Aplus

If the clear coat is an oil based product, it cannot be applied over a latex stain. Check the label on the can for info on required surface preparation. Tell the customer you only follow the manufacturers instructions. As Paul stated, you must find out what the customer is wanting, and educate them on the proper procedure for providing that service. Sometimes all a customer needs is a little reassurance that you have an interest in the care of his deck. Once you gain his trust, he will be more willing to turn over the decision to you as to how best to care for the deck. That's a golden opportunity to sell a maintenance plan.

I have applied solid latex stain to wood fences and lattice many times with my airless sprayer. Never once did I backbrush, and they all turned out nice. It's an entirely different thing spraying latex stain on spindles and railing systems. You need to do a little brushing to smooth out any runs or drips. Latex does not flow well, like oil does. It's best to have a helper work behind you with a brush, after you spray it. Latex stain can dry fast under certain conditions, and you don't want to leave brush marks in the stain, or have it start congealing before you can smooth it in.

Gav, You may not be able get those painted fascia boards clean. Painted surfaces can be like that. Permanently stained. Gutter Zap may work, but don't let it dwell too long on a painted surface, because GZ does have sodium hydroxide in it, which could start lifting the paint. Limonene will damage paint if applied too strong, or allowed to dwell too long. Bleach may lighten some of the streaks. Don't even think about higher psi when washing. Sometimes repainting is the only solution. Explain to the customer that you used as much cleaning power as you could without damaging the paint, and it would not come clean. There can be a fine line where increasing chem strength, or vigorous scrubbing will damage the surface. The trick is to work up to that line, but don't cross it. Painted surfaces are not forever maintenance free. It should be expected that once a surface has been painted, it will need to be painted again some time in the future, at regular intervals.

There is a noticable difference in weight between the 3/8 and 1/4 inch hose. I don't downstream, so I bought the 1/4" for the weight savings. The main problem with any kind of extension pole at 24 feet is controlling it. I find that 24 feet is too high to safely operate an extension pole. I have a 24 footer, but only extend it to about 18 foot max. That is just my opinion, others may vary. The only problem I have with the Extendawand is that it is harder to let off on the trigger once it gets going. The pressure keeps the handle jammed into your hand, and hard to let off. It is however, somewhat less fatiguing than other styles. And the pin lock mechanism is FAR better than the twist cam lock style that others use. So many times I cannot get an adequate grip on the twist lock to loosen it. I end up having to wrap the end of my t-shirt around the cam to be able to twist it. A couple times I had to use pliers. At some point, I plan to switch all my extension poles to Extendawands, but it may take awhile due to the up front cost.

I get 3-5 telemarket calls on my business line per day. It's ridiculous. I wish there was a hot list to opt out of spam email.

There are always times when we don't feel that something turned out as good as we hoped it would. That's the nature of wood man. As long as the homeowner was happy, that's the main thing.

All I use for house wash advertising is an ad in the yellow pages. Sometimes I upsell on deck jobs, but not very often. By the time I'm done, I've already taken all the money off the table...:D But I do about 15-20 house washes per season, and they make nice fill ins for when the weather doesn't permit other kinds of work.

One neat idea I read is too buy some lengths of the black foam pipe insulation that is sold in three foot lengths at HD or Lowes. Snap those over the hose to keep the hose from touching the glass. OK...credit where due....it was Ron P's idea, and I think it's a good one!

Personally, I feel the xjet is not the correct tool for applying gutter cleaner. I know some do with great success, while apparently others are not sharing in the same results. Gutter cleaner is too expensive to freely xjet, as well as too caustic to be spraying all over everything while trying to get it on the gutters. That's my .02. I mix gutter zap in a five gallon pail at 1 part gz to 2 parts water. I apply it to the gutters either with a pump up sprayer for single story homes, or via a brush on taller homes. In either case, I use my brush to obtain the best results. I have not yet had a gutter that could not be cleaned. Naturally I have some long brush extension poles, and they can get a little unwieldy at times, but like anything else, practice makes perfect. If I couldn't get gutters clean, I wouldn't offer house washing services, which would be too much revenue to pass up on. A clean house with dirty gutters is like a clean car with dirty wheels and tires....an incomplete job.

Ron, I didn't know that. Thanks for the input.

For residential deck work, I use a 5x8, which is a little tight, but very workable if the inside is configured correctly. I carry two portable cold water machines, and everything needed to wash and stain decks, as well as wash houses. The 5x8 easily fits in almost all residential parking situations. It's also nice because it fits inside my garage which has a typical seven foot high door. My bigger trailer would require an 8 foot door to store it inside.

