John Orr

Amen to 8 gpm - especially hot! It sure is nice to be able to walk at a normal pace when using a surface cleaner - no matter how dirty the driveway. I now use a 28" Big Guy - cleans right to the edge with very little "cutting-in".

Moss is not going to just go away on its own. You either have to allow future rains to rinse it off after the roots have let go, or use a direct spray, as you did. I prefer to allow Mother Nature to do the rinsing, but you must inform the customer prior to doing the work. If you rinse immediately after applying chems, you run the risk of removing the granuals that the moss has attached itself to - leaving black "spots".

Many use chems made for gutters, but I have found that Simple Green, applied with a soft-bristle brush, works very well...and fast.

Yeah, I'm sure their rep does too! (I didn't mean to offend, but I'm sure I was only stating a consensus opinion.)

The sight of the back of my old Dodge was what convinced me to go with a van. More room, places to hang stuff, shelves - and I can lock it all up when working in certain areas and at night - and no one can see what a bunch of junk I wind up toting around!. My trailer is self-contained, so unless they strip it, there's not much to steal. (Been thinking about some kind of motion detector/alarm for the trailer.)

One word - Restora! lol

Call anytime, I've added my number to my signature 757/718-5442.

Oil - no wax.

So sub-out the other work and deal with the PM work yourself. I sub for another pwer ($500/day using my eqipment) in my area. We had magnetic signs to cover my logo and I wear his co's shirt. He trusts me to represent him well - and I do. I'm sure you could find someone to help you out and still sleep at night without worrying about how badly the job will get screwed-up.

I have been using Olympic Max exclusively for about 4 years. They guarantee not to gray for 3 years - and it doesn't. Honey Gold and Cedar Naturaltone are my favorites. I just recently stripped a 3 1/2 year old Honey Gold deck (still looked great) and resealed with Cedar. OMax strips VERY easily (downstreamed stripper) with low pressure. I apply with a backpack sprayer, brush and 6" foam roller. Almost impossible to leave a drip or lap mark.

OK, so why are YOU doing it now - if "some guy" was so good. Aside from that, it has been another 2 years of UV exposure - duh! Now that I have that out of my system... When I encounter such situations, there are a few things I do to blend-in a "clean" area: Do not apply any chems to it; Apply a stronger oxalic mix around it; When staining, apply 2 coats on it. Oh yeah, I always try to remember to let the customer know that it may not match. Think about replacing a board and trying to perfectly blend it. Much worse when its only sections of boards.

I own a garage-full of tools and have read many books on car repair - but I still take my vehicles to a mechanic. I know how to trim a tree, build a house, have a baby (!?), an operation - I've seen it many times on TV - but I am not likely to do these things myself. I would have politely stood firm on my price, say I would be disappointed if she decided to do it herself, but for liability reasons I would not offer any advice. There is no "magic" in what we do. Knowledge is one thing, and I always try to educate my customers, but experience (and insurance) is what adds value to our services - whatever we do.

OK, here's my guess. The last "person" to "clean" this fence used no chems, lots of pressure and no sealer at all. In fact, it looks like he was trying to strip a pre-existing brown stain.

I absolutely agree with Mike. No way you are at fault - not almost a month later. Talk to any landscaper, many plants/shrubs/trees have been stressed this "spring" and are suffering. Find out what died, then talk to a landscaper or garden center. EDIT Actually, I would "arm" myself with this info before I meet with customer. If you can tell him that everyone else is having the same problem - you're off the hook. As to your mix, I find your combination of chems curious. If it works, great, but you could probably leave out everything but the Jomax (use a liquid rinse aid instead of the Cascade - one or two healthy squirts in 5 gal) and have great results. By the way, remember where your chems are applied - on the house and they run down to the foundation. Unless you sprayed his plants too, no way they were ever touched. Worst case, a delicate flower may wilt, but I have never had one die from my mix - and I've been downstreaming for over 7 years. Now the tricky part - what to do now. How badly do you want to keep this customer? Even if every house on his block has dead and dying plants in their yards, you may want to at least offer an olive branch. You could offer to: refund some portion of what he paid; buy him some new plants; labor to help pull and re-plant; kill some more to "even-out" his yard - just kidding.

