Paul B.

Compatability issues aside (ALL very good points), (and I could be wrong as I'm trying to read between the lines), to me it sounds like they are thinking that they will get a protective coating like a Urethane finish would provide over a stain on furniture. From reading Gav's post, the finish is in good condition other than the mildew. You really need to know what the customer is thinking they will accomplish with the clear coating (probative questions will help). Did Home Depot give them advice? Is the customer trying to solve a problem on their own? If they just like a shiny surface, than your back to the compatability issue and unless you know what brand and type of product is on there, you could have bonding issues (premature failure) as stated by Tony & Beth. The customer must know that NO coating will prevent mold & mildew if you allow dirt and moisture to sit on a surface in a shady area. What makes mold and mildew grow on plastic or ceramic tile in a bathroom? Keeping surface clean is highest priority for shady areas - sweep, use blower, rinse with hose, get branches and leaves off, if there are low spots where water can sit, these need to be repaired.

My t-shirt and shirt both were soaked thru within 15 minutes of going ouside. As far as I'm concerned, once I start physical work, I forget about the conditions until I stop (tunnel vision has its advantages). Selling is more of a pain because you're going in and out of hot and cold. I always carry several changes of shirts. I think most people cope because you tend to forget from season to season (if you have them) until the season comes back around. According to my better half, Hawaii has the ideal weather all year around. She lived there several years along with Trinidad, and Key West. Key West is nice even when it's hot because you have the breeze coming off the ocean. It's a 3-1/2 by 5 mile piece of land with the highest elevation 9 feet above sea level so the wind will find you. There is however a 6 week period centered around August where the breeze stops. The nights and days are pretty much unbearable during that time. If you have he capability, you move around from season to season. The "snowbirds" go to Florida during the winter and return north during the summer. When I was in Key West, I always tried to get a contract up north during the August time frame. Worked mostly indoors but spent a lot time in machine and assembly shop that were not air-conditioned. People die from the high humidity and heat in this area every year - mostly the elderly and poor that have no air-conditioning in their homes. No perfect place that I know of where weather, economy and all else comes together.

6 days/nights of alternating rain and sunshine. Today was not bad, but for 2-3 days before humidity was between 95%-100% temps at 92F. Cut my way thru with a butter knife.

What's the purpose of the clear sealer on top of the solid? If they are trying to prevent mold & mildew this process will not prevent it. This is where education and maintenance education comes in play and maybe even get a maintenance contract. You have to explain to the customer what causes mold and mildew and how it can be prevented. Most mold & mildew grows on the surface due to surface dirt and moisture that collects on the decks and lack of sunshine slows drying time which in turn inhibits the growth of mold & mildew. In addition some oils in stains are food for mold and mildew. Using mildewcide additive, avoiding oil based stains that are considered food for mold & mildew and good maintenance will reduce (note I said reduce, not eliminate) the appearance of mold & mildew. Here is a general note I put into my deck contracts in addition to the oral education I provide to customers with mold & mildew problems. "Although Genesis can not guarantee life expectancy, with *good maintenance practices, it is expected that horizontal surfaces will provide a 2 year minimum life and the vertical surfaces a 3 year minimum with maximums in the 5-7 year range. *Good maintenance practices would include but not be limited to keeping surfaces free of tannin causing debris such as branches, leaves and nuts; regular monthly wash-down to remove dirt, soiling, salt removal in winter and a minimum of 1 mild detergent wash-down. Yearly inspection by a professional service will also help determine if additional cleaning or maintenance coats may be necessary to provide continued protection.

Jon, I know Ex-Cell DeVilbiss Air Power Co. (subsidiary of Pentair, Inc.) sell the "Water Broom". The company is located in Jackson, Tennessee (800) 888-2468. Not sure if they own the patent(s), distribution rights or manufacture any of the parts. There are several versions out there I'm sure.

