JeffW

Use a ladder and go up and scrub it,then just simply rinse,it's not as much of a pain as people think.I mean the hourly rate pro cleaners get is enough to make it worth using the proper techniqes it takes to do a job the best it can be done.Not only that but if you say thats the best you can do you'll never have much repeat work.

Water blasting a driveway is'nt brain surgery,Sure he's holding the gun far away but maybe he's in the act of whisking away what he has just cleaned.I'm not going to bust on a fella for doing something on his own.And maybe he did'nt care to get it done "lickety split".Maybe he was just enjoying the day.

I would just clean them as usual.If they're not in to bad of shape they might be revitalized simply by removing the oxidation.If they are to far gone they will probably need painted.Alot of the shudders I do are not like vinyl siding,meaning they are not a solid color all the way through,they are usually black underneath the paint.I don't know why but they are.And they are not aluminum.

Big Bill....ClassicPW,The boats I clean do not have bottom paint.I'm comfortable with the price I'm charging.I probably could charge more but I have alot of loyal customers and I don't waant to raise the price just because I can,maybe down the road I'll have to ,but till then....Yes,I do wear protection.The boats I clean do not have barnicles.I can only tell you to experiment.A rotating nozzle would be very effective if the surface will take it.I would probably try oxalic first.In this case maybe bleach would be effective,especially to help the ghost images disappear.I'm sure you'll figure it out.I personally like a challenge here and there.It wouldn't be any fun doing a job that just any Joe Blow off the street could do.Search around a little and see if anyone else is doing this.It sounds to me like it's well worth pursuing,especially if you figure out a fast economical way to do it.Doing boat bottoms seems like a pain at first but once you figure out a way to do it effectively you'll be able to go into attack mode.If possible schedule any jobs you have on a Saturday.Especially when getting started because this is when there are customers usually hanging around the marina or storage yard or whatever.When people see you doing this it usually leads to more work.I hope this helps and feel free to ask questions any time you like.Good luck!

I looked at an old stone house today that is going to be repointed.I am going to remove the existing, very loose mortar with a rotating nozzle and an air chisel.The front of the house is whitewashed.I can honestly say this is my first experience with whitewash.I am going to do a test spot to see what it will take to clean it,I think re-wetting it should be just about enough to loosen it up but I am not positive,if anyone can give input I would appreciate it.Doing a test spot tommorow.Thanks.

I don't really advertise this myself,but the place where I do the boats lets people know the service is available to them and they don't offer it themselves so they refer all their bottom cleaning to me,it works out really well because after they winterize the boats they set them out for me to clean.The best thing you can do is do a great job for the customers and the rest will fall into place.I do more and more every year as word spreads.The first job I did was for a house wash customer and it just grew from there.But yes,if I were going to advertise I would talk to any local marinas or storage sheds about offering this service to their customers.I would say if they're not already having it done you would stand a good chance at it.As for chlorine,you would think this would work but it will not get it clean the way oxalic does.Not even close.Like I said though you might have a different type of algae so it might be worth a try,all it can do is fail.I tried it when I first started because it seemed like the thing to do but it did'nt work.Oxalic in bulk, is just as cheap anyhow and does'nt smell as bad.

Also,if you can buy the oxalic acid in bulk.There are cleaners on the market that are made for bottom cleaning but there effective ingredient is oxalic acid.I buy mine in 55 lb. bag for around $50.00 from a local chemical supplier.But I have seen it on the internet for sale in bulk also.Not sure what the shipping would be.But I do know this stuff sells for around $22.00 dollars a pound when you buy it from a company that sells it as "boat bottom cleaner".So the shipping would still be more cost effective anyhow.Mix (1) lb. granular to (5) gal. hot water.It does not lose its effectiveness when sitting.I did a couple of boats this past Spring and I used the stuff I had mixed up last Fall and it worked the same as freshly mixed.......... Super Purple mixed 50/50.Thanks!

