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Camelot

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Posts posted by Camelot

  3. Posted · Report reply

    I get my poles at Home Depot...I buy my gutter brushes at auto stores. I can't remember who first suggested it, but someone on this board recommended auto stores because the brushes are big and fluffy, yet gentle on painted surfaces and hold tons of liquid. I bought a brush with a 24" pole attached for about $15-$20. I removed the short shaft and attached the brush to my long pole and it worked GREAT!

    - John

  11. Posted · Report reply

    I wanted to take a minute to share this story for those of us that haven't been in the business quite as long as some of the veterans on this board...it goes to show that fear of the unknown may be preventing you from making money!

    I recently got the contract to clean a couple of newly constructed, million dollar homes that had sand faced brick on them. Having never cleaned it before, I innocently contacted Eacochem to ask about bucket ratios, application process, etc. I've cleaned several regular brick homes with NMD80, but never sand faced brick. Eacochem was naturally trying to protect themselves by telling me to use very weak ratios of NMD80 and to ONLY rinse with a garden hose, etc...as if I was cleaning butterflies...LOL. The rep then began telling me horror stories of others that have cleaned sand-faced brick and how contractors won't even touch it, etc.

    At this point, I am FREAKING out...I was petrified of ruining these homes and was envisioning lawsuits and damages and all sorts of ugly stuff. Well, I called Roger at Carolina ProWash and asked him for some advice. He gave me TONS of confidence by simply explaining what his experience has been with sand-faced brick and how easy it really is if you clean it correctly. The trick is LOW pressure, NMD80, and LOTS of scraping.

    Both houses came out beautiful and not only am I proud of myself, but I am now the "sand-faced brick guy" because everyone else is so scared of it. I charged for my time (because it is a bit time consuming with all the scraping) and it's a win-win situation for everyone! I just thought I'd share because overcoming my fear put me in a great spot to earn money and I learned something to boot!

    - John

  15. Posted · Report reply

    Jeff -

    I think follow up is KEY to landing jobs. I have the same philosophy with residential customers or anyone I give a bid to. As long as you're not being a PITA, it shows great professionalism to follow up. I've often jogged the memory of customers that have put me on the back burner for one reason or another, and wind up getting the job. Fortunately for those of us that try to project a professional image (probably anyone that takes the time to be on TGS), it is easy to look like a rock star in this business. There are so many "fly by night", unprofessional people in our line that things like following up, or free estimates, or thank you letters go a LONG way.

    - John

  22. Posted · Report reply

    Chris -

    I have a 4gpm 4000psi machine and I just spoke to a Big Guy dealer yesterday. Of course his opinion is skewed, but he insisted that my machine would handle the big guy fine, albeit slow. He offered to let me rent one for the weekend ($50) to try it out. I haven't taken him up on his offer yet, but if I do I will let you know how it works out.

    - John

  25. Posted · Report reply

    I am a devout Gutter Shock fan...I love the results it gives and I find it relatively easy to work with. That being said, lately I've had some trouble with it. On 2 or 3 houses, there were simply no results. First, I used the same solution I've always used with great success. Then, I made the solution significantly stronger (not quite taking paint off, but close) and tried it...again no results. I always brush it on and xjet it off. When I say no results, I mean NO results. The gutters were heavily streaked when I started, and just as heavily streaked when I finished. I think it's one of two things...the cold weather or the fact that all 3 houses were "starter" houses...Relatively small homes that may have inferior gutters on them? Has anyone ever experienced this or have any ideas on what may be causing it? Thanks for any help.

    - John

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