Removing Graffiti Etching from Glass Adding Sewer Jetting Raising Your Cleaning Prices eClean Magazine
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TM
1.800.433.2113
G r a f f i t i R e m o v a l P ro d u c t s D-Vandal Graffiti Remover
Sign Safe Graffiti Remover
A fast-acting penetrating semi-gel that removes paints, inks (including ball point pen), permanent markers, crayons, caulking, urethane sealants and more off most surfaces. This product eliminates tedious scrubbing to remove stubborn stains on surfaces by simply wiping with a soft cloth or using an all-purpose sprayer. Click Here
Great for removing graffiti on metal signage, traffic signage, rail signage, and any metal signage with a reflective surface. Click Here
Elite Graffiti Remover
Smart Green Graffiti Remover
A strong, biodegradable liquid graffiti remover for pre-finished metal and powder coated products such as mail boxes, fencing, signs, and more. Click Here
10” BI-Level Brush Tackle high-surface cleaning jobs with care using this soft-bristle non-marking wash brush. The unique angled design utilizes the bristles for optimum contact with the surface to be cleaned. Click Here
11” Alum. Brightener Brush Designed to work with acidic liquids, this Soft Bristle Acid Brush is a perfect choice for applying acidic solutions, aluminum brightener, or muratic acid. Click Here
An environmentally friendly, biodegradable, liquid graffiti remover with deep penetration for exterior surfaces. Click Here
Wash Brushes This long-lasting multi-purpose kit cleans all surfaces with minimum effort and comes with a fine, medium and coarse 4”x 6” pads.
Click Here
Click Here
Wash Brushes Tackle tough but delicate cleaning jobs with care using this soft-bristle non-marking Wash Brush. It’s the perfect solution for cleaning vehicles, awnings and other surfaces that require a softer touch application. The sturdy plastic handle gives it a tough feel for long lasting performance. Click Here
Perfect when high and low pressures are needed and also when switching between a solid or a flat spray pattern. Select between high or low pressure with a push-pull action. Adjust for straight to fan jet by turning the nozzle. • Maximum Pressure: 3000 PSI • 5.5 Max GPM • Max Temperature: 140 F Click Here • Inlet Port: 1/4-19 BSP-F Specify GPM, and Pressure when ordering
A fast acting, mild, biodegradable liquid graffiti remover that can be used to remove crayon, permanent marker, and pencil from interior surfaces. Click Here
Chapin Degreaser Sprayer Built-in relief valve pressure gauge for added safety Several sizes available Click Here
Trigger Gun YG-5000
Mr. LongArm 6’-18’ Telescoping Handle
Multireg Nozzle
Can be used to remove permanent marker from painted doors, walls, laminates, plastics, playground equipment, lockers, desks, and more. Click Here
General Purpose Graffiti Remover
An easy to use liquid graffiti remover with deep penetration for exterior surfaces. Remove graffiti quickly without damaging the original surface. Click Here
Metal Safe Graffiti Remover
Marker Remover
A powerful and efficient spray gun for a great price. Up to 10.0 GPM Max Discharge 5000 PSI Max Fluid Temp 200ºF Click Here
Trigger Gun ST-2605 The easiest opening and holding trigger in it’s class; maintains a proper spray angle for optimal positioning of pressure points; and has a forged brass housing for maximum strength. • Max Fluid Temp.: 300º • Max Discharge: 5000 PSI • Flow Rate: 12 GPM • Inlet: 3/8” FNPT • Outlet: 1/4” FNPT Click Here
Rotomax Rotating Nozzle
Designed to improve the cleaning efficiency of any pressure washer by producing a rotating action that considerably expands the contact area of the cleaning stream while providing the impact of a zero degree nozzle. The unique internal design provides “aim and shoot” operation even while cleaning overhead and permits easy replacement of all wear parts. Three models are available Rotomax 1, 2.1-2.6GPM, 1,300-2,000PSI Rotomax 2, 2.9-4.0GPM, 1,450-3,500PSI Rotomax 3, 4.2-5.5GPM, 1,450- 3,500PSI
Turbo Nozzle ST-457
Click Here
This nozzle is ideal for hard surface applications. The 0 degree rotation creates a cleaning and tearing action resulting in increased cleaning efficiency, as much as 200% compared to a 25 degree flat fan nozzle. • Available in sizes 4.5-8.0 • Up to 5000PSI, 212°F, • 1/4”FNPT • 1.48lbs
Click Here
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In This Issue: Removing Graffiti
4 Cashing in on Graffiti Removal, by Henry Bockman,
Henry’s Housework/Contractors Foundation
10 Removing Graffiti Etching (and Other Scratches) from
Glass, by Cody Thomas, Glass Renu
13 Graffiti Protective Coatings: The Truth about Permanent
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vs. Sacrificial Coatings, by John Rose, The World’s Best Graffiti Removal Products
28 Pressure Washing Tips for Graffiti Removal, by Paul Horsley
Additional Features
8 Contractors Invited to Attend PowerClean 2012, October 23, Orlando, Florida
15 Soap Is Not an Opera: How to Buy Cleaning Chemicals, by Rick Meehan, Marko Janitorial Supply
18 Is a Daily Deal the Right Marketing Strategy for Your
Business?, by Christian Fea, Synertegic, Inc.