One drawback of a bigger trailer is that it becomes more difficult to manuever/park in some residential areas. Here is a pic of my hot water rig. It is a 6x12. Notice how it just barely fits between driveways. If I back it up into some driveways, it completely blocks the sidewalk. If you're going to do mostly commercial work, then parking space will not likely be an issue, and a nice roomy trailer is ideal. Something to consider.

If you know exactly what you want, and don't need sales assistance, Espec has the lowest prices of anybody. If you need service to assist you, or prefer the availability of service after the sale, their are many other places to buy from. I can email you the info, but I'm not going to post it here. apluspowerwashing@comcast.net

These are the best disposable sweat bands I've found. I've tried several types, and these work the best as well as being super conveniant, and inexpensive. With these on, the sunblock and sweat can't get in your eyes. You can take them off and wring them out in a second. They're also nice when you rinse them off with really cold water before putting them back on.

This hat is the whip. I have another I use that does not have the cooling band inside. The hat prevents my scalp burning, and provides coverage for my ears, and stops direct sunlight and uv rays from glaring right into my eyes. I'm not trying to promote any company, but check out Direct Safety for all the stuff you didn't know you needed until you spotted it in the catalog. It's also where I get my respirators, cartridges, safety glasses, gloves, etc.

I use SPF 30 lotion purchased from one of the chain pharmacy stores. It is labeled as "waterproof". I apply it on my entire face everytime I'm working out in the sun. It seems to hold up well thru heavy perspiration. I try to remember to reapply about every 4 hours. I've never been sunburned when applying it correctly. However, I can vouch that any perspiration that rolls off my forhead and into my eyes burns like heck. I wear a hat all the time otherwise the top of my head always gets sunburned. When washing I wear a baseball style hat, so I can pull down the brim which helps keep my face dry when I'm washing houses, and other vertical surfaces. When I'm staining, I wear a loose fitting wide brimmed hat. I just got a new one from Direct Safety that has a little chill band inside that you soak in water or put in your freezer before wearing. It's supposed to help wick the heat off your head. I'll post a pic of it, seems to be the whip for hot days. Direct Safety also has these cellulose strip sweat bands that work very well. We wear these on really hot days to stop the perspiration from running into our eyes.

All of the pump ups I own have pressure relief safety valves on the side that are supposed to vent off excessive pressure. Regardless of how you apply sodium hydroxide, be sure to wear appropriate safety gear, especially goggles. You can walk on a wooden leg, hear with a hearing aid, but you can't see with a glass eye.

Concrete was scorched by a propane grill burner that ruptured. A fireball erupted, and melted the supply line from the tank. Flames were all over, apparently shooting out over 15 feet. Has anyone ever cleaned concrete that has been scorched? What chems should I use?

Ron, That is interesting. Thanks for posting the link. I think that would be a good solution for use in your shop and garage. Perhaps not the best choice for around the pool area.

The customer has decided to have the concrete replaced. There was heavy spalling on the concrete, apparently from the intense heat. I'll be cleaning the ribbon around the pool to try blend it in with the new concrete. Sometime later this season. Thanks for the suggestions.

I think the jell would be a lot safer to roll on as opposed to spraying chems. Paul, Do you wear some kind of Tyvek suit to protect yourself? Can you share the precautions you take, just so everyone understands how they should equip themselves?

Paul, Maybe the bids from the others weren't including the use of Defy. Even so, .58 s/f is ridiculous for any product. Obviously, they are not doing wood card for a living, but rather weekend warriors. I always thought the main point of Defy was that it is water based, and less harmful to the environment. I really haven't done the research on that product, and I've only ever seen it on a deck one time, and it looked like poo-poo after one year. I would try to find out why the customer wants Defy, and if possible, try to build a case that other products are available that work as well or better, and cost less money.

On the can of Goof Off, it mentions that dried latex paint can also be removed. Often times, on condos that I do, the buildings have been repainted, and the sloppy painters didn't cover the decks right and drips of latex paint end up on the deck. In the past, I've used a single edged razor blade to more or less scrape off the paint drops, but I'm going to try the Goof Off next time. Also, I've actually had a couple decks that people have laid down pieces of indoor/outdoor carpeting on the decks, attached with two faced tape to hold it down. The adhesive from the tape dissolves right away with the Goof Off. Now I'm curious if Goof Off might remove citronella wax spilled on a deck.

Another easy way to quickly meaure chems is as follows: Go to a dollar store. Buy several clear plastic measuring cups. You'll need one cup for every dry chem you plan to use. Use a scale to weigh out various amounts, then pour it into the measuring cup, and mark the cup to indicate that particular amount. Use fingernail polish to mark the cups, magic marker wears off too quickly. All the dry chems I use come packaged in resealable plastic pails, and I keep a measuring cup in each one, with the appropriate hash marks indicating the common portions I use. I hope I explained this clearly, if not, I expect to hear from Paul....;)

Ditto to what Paul said. That's how I do it too.