Starting up and kitting out the van

[P4dstar]

Hi guys. I am starting my own window cleaning business. So far i've done a bit of research and decided to go with WFP. A close friend has 2 brothers who are already in the business. They have provided me advice and one has agreed to take me out for the day to show me the ropes.

In the meantime I have a bunch of questions. Firstly the van... I have settled on a Vauxhall Vivaro or something of similar size. I know this is a little larger than most go for but there are a couple of factors; I live in the countryside in Gloucestershire and although I could probably get a lot of trade in my village I will need to travel quite a lot between small villages and towns etc and I don't want to have to come back to fill up. I plan to install a 500 litre tank instead of the 350-400 that a lot of people seem to recommend so want the bigger van to carry the weight. I also plan to offer wheelie bin cleaning but I don't want to waste pure water on this so I planned to collect bins, clean them and then deliver them back and the larger van could potentially carry some of these for me.

What I am looking for advice on is installing the tank. I have read in lots of places that the tank needs to be secured to the chassis of the van but how is best to do it? I know I need a 100psi pump and battery with a relay system but exactly how does this work? Can anyone give me any advice on installing it?

 

[Part Timer]

If you get the lwb Vivaro I would install an 850l tank, you don't have to fill it. Or you can use the extra water to clean bins, unless you're on a water meter. You will need to be able to increase the flow rate out of your tank as your pump can't feed the pressure washer enough water. As for the technical stuff then I'm no good on that.  

 

[spruce]

Hi guys. I am starting my own window cleaning business. So far i've done a bit of research and decided to go with WFP. A close friend has 2 brothers who are already in the business. They have provided me advice and one has agreed to take me out for the day to show me the ropes.

In the meantime I have a bunch of questions. Firstly the van... I have settled on a Vauxhall Vivaro or something of similar size. I know this is a little larger than most go for but there are a couple of factors; I live in the countryside in Gloucestershire and although I could probably get a lot of trade in my village I will need to travel quite a lot between small villages and towns etc and I don't want to have to come back to fill up. I plan to install a 500 litre tank instead of the 350-400 that a lot of people seem to recommend so want the bigger van to carry the weight. I also plan to offer wheelie bin cleaning but I don't want to waste pure water on this so I planned to collect bins, clean them and then deliver them back and the larger van could potentially carry some of these for me.

What I am looking for advice on is installing the tank. I have read in lots of places that the tank needs to be secured to the chassis of the van but how is best to do it? I know I need a 100psi pump and battery with a relay system but exactly how does this work? Can anyone give me any advice on installing it?

Window cleaning and wheelie bin cleaning aren't compatible imho. You need to decide one way or the other. Look into the legislation you have to adhere to to clean bins. It can't be chucked down the road drains any longer. It has to be filtered and disposed of in an environmentally friendly way.

 

[CM Cleaning Services]

I can only offer my experience so far with window cleaning & bin cleaning from same van

So I have a 350l di setup for window cleaning that purifies on demand so I put my normal water into tank and it pumps out pure, with this in mind when I need to clean bins I put jet wash in van drop my filter suction hose from jet wash into the tank via the screw cap lid and im ready to spray

In regards to doing this out in the street yes there are rules but check with your local council and national water resource people I spoke with both and provided RAMS to how I intended to carry out Bin cleaning and hey presto no issues I can carry on as planned cleaning by the roadside.

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I had to explain and demonstrate how I intended to carry out bin cleaning roadside but they seen no problem with it and gave me the all clear to carry on and I live only a 40 minute trip down the road from Gloucestershire in Newport

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[P4dstar]

Window cleaning and wheelie bin cleaning aren't compatible imho. You need to decide one way or the other. Look into the legislation you have to adhere to to clean bins. It can't be chucked down the road drains any longer. It has to be filtered and disposed of in an environmentally friendly way.

Well I'm set on window cleaning  it bin cleaning was an idea that I could put off. I used to install flood proof paving and part of the plan was to lay a paving area at home. The water goes straight through the blocks and into the base. The sub base is made from limestone which has natural cleansing properties and will break down the dirt and allow it to flow into the sub base naturally. I think the bigger van will give me more opportunity to expand in the future either way but I was originally thinking about a collection - clean - return service. I did run into one issue which was the change in insurance for declaring you will be carrying customers goods in the van.

 

[J and S]

Our wheelie bin cleaners have been doing this for at least 15 years rinsing it down the drain no problem.....they are well established as well.

 

[P4dstar]

I can only offer my experience so far with window cleaning & bin cleaning from same van

So I have a 350l di setup for window cleaning that purifies on demand so I put my normal water into tank and it pumps out pure, with this in mind when I need to clean bins I put jet wash in van drop my filter suction hose from jet wash into the tank via the screw cap lid and im ready to spray

In regards to doing this out in the street yes there are rules but check with your local council and national water resource people I spoke with both and provided RAMS to how I intended to carry out Bin cleaning and hey presto no issues I can carry on as planned cleaning by the roadside.

Sent using the Window Cleaning Forums mobile app
 

I had to explain and demonstrate how I intended to carry out bin cleaning roadside but they seen no problem with it and gave me the all clear to carry on and I live only a 40 minute trip down the road from Gloucestershire in Newport

Sent using the Window Cleaning Forums mobile app
 

I'll check with the council, that's a good idea mate. I'm gonna be running on resin tanks and the recommendation so far has been to filter the water into the tank and then have a smaller tank on site to ensure the water is pure which is why I was worried about wasting it on bins.

 

[P4dstar]

Our wheelie bin cleaners have been doing this for at least 15 years rinsing it down the drain no problem.....they are well established as well.

I guess it's just about asking the question to the council. Everywhere has their own rules. I remember when I used to do paving some councils wanted you to install drop kerbs yourself with extra public liability and some insisted on installing them for you.

It all will come down to if a customer is happy to trust you to bring their bin back. I could always leave room for a second tank of normal water with a bigger pump and just fill it when required. I only thought of the idea because we now have wheelie bins, recycling bins, recycling buckets for cardboard and food waste bins. 18 months ago we put black bags at the kerbside so no one is set up in this area yet.

 

[P4dstar]

So off the subject of cleaning bins for a sec. I'm set on my van, I think I'm gonna pay a local fabricator to build me a simple cage to block the tank in and then use straps too.

Now I need to get the water from the van to the pole. I want to apologise in advance for how basic this question will seem to most people. I know I need a 100psi pump and I've been told to get a boat or caravan battery and a relay so that the van charges both batteries. I've found some videos showing this kind of stuff but none of the technicalities of how to do it. Exactly how do you connect the pump and battery and do you need special protection or housing for the battery?

I've been looking at tanks and when you go to purchase at checkout it starts asking about connections. Again sorry for the basic question but which connections do you guys use? I've got the same problem with poles, there are so many options for brushes and connections but no explanation how each works.




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