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19 Strive to Exceed Break Even, Pt. 1, by Tom Grandy,
Grandy & Associates
23 Why I Added “Sewer Jetting” to My Gutter Cleaning Business, by Doug Rucker, Clean & Green Solutions 24 How to Raise the Prices You Charge to Your Cleaning
Customers, Steve Hanson, The Janitorial Store
26 Name Drop Your Way to a Lot of Customers, by Steve Wright, The Customer Factor
Cover Photo
Courtesy of The World’s Best Graffiti Removal Products, www.GraffitiRemovalInc.com eClean Magazine is published monthly Publisher: Paul Horsley, paul@ecleanmag.com Editor: Allison Hester, allison@ecleanmag.com
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eClean Magazine Box 262, 16 Midlake Blvd S.E. Calgary, Alberta Canada T2X2X7 www.eCleanMag.com www.eCleanMag.com
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Ca$hing in on Graffiti Services by Henry Bockman, Henry’s Housework, www.HenrysHousework.com, and Contractors Foundation, www.ContractorsFoundation.com
4 eClean Magazine www.T-TechPower.com Photo courtesy of TTech Power Solutions,
www.eCleanMag.com
Photos courtesy of Clean & Green Solutions, www.CleanandGreenSolutions.com
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lmost every city in the Country is threatened by rising amounts of graffiti on public surfaces, which opens up some tremendous opportunities for power washing contractors. Most property owners don’t have to tools or the experience to handle it themselves and since so few contractors are specialized in graffiti removal services, it’s pretty easy to get yourself established as a local expert. But, before you start adding graffiti removal to your web site and lettering your truck, do some investigation first! Graffiti Defined raffiti is created using pen ink, permanent markers, nail polish, wax crayons, shoe polish and of course hundreds of different colors and brands of spray paint. All of these items come in different chemical compositions and colors, and each of these materials presents a challenge that can be impossible for some contractors that are just starting to offer graffiti removal services. The type of surfaces that you will be removing graffiti from also varies from brick, block and other hard porous surfaces like stone, to painted surfaces like aluminum siding, garage doors, cars and playground equipment adding to the complexity of the removal job. No matter what you the graffiti is applied with, or what surface you are removing it from, the removal should be done quickly so it is easier to remove and so that the vandals are discouraged from further destruction. If the client continues to have problems with graffiti then you might want to consider giving the client a price on a applying a coating that
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prevents the graffiti from adhering to the surface. Then they can remove it themselves if necessary. The ideal remover should be eco-friendly, and it should not contain harsh chemicals that can damage your clothes, burn your skin and eyes, or be so difficult to work with that it takes hours to work. Other problems that are commonly mentioned among graffiti removal contractors are noxious fumes, and products that can leave graffiti shadows behind or damage the surface that you are removing it from. Graffiti Removal Methods ne of the most popular methods of graffiti removal performed by most contractors is just painting over it. About 60 percent of graffiti is done using paint and can be removed by a paint-over job. It is a simple and cost-effective option, working well for large painted walls with the use of mini-rollers, brushes or pads for faster results. The drawback to paint-overs is getting the color of the paint used to cover up the graffiti to match the original color of the wall. Unfortunately, repeated applications over the same wall can cause peeling of the paint because some paints won’t adhere well to others. There are some surfaces that cannot
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Photo courtesy ofPanther Outdoor Maintenance Services, www.PantherOutdoor.com be painted over, such as cars, siding and road signs. Plus, a paint-over job tends to give patchy results on surfaces and it makes a perfect canvas for the graffiti artist to return to! • Chemical Cleaning: Graffiti on concrete, glazed and metal surfaces and bare brick walls is best removed by chemical cleaning. In some cases, two to three coats need to be applied with a waiting period in between to allow the solution to dwell. The longer such a graffiti remover product is left on the surface, the deeper it can penetrate and remove the graffiti. But it is important to know the right technique and duration for applying these chemicals to avoid any damage to the surfaces. A painted surface is more sensitive to chemicals, since the paint may be stripped off along with the graffiti. Chemical cleaning agents are not ecofriendly. • Pressure Washing / Abrasive Blasting: These techniques are used to clean graffiti off buildings, walls and sidewalks. Hot pressure washing is preferred to sand blasting since it is not as abrasive to the surface. While they can be used directly if the graffiti comes off easily, the most common way to carry out pressure washing or sand blasting is in conjunction with a chemical remover. The pressure and distance of application are important; usage of High Volume Low Pressure (HVLP) spray guns is recommended at 150 200 PSI at a distance of 12” – 24” from the 6
surface being cleaned. • Laser Removal: This is an expensive and uncommon, but essential method of removing graffiti from the surface of historical monuments that need to be preserved. Nd:YAG wavelength lasers are perfect, but a lot of patience and skill is required in their use and are best left to expert graffiti removing services. As you can see, there is a lot more to removing graffiti than you may have realized, many of these techniques need advanced skill and training and should always be used with extreme care. But if you invest the time in learning about different products and methods for removing graffiti you can add a considerable amount of income to your company and separate yourself from the competition in your area. Commercial Restorations has provided graffiti removal services for 25 years which has given us an opportunity to test lots of graffiti removers and if you are considering offering graffiti removal services for you company, we would be happy to offer you suggestions and advice. Henry Bockman owns five companies, including Henry’s Housework Inc, Commercial Restorations, Extreme Marketing Solutions and two companies that operate online. His contracting companies have provided services in Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia since 1989, for over 25,000 properties. He has earned both several industry certifications, and has been involved in teaching, and creating courses for the PWNA, Alliance Trade Educations Services and the Contractors Foundation. Bockman currently resides in Maryland with his wife of 20 years and two teenagers.
eClean Magazine www.eCleanMag.com Photos courtesy of Bay Wash Pressure Washing San Diego, www.BayWashSanDiego.com
