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New to pressure washing

Shammy Davis Senior

Active member
Messages
151
Location
Basingstoke
I’ve been cleaning windows for 10 years. I’ve got four vans and am now off the tools. I’m buying a Honda 390 system next week. 

My main question is on pricing. In general should I be looking for a higher hourly rate that cleaning windows? I’m thinking 50% more so for example £45 and hour instead of £30. 

Also so I have too many enquiries to go out and quote. For windows I just look them up on Atreetciew or Rightmove but I’m hoping to be able to work out an square metre rate and estimate over the phone and confirm on the day. Does anyone else do this? Has it worked ok?

Buying this one btw.

https://jetmac.co.uk/shop?olsPage=products%2F2018-honda-gx-390-3000-psi-21-litre-on-galvanized-upright-trolley-with-hose-reel-and-30-meters-hose&page=1&sortOption=ascend_by_price

 
Well done on getting to where you are regarding windows. I don't do large pressure washing jobs, just some customers drives. What I would say is if you're new to PW I'd be wanting to visit every site and price up looking at the job. Only then will you learn by your mistakes. I appreciate you're a busy man but it might pay you to delegate some of the jobs you do now to others. 

Getting a window cleaning job wrong might cost you £50, if it's a big commercial one. Getting a PW job wrong could cost you £100's

 
Well done on getting to where you are regarding windows. I don't do large pressure washing jobs, just some customers drives. What I would say is if you're new to PW I'd be wanting to visit every site and price up looking at the job. Only then will you learn by your mistakes. I appreciate you're a busy man but it might pay you to delegate some of the jobs you do now to others. 

Getting a window cleaning job wrong might cost you £50, if it's a big commercial one. Getting a PW job wrong could cost you £100's




I get the customer to send me pictures if a lot of traveling to do a quote is involved and Ime in any doubt about getting the job then if they don’t go ahead I haven’t wasted my time traveling to look at it , found this saved a lot of time , if there is any questions after that and a site visit is needed I would go then but 99% can be dine by looking at photos 

 
I get the customer to send me pictures if a lot of traveling to do a quote is involved and Ime in any doubt about getting the job then if they don’t go ahead I haven’t wasted my time traveling to look at it , found this saved a lot of time , if there is any questions after that and a site visit is needed I would go then but 99% can be dine by looking at photos 
But you've been doing it for a while, as a newbie isn't he better, initially, looking and learning? 

 
But you've been doing it for a while, as a newbie isn't he better, initially, looking and learning? 


I think anyone could quote a job from pictures better than just looking on google maps or similar it gives you a better idear of what you are dealing with but yes a site visit is the best but if he is that busy rather than come up with a price just based on sm , pictures would give more information and show up potential problems , how ever drainage issues can really only be checked out  by a site visit  , but thought photos would help him and maybe save time traveling to look 

 
I never do a job based on hourly rate, I always go out to the job and measure up and price it based on how many square metres there are, it also gives you a much better idea on drainage. Street view is a dangerous game, quite often they aren’t updated very often and the driveway could have been extended considerably since it was published.
One piece of advice I would offer is to get a mud sucker too, for me drainage issues are the biggest variable on a job, getting rid of dirty water can take as long as the job itself, mud suckers are a god send on a job with poor drainage.

 
To make the job as fast as possible whether you're basing the price on pictures or have even carried out a site visit, its best taking either a gutter vac or mud buster in the van so that if there is a drainage issue you can get rid of the water quickly if you need too.  I've had plenty of jobs where everything looks like it will be fine, to find out the drains are blocked or certain sections of the surface just don't drain well..

 
I never do a job based on hourly rate, I always go out to the job and measure up and price it based on how many square metres there are, it also gives you a much better idea on drainage. Street view is a dangerous game, quite often they aren’t updated very often and the driveway could have been extended considerably since it was published.
One piece of advice I would offer is to get a mud sucker too, for me drainage issues are the biggest variable on a job, getting rid of dirty water can take as long as the job itself, mud suckers are a god send on a job with poor drainage.
Cheers for the advice. Unfortunately the van won’t have room for a guttervac too but what is a mud sucker? 

