I have been following the mixology by AC. I'm finding that in my area it's just not killing the GM and I need to apply 3-4+ coats and at times even come back a few days later. I was hesitant to increase my SH for fear I would kill off everything around the house. The reality is that I put more SH on the roof by applying more coats. I tried 4% on this last house and it was still too light for the back side and I applied 3-4 coats.....and still need to go back!
I've read on other forums that some guys use a 50/50 mix all day everyday and I'm thinking of going that direction but am hesitant.....again, the reality is that I am applying more SH based on the number of coats i'm applying anyhow.
I have been using Green Wash as my surfactant and have added nothing else. I've tried adding more Green Wash and using less Green Wash with no real change in results. Most of my roofs are steep and nasty and several of the vets here have said they have very little run off......I have lots of run off. I've watched the videos of others applying their mix where they one coat and done........even at 4% that's really not the case. I'll admit most of the videos are on lower slope roofs.
I've tried applying the mix thick and tried just misting. I try to get somewhere in the middle but I still end up re-shooting for 3+ coats,
This picture was after three coats at 3%
This picture is during application (I'm shooting from the bottom up nowadays and that has helped but still the same issues) Also, this was the front of the house and one coat was enough.....just a few touch ups here and there.
In my 35 gal mix tank (which is too small) I add: 20 gals water 10 gals SH 40 oz. Green Wash
I have been using the 4 banger tip set as supplied by the Power Wash Store and it really puts out too much mix IMHO. I've been playing with other tips as advised by some of you but I'd like your thoughts and opinions on everything including tip size.
Michael Derose said
May 13, 2014
That satellite dish isn't going to work in that position.
AC Lockyer said
May 13, 2014
Your likely getting weak or even stepped on bleach.
AC
Doug Rucker said
May 13, 2014
Michael Derose wrote:
That satellite dish isn't going to work in that position.
LAMO.......
Doug Rucker said
May 13, 2014
Agree w AC...your SH is weak. I will also add that we never have nor never will shoot a roof, except maybe the occasional really bad tile, at a 50/50 mix. Thats just to strong, IMO.
Eric Owen said
May 13, 2014
Doug,
You should have SCP or Pool Corp in your area SCP is the distributor for Pool Corp and they sell a lot ! of SH at most of their stores.
It sounds like you are getting weak SH even though the label reads 12.5% Check them out SCP.
Doug G said
May 13, 2014
Had not thought of weak SH......comes from PoolSure and is supposed to be fresh in the delivery truck.
Hmmmm
The sat dish was altered into a hair removal device.......if you look at my ground guy, its working just fine.
Huey Miller said
May 13, 2014
Doug I get mine from Univar.......smoking hot
John Aloisio said
May 14, 2014
Agreed, weak or stale SH. And we switched to Univar mini bulk this year and it is fresh and Hot.we can clean most roofs with a 2% mix and only using 3 gallons for house mix. My guys noticed the difference the first day back to work this year.
Chris Wegner said
May 14, 2014
Doug....im in the same boat as you spraying heavy/light, extra green wash, 3-4% and im still doing 3-4 coats. Im noticing that it doesnt matter if the roof is Black or not so maybe our SH is not hot enough. My supplier gets deliveries once to twice a week and it is suppose to be 12%.
Does anyone know if there is a way to test the strength of the SH to make sure it is 12%.
Kristofer
Doug G said
May 14, 2014
Huey Miller wrote:
Doug I get mine from Univar.......smoking hot
Guess that's my first phone call this morning since we are neighbors..........Kinda sucks though. My delivery guy never pays attention and they don't use a meter so I always get more and pay for less.......But if the stuff is cut, stale or weak.....I'm paying more and getting less.
Ray Burke said
May 14, 2014
there is no reason that rood should no have cleaned up with 3% with 2 coats MAX, especially if you were using greenwash.
I'd look at the SH strength.
Lee Kendall said
May 14, 2014
univar all the way
Zach Maynard said
May 14, 2014
3% max for sure on a roof. less for cedar of course.
Steve Salley said
May 15, 2014
We are buying our SH from Univar and this year the stuff is smokin hot!
We run 12-15 gallons SH in our 55 gallon mixes and are cutting back from there on many roofs and getting great results.
We are waiting for our mini bulk tank to be installed, but right now we are running with 300 gallon totes.
Interestingly, we had SH left over from last season and it still cleaned great the first couple weeks of our season. That impressed us because it was still cold outside, yet it worked fine with a little Fresh N Clear sprinkled in the mix.
So, check your SH Doug.
50/50 would scare me that's for sure. My mission is to find how to use less, not more
Bill Booz made a point about application amounts, as has Doug Rucker and this guy named AC... All of them make it clear, proper application will not only save you money, but prevents a lot of issues with runoff in the gutters and ultimately on the ground somewhere. That's liquid profit running into the gutters if excess product is used.
