Concrete cleaning can be a lucrative business to start. Here are some tips to help you get it right.
First of all, there is one thing you need to understand when cleaning concrete and that is that concrete cannot always be restored to its pristine state after it has been stained. You can always lighten or bleach stains, but completely removing them is very difficult. So when you talk to a customer, explain this to them, otherwise they will ask you for a job that simply cannot be done unless the entire concrete slab is broken up and re-poured. Now, with that in mind, let’s talk about the equipment that is needed for this type of work. Remember that safety is always important when working with a pressure washer. Sometimes there are chemicals involved in cleaning some stains. Therefore, you should always wear some form of eye protection. Also, when you use chemicals, you should wear jeans to protect your legs.
Chemicals made for concrete are very strong and should not be played with. Would a person prefer to work with dry or wet feet? It is recommended that you get rubber boots or some type of rubber boot. They will keep your feet from getting wet and prevent them from getting burned by the 250 degree water. The orange cones are also important for this job. These help make people visually aware that you are there if you are in a high-traffic area or where there are a lot of hired workers, for example, a newly built house that needs concrete cleaning. This makes everyone around you safe and you are helping to prevent accidents. You will of course need a Hydro-Twister for this job. You can technically do the job with a wand, but it will take a lot more time and water, not to mention it can cause streaks if you don’t use even strokes on the concrete slab. Most new car wash trucks come with them now, but if you don’t have one or need a second unit and are going to buy one, make sure you get the larger of the two. There may only be a 5-inch difference in surface coverage, but it’s worth it when you’re trying to save time without cutting corners.
Remember that this business is all about time relevant for money. You want to earn at least $1 per minute when you do a minimum of concrete work and aim for $100 to $200 per hour. If you’re not making this level of income, then you’re working too slowly or you didn’t bid correctly on the accounts you’re taking. You need to have a work order form. This form should have an area for the time it took to do the job, how many people were on the job, gas to get to the site, and mileage to get to the site. If you need a sheet like this, the coaches (Jason & Rand) in Scottsdale will be happy to fax it to you. Call them at 1-602-432-1308.
For your wand you should use a green tip for steam and a yellow or 15 degree tip to break up dirt from an area or push dirty water from an area. You need to have an extra hundred feet of pressure hose with you on the truck. This extra hose should be available when you are on a job site where there are many contract workers and space is limited. It will take more than one hundred and two feet of hose to reach places like backyards. You will also need two hundred feet of garden hose. Most of the time you will have a job that requires more than 200 gallons of water or multiple jobs in a single day that will use more than 200 gallons of water. You have to remember that hard water is not really that important when making concrete. Soft water is good for making vehicles to help prevent hard water stains, but it’s not necessary for concrete. Also, it is not worth refilling the water tank, just making concrete. If you have a regular concrete cleaning customer, you may want to tell them that you will use their water and reduce their bill by about fifty dollars a month to help cover their water bill.
You need a push broom or hand brooms to help remove dirt before you start the job. On larger jobs, you may want to consider a blower, the kind used for lawns. This will help move more dirt faster. You need a squeegee to help expel water if you’re in a garage or other area where water shouldn’t stay for long. The crescent shaped squeegee works best. Additionally, it helps identify an area that may need to be rechecked or chemically treated to remove the stain. It is important to have a flat nose shovel if you already have concrete that has spilled onto the flat slab or small rocks that have accumulated on top of the concrete. If you spray the concrete when these little rocks are still there and hit them good; they can catch a nearby window and cause damage. You could break up the excess concrete with the push rod, but again, this is a waste of time and money you could earn on your next job. One very important item to have is some type of cover plate. This plate will be placed in front of doors or floor boards when you use the rods to go through the edges of the concrete. Much of the competition does not go this extra mile when doing a job. This is what makes us the best because we care about the work we do.
The truck should be set up so that it can use a garden hose and external water supply in case we need one for concrete work or other types of work. Trucks should come with quick releases between the tank and the inlet pipe to the pressure washer. There should also be a valve that is turned so that the water leaves the black tank that now contains the external water that enters. There should be a connection for a water hose that is above the small black tank. The inside of the tank can be equipped with a float so that the water does not overflow when you are not pressing the trigger and letting the water out. When cleaning concrete always use over 3000 PSI and water over 250 degrees. These two elements are key to cleaning concrete effectively and correctly. Now let’s talk chemicals for a minute.
To clean the rust there is a product made by Simonize (order from Howard at AAA Pressure Washers)
which is called Concrete Cleaner and Etch. This chemical is an acid and can be very dangerous. To apply this chemical, you can spray it with a metal hand spray can. If you use a sprayer that has plastic parts, the sprayer won’t last more than one or two times before the parts melt and it’s useless. The chemical should be mixed 50-50 with water. If you are using it on colored concrete, try a test patch first because this material whitens and lightens, so it might make it lighter than the original concrete. To remove oil or grease stains, Simonize SC-260 can be used. It is a granule type chemical that looks like kitty litter. To apply it, you must first moisten the area to be treated and then spread a thin layer over the spot. Take a brush and shake it to work it. Let it rest for fifteen to twenty minutes before removing it. Make sure you are done removing the granules. This next chemical should be used for emergencies if possible. This material is very thick and must be applied with a roller brush which is an adhesive type roller. Let it sit for fifteen to twenty minutes and then remove it very carefully not to stain yourself or any of the other chemicals. To develop the most efficient use of time on a particular job site, one person should sweep loose debris from the work area while the other sets up equipment. Be sure to sweep all the corners well because this is the area where most of the dirt seems to end up. Remember that when you hydrotwist an area, you are simply lifting up dirt and stains.
Then you should go back over the areas to remove any dirt from the concrete. After you have hydro-twisted the area, you should cover the entire siding with your cover plate or whatever shield you find works best and proceed to manually clean any trouble spots and the outside edges of the concrete. Finally, when working where many contractors work, be sure to be courteous and try to avoid them. You never know who they have contact with. They may refer you to someone else. Concrete is a great “fill” account if it’s raining. You can always make concrete in any kind of weather and it pays very well for what it does for the job. So remember, it’s always good to have concrete work.
For marketing ideas it may be a good idea to go to;
http://www.concretewashguys.com