3200/4 is enough for anything up to 24". The question is - how slow do you want to go? Proper tip size is critical - 2.0 tips for you. 15 or 25 degree - I like 25 myself.

I have never had a problem with 5/8". I run 8 gpm (with a 300 gallon tank that I usually have about 50 gals to start a job) and rarely run into a flow situation. Most of my customers have municipal water, so gpm's are usually 6+ gpm. The biggest reason I use 5/8" is that 100' of 3/4" won't fit on my reel!

Randy, Downstream your normal housewash mix. Rinse with the chem tip. I have customers ask me all the time if they should remove the screens and I tell them that unless there is a need to remove a lot of bug debris from between the window and the screen, there is no need. The housewash mix will go through the screen, wash the window and trim, and clean the bug debris - which they can vacuum out. Since most people never open their windows, they wouldn't even notice the debris.

Ditto, but with Simple Green. Straight if temps below 60.

One way to know if the color has faded, or just the original sealer, is to wet a "faded" area. If it brings back the color, re-sealing should be all you need. V-Seal has a great product for this - as Rod suggested, give them a call. Their advice will make you look like a pro.

I used to pay for TWC on my cell. I now have a "SmartPhone" with a larger screen and internet access, so I use the local TV station's looping radar - for free.

Which SureKleen did you use? The 600 should have worked. Wet the brick, spray it on, brush (sometimes) and repeat.

The Steel Eagle (I too have a 24" - though I just upgraded to a Big Guy) doesn't come with an in-line filter - you may want to consider one. One way to check for clogged tips is to tip the sc on its side and look for water dripping from the tips. Rotate the bar to check each tip. If water is dripping equally, it may be the gun. Do you have full flow with a regular wand? Why is there a clog? (If there is one.) Do you have an in-line filter? Do you filter your water supply? What is the clog? I had a clogged sc once and it turned out to be a piece of gasket (or something) from the pump. Fixed the clog, but still no flow. Check the simple stuff first. FWIW, I carry a 20" spare sc in the van - just in case.

I've washed many houses with this type of siding. In fact, I have washed 8 of them in the last few days! In general, they wash like a regular house. Where you may have a problem is if the paint is bubbling, then you'll need your turbo nozzle. The siding itself is quite hardy and will tolerate pressure - just not too much. (I reduce pressure to about 1000 with the turbo.)

I was a manager for Terminix for six years and never heard of this. There is no language in any termite warranty that claims any lessening of coverage due to the use of any chemical. Having said that, there is a possible issue with bait stations (they look like sprinkler head covers) near homes. When placed, there is just wood inside to attract termites. Only after they start feeding (maybe weeks - maybe never) is chem added. Bleach might have an effect if it got in the station. Soil treatments, by law, must be performed in the soil at the foundation only - and not at the surface. So - unless the foundation is saturated, there can be no affect on the termiticide. Lastly, if you spray bleach on a representative from the termite company, it will repel him/her and protect your home from the termite company.

All of the machines you mentioned will clean all that you mentioned - it will just take a while. Hopefully, your learning curve will be short and not entail too much damage to your home. Even though these machines are not "contractor grade", they have sufficient power to both clean and cause damage. For example it can: chip painted trim; score vinyl siding (leaves wiggly marks all over); scar wood by stopping mid-board and while probably not powerful enough to damage you driveway, it is almost impossible to clean concrete evenly without leaving streaks - and an average driveway will take you hours to clean. My customers pay .10 per square foot (total living space). I actually have a coupon in the phone book(s) that allows for a free driveway (takes me about 20 minutes) cleaning for first-time customers. I would imagine that you can find a qualified (read licensed and insured) contractor in your are that would charge similar prices. Many of my customers own pressure washers and have tried to wash their own homes in the past. As I said, its not that you CAN'T do it yourself, but if you do a cost/benefit analysis, you will most likely come to the conclusion that it makes more sense to hire a professional. If you conclude that doing it yourself is the way to go, and assuming you have a one-story home (I would NEVER recommend a homeowner pressure wash while on a ladder. There is a "kick" when you pull the trigger that will try to knock you off!) buy some Jomax at Lowes, mix according to instructions, and use the downstreamer (the plastic tube hanging off your machine) to apply the chemicals to your home and rinse. Stay as far away from the siding (It is vinyl, right?) as possible. Rinse, rinse, rinse - especially the windows.