Edit: Looked up mudsucker and will get one.

What about money though. Does about 50% more p/d sound about right? 

 
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I never do a job based on hourly rate, I always go out to the job and measure up and price it based on how many square metres there are, it also gives you a much better idea on drainage. Street view is a dangerous game, quite often they aren’t updated very often and the driveway could have been extended considerably since it was published.
One piece of advice I would offer is to get a mud sucker too, for me drainage issues are the biggest variable on a job, getting rid of dirty water can take as long as the job itself, mud suckers are a god send on a job with poor drainage.
So the plan is to give the guy I’ve identified as doing the work about 3/4 jobs to do for free then measure up and work out how long on average over the jobs it’s takin him per square metre. So the quotes I give will be on the square metres not an hourly rate as the hourly rate is derived from the square metres.

I’m looking for about £75 per hour plus VAT. So basically that’s how we’ll do it. 

 
Just wanted to add re the drainage issues, I had a small pressure wash last week, only a small filthy courtyard but the drain was blocked (which the owner failed to tell me about, then they went away for a couple of days leaving me to it). So a small job which should have taken two hours max took about 6 hours as I had to get my gutter sucker and suck up the water, leaves mud, moss etc then carry it about 50 yards each time to empty it. Repeat several times!!!?

Things I learnt... customers can be b**ARDS !

A full gutter sucker is very heavy

A gutter sucker is very good for this sort of thing (whilst in my short experience, not very good at actually cleaning gutters, just not powerful enough)

Check drainage before you start 

Live and learn

 
Just wanted to add re the drainage issues, I had a small pressure wash last week, only a small filthy courtyard but the drain was blocked (which the owner failed to tell me about, then they went away for a couple of days leaving me to it). So a small job which should have taken two hours max took about 6 hours as I had to get my gutter sucker and suck up the water, leaves mud, moss etc then carry it about 50 yards each time to empty it. Repeat several times!!!?

Things I learnt... customers can be b**ARDS !

A full gutter sucker is very heavy

A gutter sucker is very good for this sort of thing (whilst in my short experience, not very good at actually cleaning gutters, just not powerful enough)

Check drainage before you start 

Live and learn
How do you check the drainage? Probably seems a stupid question. 

 
Maybe worth just getting a large bucket of water and seeing if it drains away, I'd only been doing this courtyard for about 5 minutes when I noticed the water wasn't going anywhere, I stuck my hand down there, grabbed some leaves, then some more, then some more, then some mud and silt, then after about 20 minutes realised this was worse than it looked. I put the gutter sucker down the drain but that only took out the first bit of crud, as it can't get round bends or further up the pipe it's not really going to help much. If I had tested the drain first it would have been quickly obvious there was a problem. Probably would have not done the job (which was an add on anyway). Have been thinking about buying one of those drain cleaning kits that you attach to a power washer, potentially more work there cleaning drains if they actually work/has anyone tried them?

 
So the plan is to give the guy I’ve identified as doing the work about 3/4 jobs to do for free then measure up and work out how long on average over the jobs it’s takin him per square metre. So the quotes I give will be on the square metres not an hourly rate as the hourly rate is derived from the square metres.

I’m looking for about £75 per hour plus VAT. So basically that’s how we’ll do it. 
Sorry I totally missed the point that you are sending staff to do it. 
I do all mine myself and charge a significant premium over a days window cleaning, usually 3 times more. I usually block the day out for a patio clean though.

Obviously you won’t be paying 3 times more per hour to staff so it’s all relative to how much you pay your staff. 
A mud sucker is just a hose that connects to your pressure washer, far smaller and far more effective than a gutter vac for clearing drainage issues.

As for checking for drainage issues, make sure you have a good look at what drainage there is, low points around the areas where water will collect and pour some water down the rains to see if they work, most importantly ask the customer if they get any pooling when it rains.

I got totally caught out on a job which looked to have great drainage, the entire area was lower than the entrance but there was drainage channels all around the edge, they all turned out to be gravel ‘soakaways’ with a drain grill over the top, totally useless. They customers saw me sucking the water out with a gutter vac (before I knew about mud suckers) and said ’I did wonder how you were going to get the water out, it gets very wet down here when it rains!’ You live and learn! 

 
Sounds to me that you run a very successful window cleaning business. Begs the question why you need to add on pressure washing to your services? Yes the possibility of charging a premium compared to window cleaning is there but it can be hit and miss as in good week/bad week which i presume would be a nightmare with employees to pay?

me all i do is pressure washing and it pays well but i dont pay employees so i can live with quiet days.

aswell as everything else people have mentioned like drainage you need to check on water pressure. 

I wish you all the best if you do decide to go for it ?

 
pressure washing will take up your time,    Windows have to be done or you will get behing and get cancellations.     Most people expect to pay around £50 / £100  for driveway cleaning.  Single driveway.

Setting up takes your time  etc and clearing up.    If they want sanding you will have to wait for dry day.  This is when you should be on your windows.  I used to do it   , offering all exterior clean services.   I got behind with my window cleaning so stopped.      Its ok if you only have 3/4 days window cleaning, you have spare days to pressure wash.     You will get cash back for the washer off jobs. to pay for washer.

I got a Loncin from Jetmac,   All was ok,  sold it for roughly what I paid.  around £600 after 3 years.   keep it clean and take engine & Pump indoors now.   Winter can ruin them.   Just unbolt from frame

Have you got washer yet.

RRT is a good option.     Check his videos to see which drive will suit you 

oh yes set your price for a single drive & a double drive.     if you start offering cheap quotes  you will regret it.     Take videos for your Fb page

 
Sorry I totally missed the point that you are sending staff to do it. 
I do all mine myself and charge a significant premium over a days window cleaning, usually 3 times more. I usually block the day out for a patio clean though.

Obviously you won’t be paying 3 times more per hour to staff so it’s all relative to how much you pay your staff. 
A mud sucker is just a hose that connects to your pressure washer, far smaller and far more effective than a gutter vac for clearing drainage issues.

As for checking for drainage issues, make sure you have a good look at what drainage there is, low points around the areas where water will collect and pour some water down the rains to see if they work, most importantly ask the customer if they get any pooling when it rains.

I got totally caught out on a job which looked to have great drainage, the entire area was lower than the entrance but there was drainage channels all around the edge, they all turned out to be gravel ‘soakaways’ with a drain grill over the top, totally useless. They customers saw me sucking the water out with a gutter vac (before I knew about mud suckers) and said ’I did wonder how you were going to get the water out, it gets very wet down here when it rains!’ You live and learn! 
Very helpful. Cheers. 

 
Sounds to me that you run a very successful window cleaning business. Begs the question why you need to add on pressure washing to your services? Yes the possibility of charging a premium compared to window cleaning is there but it can be hit and miss as in good week/bad week which i presume would be a nightmare with employees to pay?

me all i do is pressure washing and it pays well but i dont pay employees so i can live with quiet days.

aswell as everything else people have mentioned like drainage you need to check on water pressure. 

I wish you all the best if you do decide to go for it ?
it’s really for two reasons. If I can turnover 50% more some days that’s obviously more profitable but the other thing is to provide extra work and keep the vans rammed all the time. It’s slightly more complicated to go into but a revenue boost in Spring would be useful to offset against marketing costs. We’re delivering around 400,000 leaflets in Spring and Summer so I’d anticipate a fair amount of income from pressure washing. It’s a toe in the water (no pun intended) for now though. 

