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Paul B.

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Posts posted by Paul B.

  1. Posted · Report reply

    In my opinion, moss on asphalt shingle is the most difficult to bid as the number of passes and time to detach can greatly vary. In majority of the cases you have to get on the roof to rinse and detach.

    I cleaned a moss covered roof a couple of years ago on a ranch home and it took several (3-4) passes, and even then about 30% remained attached. It took about 2 weeks for all of the moss to detach and the subsequent rains helped to rinse it away. The roof is still free of moss, mold and mildew.

    I would develop a system to calculate square footage of the roof, as going by the square footage of the home can be deceiving. By roof square footage you will also develop a good method for calculating (pricing) the cost of your materials (chemicals). You will develop experience on how many passes to make as you do each job. Keep notes for the first couple of months and review the information, making adjustments as necessary.

    Just off the top, and assuming fairly heavy moss accumulation on the roof in question, I would use Ryan's numbers but 2X - 3X it.

    Our normal coverage rate for applying sodium hypochlorite at 5-6% dilution is about 100 sq foot per gallon, per pass or about $1 per gallon (diluted). For example: on a 2300 sq ft roof, your material cost would be about $46 per pass. Of course if you use other chemicals, your costs will be different.

  3. Posted · Report reply

    Also establish a minimum price that you will do work for.

    In some instances the square footage or linear footage to be cleaned ends up below your minimum then you round it up to your minimum.

    When the customer calls, screen them by asking questions and you may tell them that you have a minimum charge. This way you are not wasting your time on estimating jobs that customers are not willing to pay the price.

    If the minimum charge is more than what they want to pay, ask if there are other things that they need cleaned (concrete, windows, etc.) to make it worthwhile for both parties.

  4. Posted · Report reply

    You can use metal fittings, however, be careful when tightening them as you are going into plastic and have a good chance of cracking the housing if you tighten too much (use teflon tape). Also, depending on what chemicals you use (acids or alkaline), the non plastic fittings may get corroded very quickly.

    If you use plastic fittings, make sure you put a strain relief on the exit side of the pump (clamp the hose to something) otherwise you will crack the fittings as you move the hose. Keep spare fittings.

    I have been using $20-$25 Sears Diehard Lawn Tractor batteries for 3 years.

    Have not replaced one yet. 10-12 hours of use are no problem after a full charge. Keep a charger on hand in case you forget to charge (they charge quickly).

  6. Posted · Report reply

    3 a day - what size and how close to each other.

    It's about 60 miles from one side of my city to the other.

    It takes about 10 minutes just to pull into some of the driveways.

    It's all relative - you start out slow and you will get faster as you learn

    the trade. Evaluate your inefficiencies and look for things you can do to

    speed up your process (including pre-mixing chemicals, down-streaming or X-jet,

    using the correct ratio of detergent and pool shock, etc.).

  7. Posted · Report reply

    If you are only using water, chances are you're not getting all the mold and mildew. You need chlorine/pool shock and enough dwell time to kill it all.

    Eric,

    Your mix will work on brick without scrubbing. If the mold and mildew is not coming off, increase dwell time or amount of pool shock or both. Just don't let your detergent dry on the surface.

  8. Posted · Report reply

    This friend does not advertise formally and does very well.

    He has a lot of contacts and although he will do smaller jobs, most start in the $5K-$7K range. We worked together on a couple of project this year that were over $170K each. So, YES, I consider developing and maintaining contacts and referrals to be the primary method for obtaining work.

  9. Posted · Report reply

    Matthew,

    I agree with Robert. Before investing in a hot box, I would consider a larger GPM P/W (minimum of 4 PGM, preferrably higher).

    You don't need hot water for washing houses, decks and residential driveways.

    If you plan on washing commercial concrete, then you also need a surface cleaner to be competitive. In order to run a surface cleaner, you need that larger GPM P/W.

  10. Posted · Report reply

    Eric,

    I personally think that establishing a linear foot price is a good way to start out. $1 per ln ft for 1-story and $2 for 2-story homes. You can include gutter exterior into this price or charge extra at $0.25 - $0.50 per linear ft.

    You can always add for needing a lift or having to disconnect down-0spouts or covering plants, terrain, difficult landscaping etc.

    The reason I prefer charging by the linear foot is because this gives you consistancy in pricing and the faster you get you will not tend to lower price as you may when you estimate by eye-balling. In other words you will make more profit in the long run if you price by the job and not by the hour.

    Also most people when estimating (by the hour) tend to be more optimistic and tend to GENERALLY under-estimate.

    P.S.: If you think a measuring stick looks unprofessional, measure off in steps (measure your steps to find out how many feet are in an average step you take.)

  14. Posted · Report reply

    Oxidization is the fading, chalking and breakdown of the paint. It's primary cause is the sun's UV rays, but weathering also adds to the breakdown process.

    Easy way to tell oxidization is by running your hand across vinyl or aluminum siding - your had will have a powdery substance on it after wiping.

