Paul B.

If you are looking to eliminate mold and mildew, the most effective and least damaging chemical is Sodium Hypochlorite (bleach). Sodium Hydroxide based products will also kill mold and mildew, but I personally think they can harm the asphalt shingles. Copper and Zinc based products also work well on mold & mildew.

I believe it is the Safety Web Site. I deleted all of them but I'll double check the next one I get.

Most mulch is aged and the fine mulch is double chipped with some againg between the 2 steps. (Info I gathered talking with 2 large landscapers in my area that make their own mulch.) The fungus is already in the mulch before you buy it (in majority of the cases.) I put down one batch in an area that is always in the shade, and within 2 weeks I had those nasty spots on the wall. Out of the same batch, I put down some in an area that's always sunny and that area does not have any fungus spots. I have spots in areas 90 degrees (around the corner from the mulch) and areas that are not in line of sight of any mulch at all. I assume that these pores are carried by the wind when they get airborne and arrive at their random destination on a windy day. Without the wind, it's most likely a straight shot. Ron, That 200,000 HP sounds a bit high (could get hurt if you got bombarded by a few). The numbers I read were in the 1/10,000 HP range. Regardless, these spores are pretty nasty. I wonder if a regular application of Preen say (March, May and July) would eliminate the problem? I'm not sure how much it helps, but here is a photo of an area covered with the fungus.

If someone had time on their hands, they could play with it and see how effective it is. I would start out with 4 oz. per gallon and work my way up from there unless you found 4 oz. formula to work very fast, then you would start going the other way by cutting it in half. At the 4 oz mix, I would check results at 5, 10, 15 and 30 minute intervals. If your results were minimal at 30 minutes, I would go to an 8 oz. mix and check again at 5, 10, 15 and 30 minute intervals. At that point you would definitely know where you stood in the game. Again your watchout is that you can get inconsistent results from batch to batch by not using the whole bag (if your bag says to use the entire content when opened).

I don't have macro on my digital, but I'll see if I can capture one on Tuesday. (Hope I can remember.)

Tony, The easiest way to do this would be to call one of the manufacturers and talk to a sales person and have them get the answer from one of their chemical engineers. I've approached it two ways in my thought process: - When I shock my pool, I use 2 gallons of 10.39% liquid pool shock. When I've used granular pool shock, I've used (2) 1 pound bags to achieve the same results. Liquid Sodium Hypochlorite is faster acting than Calcium Hypochlorite (…or is it?) - I have the same manufacturer making liquid and granular pool shock. He sells to a retailer who in turn sells the liquid for about $2 per gallon and sells granular for about $2.50 per pound. Would the manufacturer cut his own throat by manufacturing a granular product that was 6.5x as strong as the liquid and sell it at almost the same price? (No, but there are other differences between the two, such as pH.) Pool Care specialists have tried to make their work a black box form of art (or at least I have not found one that can explain things to me so I can clearly understand it). They have created so many different types of products, it can make your head spin. There are large service companies such as PoolClor (with 30,000 plus customers) that subscribe to operating pools at high pH of 7.8 - 8.2 (while the standards have been 7.2 - 7.6). Companies tell you that the effect of Hypochlorite can be greatly reduced at higher pH levels of 7.8 or 8.0. So from that, you should be able to deduce that if I buffer and reduce the pH to around 7.0 and maintain a high available or free hypochlorite level, then I'll have the most effective product on hand. But wait ...the effectiveness of liquid hypochlorite is very high at full strength of 12-1/4% even with a high pH of over 12 and as you dilute it, the strength goes away but the pH is also reduced, so should your product be just as effective diluted (with low pH water) as it is concentrated as long as you can find that pH curve. Here is what I think I know: Sodium Hypochlorite has pH value of around 13 Calcium Hypochlorite pH 8.5 Dichlor (Stabilized Chlorine Granules) about 7.8 Trichlor (Chlorine Tablets) pH value below 6 The effectiveness of FREE chlorine in water is dependent on the pH value Chlorine works more effectively in low pH than high pH water Chlorine in water breaks down into: Hypochlorous acid (HOCL) and Hypochlorite Ion (OCL) HOCL will destroy most organisms in less than 1 second while OCL can take up to 30 minutes to achieve the same results. Ratio of HOCL to OCL is determined by the pH value of the water: At pH level of 7.0 75% of the FREE chlorine exists in water At pH level of 7.4 52% of the FREE chlorine exists in water At pH level of 8.0 only 22% of the FREE chlorine is available. Sounds like checking the pH level (hardness) of the water that you use can help determine the effectiveness of Chlorine as well as all your other chemicals. This should explain (again) the differences from town to town, region to region why certain mixes work for some, while not for others. ...BUT YOU KNEW THAT ALREADY! There are other products and chemicals on the market that will kill mold & mildew, has anyone experimented with any of them? I'm talking about copper or zinc based products. Where can I buy a gallon of HOCL and how much does it cost?