 
How do you check the drainage? Probably seems a stupid question. 
Look for drains and which way the ground is sloping etc. 

Also dips in block paving where the water will pool.

Had a nightmare one 2 weeks ago where the patio sloped towards the house and not towards the drain.

Need to get broom out and leaf blower then or mudsucker for big issues (got by so far without a mudsucker but tempted to get one).

 
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pressure washing will take up your time,    Windows have to be done or you will get behing and get cancellations.     Most people expect to pay around £50 / £100  for driveway cleaning.  Single driveway.

Setting up takes your time  etc and clearing up.    If they want sanding you will have to wait for dry day.  This is when you should be on your windows.  I used to do it   , offering all exterior clean services.   I got behind with my window cleaning so stopped.      Its ok if you only have 3/4 days window cleaning, you have spare days to pressure wash.     You will get cash back for the washer off jobs. to pay for washer.

I got a Loncin from Jetmac,   All was ok,  sold it for roughly what I paid.  around £600 after 3 years.   keep it clean and take engine & Pump indoors now.   Winter can ruin them.   Just unbolt from frame

Have you got washer yet.

RRT is a good option.     Check his videos to see which drive will suit you 

oh yes set your price for a single drive & a double drive.     if you start offering cheap quotes  you will regret it.     Take videos for your Fb page
I still have pressure washing and softwash jobs lined up so I just take the hose off and run the pump dry for 30 seconds (pressure washer is mounted permanently in van).

Not long enough to damage the pump but stops it freezing in winter.

I don't worry about getting behind as I'm using the pressure washing to build a second revenue stream of just add on jobs etc for myself and get another guy on the glass permanently instead of me.

Doing this full house Tuesday morning

Softwash render etc and then pressure washing patio and paths.

Better than scrubbing glass all day.

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Have been thinking about buying one of those drain cleaning kits that you attach to a power washer, potentially more work there cleaning drains if they actually work/has anyone tried them?
I have one of those bullet shaped drain jets that I have used on my own drain by poking some hose round it with the jet on.

Did a quick job of clearing it but not used it on a customers house yet

 
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I’ve been cleaning windows for 10 years. I’ve got four vans and am now off the tools. I’m buying a Honda 390 system next week. 

My main question is on pricing. In general should I be looking for a higher hourly rate that cleaning windows? I’m thinking 50% more so for example £45 and hour instead of £30. 

Also so I have too many enquiries to go out and quote. For windows I just look them up on Atreetciew or Rightmove but I’m hoping to be able to work out an square metre rate and estimate over the phone and confirm on the day. Does anyone else do this? Has it worked ok?

Buying this one btw.

https://jetmac.co.uk/shop?olsPage=products%2F2018-honda-gx-390-3000-psi-21-litre-on-galvanized-upright-trolley-with-hose-reel-and-30-meters-hose&page=1&sortOption=ascend_by_price


Hi,

The Honda 390 series is a great piece of kit. I purchased mine a year ago and it hasn't missed a beat. I looked at Jetmac and to be honest some of the reviews on back up and service are not great and they are based in Ireland. I purchased mine through Martin at HiBar in Southampton who have been brilliant to say the least. PHONE: 023 8045 7176

It is a Dual Pumps Evolution3 Part No: E3T21200PHR which is a pull start and in hindsight wish I had opted for electric start.

My business is Pressure Washing only and working things out on a square metre rate is likely to bite you in the rear. I site survey every job. This allows you to look at the access to the property, condition of the ground your cleaning and any issues regarding water supply etc.  

I price each job individually and have a figure in my head for a day rate as this has to include your Machine fuel, Van fuel, public liability, employers liability etc.... It all adds up !!

I also have a minimum rate which is £80.00 which I tell people when they call. This at least gives you the opportunity to do really small jobs, paths etc with minimal cost to the business if you want to and you can always walk away. 

Good Luck with the business etc

Gaz

 
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