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Contractors Invited to Attend PowerClean 2012 October 23, Orlando, Florida PowerClean 2012, sponsored by the Cleaning Equipment Trade Association (CETA), is scheduled for October 20-23 in Orlando, and the trade show floor is sold out, with over 40 organizations planning on exhibiting. (eClean Magazine will be one of them!) While CETA is an association designed for manufacturers, suppliers and distributors, the trade show floor will be open on Tuesday, October 23, from 12:30 to 4:oo for end users. With the Power Washers of North America (PWNA) conference overlapping this event (see www.ThePWNA.org for more), end users can attend both events while in Orlando. “We would like to invite all contract cleaners, industrial users, window cleaners, hood cleaners, etc,. to join us on Tuesday for the largest exhibit of pressure washers in North America,” said CETA Executive Director Sherry Helms. “Contractors, this show only happens once and year, and this is the most exciting year yet. DON’T be LEFT OUT!” Following is a list of exhibitors scheduled to participate: Exhibitor Booth # A R NORTH AMERICA INC 207 www.arnorthamerica.com Supplies high pressure plunger pumps & accessories AALADIN CLEANING SYSTEMS 410 www.aaladin.com Mfr. of hot and cold water pressure washers ALKOTA CLEANING SYSTEM 401 www.alkota.com Mfr. of pressure washers BARENS INC. 406 www.barens.com Wholesale supplier of pressure washer parts & accessories DR BART BASI 116 www.taxplanning.com BE PRESSURE SUPPLY, INC 515 www.bepressure.com Mfr. of cold water washers & components. eClean Magazine eClean Magazine
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CAT PUMPS 506 www.catpumps.com Pump manufacturer CHAPPELL SUPPLY & EQUIPMENT 400 www.chappellsupply.com Supplier of pressure washer replacement parts CLEANER TIMES 312 www.cleanertimes.com Technical journal for high pressure water CHEMTEL Inc 416 www.chemtelinc.com MSDS & HazMat Consultants COMET USA 104 www.cometpumps.com Mfr. of high pressure plunger pumps & accessories eClean Magazine 114 www.ecleanmag.com The Professional Contract Cleaner’s Online Resource! EPPS Products 514 www.epps.com ETOWAH CHEMICAL 310 www.etowahchemicals.com Complete automotive & industrial line of chemicals Farley’s Inc 211 www.farleysinc.com Coils & total electric high pressure hot water machine. FNA GROUP 501 Mfr. of pressure washers & their components. GENERAL PUMP 500 www.gpcompanies.com Plunger pumps & related accessories GREASE FOAM 213 www.foamit.com Grease Foam HYDRO TEK SYSTEMS, INC. 300 www.hydrotek.us Mfr. of pressure washers, wastewater recovery & treatment systems & washing accessories. JTI TRADE INC. 311 Val 6 Heater www.eCleanMag.com www.eCleanMag.com
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KO MANUFACTURING, INC. 102 www.komfg.com Mfr. of industrial, trucking & automotive chemicals. LARGO CLEANING SYSTEMS 107 www.largo.com Lighthouse for the Blind Ft. Worth/Smart Graffiti USA 316 www.smartgraffitiusa.com Distributor of smart graffiti removal products. MI-T-M CORPORATION 200 www.mitm.com Pressure washers, air compressors, generators, heaters, wet/dry vacs, water treatment systems. MTM HYDRO, INC. 201 www.mtmhydro.com Components & accessories for high pressure cleaners & car-wash industry. NILFISK-ALTO CLEANING SYSTEMS, INC. 510 www.Advance-us.com Pressure washers from 300 to 3500 PSI PA SPA 110 www.pa-etl.it Accessories for high pressure washers. PACE MANUFACTURING DIV. 314 www.pacemfg.com Washer hoses, fuel filters PRESSURE-PRO INC. 111 www.pressure-pro.com Hot & cold water pressure washers POWER WASHERS OF NORTH AMERICA 117 www.pwna.org Association representing the contract cleaner. Roberts Supply – Honda Engines 307 406 116
PWNA
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CETA
WOC
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eclean
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PA SpA
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Pressure Pro
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316 Smart Graffti
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PACE
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G Foam
Cleaner Times
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Farley
317BE
416
Schief fer
ChemTel
315 Wenlin gYong yi
414 Steel Eagle
311
410
JTI
AAladin
Etowah
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UPS
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Comet Pump
102 KO
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Largo
AR
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Wayne
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Honda
Baren
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Mi-T-M
MTM
Hydro Tek
Chappell Supply
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TRC
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www.robertssupply.com Distributor, Honda Engines, 2cc – 688cc R.W. BECKETT CORP. 407 www.beckettcorp.com Burners and other components. STEEL EAGLE 414 www.steeleagle.com Mfr.of pressure washer accessories STEAMERICAS 516 www.steamericas.com Steam machine. SUTTNER AMERICAN COMPANY 415 www.suttner.com Pressure washer components, pumps & accessories. TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH CORP. (TRC) 100 www.trci.net Mfr. of ground fault circuit interrupters (GFCI) UPS Freight 108 www.ups.com WAYNE COMBUSTION SYSTEMS 306 www.waynecombustion.com Mfr. of oil and gas power burners for pressure washers. Supplier of burner components such as pumps & controls. Wenling Yongyi Clng. Equipment Co Ltd 315 www.dercer.com Specialty nozzle manufacturer. YRC Freight 411 www.yrc.com “Contractors Outside this Show only happens once a Demo Area PowerClean 2012” “Please stop by year, don’t miss the CETA Booth and find out what CETA is doing to help you!” Pre-registration 516 417 515 is encouraged Steamer DOT BE ica and is $25, or pay 415 514 $45 at the door. Suttner Epps To learn more, 413 510 visit www.CETA. C Contact Nilfisk org. To download Alto 411 Advanc the registration YRC e form online, go to ceta.org/events/ powerclean2012/ 407 506 PC2012%20 Beckett CAT Industrial%20 Users%20 Registration%20 500 401 501 General Form.pdf FNA Pump Alkota
Lunch www.eCleanMag.com Area
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Removing Graffiti Etching (and other Scratches) from Glass
A Natural Addition and Profitable Up-Sell
By Cody Thomas, GlassRenu, www.GlassRenu.com
Photo provided by Lambert & Martin Powerwashing & Glass, Cranton, RI If you look, you will find scratched glass at almost every establishment you step foot on. Whether it is deep damage, like graffiti etching, or smaller scratches from improper cleaning or even hard water and acid etching, the damage is there. This damage represents the single biggest opportunity to make some serious profits from customers already using your cleaning services, or from new customers who may end up using your cleaning services after you fix their glass. The markets for scratch removal are limitless, and they are places you are already cleaning. Both residential and commercial properties have damaged glass, and while most damage is not graffiti, graffiti removal from bus stops, train stations, buses, schools and universities are huge. Residential properties are going to have damage from irrigation overspray (hard water staining), building runoff staining, new construction damage, pet scratches and improper cleaning. Anyone who has glass can be a potential customer. While we may have grown accustomed to the presence 10
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of window damage and don’t notice it, the windows’ owners certainly do. These blemishes block their view every day. Repairs are often not done simply because the window owners don’t know it’s an option, or because the cost to replace the glass is beyond their current means. One of our top users loves to tell me how he “makes believers every day” simply because the act of scratch removal is beyond the scope of most peoples’ realm of possibility. The Science Behind the Process Scratch removal requires grinding the damaged surface of the glass from where it was to the bottom of the damage, to create a new surface. In most instances, the damage is about 0.001” to 0.005” deep, or less than the thickness of a business card. More serious damage, such as that caused by graffiti etching, can be removed as well. Scratch removal has been around for about 25 years, but until about seven years ago the science was imperfect due to one misconception: you have to use water to grind www.eCleanMag.com