I have a small problem I need help with: :2eyes: I have charcoal stains on my concrete floor that needs to be removed (it's a long story, don't ask how it got there). :o Should I buy a pressure washer at Home Depot? and is 3500 psi enough? Do I need to move the furniture or can I just throw tarps over them? or should I hire a professional? ....%$**#!!#%##cat!

Charcoal has been used for many years to filter odors. Fish tanks use charcoal, Cigarettes have them too. Air cleaner filters rely on it highly, Respirators can't work without them. White vinegar and water has some effect on cat urine but fighting an acid with an acid? Mixed results. Could it be that the mold & mildew additive in Behr neutralizes the acids and organic materials in the urine? Baking soda may do the job also, but it sounds like they have a major kitty problem if it has spread all over the room. Most likely a male cat that needs to be neutered (Ouch), otherwise he'll keep spraying and urinating to mark his territory. Stress will also keep the cat from breaking the bad habit even after being neutered (Ouch). Feed him lots of tuna, take the lid off the aquarium, let him scratch the new divan (sofa) without hurling objects at him, buy him some exotic bird magazines and make sure there is a cover on the litter box (privacy is key along with keeping the bird magazine next to the litter box). Sounds like he's on his way to become an outdoor cat. From what I understand, the most effective products on the market use bacterial enzymes which are GOOD bacteria that feeds on the organic material and turns it into water and carbon dioxide. Problem with most of these products - if you have already used bleach or detergent, they will be non-effective, as the cleaning products will kill off the bacteria. So the consumer thinks they purchased a lousy product, which in most instances is not the case - it needs to be the first thing used, not the second or third. Our Vet uses "Cat-Off" by Tifornell (I'm sure there are dozens of similar products on the shelves). Meowww!

It's possible but highly unlikely that the Behr product will cover the odor. Hard to believe that someone would recommend a coating vs. a cleaner, but then would you ask a clerk at Home Depot how to clean concrete or carpet. Personally, I would call a carpet cleaner for cleaning advice or Pet store or a Vet. What do Vets use? Bleach the concrete. There is also a product called "Out!" cat spray & urine stain & odor remover (made by Out! International, Inc.). It's for carpets, upholstery and works very well on concrete.

Oklahoma courts sentence a man to life in prison for spitting on a cop and biting him. Cop and man tested for AIDS with negative results. The man did have two previous convictions / felony record. The man was also convicted to 1 year in prison for domestic assult (broke woman's arm). Come on now, it sounds like there is no hope for rehabilitation and the man should get the electric chair. What do you think?

Time is flying by this year. Can you believe June is already behind us? Fly the flag with pride and celebrate. Happy 4th of July to all of you! :cool: Be careful around the fireworks and keep plenty of Alka Saltzer, Tums, Rolaids, etc. near by. Remember: Safety First and Make IT Last!

Beth, The new faces are very nice - they give you a 3D feel. It's all in the eyes. Nice job! :) Happy 4th of July!

Stop burning rubber in the customers driveway! Kidding aside, to me the clean-up would depend on the existing condition of the driveway and how much impact you made on it. I don't add incidental, occasional clean-up into my pricing. If the driveway is in a ****-n-span condition when you arrive, it should be no different when you leave - some faint tire marks would be an exception as in my mind driveways are meant to be driven on and can't be treated as a Sunday going-to-church suit. Some tiremarks should be expected. If this is a persistant problem for you, and are consistantly leaving nasty tire marks on driveways, I would suggest looking into harder compound tires. Oil drips, grease spots and spills would be a definite clean-up without a hesitation.

