MANGO. Since your hunk of Detroit iron is a Dodge, we'll call it Go Mango!

That's really nice work Ken! Any more, I don't have the patience for all the effort you put into that job. Maybe at this time of the year when things are slow I might tackle such a job, but not during the summer rush. I hope you made out well because I know how hard you had to work to get results like that!

If the emulsifier is leaving a haze on the windows, that means it is drying. Most any good housewashing soap is going to be higher on the alkaline side, and prone to causing haze on windows if allowed to dry. The key is to prewet the windows and rinse them before the wash mix has a chance to dry. I know it can be done, it just requires practice and a good technique. My feelings on laundry detergent is that it's best used to wash clothes. Good house wash mixes have other ingrediants formulated especially for washing houses. You can use the search function on this board to find plenty of info and previous discussions regarding house wash mixes.

I've always found the light blue to be the worst too! Care does need to be taken to not leave lines all over from a regular xjet, I'd use the new xjet with the fan pattern spread wide to avoid funky markings. I would also use a normal house washing mix, but most importantly, discuss in ADVANCE with the customer that the siding will come clean, but likely be dull. A wax application helps a tiny bit, but it's just not feasible to restore a noble shine once the color pigments have oxidized and been washed away. But that's just my .02.

The color is actualy GO MANGO. But I always called it GO MAN GO! Cool Dodge man! One could only really fantasize it to be a hemi cuda. Even one in rough shape can command $50k +.

I figured you've been around here long enough to know what most of us would say....:)

Is the check ball inside moving freely? Sometimes they stick and don't allow a draw.