on glass. When you introduce water into scratch removal along with any type of grinding apparatus, you run into problems with optic distortion or “lensing.” When you introduce water between a spinning disk and a stationary surface, the water will move to the outer edge of the spinning disk. Water is non-compressible (the magic of hydraulics) and thus the outer edge of the abrasive disk makes poor contact with the surface you are grinding on. If the center of the disk is making great contact, and the outer edge is not, you will grind a lens into the surface of the glass. These lenses will create a distorted path for light through the glass and leave the window looking like a fun-house mirror. Understanding that this was one of the major issues facing the glass restoration industry, we embarked on developing a method to restore the glass without leaving any optic distortion. By using a dry grinding method, our system allows contractors to consistently and evenly remove glass stock until we reach the bottom of the damage. This way, when light travels through the glass, it will maintain that straight pattern, preventing distortion. The damage removal typically involves three steps. First, choose the appropriate grinding pad based on the depth of the damage. Deeper damage naturally requires not only choosing a coarser pad, but requires grinding a greater surface and can take longer to remove. However, it can be done. The process is not magic, in fact it is very much the same method you would use to remove a scratch or gouge from a piece of wood. You are going to sand the glass down to the bottom of the damage, and then go through a succession of finer grit abrasives to get the surface smooth again. The only difference is that we are working on glass with very specialized abrasives. If you can sand a piece of wood, you can remove scratches from glass. After you have removed the damage, you then are going to work on polishing the surface of the glass back to clarity. The process is simple, the concept is simple, but as with any trade or skill you can spend a lifetime improving. On average it will take you a few hours to get comfortable with the tools, but after that you should be fine. How To Sell Scratch Removal I always recommend that before you invest in a scratch removal system you should make a couple of sales first. This will not only help offset the cost of the equipment, it will help you see how easy a service it is to sell. Selling scratch removal is no different than selling any other service. The only difference you will find is that because most customers don’t know about scratch removal you will need to do a bit more educating during eClean Magazine
the sales process. There are a number of sales pitch strategies that many have used and found to be very effective in closing jobs. Here are a few of them. 1. Start out with your existing customers. Their windows will be damaged. You are already there on their property cleaning. They will be happy to know you offer this service. You might also add a special to any promotions you are offering. Craigslist is a goldmine. Not only are you able to market your services, you get a back link to your website to help build your SEO. You will be amazed with how many customers will be interested in booking this service. 2. Use the “Porthold Sales Pitch.” I use this when calling on a customer that clearly has bad damaged glass. What I will do is find an area of damage that is big enough to show the repair, yet small enough to require them to hire me to remove the balance of the damage. No different than using a metal stencil with your power washing equipment to demonstrate your cleaning service. I will do the small demo and then I will hand a precompleted estimate to the customer and let them know that they need to book soon as my schedule is filling up fast. By having the estimate already done and putting a little urgency in my closing statement I am usually able to get the customer to agree and schedule before I make it back to my truck. 3. Implement the “Anchor Theory.” Generally, on any commercial block, your bigger businesses are located on the corners. If you can sell the corner business, then it’s much easier to sell the rest of the block. After I sell the corner stores, I go visit the managers at the neighboring shops and tell them I’m going to be in the neighborhood removing scratches from the corner store on whatever date. I explain when I’m scheduled to be there, how long I plan to be there, and that since I will
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During Scratch Removal
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already be in the neighborhood, I can come over afterward, repair their glass, and knock off ten to 15 percent since I will be there anyway. Pricing A general starting place is to price jobs at around 30 percent of how much it would cost to replace the glass. To find this out, you’ll have to do some research beforehand by calling window and glass shops to see how much they charge per square foot for different types of glass. Be sure the price includes labor. We also offer an estimation app for smart phones (both iPhone and Android) to help in the estimating process for our users. There are three ways to price glass repair: 1. By the square foot. This is great for large jobs, but will limit your earning potential if it’s only something small. 2. By the job. This is better for small jobs. We have a video on our site that goes into more detail on pricing, but keep the 30 percent of glass replacement in mind. Of course, deeper damage takes longer and you will likely need to charge more. In fact, on some minor damage such as hard water stains, you might be able to just pre-polish and polish the glass, skipping the grinding step altogether. 3. By the hour. I DO NOT recommend this method. It’s much easier to sell a per-job price than to prove you’re worth a certain amount per hour. You’ll lose money in the end. For example, I recently did an acid etch removal job the other day. It took me 45 minutes and I made $375. Replacing the glass would have cost $1200. If I told the customer that I charge $500 an hour, there is no way they would hire me, but quoting a price of $375 made the price look very reasonable. Of course, you also have to make sure you are pricing high enough to cover your time, your material costs, your overhead and your profit. On average, new users can do 10 to15 square feet per hour, and figure you are going to spend around $0.22 per square foot on materials. We have created a video series on our website that provides more in-depth information on the scratch removal process, including demonstrations of the process. You can view these at http://www.glassrenu.com/videos.htm www.eCleanMag.com
The Truth About Permanent vs Sacrificial Coatings by John Rose, Founder & Developer of World’s Best Graffiti Removal Products
Graffiti Protective Coatings:
Over the past 30 years we have seen many anti-graffiti coatings come onto the scene very often touting the latest and greatest technology in permanent anti-graffiti coatings. They invariably promise to make cleaning graffiti easy in the future, and often come at great cost to building owners, having to be applied under the exact right circumstances, by contractors who have been trained or licensed to use the product.
