I have my first Soft Wash job coming up on the 9th. I am registered and booked for Softwashpalooza West - but I need some coaching to make sure I do this right.
Architectural shingle roof. This is my planned approach -
1. 3% bleach solution (based on AC's mixology), using CH and green wash. I don't have an injector pump for the Green Wash, so I'm assuming I'm going to mix the Green Wash directly into the 55 Gallon drum.
2. Pre-wet all surrounding plant life/trees (there's alot right next to the roof) and have a guy on the ground doing nothing but drenching plants with water - anywhere it splashes off.
3. Spray roof, wait 15-20 minutes, go back and rinse with clean water. I assume I'm going to do a heavy rinse.
4. Continually wet plants, and afterward - rinse all plants with Plant Wash.
I'm unsure about bagging gutters, or if I've missed anything else. Please guys - if you see even the smallest detail that I'm missing - help a brother out!
I'm thinking about 100 gallons of mix will do this roof. Is that about right?
Also there is heavy moss in some areas - what suggestions do you have about removing it? Should I wait a couple months before we brush off? Should I spray it off with low pressure? I have yet to experience the power of CH/Green Wash.
On a side note - the bid is $475 - feedback appreciated.
I wouldn't use ch I would use sh. Ask doug r about his experience with ch on a shingle roof.
AC Lockyer said
Jul 1, 2013
I use CH all the time. Let your tank settle after about 20 min of mixing. Then pump off the milky stuff into anothrt barrel if your worried. The silt settles into the bottom of the tank and everything above that is good clean bleach.
AC
Tim Teed said
Jul 1, 2013
Dont bag the gutters. Plug the gutter downspout with nerf football from dollar store and stick a garden hose in gutter for the areas with a lot of plants or if the discharge is near the plants you can use a black pvc corrugated drain pipe(10') to put the discharge into better area. We use augment mix formula when plants are a concern. 10 gallons bleach, 50 oz CH and 40 gallons of water plus greenwash.(I would add 2 cups roof snot) since roof is fairly step. Add greenwash/roof snot at the very end of mixing or you will get suds everywhere. The moss will turn white and become very spongy. The big pieces of moss will rinse off with garden hose at end if you want. Don't rinse the roof. Don't worry about the small moss or lichen. Let the UV rays from sun and weathering take if off safely over a couple months. If there is alot of sun during cleaning, make sure you keep windows wet, so the solution doesnt dry on it.
Make sure homeowner knows he got a real discounted price. For that price make sure the homeowner gives you a handwritten referral letter. That job should be at least $1500. Even if they ask only for roof cleaning price, give him a price for concrete, siding, gutters, pavers. That is how you get the jobs to $1500 and up. Track your time on job to help with next estimate. Make sure you spend time at the seminar talking with others-especially AC about pricing strategies. Take a lot of before and after photos. Also in one section clean half the roof only and take a photo.
Steve Salley said
Jul 2, 2013
Brandon
That is one huge roof system for that amount of money! Take the advice of the seasoned pros here and charge the full price that a job should pay. I know you think you don't deserve it because you are new, but your insurance company and the gas station and the chemical vendors do not have "new guy prices" for all the things you will use in this business. You will not survive with prices like that on a house that big. Your real costs will be every bit of that amount of money. Oh yes, the tax man get his no matter what the profit...
I really had to learn to trust the pros on here and charge full price. You will not make much money even at good prices until you learn the system, but you sure don't want all his neighbors lining up for the deal of the century.
You have to figure out your real costs of doing business asap and then hold your head up when you quote the price for a professional service.
Congratulations for seeing the true value of going to the training that is available. You are not paying for training, you are investing in your business, and it will return many time over.
You will have a whole new perspective after you go to the training.
Tim is right too, always walk the property and quote for all the cleaning services you see. The homeowner does not know what they really need, so enjoy the process of offering to clean their whole property and make it sparkle.
We often upsell our customers on the added value services of gutter cleaning, concrete treatments, housewashing, etc etc.
Present yourself as the true professional and homes like that will be the norm for your company. Most folks in those income circles do not make their decisions based solely on price. Educate them and enjoy the rewards.
Enjoy the "view from the top!" It will only get cleaner and $greener as your business experience grows.
Brandon Vaughn said
Jul 2, 2013
Thanks guys for the great advice! I'm feeling better already after getting some "Pre-Softwashapalooza" coaching.
The $475 price was for a zinc sulfate application. I told her (a loyal, 16 year customer of ours) that I'd like to try out our new softwashing system on her house for the same price - just with a way better result.
Yes, it is now starting to dawn on me that $475 is a screamin' deal for her, now that I'm realizing the overhead costs of the CH, Green Wash etc. . But I'm not beating myself up too bad on it. It's a low-risk situation, because any clean she gets will be way above and beyond her expectations for the service so I won't be feeling the pressure of getting it spotless.
Awesome to know these services go for $1000 and up. Trust me, I have no problems at all charging more for this service. ;)
Follow-up question regarding CH -
One of the cons I've heard listed with CH is the time it takes to agitate. Has anyone ever played around or experimented with pulverizing/milling CH into a finer powder so it dissolves easier/quicker? Seems logical that if you can mill it down to a finer granule, it would dissolve easier. Zinc Sulfate comes in ultra fine powder and dissolves in like 5 minutes of hand stirring...
By the way - thanks for the calls and private messages today by Eric and John. Great talking with you guys and I seriously appreciate the advice a ton.