Not all handrail sytems are the same so you should calculate until you get familiar enough to know the differences. I have run across handrail systems that were as much as 5.7 sq ft per linear ft. The difference may not kill you in cost, but why give away even a small amount.

Rob, There is an insert inside the unit which establishes an orifice and I believe it's made of plastic. This insert could be worn or the incorect size. Ron at Xterior can most likely help you.

Rob, The website KJ refereces is for Water Cannon out of Florida. Nice folks to deal with and normally will provide you with quick service. The unit may or may not take 3 weeks to get - it's drop shipped for them. I purchased one from them about 2 years ago and they told me 3 weeks max. - received it in 3 days. There are others that carry the same or similar units at different prices - shop around. The battery does not come with it. You can use a deep cycle or a $20 Sears battery. The unit will run a couple of full days off a full charge even with a $20 battery and should last at least a full year. The unit is 60psi, 1 gallon per minute unit with an on demand pump, however, it will not shoot your chemicals 20 ft. We use all ours mainly for acid spraying on new construction masonry cleaning. If you are only getting 15-20 ft with your X-Jet, talk to the folks you purchased it from as they may be able to help you increase that distance with some minor changes. Oneness, You don't need to wrench tighten the close-up nozzle - just light hand tightening will work fine as long as you get at least 3 or 4 turns on the thread. There is a risk that it may vibrate off if there is not enough thread engagement. It will shoot off like a bullit (speaking from experience). If you think the risk is too much, an open end wrench can always be carried in the back pocket.

I did test an area mixing Sodium Hypochlorite with Sodium Hydroxide without any improvement in results. I did not increase the Sodium Hydroxide content because of concerns with removing the paint from the gutter area. I will try to boost the Sodium Hydroxide content and test on vinyl siding only. Artillery Fungus is not a major concern in our day to day cleaning as we have only seen it on about 3 homes so far this year. What's interesting is that I have it on a small part of 2 sides of my shop and there is no mulch within 40 feet of either of the areas. I do have mulch in other areas but no fungus near by.

Rob, I tested your approach to Artillery Fungus removal and here are my results: - It's hard to keep straight chlorine on any surface for 20 minutes without reapplication or a surfactant additive. (This is especially true in the summer heat and direct sunshine.) So I added a squirt of dish detergent. - I soaked gutter and vinyl siding with 12-1/4% Sodium Hypochlorite and soap mix (no water) for 30 minutes. Area was in shade, temperature about 83F with humidity about 85%. Applied bleach soap mix every 3-5 minutes with a hand sprayer even if it was not starting to dry . - After 30 minutes, I rinsed with pressure washer (about 2000 psi). - A lot but not all of the fungus washed off the gutter area and downspout. I suspect the newer ones came off and the old stuff remained on there. (Just a guess, I could be wrong.) - The only impact to the fungus on the vinyl was that it easily removed the top layer of it. This is helpful, but it did nothing to remove the stain underneath the build-up. Most of this was older fungus about 1 year or older. The remaining stain could not be removed even with fingernail scratching. I soaked vinyl surface again for 30 minutes and rinsed without being able to remove any residue. I have to assume that because of the porous surface of the vinyl, the fungus adherance is much stronger. I was able to remove the residue with MEK, however, this also dulled the vinyl surface. (I knew this would happen as I had done this before but I needed to see how easily it would remove the stain). Let's see what results other folks obtain using your methods.