The Truth About Permanent vs Sacrificial Coatings
These ofRose, permanent coatings are usually unnecessary So-called ‘permanent’ coating bysorts John Founder & Developer ofan World’s Best expense, and in many cases are specified in totally inappropriate turned cloudy Graffiti Removal Products situations. They often change the appearance of natural building Oversurfaces the pastwith 30 ayears have seen finish. many anti-graffiti coatings glosswe or semi-gloss come onto the scene very often touting the latest and greatest technology anti-graffiti coatings. invariably Theyin allpermanent work to some degree at least in the They initial stages, but promise to make cleaning graffiti easy in the future, oftenand after repetitive cleaning, continued exposure to UVand sunlight, come atother great cost to building owners, to be applied un environmental factors such ashaving efflorescence on buildings, often turncircumstances, cloudy, peel or delaminate in some areas. der thethey exact right by contractors who have been trained or licensed to use the product. When these sorts of coatings degrade, it can actually make it These sorts of permanent coatings are usually an unnecessary more difficult to clean graffiti in the long term. If for any reason in expense, and in many cases are specified in totally inappropriate ‘Anti-graffiti’ coating peeling/dethe future want to remove the coating you can havebuilding a monsituations. They you often change the appearance of natural laminating ster on your hands trying to get finish. them off. Painting over them can surfaces with a gloss or semi-gloss if not impossible. Theybe alldifficult, work to some degree, at least in the initial stages, but after repetitive cleaning, continued exposure to UV sunlight, and With our systemfactors of products, remove 100% of graffiti other environmental such we as can efflorescence on buildings, without any difficulty on virtually all building surfaces, so in most they often turn cloudy, peel or delaminate in some areas. cases wesorts wouldofrather see no coatingitapplied on a wall, rather When these coatings degrade, can actually make it than the wrong one. more difficult to clean graffiti in the long term. If for any reason in the future you want to remove the coating you can have a mon are most going to occur in 2-3 years applyster onProblems your hands tryinglikely to get them off. Painting overafter them can ing a coating. This is why you need to carry a big stick and tread This ‘anti-graffiti’ coating actually be difficult, if not impossible. very carefully when considering applying any so-called permanent made removal even more difficult Problems are most likely going to occur in 2-3 years after coating to a building surface. in the long-term applying a coating. This is why you need to carry a big stick and tread very carefully when considering applying any so-called permanent coating to a building surface. Wethree have 3 golden rulesprotection for graffiti protection on buildings: We have golden rules for graffiti on buildings: 1. The best coating for paint is paint. Although it’s possible to remove larger graffiti from a painted 1surface, it iscoating often far quicker and Although easier toit’s simply color match and over. The best for paint is paint. possible to remove largerpaint graffiti fromSmaller a painted graffiti surface, can be easily removed (such as with our Sensitive Surface Graffiti Remover or Graffiti it is often far quicker and easier to simply color match and paint over. Smaller graffiti can be ‘Safewipes’ need specialized protective coatings). easilywithout removedthe with our for Sensitive Surface Graffiti Remover or Graffiti ‘Safewipes’, without the need 2. Any coating you are thinking of specifying must be proven to work as intended, and for specialized protective coatings. have stood the test of time without behaving badly (which ultimately would disappoint your customer). 2 Any coating you are thinking of specifying must be proven to work as intended, and have stood 3. Unlike permanent coatings, if for any reason in the future you need to remove this the test of time without behaving badly (which ultimately would disappoint your customer). coating from a building, you must be able to do this quickly and inexpensively without the risk of damage to the building surface. Still, there is a genuine need for low-cost graffiti protection on certain surfaces, to ease the burden on maintenance by speeding up removals. This means protecting important building surfaces that were never intended to be painted over. These include historic or delicate buildings and sculptures, porous/ decorative feature walls and structures made from raw timber, split face eClean Magazine
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Case Study
Company & Job Description: Graffiti Removal Services of Sacramento (GRS). Graffiti removal on freeway sound wall and application of World’s Best Graffiti Coating. Never one to miss an opportunity, Paul Watts of Graffiti Removal Services managed to work on both sides of the same sound wall near his hometown of Sacramento CA. After successfully removing massive amounts of graffiti tagging for CALTRANS on the freeway side of this sound wall, Paul was then contacted by The City of Rancho Cordova to protect 22,000 sq.ft. of the reverse side of the same sound wall, using World’s Best Graffiti Coating. On the freeway side, the vandals had used a super soaker or fire hydrant to squirt up 20-30 ft letters. Paul and his team of graffiti removal professionals promptly got to work and had the job done on time and under budget. Kudos to Paul and his team for another job well done! opportunities to supply and apply this coating rock, cinderblock, limestone and brick. in new building construction. In fact, once For these situations we recommend coatings the coating is applied to a building, removing specifically designed for the protection of graffiti is so easy that many contractors will natural building surfaces against graffiti, guarantee removals for a year or more. pollution and grime, such as our World’s Best John Rose is the founder and developer of Graffiti Coating. Ideally, coatings should be Worlds Best Graffiti Removal products and has virtually invisible, long lasting, and guaranteed worked passionately in the graffiti removal to work with specified graffiti removal products industry for the past 30 years. World’s Best and techniques. Graffiti Removal Products are manufactured in In the event of any graffiti, the coating must Los Angeles CA by Urban Restoration Group be easily removed without damage to the US Inc who publish a comprehensive Graffiti building surface. For instance, with our WBGC, Removal Training manual and DVD available to graffiti is easily removed with a hot water all first time customers. pressure wash, or by using our Bare Brick, For further information, please visit www. Stone & Masonry Graffiti Remover and a rinse graffitiremovalinc.com or call Adam Kopcho on with a cold water pressure washer. The coating 818 247 2555. To view a short demonstration can then be quickly and seamlessly reapplied video aboutleaves World’s Best surfaces Graffiti Coating, for future if the wall is stillin finish and World’s protection, Best Graffiti even Coating is totally matte always building looking visit: www.graffitiremovalinc.com/our-products/ damp. perfectly natural, the way they were intended to look. graffiti-removal-products#worlds-best-graffitiBesides selling to buildings owners after In the event of graffiti occurring after you have applied WBGC, you can easily remove the graffiti coating. graffiti has been removed, there are many either with hot water or using our removers (see pictures below).
Filled-in bubble writing on previously coated masonry wall. 14
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Graffiti is removed using just hot water at 2000psi / 2-3gal per minute.
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SOAP IS NOT AN OPERA:
How to Buy Cleaning Chemicals (Part Two) by Rick Meehan, Vice President of Marko Janitorial Supply, www.MarkoInc.com Last issue we discussed a bit of basic chemistry pertaining to cleaning detergents, the mechanics of soap making, the pH scale, how surface tension affects the cleaning process, and what it really means to “go green.” We began to dispel the misconceptions surrounding the soap-making industry. Now, let’s take a look at how to save megabucks when it comes to purchasing detergents for the cleaning contract. DETERGENT CONCENTRATES Since “going green” means more expense for everyone, it is important that cleaning contractors learn how to stretch their detergent dollars. The biggest savings will come from purchasing quality concentrates in bulk. Water, commonly known as “the universal solvent,” is a key ingredient – and a cost – in the making of detergents. While some water must be present,
TIP:
more water is an extra cost; purified water is not free. Production of concentrated detergents costs less than making those with low or nonexistent dilution rates, mainly because of packaging labor and materials. The increased labor of putting detergents in quart bottles versus 55 gallon drums is astronomical. It takes ten times longer to pour a case of a dozen quarts as it does to pour 55 gallons into a drum. Oh, but what about automation? Sure, expensive filling machines can cut costs over time for packaging zillions of gallons. Not all manufacturers of quality detergents are large enough to support them though. Let’s look at some real figures: EXAMPLE: A gallon of a quality concentrated degreaser currently runs about $13, having a proven dilution ratio that works for the
AVOID USING HOUSEHOLD BLEACH AND AMMONIA AS CLEANING DETERGENT REPLACEMENTS
Bleach and ammonia have been prime chemicals used by the cleaning industry since the Industrial Revolution. They’re cheap, at least in their undiluted form. Cheap does not mean clean however. Sure, both chemicals are stout and will clean stuff, but are they a good way to cut cleaning costs? Let’s look at some of the pros and cons: CONS: 1. Bleach and ammonia are dangerous and hazardous. Thinking of “going green?” Forget it with these chemicals. Both are heavy disinfectants used in water purification and waste treatment facilities. They eliminate creatures from the water supply – including fish. 2. These chemicals contain no detergents, so improving the wettability of the mopping solution is limited. Dirt simply falls back to the surface even as you mop. (See article, “Soap is Not an Opera” for more information.) 3. They both burn skin and damage incompatible eClean Magazine
surfaces like waxed floors. 4. Neither is very dilutable for cleaning purposes, which means greater chemical costs. 5. There are certainly a few surfaces that respond well to bleach or ammonia, but I can’t think of any. Both chemicals put wear and tear on most types of surfaces. 6. The two products accidently mixed together will give off toxic chloramine fumes and kill you. PROS: 1. Bleach takes out some stains from some surfaces, mainly fabrics. 2. Ammonia makes an okay glass cleaner if you can stand the smell. By employing Benjamin Franklin’s method of decision-making, we see that the cons outweigh the pros. Don’t use these chemicals to replace detergent cleaners unless you want to pay more to get less cleaning done, plus add to your liability on the job. www.eCleanMag.com
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job at the rate of one part degreaser to 64 parts water. A gallon of “use-as-is” degreaser costs around $8 and will do the job too. How much is the real cost per square foot for each product? Given: a gallon of liquid detergent covers about 1200 square feet. The Concentrate: 1/64 = .016 dilution ratio. Multiplying $13 x .016 = $0.21 per gallon. This makes the real cost of degreasing 1200 square feet a mere 21 cents! The Use-As-Is: 1/1 = 1 dilution ratio. Multiplying $8 x 1 = $8 per gallon. This makes the real cost of degreasing 1200 square feet a whopping $8! From the example we can see that the actual cost of degreasing 1200 square feet with the proven concentrated degreaser, even though we pay dramatically more, is by far the most economical product to use! This same method of calculation can be used to determine the real costs involved with every type of detergent. A final tip: avoid buying fancy packages, especially dilution control bottles and premeasured pods. Often the packaging costs more than the actual detergent. Buy in bulk. DILUTION CONTROL Once the chemical costs have been calculated and the best product for the job is chosen, it comes down to proper training of the end user to ensure that we eliminate the biggest drain on our investment – waste. This brings us to dilution control. Nearly any
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container can be filled using exact ratios, thus removing the possibility of human error and waste. As long as the proper ratio for the job is achieved, it doesn’t matter how simple or complex the dilution method. Use of a measuring cup is about as easy as it gets (see Dilution Chart, Page 17). Buy one. Make copious notes on the dilution ratios that work best with each detergent in your cleaning arsenal.
Figure 1 – Push Button Blend Centers
If you are a larger contractor and are still allowing your employees to use the glugglug method of dilution control, it would be extremely prudent to obtain a proportioning system. Also known as chemical proportioners, blend centers, dispensing systems, and dilution control stations, these devices meter specified amounts of detergent into water automatically (see Figure 1). These systems come in many configurations and range from about $80 to $600. Find a proportioning system that handles all of the cleaning detergents you use no matter what the final expense in equipment. Equipment costs are minimal when compared to detergent waste. The investment will be recouped very quickly. As bulk chemicals have a lower cost per gallon, it behooves us to buy in as large a container as we can afford. For a contract cleaning service, that means a bare minimum size of five gallon pails of the best concentrates we can find. Since the shelf life on detergents is measured in years (if in a properly sealed container), and since contract cleaning services use these products every day, I have always recommended purchasing in 30 or 55 gallon drums. Dispensing into smaller containers, properly diluted, cuts detergent costs as far as they can go. Just think, if an employee uses three glugs from the jug of disinfectant, that’s a bare minimum of ten ounces. If that same employee www.eCleanMag.com
MEEHAN/SOAP IS NOT AN OPERA
only puts two gallons of water in the mop bucket, that’s a ratio of five ounces per gallon. If the detergent calls for one ounce per gallon of water, that employee just quintupled the detergent cost for the job! Consider this: your company currently buys 180 gallons of neutral cleaner each year. The glug-glug method causes a minimum of one-fifth of the 180 gallons to go down the drain. That’s 180/5 = 36 gallons wasted. The detergent cost is $6.90 per gallon, so 36 x 6.90 = $248.40. Since dilution control units for drums only run about $100, you tell me, is it worth it to control waste? DETERGENT QUALITY Our next consideration is quality of the detergents used. If a detergent does not help get the job done in a timely fashion with a reasonable amount of labor, get another detergent that does. Once the proper type of detergent is picked for the job, following instructions on the label will establish the quality. For instance, general damp mopping of waxed floors calls for a neutral cleaner; your brand of neutral cleaner states to pour three ounces in a gallon of warm water to damp mop a waxed floor. Further, the detergent label says to apply liberally with a mop and allow five minutes to soak, and then sop up. Does it work? If so, purchase more; otherwise, find another brand. The worst-case scenario: your cleaning crew of three (hourly wage of $7.25) was slated to spend six hours mopping the gym floor at a church. Your detergent indicated that you would use five gallons (cost of $6.90 per gallon) and be able to mop once. Instead, it took nine gallons, plus fourteen hours of labor. That’s 14 – 6 = 8 x 3 = 24 hours extra time, 24 x 7.25 = $174 extra labor, and 9 – 5 = 4 x 6.90 = $27.60 extra detergent for a total extra cost of $201.60. There goes the profit! The point is you get what you pay for. Buy quality to save money. This does not mean you have to buy name brand detergents either. There are many smaller manufacturers making quality products too. Do the research. Run the tests. Keep the notes. Find the products that work best for your cleaning team! eClean Magazine
DETERGENT DILUTION RATIO CHART RATIO
OUNCES OF DETERGENT
OUNCES OF WATER
1:1
128 ounces
128 ounces
2:1
64
128
3:1
42.7
128
4:1
32
128
5:1
25.6
128
6:1
21.4
128
7:1
18.3
128
8:1
16
128
9:1
14.2
128
10:1
12.8
128
16:1
8
128
20:1
6.4
128
30:1
4.3
128
40:1
3.2
128
50:1
2.6
128 128
64:1
2
100:1
1.3
128
128:1
1
128
175:1
.75
128
256:1
.50
128
512:1
.25
128
600:1
.22
128
800:1
.16
128
1000:1 .13 128 For any ratio calculation, divide 128 ounces by the detergent part, usually the larger number of the ratio (Example: 50:1 means 128/50 = 2.6 ounces).
CONCLUSION We’ve covered much territory in the realm of cleaning chemicals, mainly geared toward how to choose efficient, quality detergents to help reduce cleaning costs. Along the way we learned why detergents are used, why cheap is not actually cost conscious, why dilution control is imperative, and why becoming knowledgeable about basic chemistry as it pertains to detergents will help us exorcise the voodoo surrounding soap making. The “soap opera” of changing rules and regulations perpetuated by the Green Movement, manufacturers, and the feds does not have to break our contract cleaning companies. We may have to take into account all the directives pushing our costs higher, but at least now we can filter out much of the hype so we can get down to the business of making a profit through educated detergent purchasing. Richard C. Meehan, Jr.
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A Daily Deal The Right Marketing Strategy For Your Business?
Is a Daily Deal The Right Marketing Strategy for Your Business? by Christian Fea, Synertegic, Inc. Companies like Groupon and Living Social have developed large networks of customers that are actively seeking new products and services. Whether to participate in a daily is a big decision to make for a small business owner that is looking for exposure to a large existing customer base in their area. The deal sites are known for taking a significant portion of a daily deal and the price being charged to the end customer is already usually below the price a company would normally charge for their services. This is what attracts the huge number of potential customers; however, if done without fully thinking out the true costs of providing the deal and servicing the influx of customers, a business can take a massive financial hit if customers do not stay around and make purchases in the future. A joint venture marketing relationship with other local businesses may not have the overall reach that a Groupon or Living Social has in a specific demographic, but the revenue share terms will likely be much more favorable and still present your product and service to your target demographic. A daily deal can be a great one-time marketing campaign for some businesses, and so it should be considered as a strategy for any business. Issues with Groupon to be aware of: 1. Many small businesses have lost considerable amounts of money due to the deals that they have done. Groupon sales reps are not there to make sure that the deal is an ultimate success for your business’s long term future, only that the deals are sold at the best price and revenue split for Groupon. 18
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2. While some companies have received decent terms from Groupon others have had a worse than 50 percent revenue share with the deal site. 3. Many of the customers are only there for the cheap prices and are not your customers. They are Groupon customers and will be purchasing another deal from another provider the next time they need the same product or service that you provide. 4. People will travel to your location for a great deal, but may never return due to the longer distance from their home. 5. It can cheapen your brand. Customers that know you and made a purchase through Groupon or Living Social may resist paying full price in hopes that you’ll do another super sale in the future. There are other issues to be aware of such as brand control, customer satisfaction, upsetting existing customers who did not purchase the Groupon deal and many more. Unless your business really needs a last ditch effort to reach as many customers as possible, a different approach to customer acquisition would be best. Find the right business partners that have your target demographic as their existing customers and create a joint venture marketing relationship that allows both businesses to equally benefit and grow rather than getting a daily deal site rich. Christian Fea is CEO of Synertegic, Inc., a Joint Venture Marketing firm. He exemplifies how to profit from Joint Venture relationships by creating profit centers with minimal risk and maximum profitability. Join his Joint Venture Marketing Wealth Report at www. christianfea.com/joint-venture-wealth-reports www.eCleanMag.com
Strive to Exceed Breakeven: Part 1 by Tom Grandy, Grandy & Associates
Understanding your numbers is the key to profitability – period. Over the next couple of months, we are going to explore the wonderful world of what happens when the company exceeds its breakeven point. This month we are going to create the foundation for profitable growth by determining what makes up a company’s hourly rate. We will discuss the differences in fixed overhead and variable overhead, and we will discuss projected “billed” hours to the customer. Part 2 will be an eye-opener. It will clearly show the huge increase in profitability that occurs once the company’s breakeven is exceeded. The goal of every company should be to exceed its breakeven point each month. That means setting conservative goals and then exceeding those goals. Once you understand your costs of doing business and how to determine your breakeven rate, the light bulb will go on in terms of understanding profitability AFTER the breakeven point is reached. The third and final article will discuss a couple of simple, but effective, bonus systems for your technicians in the service department as well as the installation department. eClean Magazine
Let’s begin by discussing the definitions of fixed and variable overhead. Fixed Overhead – Fixed overhead costs are expenses that remain basically the same no matter how much work you do or don’t do. Fixed overhead costs are things like rent, utilities, telephone, most insurances and loan payments. Each of these items will remain pretty much the same if you doubled sales, tripled sales or didn’t sell anything at all. These fixed expenses are just that, fixed. They continue no matter how much work you do. Variable Overhead Costs – Variable overhead, by definition, is directly tied to productivity. Variable costs go up when you do more work and go down when you do less work. In theory, they actually go www.eCleanMag.com
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away if the company did no work at all. There are relatively few variable overhead costs, at least in relationship to fixed costs. Examples of variable overhead costs would be things like gasoline, maintenance on your vehicles, Visa/Master Card charges and miscellaneous supplies used on jobs. Each of these expenses traditionally goes up when work increases and goes down when work decreases. Why did we separate costs into fixed and variable? When the company bills out as many hours as they projected to bill for the year, the fixed overhead is fully covered. Any additional work will not have “fixed overhead” attached to it, making the hours billed over and above the budgeted amount, very profitable. The variable overhead costs, however, continue no matter how much work you do because they are tied to productivity. Another key to our breakeven discussion deals with the hours actually billed the
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customer. As we all know, we pay the installers and service techs from the time they clock in until they clock out at the end of the day. The question is, “How many hours can actually be billed to the customer?” We could do a whole article on billable versus non-billable time, but let’s keep it simple for now. Service Techs Billed Hours – When talking about billed hours in the area of service, we are talking about the hours the tech can actually charge the customer each day. Non-billable times include shop time, travel time between jobs, sick, vacation, holidays, company meetings, callbacks, warranty work and customer no-shows. When looking at an entire year, most service techs average about 50% non-billable time and 50% billable time. In other words, a full-time service tech usually bills about 4 hours a day to the customer. If they work a 40-hour week, that means an average of 20 hours a week or roughly 1,000 hours a year. That is our goal. Installers Billed Hours – When talking about billed hours for an installer, the numbers are a lot higher. Let’s use an example: Take a very simple job that will take one installer two days to complete. The installer may sit around in the office for 20 minutes both days, or may have to go the shop or distributor a few times to pick up parts. But, if the installer completes the job in two days (16 hours), all their time is considered billable because that is the amount of time the job was bid for. Therefore non-billable time for an installer is traditionally low. Non-billable time for an installer normally includes sick, vacation and holiday time plus perhaps 2-3 hours a week that cannot be charged directly to the job. That means a full-time installer can average billing 35 hours a week to the customer, depending on how much sick, vacation and holiday time the company pays for. To be able to play with the numbers, we need to create a Sample Company. Let’s say our Sample Company has one service tech and two installers. That means the company www.eCleanMag.com