    Neutralizing is the balancing of pH. For example: if you use a high pH chemical, you can neutralize it (bring pH into balance pH of 6-8. Drinking water has a pH between 6.8-7.4) with a low pH chemical or by rinsing with water. A low pH chemical can be neutralized with a high pH chemical or water. Note that care must be taken when selecting the proper chemicals used in neutralizing, as some chemical interactions can be violent or put out dangerous gases.

    pH can be measured with litmus paper or an electronic pH meter.

  15. Posted · Report reply

    All chemicals listed on the MSDS are normally hazardous - some are more than others (some may cause cancer, while some chemicals are fatal if absorbed thru the skin).

    Do a search on the internet for each chemical listed on the MSDS.

    You should be able to find a wealth of information including hazzards and

    safety precautions.

    Keep searching the internet - as I said, there is a wealth of information which will help you learning some chemistry.

  18. Posted · Report reply

    The initials must be the homeowners - said he was trying to remove deck stain from the siding (didn't buy that).

    Along with exterior/interior painting, my friend also does roof work, drywalling, door and window installations, builds decks, room additions, finishes basements, etc. An extensive handyman operation. He pays handsomely for referrals.

    It's actually better than getting work from him in some cases. For example, the referral fee on an average roof job is $500. It actually pays for me to run an ad in the paper just to send him work. After all expenses, and some investing, there is enough money left to take him and a couple other contractors on an outing to Vegas, New Orleans, or Miami (Bahamas/Bimini). A business trip, that (if worked properly) can be also written off .

  19. Posted · Report reply

    I was called for an estimate to clean aluminum siding on a 2-story home.

    When I got there, no one was home. I walked up to the garage area and

    wiped my fingers across a piece of the siding. Seeing the results on my fingers, I applied a bit of liquid to my fingers (spit, in scientific terms) and wiped across the siding again. I could see bare metal (see 1st photo). At this point the customer came home and hurried into the house to put his kid down for a nap. I walked around the house and looked further, waiting for Mr. Homeowner to join me. While waiting, I measured the house and took some pictures. In the back, I noticed some pressure sprayer marks randomly criss-crossing the siding (see photos 2 and 3). I walked up to the front of the house and waited. After about 10 minutes the owner came and and we began our conversation. Without a whole lot of detail, the bottom line was that he wanted the siding washed and his wife would like the old, dark colored looking siding back after washing.

    I could hardly keep from rolling on the ground and laughing. I explained that someone had tried to wash the house and some of the paint was already removed. If we really washed it, all the paint would be removed down to bare metal. He only has two and a half options:

    Option 1: Leave it as is for another couple of years

    Option 2: Wait for a strong rain-storm and part of the house will have the oxidized paint removed. If you have enough strong rain-storms, he wouldn't have to pay anyone to strip to bare metal.

    Option 3: My friend paints houses and he would be happy to provide you with a FREE estimate for painting your home. (We do some of the paint prep for my friend).

    He chose option #3 after asking 3-4 times if I was sure the siding would not come clean.

  21. Posted · Report reply

    I like it also, however, that nail polish clashed with my bathing suit - didn't realize it until I got out to the sand bar (bars everywhere).

    John,

    My friend Jeff is the one behind bars usually. I'm the one with the bail money.

    Although bar pictures can help where all other memory cells have failed, they could be taken out of context and/or incriminating.

    My better half is a cheap drunk - 2 drinks and it's large ice waters the rest of the evening. She's also a cheap druggie - her recent trip to the ER and surgery had everyone concerned - with quarter the normal dosage of Versed it took them 3 and 5 hours respectively to wake her up.

    She broke 3 bones in her ankle (I didn't touch her, honest). In the ER the nurse told me that she would scream like crazy (when they re-set the bones), but with the Versed she would not remember the pain. 5 seconds after getting the 2.5ml dosage she was out like a light (they start kids at 10ml). She slept thru the re-setting (no pain, but I hope there is gain). She's got more hardware in her ankle now than our local hardware store (all non-magnetic, stainless). She's on a 6 week vacation now.

    As for vacations, they are always #1 priority. Work falls somewhere lower on the priority list. We work to live, not live to work! We also try to have investments worker harder than we do. With three behind us, we have at least 2 more before the end of the year. I hear Vegas calling - have to get some of the money back I left there in April. I may take a couple of customers with me this time.

  25. Posted · Report reply

    Your business should always have an established minimum that you will take on a small job for. I take on small jobs because often they tend to lead to other jobs (be it from the same person or referrals).

    I have a $150 minimum for small jobs. Folks are told up front when they start out saying I have this small deck or small concrete patio that I need cleaned. 75% of the time they say it's too much for such a small job, but that's OK because I saved a trip (estimate).

    As for going rates in my area, most simple cleaning such as house siding, concrete and deck cleaning starts in the range of $45 per hour. That is companies with employees bill out at this hourly rate. It's a conservative city.

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