Doug Rucker has taught me the value of patience while the chemical does it's job on the roof. I can shoot most roofs first coat in under 30 minutes, so it is easy to try to beat chemistry by adding more mix. It does not work like that. The time we used to spend fighting excess runoff is now spent enjoying the view from the top-- which usually includes watching the ground guy work! Just kidding
Doug G said
May 15, 2014
Steve Salley wrote:
We are buying our SH from Univar and this year the stuff is smokin hot!
We run 12-15 gallons SH in our 55 gallon mixes and are cutting back from there on many roofs and getting great results.
We are waiting for our mini bulk tank to be installed, but right now we are running with 300 gallon totes.
Interestingly, we had SH left over from last season and it still cleaned great the first couple weeks of our season. That impressed us because it was still cold outside, yet it worked fine with a little Fresh N Clear sprinkled in the mix.
So, check your SH Doug.
50/50 would scare me that's for sure. My mission is to find how to use less, not more
Bill Booz made a point about application amounts, as has Doug Rucker and this guy named AC... All of them make it clear, proper application will not only save you money, but prevents a lot of issues with runoff in the gutters and ultimately on the ground somewhere. That's liquid profit running into the gutters if excess product is used.
Doug Rucker has taught me the value of patience while the chemical does it's job on the roof. I can shoot most roofs first coat in under 30 minutes, so it is easy to try to beat chemistry by adding more mix. It does not work like that. The time we used to spend fighting excess runoff is now spent enjoying the view from the top-- which usually includes watching the ground guy work! Just kidding
Awesome reply Steve.......yea, the ONLY reason I was considering 50/50 was because 30 and 40% were not working. I will buy my first batch from Univar tomorrow and shoot it Monday.....that will certainly tell me all I need to know.
Thanks for all the replies....never crossed my mind about the SH being stepped on....duh....
AC Lockyer said
May 16, 2014
Well being born and raised in Miami we think about many things being stepped on. Just ask Croket and Tubbs.
AC
Schall Bradley said
May 18, 2014
Sounds like weak SH you should not need to apply that many coats at that high of %
Hank Timmermann said
May 19, 2014
Doug,
How did this(Univar) work out for you?
Hank
Doug G said
May 19, 2014
It came out a ton better. Still had to re-shoot a few areas but no where near as bad as before. I could tell the difference shortly after shooting and watching the GM melt. I'm officially a Univarian.......:}
Hank Timmermann said
May 20, 2014
Doug,
Glad to hear everything is working out. Our normal mix is 65/35. When I first started I was an impatient sort. Now that I've been doing it for several years I've learned that I have to let the mix do it's job. The other thing I learned is more is not better. This applies to mix as well as surfactant. Our sh supplier gets 10,000 gallons a week and their price is the same as Univar. Don't get me wrong Univar is a good company but my supplier really takes care of me.
Again I'm glad the fresh SH is working for you.
Hank
Doug G said
May 20, 2014
Thanks Hank,
Univar is actually even cheaper than my other supplier but will be a pain only because its all 55 gal drums. I need to go get my Hazmat endorsement as well because they will only allow me to take one drum at a time. They don't like to deliver to residential either (my shop is in a rural residential area). They need to d a site survey but they didn't sound to hopeful and they don't offer the mini bulk here.
Jeff Thompson said
May 20, 2014
I would check again with Univar Doug. It's been quite a while, but when I started I bought either two 15 gallon drums or two 30 gallon drums.....can't remember for sure....but I know there were other options rather than just 55 gallon drums.
Tim Teed said
May 20, 2014
Check out renting a storage unit. Cost savings may pay rental plus a more potent SH which is more savings
Zach Maynard said
May 20, 2014
Doug back when I used to have to pick up my supply I would buy a 55 gallon drum and 2 15 gallon dels so I would still be under the limit.
Zach Maynard said
May 20, 2014
I used to have to drive there every other day and it was an hour drive each way. (uphill in the snow)
Brandon Vaughn said
May 20, 2014
Zach Maynard wrote:
I used to have to drive there every other day and it was an hour drive each way. (uphill in the snow)
My Dad used to tell me stories like this - and it was uphill each way too.....
Doug G said
May 20, 2014
Zach Maynard wrote:
I used to have to drive there every other day and it was an hour drive each way. (uphill in the snow)
With no shoes on I bet!
Zach Maynard wrote:
Doug back when I used to have to pick up my supply I would buy a 55 gallon drum and 2 15 gallon dels so I would still be under the limit.
I'll check into that......They are about 35 minutes away and load out is pretty fast so not a big deal if I do need to go every other day.
Micheal Pumphrey said
May 20, 2014
Pm me your cell number and I will forward you the guys number we use at univar. If your home is on the route it's not a big deal. If they have to go out of the way they don't like that.
Wondering if we can discuss roof mix.
I have been following the mixology by AC. I'm finding that in my area it's just not killing the GM and I need to apply 3-4+ coats and at times even come back a few days later.
I was hesitant to increase my SH for fear I would kill off everything around the house. The reality is that I put more SH on the roof by applying more coats. I tried 4% on this last house and it was still too light for the back side and I applied 3-4 coats.....and still need to go back!