ClassicPW and Tropical Wave , the boats I do are boats that are coming out of the water to be put into storage.Don't do piers but I can see work in that if it was pursued,especially any that might have heavy build-up of any kind that may pose a slipping hazard.I do not offer interior or full detail,although there is alot of business in that work, but it is alot of work.For me boats are kind of a sideline to what I do now and I'm trying to keep it simple and fast.I mostly do residential houses,decks,concrete etc..I 'm not familiar with your area but I would think that you should be able to get more than $2.00 a foot.The people who own these $30,000 and up boats are usually willing to pay what it's worth to keep them in good shape,and most of them surely don't wanna do it themselves.I would think the algae is mostly the same type everywhere but I am not positive of this.But the two cleaners I use are oxalic acid for the green algae and Super Purple for the water line.Super Purple is just a general type cleaner/degreaser.I'll briefly explain how I do it:When I get there the firest thing I do is spray the bottom of the boat with oxalic acid,be sure and get total coverage because if you don't it will show and you'll have to respray anyhow so it's just easier to get it right the first time.And then while it's doing its thing I am getting set up to blast it off.I use the trigger handle only,this allows me to lay on my back and strip the algae off very fast,rather than trying to manipulate the whole wand under there.And you need to have the spray pattern hitting the surface squarely.The best analogy I can think of is stripping a deck.Gel coat is very tough and unless there is a visible problem you are not going to hurt it.I use a 25 degree nozzle,but any degree fan pattern will work.Oxalic acid will make the bottom super clean.Then I use the Super Purple to remove the water line.When set up properly and the proper method used this is very fast.I wear a wet suit when it begins to get cold because I lay on the ground and 45 degrees is cold if your wet.It is a great way to end the Summer season.I hope I was able to answer your questions and thanks for responding.If you have any other questions feel free to ask.

Does anyone else ever worry about wortking around electricity?I don't want to say I worry aabout it but it is always in the back of my mind when I get around it.Still standing after ten years,that alone makes me a little more comfortable.I'm not afraid of it but I do respect it.Doing flood clean-up in a basement is a great place to worry.Thanks for any replies.

I have been in this business for ten years now,and I have to tell you that my experience with these little rinkey-dink shur-flo pumps has been less than good.I bought one about seven years ago and thought it was worthless.But I am new to this site and all I see on here is info and talk about these pumps,so I thought maybe I'm missing something here, so I went and bought one today ,but it was the same as before, completley worthless.I took it back immediately.These things do not come close to my commpressed air sprayer.I took an air commpressor tank and rigged it up like a typical pump sprayer.It takes a little welding and hydrostatic testing but believe me when it's done it's a lot better than those worthless little pulsating pumps that everyone is raving on.It's stationary and you get good steady pressure with it.It holds ten gallons of cleaner.Those little shur-flo pumps just slop the cleaner on,the commpressed air makes it bubble and cling to the surface.You guys should do yourselves a favor and try this.I just had to give my opinion.

I should also mention that where I live usually only one side of the roof needs cleaned,that could also explain the difference in amount of product used.

ccpc,you're probably correct about being plumbed properly,but I am not a greenhorn at this roof cleaning stuff.It could be that you just naturally use more than I do.I'll tell you this though I use hth pool chem.1 lb. granular calcium hypochlorite to (5) gal. water.Very effective.One application on even a bad roof.Get everything nice and wet and start at about 6:00 a.m. before the sun comes up so the product can work without being "eaten" by the sun.Thanks for replying!

ccpc,Ten gallons is usually enough for a standard rancher roof.If you use more than that it is probably running off.Even if I do refill it is still less frustrating than that pulsating crap and keeping a battery charged.

My experience with these pumps on a roof is pulsating.I like a constant flow of fluid,makes for more even coverage and a lot less frustation.Not looking for an arguement just had to state my opinion.The psi is the same at the nozzle as it is in the rest of the system and you can keep it "charged" with a compressor to keep a steady psi rate if you have a lot to spray.But yes, I do wash houses with this system.But everyone has there own method.Was actually wondering if anyone else used a compressed air sprayer.Thanks for responding.

I use bleach as a part of my cleaning process 99% of the time.Another way to help hide the smell is to dilute it down more.In my experience I find this will eliminate the strong chlorine smell and still be as effective.Only real difference is how fast it works but even though it takes a little longer the results are the same.And it will even save a little money.Not that bleach is expensive, but hey save where you can.

I don't generalize house washing.I mean they can all be different and have different "obstacles",meaning you can take two identical houses and put them on different landscapes and have two different prices.I not only charge by the house, but what I have to work around.I look at and bid every job separately.