Jonathan Chiplock

Well with the industry we are all involved with, it can be difficult for an insurance company to give you good rates and coverage to cover all aspects. Considering the risks, such as houses, windows, decks and what not, we have a lot of liability on our hands. What insurance companies is everyone using and what are your annual rates. What kind of coverage are they giving you. From my understanding, it is the exhaust hood cleaning that really adds to your rates. Im just looking to see if I am getting fair rates. My insurance agent is J.D. Walters Insurance Agency from Pittsburgh, PA and the Insurance Company is Peerless Insurance Co. out of Keene, NH. I have 1 million coverage and I primarily do Houses, Decks, Driveways and mostly residential. I do not have my equipment insured and my annual rates is slightly over $800. Does this seem like a fair price?? Thanks for all replies in advance.

If you cant remove it when doing your test spot just walk away... its not worth all the headaches.

I use both backpack sprayers and shurflo... both have their advantages.

Well with the season beginning for most people, I just wanted to see what everyone is using in their house wash mixtures and techniques. I know this has been a past topic but not recently. In a 5 gallon bucket i mix: 2 parts emulsifier plus or limonene 1.5 parts bleach .5 part cascade as a rinse agent 1 part water I mix the solution and use my m5 x-jet to wash. I can normally tackle an average 2 story house in under 2 hours. I have just purchased Powerhouse from sunbrite and I am going to try this out. Anyone using it now??? How do you like it?? I alter my mixture with bleach and water depending on mold/mildew and other challenges. It seems to be working pretty well. Jon Chiplock The Pressure's On Butler, PA

Not sure what to tell you if it ate that finish away. You need to be very careful with overspray and prewet and rinse everything that isnt supposed to be stripped. Good luck!

Sounds good but how do you go about getting your boiling water, do you just ask the customer if you can boil a pot of water?? I educate the customer about the fungus and say I will attempt to remove but no guarantees.

Coming from a firefighter perspective, find a 6 foot wooden ladder and nail a board to it that is enough to cover the rails the length of the ladder. Once ontop of the roof, lay the ladder down and use that to stand on, it will dispurse your weight and shouldnt slide out from under you, maybe tie a rope around it and the top of the roof. Then as you work, just slide the ladder around. Good Luck! Jon

First off, Rodney... good luck on your strip, behr can be nasty. I ran into a guy who applied behr three years in a row to his deck without cleaning it inbetween. I ended up using hd80 full strenght with boost and it still took two strips to take it off. Take your time and be patient. Oh, DONT PUT BEHR BACK ON!! I know they make oil and i think latex, not sure what you are dealing with but if the sample didnt touch it then its probably not oil. Keep us posted on how it comes out. Second, what are the osbourne brushes? I have not seen these before. Jon

I also use a wagner sprayer... great investment that isnt much $$. I like to apply my stains by hand on the verticals with pads but I spray lattice and other areas that are too time comsuming to do by hand. Always turns out good.

Stay away from all zep products... pay for the good stuff and you will get much better results.

Its a pretty huge task to paint an aluminum sided house. Does the homeowner know what is in store for him. Typically they are sprayed, how does he plan to apply the paint?? Sometimes I think it is easier to pay someone to do stuff like this.

You never want to let any chemical dry on the windows, this goes for tsp also.

412 831 8222 is the number for Walters Insurance Agency. I recommend going through them.

How are you applying the chems?? Just straight tsp and water or anything else mixed in. I suggest putting in a surfactant such as cascade or dawn. Wear protective clothing and eyewear. Jon

Ive used it and it came back in less than a year... went to Emul Plus, 12%, Cascade 1.5 years ago and it still isnt back, at least not enough to need cleaning again. There is better things out there than tsp.

I have only used tsp once and it was on white painted cedar siding, it was cleaned prior to repainting. it is some pretty wicked stuff and never decided to use it on anything else. Do you use it on all of your house washes?

It depends on what kind, there is wood that is just dipped in treatment which only lasts a few years and then the stuff that is pressure treated goes clear through the wood, lasts a very long time. Although it is coated, stain or sealant still has to be applied to the wood each time it is cleaned and it should be cleaned and stained soon after it is built.

Mostly wood, driveways, and houses for me... A lady called me once to do her stone mantle and fireplace are in her living room. I thought she was kidding at first.

The only time you would etch the concrete is for a smooth surface, for example a basement or garage floor. For a driveway, it is already rough and will absorb the seal. I recommend vseal www.vseal.com a little pricey but a wonderful product. Call and talk to Jay, he knows his stuff. I wash, rinse, wait a day to dry then come back and apply by shurflo or pump sprayer. Then i take a broom and lightly drag over the surface, similar to backbrushing a deck. This sealant dries clear in minutes.

I generally stay away from follow ups simply because i hate to pressure the potential customer. I feel that I have made my sales pitch and if he wants my work he will call. Hounding the guy isnt going to help.

It is difficult to just look at a deck and tell what sq footage you have, how much stain you need, how much chemical, and most importantly how much time. Plus, you need something to base your prices on. A concrete company doesnt go to quote a job just by looking at it and not figureing out how much materials they will need, neither should we. I was burned a few times just looking, then i formulated a very detailed estimate formula that takes into account sq footage, height, steps, railings, chemicals needed, stain needed, and any other costs. Now my prices are always right on target. It also lets the customer know exactly where every cent is going. I have pretty much close to 100% closing rate and I think it definitely goes by technique and professionalism.

Wouldnt citraolic sp? acid work?

Pretty much the same for me... just look professional. If its a strip job I always give a demo, Lets them see how clean it will come. Brochures and color sticks for your products also go a long way. Just educate them about the process you use so they think you are the best person to go with.

water supply is also a major concern with a 10.2 gpm machine...

What type of waxes are you guys using... The only thing I use is Sil-O-Wet from envirospec. Seems to do the trick. Any others out there worth mentioning?