I've read on other forums that some guys use a 50/50 mix all day everyday and I'm thinking of going that direction but am hesitant.....again, the reality is that I am applying more SH based on the number of coats i'm applying anyhow.
I have been using Green Wash as my surfactant and have added nothing else. I've tried adding more Green Wash and using less Green Wash with no real change in results. Most of my roofs are steep and nasty and several of the vets here have said they have very little run off......I have lots of run off. I've watched the videos of others applying their mix where they one coat and done........even at 4% that's really not the case. I'll admit most of the videos are on lower slope roofs.
I've tried applying the mix thick and tried just misting. I try to get somewhere in the middle but I still end up re-shooting for 3+ coats,
This picture was after three coats at 3%
This picture is during application (I'm shooting from the bottom up nowadays and that has helped but still the same issues)
Also, this was the front of the house and one coat was enough.....just a few touch ups here and there.
In my 35 gal mix tank (which is too small) I add:
20 gals water
10 gals SH
40 oz. Green Wash
I have been using the 4 banger tip set as supplied by the Power Wash Store and it really puts out too much mix IMHO. I've been playing with other tips as advised by some of you but I'd like your thoughts and opinions on everything including tip size.
AC
LAMO.......
You should have SCP or Pool Corp in your area SCP is the distributor for Pool Corp and they sell a lot ! of SH at most of their stores.
It sounds like you are getting weak SH even though the label reads 12.5% Check them out SCP.
Hmmmm
The sat dish was altered into a hair removal device.......if you look at my ground guy, its working just fine.
Doug I get mine from Univar.......smoking hot
Agreed, weak or stale SH. And we switched to Univar mini bulk this year and it is fresh and Hot.we can clean most roofs with a 2% mix and only using 3 gallons for house mix. My guys noticed the difference the first day back to work this year.
Doug....im in the same boat as you spraying heavy/light, extra green wash, 3-4% and im still doing 3-4 coats. Im noticing that it doesnt matter if the roof is Black or not so maybe our SH is not hot enough. My supplier gets deliveries once to twice a week and it is suppose to be 12%.
Does anyone know if there is a way to test the strength of the SH to make sure it is 12%.
Kristofer
Guess that's my first phone call this morning since we are neighbors..........Kinda sucks though. My delivery guy never pays attention and they don't use a meter so I always get more and pay for less.......But if the stuff is cut, stale or weak.....I'm paying more and getting less.
I'd look at the SH strength.
We run 12-15 gallons SH in our 55 gallon mixes and are cutting back from there on many roofs and getting great results.
We are waiting for our mini bulk tank to be installed, but right now we are running with 300 gallon totes.
Interestingly, we had SH left over from last season and it still cleaned great the first couple weeks of our season. That impressed us because it was still cold outside, yet it worked fine with a little Fresh N Clear sprinkled in the mix.
So, check your SH Doug.
50/50 would scare me that's for sure. My mission is to find how to use less, not more
Bill Booz made a point about application amounts, as has Doug Rucker and this guy named AC... All of them make it clear, proper application will not only save you money, but prevents a lot of issues with runoff in the gutters and ultimately on the ground somewhere. That's liquid profit running into the gutters if excess product is used.
Doug Rucker has taught me the value of patience while the chemical does it's job on the roof. I can shoot most roofs first coat in under 30 minutes, so it is easy to try to beat chemistry by adding more mix. It does not work like that. The time we used to spend fighting excess runoff is now spent enjoying the view from the top-- which usually includes watching the ground guy work! Just kidding
Awesome reply Steve.......yea, the ONLY reason I was considering 50/50 was because 30 and 40% were not working. I will buy my first batch from Univar tomorrow and shoot it Monday.....that will certainly tell me all I need to know.
Thanks for all the replies....never crossed my mind about the SH being stepped on....duh....
AC
How did this(Univar) work out for you?
Hank
Doug,
Glad to hear everything is working out. Our normal mix is 65/35. When I first started I was an impatient sort. Now that I've been doing it for several years I've learned that I have to let the mix do it's job. The other thing I learned is more is not better. This applies to mix as well as surfactant. Our sh supplier gets 10,000 gallons a week and their price is the same as Univar. Don't get me wrong Univar is a good company but my supplier really takes care of me.
Again I'm glad the fresh SH is working for you.
Hank
Univar is actually even cheaper than my other supplier but will be a pain only because its all 55 gal drums. I need to go get my Hazmat endorsement as well because they will only allow me to take one drum at a time. They don't like to deliver to residential either (my shop is in a rural residential area). They need to d a site survey but they didn't sound to hopeful and they don't offer the mini bulk here.
I used to have to drive there every other day and it was an hour drive each way. (uphill in the snow)
My Dad used to tell me stories like this - and it was uphill each way too.....
With no shoes on I bet!
I'll check into that......They are about 35 minutes away and load out is pretty fast so not a big deal if I do need to go every other day.
Pm me your cell number and I will forward you the guys number we use at univar. If your home is on the route it's not a big deal. If they have to go out of the way they don't like that.
They have smaller drums than 55 to