Over-Saturated Market??

[kbrooks 14]

I am looking seriously about getting into the pressure washing business. I am still doing my research...(this board has proven very helpful!). I think if I'm armed with the right equipment, knowledge, and a willingness to work (and market) hard---I think I can make it. After looking in the yellow pages though...there seems to be a LOT of pressure washers!! All I need to know is if there is plenty of room for ONE MORE!? Any 'newbies' (or oldies) have some advice? Thanks!

[PressurePros 249]

kbrooks, you will find that the competition is irrelevant if you know how to market and how to sell. Before you begin into this venture set a realistic budget.

If you are going to do this full time, you will need a large and varied campaign. You need to convince people that it is YOU they want to perform the work not the other thirty schmoes listed in the yellow pages. This takes a fairly large advertising budget. In the beginning work will still be skinny until you are around for a year. That's why it is a good idea for most people to start this part time and keep the steady income.

The actual cleaning has a learning curve, but by paying attention here and doing trials on friends and relatives you will get the hang of it. More important to any service industry is the ability to CLOSE YOUR SALES. So many guys are missing the boat on this and running around busting hump for chicken feathers (probably most of your competetion). I wish you the best.

[Don Phelps 85]

There are 199 pwers listed in the Sprint yellow pages alone in the Orlando area and I'm not in either book and do just fine. Networking is the key for me.

I don't really consider anyone competition. I don't mean that in an arrogant way, I just think there's enough dirt to go around.

[kbrooks 14]

Thanks Pressure Pro! I ordered a '3 year projection' plan from Delco to hopefully give me some realistic help for the starts of a business plan. Although I think many of you here will be even more helpful. I look forward to the opportunity to learn from those of you that would like to 'invest' some of your expertise in helping me get started on the right foot. The amount of my learning curve probably exceeds what we can cover just 'posting'--so I would be willing to communicate by email or phone. My email is gospelman@sbcglobal.net.

[kbrooks 14]

Thanks for the input, Don! Hey..I looked at your pics.......I love your trailer with the 'drop down' gate (which you used for advertising) Great Idea! I was looking at a "rig" already put together on Ebay from a guy in TN...it was almost $9,000.......should I 'put my own together' or go for the one already done?

[Don Phelps 85]

That's a call you're going to have to make.....If you're mechanically inclined, go for it! It's usually cheaper to go that route. Some important things to keep in mind are weight distribution, space for future equipment additions, and storage. If I can help, let me know. :)

[PLD 14]

Thanks for the input, Don! Hey..I looked at your pics.......I love your trailer with the 'drop down' gate (which you used for advertising) Great Idea! I was looking at a "rig" already put together on Ebay from a guy in TN...it was almost $9,000.......should I 'put my own together' or go for the one already done?

I recommend that you look at used rigs. When I started, I looked at used rigs (about $5k) and passed because I wanted new. Hence, I built my first rig from scratch. All new equipment, trailer, etc. Looked great, and IMHO was priced reasonably. After using the rig for awhile I realized that my $5k budget was about 50% of what it should have been. And, while my rig was perfectly functional it was missing alot of features that I had since learned that I wanted/needed (like hot water).

At the beginning of this year, I was looking to upgrade. This time, I decided to go used. I purchased a *fully* loaded trailer second hand for $6500. Extra guns, tips. lances, QC's, 400ft of hose, etc. I did spend a full day re-organizing the trailer and re-plumbing it to my specs, but it was a business in a box when I got it.

If you are rolling in cash, there definitely advantages to rolling your own. But for me, used is the way to go. Many people get into this business blind and drop 10k only to sell it all a year later for 50c on the dollar.

[kbrooks 14]

Go to ebay and type this number in the search feature........let me know if this is worth the $$$ and has the necessary equipment or if I should go another route.

# 4415785959

Thanks!

[Don Phelps 85]

Here, this will be faster.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=4415785959&ru=http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.ebay.com%3A80%2F%2Fsearch%2Fsearch.dll%3Ffrom%3DR40%26satitle%3D4415785959%26fvi%3D1

[squirtgun 122]

The rig is nice,but there is no room for expansion.

Don,myself and others have built nice rigs (that are comparable in the same price range or less that have extra room to add equipment etc.) and the majority of the needed equipment to get started.

Don has a great mind for laying out a rig (been trying to talk him into coming to Ga. for months to help re-do mine). Not that I can't do it,I just need someone to motivate me sometimes. I wanted to assemble our rig so if something broke, I knew how to fix it.It's time well spent on becoming familiar with your machine and the lay out that works most efficiently for you.

[seymore 90]

We have 999,001 P/washers in our phone books but try to find a company who ONLY does deck,fence,cedar home restoration.....1..Woodsavers of Texas....:cool:

actually we don't advertise in the yellow pages..we don't advertise at all...99.9% of calls are referals/repeat biz..:D

We find only specializing in wood restoration has more benefits than a Pressure washing company in general.

I"m not in a big price war against competition cause there are soo many P/washing companies here in Houston.

We're going on 15 yrs in the bizzz and have found being able to offer a specialized service with an exclusive product means ...:lgmoneyey

[seymore 90]

i double posted and can't figure out how to delete it now

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

For a custom rig call these two guys and talk to them....both are excellent.

Tom Vogel ACR Products www.acrproducts.com

Bob Williamson fro PressureTek www.pressuretek.com

Beth

[PLD 14]

Go to ebay and type this number in the search feature........let me know if this is worth the $$$ and has the necessary equipment or if I should go another route.

# 4415785959

IMHO, it's not your best option. That's a very light trailer with a relatively small pump. Will it work, sure. Is it a good value? No. IMHO, for nearly 10k, 18hp, 5.5+gpm and a double axle trailer w/ brakes are a minimum requirement. Just to give you some point of reference, check the bargain basement here. You will see that earlier this year there was a nearly identical used unit for $4200.

You will want to shop around quite a bit before purchasing. You should be able to locate a good 5.5/3500, double axle, hoses and all rig for around $5-6k. Check the bargain basement here. Also, get the local equipment trader and start looking. There's bound to be someone local selling a rig. That's where I found mine.

I'm not recommending any of these, but you can see that you can get much more for nearly the same $$$.

http://cgi.ebay.com/PRESSURE-WASHER-4-GPM-4000-PSI-Honda-Trailer-Mounted_W0QQitemZ4416207555QQcategoryZ50388QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/PRESSURE-WASHER-8-GPM-3000-PSI-Kohler-Trailer-Mounted_W0QQitemZ4417099358QQcategoryZ50388QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/HOTSY-POWER-WASHER-complete-rig-READY-TO-WORK_W0QQitemZ4417080124QQcategoryZ50388QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem#ebayphotohosting

http://cgi.ebay.com/CUSTOM-HIGH-PRESSURE-WASHER-STEAMER_W0QQitemZ7560879840QQcategoryZ46536QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem