Chem Blending...Opinions Needed

[PLD 14]

Either way, 15 gallons of mix seems an awful lot. That's all.

Sometimes it's 10ish, sometimes 15. Just depends on the house. We mix 15 at a time though..

And it's 1:2.2 through the Xjet. You seem awfully concerned with exact ratios, etc, so I though you'd want to have the correct Xjet ratio. :)

Not that picky! I'm just not comfortable with the downstreamer as a black box. For example, you mentioned yours is 1:4. That's a long ways from 1:10. I assume 1:4 is wide open? What's half open? 1:8, 1:15? I'm not a sticker for bleach between 0.83 and 1.20% but I don't want to be spraying 2.5% thinking I'm spraying 1% and nuke some shrubs and waste alot of chems. You've probably been at this for awhile and can feel you way through it. I've used a DS injector all of twice.

As much time as I've spent on Steve's board, and elsewhere, I've never seen anyone mention using 2-3 gallons of citracleen per bucket. I think you're confusing someone's usage of chlorine with their usage of citracleen. Were someone on Steve's board to say they were using 2-3 gallons of soap per 5 gallons, there would be several posts questioning the overusage of soap and mentioning the correct usage.

From SquirtGun: "2-5 gallon buckets of housewash(2 gallons 12% chlorine,1 1/2 gallon citracleen,4 oz foamer the remainder water in each bucket) xjetted with no proportioner."

For a 15 gallon pail, that's 4 gals of bleach (I use 3), 4.5 gal citraclean. Assuming that was total and not per pail (doubtful looking at the bleach), it's still over 2 gallons. There have been others similar, but I cannot locate them at this moment.

[h2owizards 14]

Bottom line here is that I was looking for a great product that was economical for me and my customers. I would think that that is everyone's bottom line that is in business for themselves. I merely made a suggestion and humbly asked for your opinions. Instead, I have my ethics questioned by some as to why I'm not supporting my local supplier. Well, my supplier doesn't feed my family, I do. I am in business for myself just like he is. I will support him as much as possible because of what he does for me but like Jon and Don said, I gotta do what's best for my coompany, my customers and my family.

[Steve Kiser 14]

I use .5 gal per gals. of house mix and have great results and only a gallon of 10% per 5 gal bucket. just my .02

Steve

[JFife 14]

h2oWizard,

Don't worry, nobody was questioning your ethics. Some are adament about supporting a guy they met at a PWNA convention, and have great results with that. They are probably the same people that buy milk at the Mom&Pop grocery for $3.99, when you can buy it at Walmart for $2.64. There is nothing wrong with that, just differing opinions. Perhaps they like the small crowds, etc, and that is work a couple bucks to them. Point is, make this decision yourself for what is best for you, but make sure it is BEST for you. This is a money-saving step that I would not even consider unless you really have the other aspects of your game down, i.e. plenty of work, quality, MO, etc. Making chems should not be your FIRST avenue to take for saving money. You should have already improved efficiency, lowered bills however possible, learned the EFFICIENT ways to advertise, etc., before you start trying to save $20 per job on chems. If you done and are comfortable with all of these things, give the chems a go. It will take some time/experimentation to achieve the results you want.

I'll leave you with this--i assume what you are trying to make is a housewash additive/product---a buddy of mine that does lots of housewashing and does a great job only uses bleach, water, dishsoap, and Cascade Cleanrinse. Told me he has tried other additives but aren't worth the money, his results are just as good with his homebrew.

.....And back to liability--that is always the drum the distributors beat whenever people talk about mixing their own chems, and you gotta have MSDS, etc., etc., etc., First off, I've never spoke with ANYONE who has ever needed an MSDS for anything, but if you do, a chem. supplier must give you one by law with every sale. Now, people talk about how if you mix chems, you need a separate MSDS, etc., etc., etc., but the same people have no trouble mixing bleach with anything/everything that has to do with a housewash. Lastly, the only chems i really ever use are Naoh and acid (citric usually) and I merely mix them with water, which is their exact intended use, so if i did get apprehended by the EPA or whoever, I didn't have my MSDS, they decided to take my chems and break them down to see what I'd made, I'd be in the clear. But frankly, that scenario is about as likely as getting hit by lightening inside of a car:)

[PLD 14]

I use .5 gal per gals. of house mix and have great results and only a gallon of 10% per 5 gal bucket. just my .02

Bud: 0.5 gal of citraclean? So that's 2.5 gal in a 5 gal bucket? Or 0.5 gallon in a 5 gallon bucket? What type of injector are you using at what ratio?

Mike: This question is a good example of why I like to know ratios. Tell me that I need citraclean to be at 3% on the wall and I can easily refigure the mix for my injector, my buckets, bleach, etc. 1/2 gallon in a bucket, 3 gallons in a bucket, or whatever only means something for a given injection setup, bucket size, etc.

[Mike Williamson 198]

h2oWizard,

But frankly, that scenario is about as likely as getting hit by lightening inside of a car:)

I think it has a lot to do with where you live. Some areas are much more strictly enforced by the local DOT. I do know of folks who have been pulled and had their rigs examined and their MSDS sheets verified. Not in my area (which is good, since I don't have one MSDS sheet on the trailer), but in other areas.

I agree with doing what's best for you and your company. Some buy from local suppliers exclusively, or from distributors they've met online. Others buy exclusively from the cheapest supplier they can find. Most of us fall somewhere in the middle. I don't buy anything locally, simply because there are no local suppliers here, other than a paint store that rents HD style washers and who think that the 4.5 sizing on a tip means it is for a 4.5 gallon machine. Items where customer service and/or warranty isn't an issue (tips, connectors, hoses, etc) I'll buy based on cost. Items where quality makes a big difference, or where customer service is an issue (pumps, motors, chems) I'll buy from someone I know and trust.

[Mike Williamson 198]

Bud: 0.5 gal of citraclean? So that's 2.5 gal in a 5 gal bucket? Or 0.5 gallon in a 5 gallon bucket? What type of injector are you using at what ratio?

Mike: This question is a good example of why I like to know ratios. Tell me that I need citraclean to be at 3% on the wall and I can easily refigure the mix for my injector, my buckets, bleach, etc. 1/2 gallon in a bucket, 3 gallons in a bucket, or whatever only means something for a given injection setup, bucket size, etc.

The recommended ratio (by the distributor) is 1/2 gallon of citracleen per 5 gallons of Xjet housewash mix for a 4gpm machine. Up it proportionally for a higher gpm machine.

Mixed in a 5 gallon bucket, you have a solution that is 10% citracleen. Xjetting it, you are shooting 2.5 gallons of mix per minute, and 4 gallons of water, meaning the solution coming out of the Xjet is 3.8% citracleen.

[PLD 14]

paint store that rents HD style washers and who think that the 4.5 sizing on a tip means it is for a 4.5 gallon machine.

Your's are that sophisticated? Mine think that tips are completely interchangeable and as long as you have red, yellow, green, and white you have all you'll ever need. I have rented on ocassion for add'l units and/or backup and seen 2.0 gal machines with a random mix of 2.5, 3.5, 5.5, etc. The also rent surface cleaners outfitted with 3 arms and 3.0 tips for use with a 2.0gpm/2500psi machine.