AC Lockyer said
Jul 2, 2013
Brandon,
The CH disolves fine. Its the water that is the factor actually. Temp of water, minerals in water, etc solvers to super saturation point. Google super saturation.
AC
John Aloisio said
Jul 2, 2013
Everybody pretty much has u covered, but I just wanted to add two quick things.... Let you customer know that our process can take the patina look off their copper thru-wall flashings. Also, if you are not going to clean the concrete driveway, you need to wet it before and after, as to not have any drips or runoff make clean spots from the chems.
How much chemical you use will depend on a lot of factors... The wind, whether or not you stream tip or fan the roof, will some of the bad areas need a second coat, etc.... These are things you will get with experience.
Ok guys,
I have my first Soft Wash job coming up on the 9th. I am registered and booked for Softwashpalooza West - but I need some coaching to make sure I do this right.
Architectural shingle roof. This is my planned approach -
1. 3% bleach solution (based on AC's mixology), using CH and green wash. I don't have an injector pump for the Green Wash, so I'm assuming I'm going to mix the Green Wash directly into the 55 Gallon drum.
2. Pre-wet all surrounding plant life/trees (there's alot right next to the roof) and have a guy on the ground doing nothing but drenching plants with water - anywhere it splashes off.
3. Spray roof, wait 15-20 minutes, go back and rinse with clean water. I assume I'm going to do a heavy rinse.
4. Continually wet plants, and afterward - rinse all plants with Plant Wash.
I'm unsure about bagging gutters, or if I've missed anything else. Please guys - if you see even the smallest detail that I'm missing - help a brother out!
I'm thinking about 100 gallons of mix will do this roof. Is that about right?
Also there is heavy moss in some areas - what suggestions do you have about removing it? Should I wait a couple months before we brush off? Should I spray it off with low pressure? I have yet to experience the power of CH/Green Wash.
On a side note - the bid is $475 - feedback appreciated.
THANKS A MILLION!
AC
Make sure homeowner knows he got a real discounted price. For that price make sure the homeowner gives you a handwritten referral letter. That job should be at least $1500. Even if they ask only for roof cleaning price, give him a price for concrete, siding, gutters, pavers. That is how you get the jobs to $1500 and up. Track your time on job to help with next estimate. Make sure you spend time at the seminar talking with others-especially AC about pricing strategies. Take a lot of before and after photos. Also in one section clean half the roof only and take a photo.
That is one huge roof system for that amount of money! Take the advice of the seasoned pros here and charge the full price that a job should pay. I know you think you don't deserve it because you are new, but your insurance company and the gas station and the chemical vendors do not have "new guy prices" for all the things you will use in this business. You will not survive with prices like that on a house that big. Your real costs will be every bit of that amount of money. Oh yes, the tax man get his no matter what the profit...
I really had to learn to trust the pros on here and charge full price. You will not make much money even at good prices until you learn the system, but you sure don't want all his neighbors lining up for the deal of the century.
You have to figure out your real costs of doing business asap and then hold your head up when you quote the price for a professional service.
Congratulations for seeing the true value of going to the training that is available. You are not paying for training, you are investing in your business, and it will return many time over.
You will have a whole new perspective after you go to the training.
Tim is right too, always walk the property and quote for all the cleaning services you see. The homeowner does not know what they really need, so enjoy the process of offering to clean their whole property and make it sparkle.
We often upsell our customers on the added value services of gutter cleaning, concrete treatments, housewashing, etc etc.
Present yourself as the true professional and homes like that will be the norm for your company. Most folks in those income circles do not make their decisions based solely on price. Educate them and enjoy the rewards.
Enjoy the "view from the top!" It will only get cleaner and $greener as your business experience grows.
Thanks guys for the great advice! I'm feeling better already after getting some "Pre-Softwashapalooza" coaching.
The $475 price was for a zinc sulfate application. I told her (a loyal, 16 year customer of ours) that I'd like to try out our new softwashing system on her house for the same price - just with a way better result.
Yes, it is now starting to dawn on me that $475 is a screamin' deal for her, now that I'm realizing the overhead costs of the CH, Green Wash etc. . But I'm not beating myself up too bad on it. It's a low-risk situation, because any clean she gets will be way above and beyond her expectations for the service so I won't be feeling the pressure of getting it spotless.
Awesome to know these services go for $1000 and up. Trust me, I have no problems at all charging more for this service. ;)
Follow-up question regarding CH -
One of the cons I've heard listed with CH is the time it takes to agitate. Has anyone ever played around or experimented with pulverizing/milling CH into a finer powder so it dissolves easier/quicker? Seems logical that if you can mill it down to a finer granule, it would dissolve easier. Zinc Sulfate comes in ultra fine powder and dissolves in like 5 minutes of hand stirring...
By the way - thanks for the calls and private messages today by Eric and John. Great talking with you guys and I seriously appreciate the advice a ton.
The CH disolves fine. Its the water that is the factor actually. Temp of water, minerals in water, etc solvers to super saturation point. Google super saturation.
AC
Everybody pretty much has u covered, but I just wanted to add two quick things.... Let you customer know that our process can take the patina look off their copper thru-wall flashings. Also, if you are not going to clean the concrete driveway, you need to wet it before and after, as to not have any drips or runoff make clean spots from the chems.
How much chemical you use will depend on a lot of factors... The wind, whether or not you stream tip or fan the roof, will some of the bad areas need a second coat, etc.... These are things you will get with experience.