Tony, There is nothing for me to gain by mixing from granular form into a drum, then filling 1 gallon containers. It's time consuming to mix 1 bag at time then transfer to the drum, then transfer from drum to gallon containers, having to clean each container after every use, then fill without worrying about spills. You also have to insure that all containers are always labeled and inventory control is a bit more difficult. Besides, I like to stop in and chat with the boss and the employees as often as they will put up with me. Every now and then I even get a customer or two out of the deal on the spot. In addition, the employees are some of my sales people and they give me a list of names/addresses that may require our cleaning services and I pay them a commission if we land the job. Sometimes the boss takes me to lunch and sometimes I take the boss to lunch. The boss is also one of my best sales people and he does not want my commission. If I purchased granular Calcium Hypochlorite, I would be mixing and cleaning, labeling and filling bottles instead of spending time with my pool care specialists. P.S.: I also help rotate his liquid shock supply by purchasing larger quantities. As for Calcium Hypochlorite directions (without going into pool care or discussing the path that you've chosen): When you add it to your pool, do you then check the pH and free chlorine levels? If it's still not in balance then do you not add more, or neutralize with an acid if the pH is too high? I don't know what the back of your package contains but mine is full of directions, precautions, disclaimers. I will not copy the entire panel but hit the highlites. - The very first thing it says: "ALWAYS USE ENTIRE CONTENTS WHEN OPENED." (They have it in capital letters at the very top.) - Next: Follow "HOW TO USE" directions on this package. - Add 1 lb. of this product per 10,000 gallons of pool water. This will provide a dosage of 7.5 ppm free available chlorine. - Adjust and maintain pH to 7.2 - 7.6 using pH Plus (Increaser) or pH Minus (Decreaser). My note: pH Increaser contains Soda Ash (Sodium Carbonate) and pH Decreaser contains Sodium Bisulfate (you can also use Hydrochloric / Muriatic acid to achive same results). - DO NOT enter pool until the free available chlorine residual is between 1-3 ppm. To me this means: - You should know how many gallons of water are in your pool. - You should have and know how to read a pH strip. - You should have and know how to read a free available chlorine strip. - You should use the entire content of your package, then measure your pH and free available chlorine. Use pH Increaser or Decreaser to adjust pH level. - You should not use granular Calcium Hypochlorite in your kids 200 gallon wading pool. In any case, even if you only use half a bag, it's still up to you to check pH and free available chlorine levels. Bottom line: The liability is with the consumer to test the waters pH and free available chlorine before and after adding chemicals. I'll go out on the limb and say that a 1 pound bag of 68% Calcium Hypochlorite is not the equivalent of 6 gallons of 11.33% liquid Sodium Hypochlorite. Questions (???): How many 1 pound bags of 68% granular Calcium Hypochlorite ($2.99 per pound) do I need to mix to equal 55 gallons of 12-1/4% liquid Sodium Hypochlorite? Will 1 pound of granular Calcium Hypochlorite completely disolve in 1 gallon of water? Knowing that Calcium Hypochlorite comes in liquid and granular forms what is the difference between Sodium and Calcium Hypochlorite?

Try 4 then 8 oz. of 64% Calcium Hypochlorite per gallon of water. Calcium H. reacts slower to water than Sodium H. In both cases it's not indicated on my containers of Sodium H. and Calcium H. if they are by weight or volume. However, liquids are normally listed by volume whereas solids are by weight. Marketing strategies make this a wonderful game for the manufacturers as it makes it difficult for consumers to do an apples to apples comparison without buying the product. Judging by the way Calcium H. reacts in my pool vs. Sodium H., I would say that 1 lb of Calcium H. will equal to between 1 and 2 gallons of 12% Sodium H. (my estimate, nothing factual). I've been wanting to test this theory, but it's been low on my priority since not one person on my team is keen on mixing granules.

Trying the shutgun fungus removal method even as we speak. I hope you are placing a maximum on the size of the FREE driveway, patio, walkway wash. Majority of our driveways are over 1000 sq ft (a lot of them are in the 2000 to 3000 sq ft range). Even the walkways and porches on a lot of our houses are large. Including it in the price does not seem to motivate people in our area as much as when they see it in contrast to a clean area. We tend to work things the opposite way in using the concrete work as an add-on (or up-sell). It ends up about $46 per 1000 sq. ft. (or about $1 per minute). Fairly easy to sell once we clean a small area for free as we wash the house. We clean a small part of the walkway, driveway, patio and then ask if they would like that done. Works well a majority of the time. The other incentive is when we show a cost savings of doing it while we're there vs. if we have to come back another time. Our minimum is $135 no matter how small the job if we start out from even the next street. I would think if you did the house front gutter, it would be hard to sell the rest of it for $50 (especially if it's in the back of the house). See how your approach works. If it doesn't work real well, you may want to not include it in the work (make sure it's spelled out on the contract as "NOT included"), and as you wash the house, clean a very small section then show it to the customer and see if they are willing to add that on. Another approach would be to demo a small section when you are providing the estimate, providing a price with and without the gutter wash. Once a small part of the gutter is clean, it's hard for most customers to leave something partially cleaned. The gutters are always included in our costs and estimates, but most folks don't even realize how dirty a white gutter is until they see the contrast.

Rob, I hate to say this but I'm skeptical at best. I have tried many chemicals and have found some that I have been able to remove it with. The hardest part is NOT removing it, but not crossing that thin line of damaging or removing the coating. A no touch method for removal of a year old artillery fungus without possibility of damaging the coating or substrate would be interesting to see. What specific advertising did you use to get that ton of house washing work?

Sodium Hypochlorite is in liquid form and has a shelf life of about 120 days from date of manufacture. Light, air and temperature play a large role in how quickly it loses its potency. Always buy it from a source that has a high turnover rate and can assure you that it is FRESH. You can read the label and see where it's manufactured - if you live in Pittsburgh, you should not be using anything that's labeled "bottled or manufactured in Texas". The pool shock I use is made locally, within 15 miles of where I live. Make a habit of reading labels on containers - it's amazing what you find out. Calcium Hypochlorite (labeled as pool shock at your pool supply store) is in granular form (it is available in liquid) and will stay FRESH as long as it is in a dry form. A packet that is sealed to keep out moisture and air will last for many years. Keeping it in a dark place will make it last even longer. Mixing it with water or allowing humidity/moisture to enter will start the deterioration or activation process. Titration is the most accurate way of determining hypochlorite content, but is a time consuming process or requires expensive equipment. I don't know of an inexpensive tool that can tell you the hypochlorite content of bleach/chlorine/pool shock. I suppose with an accurate digital pH tester (+/- .1 pH readout)you could find out the hypochlorite content but you would have to work in reverse and have a scale established thru titration. You would always test a specific amount of liquid (1 gallon or 1/2 gallon) and already know that a specific pH is that specific percent hypochlorite. Meaning you would have to have an established scale that tells you if the meter reads pH of 10.9, you have 7% hypochlorite content. You could not have a mixture of chemicals as this would change all readings. Or if you had a 1 gallon container of Sodium Hypochlorite that was 12% - take a pH reading, then dilute to 1 gallon at 10% and take another pH reading, then dilute to 8% and take another pH reading (so on and so forth) to establish your own scale. With time and money, you can accomplish almost anything!