Pool supply and grocery stores carry so many different names and brands - One of the pool supply stores sells "Maintain - Liquid Shock" (I'm quoting the name exactly) it contains 10-1/4% Sodium Hypochlorite. One local grocery store carries "Pool Shock" - (liquid that contains 12-1/2% Sodium Hypochlorite) Grocery stores carry Bleach that has 6% Sodium Hypochlorite content. Crystal shock (that I believe Ron is talking about) is Calcium Hypochlorite and is at about 65-68% - again there are probably many variations. High Sodium Hypochlorite content liquid is available comercially. Pool supply stores carried 15% in the past but the highest I've seen in my area over the past 3 years has been 12-1/2%. The shelf life of the liquid is about 120 days from manufacture (It still has a medium to high level after 120 days but it shouldn't be sold as labeled.) I purchase from a supplier that can guarantee that it's less than 30 days old when I take it out the door. It's manufactured locally and my supplier gets weekly shipments all year around. I've purchased some at great price to find that it was 4-5 months old and about flat as a tire that ran over a road spike. I'd like to see a "Born On Date" but that's wishful thinking.

For removing mold & mildew, a mix of pool shock (10-1/4 or 12%) and water (1:2 or 1:3) works very well. Spray it on and leave it. No rinsing is needed but if you rinse, allow 10 minute dwell time. You still have run off that need to be insured is not damaging to landscaping. I think to me this is safer than a Sodium Hydroxide solution. This mix will also kill moss, but will not remove it immediately. Pressure is required to remove moss (or long period of time and some rain) and care must be taken in the amount of pressure used. I just cleaned a 3 roof home/office/garage complex myself with that mix for a trade/barter. The black mold & mildew came off quickly and without rinsing the moss took some coaxing and there is still some remnants on the office roof as it was thick and I didn't want to risk pressure damage to the shingle.

Sometimes contracts are renegotiated. Negotiations could go on for weeks.

Remember the old adage: "If the customer helps, the price is double." Also for your punishment, you must make the same mistake on a senior citizen's estimate. In new construction cleaning we only get to see dirty old men (literally). In residential, 75% of the time the customer is not there when I take measurements or survey the project. 90% of the time my customers are male, the other 10% of the time the customer is usually over 50. On my last estimate, I dealt with the butler. My weakness is senior citizens and retired military - I tend to break even on most of those jobs.

I wonder how long this company will stay in business? It's a fairly large deck cleaning company in my area and they use Defy as their primary stain. Anyway, I'm kind of backing into this story as it is still unfolding but here is the crucks of it: I was asked to bid on a deck for a friend of a friend. The deck surface is about 700 square feet, but by the time you add all the railing, faceboard, supports, steps, lattice, etc., etc., etc. for this 3-tier unit, the square footage swells to over 1720 square feet. It has failing stain and a large amount of vegetation/landscaping and all 3 tiers are nested against the house. (I would post photos, but it's still a pending bid.) Because it is a friend of a friend, I bid it at about $1.08 per square foot using a $22/gallon stain. The customer was interested in Defy as it was sold to him as the best stain in the world (what stain isn't?). So I talked to the rep, obtained verbal and printed product info and got his best price (retail $35 per gallon $27 contractor). Coverage requires 2 coats and the average of both coat ends up at about 200 sq ft per gallon or about 18 gallons for the job. To get to the crux: The customer calls and is asking for clarification as I'm told my bid is 2x to 3x the other bid(s). I gave this customer a 2 page document (along with the estimate/contract) explaining the same thing I explained over the phone (I knew he didn't read it because of the questions he asked - the info package I sent him cost almost $3 in postage - maybe he was overwhelmed.) The next lowest competitions bid was at $1000 with tax so his rate is about $0.58 per square foot to strip, neutralize and apply 2 coats of material that will cost about $500+. With the masking and other factors it's definitely a 20 man hour job but even if they wear jet packs and finish in 10 hours the billing rate before taxes and without materials is only $44 per hour. The lowest bid was around $700 from ??? (I didn't even ask). I sent the customer back to the competition with questions and told him if he thinks he feels comfortable, to go with it, but think about the process and try to imagine the end product and low cost labor (his house is about $400,000). I'll bet short term cost savings potential is too enticing for him to refuse.