We run into the same situation about gutters being on a slope side of a house where ladders can not be used or would be very time consuming. These are areas where the gutters are 30 feet off the ground and use of an extension pole that would reach that high would be uncontrollable (a 16ft extension pole is hard to control for applying and brushing). Having said that, we use a 24ft extension pole with the X-Jet and close-up attachment and spray it on. At times we have sprayed it on with an X-Jet in the open position (makes for a great foamer). We use AllBrite at 1:15 to 1:20 dilution for house washing. You have to be careful and rinse a bunch when applying around asphalt driveways as it will remove the oils from it. If you decide to add Sodium Hydroxide to your mix, be careful and test the percentage in your mix as it will remove paint very quickly. Most cleaning solutions like Gutter Zap and Gutter shock contain only about 1% Sodium Hydroxide.

Rob, Why don't you use AllBrite as your house wash? We've found it to be a very good housewash chemical. I've also found that our customers tend to present us with more referrals when they see the results of our gutter cleaning. It is part of our sales strategy to show the contrast of the clean and dirty gutter to our customers and I also use it as a sales demonstration and closer. We get jobs that others don't get because of the gutters and areas that we can reach and clean - therefore we are able to also charge more. One customer told us they had 2 other contractors that couldn't clean the carbon and mold / mildew off the 30 ft side of their house. An hour into the job, the customer is calling the neighbors over to see the job we were doing. You should reconsider and experiment with your gutter cleaning, reduce your rate to closer to $100 per hour and you may see that you can double the number of houses you end up washing as a result of referrals. In otherwords, clean the house and gutter for $275 (even if it increases your effort from 1.5 to 2.5 hrs.). Most folks will not feel comfortable recommending a contractor that charges $166 per hour for 1.5 hrs worth of work unless you can WOW them with something. (MY NICKEL's WORTH) Also from my experience, it can be worthwhile chasing the upscale areas as they have more spendable money. We service a lot of areas that are 45 min. away. In one area for example we have received all the work from referrals. Most homes are large, house washing is $375 and up. In addition, most of these homes have decks and concrete areas that need work. We washed 3 houses next to each other in one week and each had a combination of work such as housewash and deck restoration or housewash and concrete cleaning/sealing. At another site, we washed the house, a large work shop (about 8 car size), a front wrap around porch (800 sq ft), a rear deck (750 sq ft) and concrete cleaning and sealing. In addition, we received several referrals because the owner was WOW'ed by the new look of his gutters. I would not drive 45 minutes for a half day job unless it paid over $100 per hour as I always like to have a full days worth of work and pay. Of course, I look at long term averages rather then single jobs.

Liquid chlorine / pool shock has an approximate shelf life of 120 days from the date of manufacture. That time period is for unopened containers. Factors that play into faster failure rate are extreme high or low temperaturer and sunlight. Once the containers are open, the deterioration rate is much faster. 55 gallons of 12-1/4% pool shock is enough to keep a 20'x36' pool clean for the duration of an average northern summer, which lasts about 3 months. Most pool supply stores around my area stopped carrying the 55 gallon drums as the average consumer has an easier time dealing with either 1 gallon, 2-1/2 gallon or chrystal shock. We purchase locally from a pool supplier every few weeks and know that it's a fresh batch every time (it's made locally). The cost of having a weak batch is too costly in time consumed and wasting detergent. I pay just over $2 per gallon and the cost is passed on to the customer (it's minimal at about 1 to 1-1/2% of the total cost of a house wash.)

If it's a sqwa then she's a mother. If it's a gay indian I believe it's called a "queen sqwa".

Many, many years ago, when I was twenty-three, I got married to a widow who was pretty as could be, This widow had a grown-up daughter, with flowing hair of red, My father fell in love with her, and soon the two were wed. This made my dad my son-in-law and changed my very life, My daughter was my mother, for she was my father's wife, To complicate the matters worse, although it brought me joy, I soon became the father of a bouncing baby boy. Father's wife then had a son, who kept them on the run, And this made him my grandson, for he was my daughter's son, My wife is now my mother's mother and this makes me very blue, Because, although she is my wife, she's now my grandma too. If my wife is my grandmother, then I am her grandchild, And every time I think of this, it simply drives me wild, For now I have become the strangest case that you ever saw, As the husband of my grandmother, I am now my own grandpa!