There were other things that made the competition estimates a bit suspicious to me, but didn't seem to bother the customer. My honest feeling is that the customer was OK with a low quality job for a low price. I will lower prices from time to time to help the customer, but not at a loss or sacrafice in quality. Believe me, I did not lose any sleep over this one.

At 5GPM, the pressure loss in a 3/8" hose is about 125PSI per 100ft. For 350 ft of hose, that would be about 440PSI. Each fitting is about 7-10PSI (some fittings are more others are less restrictive so tha loss could be a bit higher). With long high pressure hose you also need to change nozzle selections if you wanted to wash at for example 1000PSI, as your original nozzle selected for 50 ft of hose will now only produce you about 560PSI. Etc., ...etc. I didn't want to get into fluid dynamics (it's my weak area) but here it goes: You will have flow rate changes also as your hose length changes. A 350 ft 5/8" hose will drop to about 6GPM (from 11GPM) as you have pressure loss. Where you get into major problems is if the water is gravity fed vs. forced pressure and you start out with less than 40PSI. The opening has to be large enough to completely fill the hose, otherwise your sucking air into your pump (the dreaded cavitation problem). I hope this made some sense, but the bottom line is that increasing the hose length will decrease pressure and flow rate. So if you needed to go over 350ft length, to say 500ft you would have to go to 3/4" ID hose. Also if you went to a 6 or 7GPM machine, you would most like need to change to a larger ID hose.

If all else is kept simple, I would say that 3/4" hose is more than what you need for a 5GPM machine. That's a qualified YES.

Try the Roof Cleaning section of www.thecleanernetwork.com - Glen and others can provide information that will be helpful.

I don't know anything about lotions - almost never use it. I don't like to wear hats very often as they tend to trap the heat on very hot days. Worked with a fellow in the 70's that patented a hardhat with a built in fan - very nice idea. You could try an umbrella hat - covers but doesn't sit on top of your head and doubles as a bandana for your forehead. Maybe sun block and a bandana wrapped around your forehead will keep the sweat and lotion from your eyes, or a bandana made into a hat for roof protection.

The curious thing with venturi effect is that there are a lot of things that will impact it such as altitude, water temperature, friction. The other item we didn't mention is that when a ball valve is used, it also impacts the flow rate, but now I'm talking small changes that may or may not make a difference in this business, however, if you were to add a similar kind of restrictor/disturbance causing piece into a venturi system used lets say for fuel injection, it would make a major impact.

To expand a bit: Wolman has an Alkyd/Acrilic stain called Dura-Stain (semi-transparent) that claims it is #1 Rated Semi-Transparent Stain Formula.

Morgan, The smallest orifice in a system is what determines the flow rate. To keep this real simple, look at what happens when you pour water from a bucket into a funnel. No matter how big the bucket you pour from, only so much will go thru the same funnel. Flow rate does increase with pressure increase. A .060" orifice will maintain a flow rate of .87GPM at 100 PSI or 1.9GPM at 500 PSI and 2.8GPM at 1000PSI (so on and so forth). Your statement is partially correct in regards to the fitting coming out of the X-Jet. The barb sizes are different, however fitting is still the same size (1/4") and so the orifice has to be the same size, otherwise the proportioning pieces would would not fit in both. Xterior's Close up nozzles come with an "X" shaped baffle between the nozzle and the reducer, where as the one Steven provides does not have one. The baffle does create a bit of a pattern and flow difference. Without the baffle, sometimes the first couple of seconds, (when you initially squeeze the trigger) you get a different flow and pattern but then it settles out. As for the 3/4" vs 5/8" garden hose: at 40 PSI a 5/8" ID hose will give you approx. 11 GPM, whereas a 3/4" hose will provide you approx. 17 GPM. If you have a 7 GPM machine and maintain 40PSI water pressure, you will see no difference in your machine performance with either hose. As orifices and pressures change, that is when you start seeing output or input changes. I hope I was able to explain things clearly.