On the first day God created the cow... God said, "you must go to field with the farmer all day long and suffer under the sun, have calves and give milk to support the farmer...for that I will give you a life span of sixty years." The cow said, "that's kind of a tough life, you want me to live for sixty years...let me have twenty years and I'll give back the other forty" and God agreed. On the second day, God created the dog... God said, "sit all day by the door of your house and bark at anyone who comes in or walks past...I'll give you a life span of twenty years." The dog said, "that's too long to be barking... give me ten years and I'll give back the other ten." So God agreed. On the third day God created the monkey... God said, entertain people, do monkey tricks, make them laugh... I'll give you a twenty year life span." The monkey said, "how boring, monkey tricks for twenty years? I don't think so...dog gave you back ten, so that's what I'll do too." And God agreed again. Now on the fourth day, God created man... God said, "Eat, sleep, play, have ***, enjoy...do nothing, just enjoy, enjoy... I'll give you twenty years." Man said, "what...only twenty years? no way man, tell you what, I'll take my twenty...the forty cow gave back... the ten dog gave back and the ten monkey gave back... that makes eighty, okay?" "Okay," said God... "you've got a deal!" So this is why... the first twenty years we eat, sleep, play, have ***, enjoy, and do nothing... the next forty years we slave in the sun to support our family... the next ten years we do monkey tricks to entertain our grandchildren... the last ten years we sit in front of the house and bark at everybody... Life has now been explained.

The train was very crowded, so the soldier walked the length of the train, looking for an empty seat. The only unoccupied seat was directly adjacent to a well dressed middle aged lady and was being used by her little dog. The war weary soldier asked, "Please, ma'am, may I sit in that seat?" The French woman looked down her nose at the soldier, sniffed and said, "You Americans. You are such a rude class of people. Can't you see my little Fifi is using that seat?" The soldier walked away, determined to find a place to rest, but after another trip down to the end of the train, found himself again facing the woman with the dog. Again he asked, "Please, lady. May I sit there? I'm very tired." The French woman wrinkled her nose and snorted, "You Americans! Not only are you rude, you are also arrogant. Imagine!" The soldier didn't say anything else; he leaned over, picked up the little dog, tossed it out the window of the train and sat down in the empty seat. The woman shrieked and railed, and demanded that someone defend her and chastise the soldier. An English gentleman sitting across the aisle spoke up, "You know, sir, you Americans do seem to have a penchant for doing the wrong thing. You eat holding the fork in the wrong hand. You drive your autos on the wrong side of the road. And now, sir, you've thrown the wrong ***** out the window.

Golden Anniversary A couple was celebrating their golden wedding anniversary. Their domestic tranquility had long been known about the town, and on this very special occasion, a local newspaper reporter paid them a visit. He inquired as to the secret of their long and happy marriage. "Well"...explained the husband..."it all goes all the way back to our honeymoon, you see, we visited the Grand Canyon and we took a trip down to the bottom of the canyon by pack mule." He continues..."well now, we hadn't gone too far when my wife's mule stumbled, she quietly said...that's once." "We proceeded a little further when the mule stumbled again and my wife quietly spoke...that's twice." "You know, that mule hadn't gone a half-mile when it stumbled a third time." My wife promptly removed a gun from her purse, hopped off the beast, and shot the mule dead." "I protested over her treatment of the mule, she slowly turned to me and quietly said...that's once."

Successful organizations are not changed from the bottom up but rather from the top down. For the organization - member relationship, a similar analogy could be drawn with a contractor - customer relationship where a contractor has to ask his customer to help determine which chemical works better to clean the house or what equipment would be best suited to accomplish the work. The customer may help generate ideas but it's the contractor that needs to be in the lead position. If the foundation is flawed: the Dutchboy will not have enough fingers to plug all the holes, but even if he did, the problem will persist until someone figures out what is causing the holes to appear.