has roughly 1,000 hours a year it can bill the entire company. These two huge costs of in service, and approximately 3,600 billed doing business are often totally overlooked hours in the installation department. Now when most companies are calculating their that our hours are set, we need to go back hourly rates. to our fixed and variable overhead costs. Now we could do an entire series of Keep in mind overhead includes more articles on how to create profitable hourly than the typical rent, utilities, office rates for our service and installation supplies, insurances, etc. Our overhead departments. However, let’s assume we also includes the two largest (but often have done our homework and the finalized overlooked) costs of doing business. hourly rates for each department are as The number one cost of doing business follows: is non-billable time. Our Sample Company has one service tech with approximately Average Hourly Rate Paid the Techs Service Installation 1,000 non-billable Fixed Overhead Rate per Hour $18.00 $16.00 hours a year. We are Fixed Overhead Rate per Hour $64.23 $21.87 going to pay our service Variable Overhead Rate per Hour $16.23 $12.85 tech $18/hour, so the Net Profit per Hour $17.37 $ 5.63 Sample Company’s Hourly Rate = $115.83 $56.35 cost of non-billable time for our service tech is $18,000/year (yes, the company Now for two quick questions as we wrap has matching taxes, but let’s just keep it things up on Part 1 of this series. simple). Our two installers are making $16/ Q: If we bill out less than 1,000 hours hour, and each has five non-billable hours in service and/or 3,600 hours in the a week. That means our cost of non-billable installation department, will the company time for our two installers is $8,320/year (5 cover all of its fixed overhead costs? hours/week x 52 weeks x $16 per hour x 2 A: No, each department needs to bill out installers). all of their budgeted hours if they are going The second highest cost of doing business to cover all of their fixed overhead. is equipment replacement costs (replaces Q: What drops out of our hourly rate depreciation from a cash flow perspective). once the 1,000 hours in service and the Our service tech is driving a 2010 van that 3,600 hours in installation are billed out? is estimated to last another three years; it A: Once our budgeted hours are billed will cost the company $30,000 to replace out, ALL of our fixed overhead is covered it in three years. That means our cost of meaning the fixed overhead costs of $64.23 equipment replacement for our service in service, and $21.87 in installation, will department is $10,000 per year ($30,000/3 drop out of our hourly rate. years = $10,000/year). Guess what happens when all of our Our install team is driving a 2011 vehicle budgeted hours are billed to the customer? that is estimated to last six more years, Right again, profit skyrockets! Yes, that will and will again cost the company $30,000 to be the subject of next month’s article. replace. That means the cost of equipment This article was brought to you by Grandy replacement for our install department will & Associates. If you are serious about be $5,000/year ($30,000/6 years = $5,000/ running a profitable business please check year. out their website at www.GrandyAssociates. The costs of non-billable time and com, email Tom at TomGrandy@ equipment replacement costs were GrandyAssoicates.com, or call 800-432specifically mentioned since these are the 7963. “We teach contractors how to run top two highest costs of doing business in profitable businesses!” eClean Magazine
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Why I Added “Sewer Jetting” to My Gutter Cleaning Business
by Doug Rucker, Clean and Green Solutions and The Pressure Cleaning School
Gutter Cleaning is a very profitable business “sewer jet” equipment nor did I know how to here in the Houston Texas area. Quite a few price it. I informed the customer that I would of our communities are built in areas where get him a price and email him within 24 it seems like they saved every tree possible hours. when developing the neighborhoods. The As I left the home, I began thinking about Woodlands and the Kingwood area are two if I knew any plumbers, landscapers, etc, that such communities. I could call to sub out the job. I also thought I recently received a phone call from a that I’d really like to do it myself as I could see customer two weeks after we had cleaned his a lot of potential in this as an add-on service. gutters out. He informed me that while he was SO…I called Paul Kassander at www. powerwashstore.com to get some advice. Paul is extremely pleased with out gutter cleaning service, the gutters still seemed to be backing someone I like running these type ideas by because up when we received large amounts of rainfall. not only is he one of the best distributors in our After a return visit to the property, I industry, he is also a pressure washing contractor. discovered – after running water in one of He does what we do, and is very familiar with the downspouts – that his underground the challenges and opportunities we run across drainage system was clogged up. All the gutter – not to mention the equipment needed. Paul is downspouts were connected to piping that went also the type that will take your idea for a piece underground, and then fed to the street curb. of equipment and work to make it better or more These same pipes were connected to catch functional. basins that were placed throughout the back I explained to Paul what I was faced with yard in low lying areas. So not only were the and he suggested I purchase a “sewer jetter” gutters connected to the underground drainage hose and nozzles. He explained the whole system, but the back yard was connected as process on the phone of how I could hook it well. This meant that grass clippings, dirt and to my small 4gpm cold-water machine and other debris could flow into and eventually clog clear all the drainage pipes out myself. He also the drainage pipes. gave me the option of getting the equipment to Another problem I discovered was that I hook to my 8gpm trailer rig, but I decided to could not find the release point at the street curb. The release point for these systems is usually always at the street curb, or for larger properties, at a location somewhere towards the rear of the property along the property line, a pond, lake, or even a ditch if the property has one. But somewhere there should always be an exposed pipe for the water to be able to release. I explained to the customer that the drainage system would have to be “sewer jetted” to clear out all the debris, and also allow us to open up the release point. My only problem was that I did not have the eClean Magazine www.eCleanMag.com Photo of Root Ball Rucker pulled from the pool drainage pipes.23
go with the 4 gpm system because I envisioned being able to this without having to haul my trailer around. I could easily throw the small 4 gpm unit in the back of the truck and the sewer jetter hose and not waste gas hauling a trailer around for this service. Realizing the ease, the low cost to get into the service,as well as the possibilities for additional services and income – not to mention the fact that I knew I could pay for the equipment off this one job (I called the customer and gave him a price and scheduled the job before ordering) – I placed the order for the equipment. Since ordering the sewer jetting hose, we have been able to help other customers with their drainage problems. Recently, one particular housewash job involved a pool deck cleaning. The pool deck had two 3-inch drains for rainwater and pool water to drain away from the pool deck to the back of the property at the fence line. While cleaning the pool deck, we noticed the water pooling around the drains. I was able to sell the customer on our jetting service and we were able to clear the drain lines after discovering that a 15 foot root ball had grown in the pipes about the midway point between the drains and the outlet.
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The outlet was also buried in the dirt and we installed a back flow drain above grade level so that this would not happen again. (Big thanks to Rodney Brown who was attending my pressure cleaning school for this suggestion.) The customer was extremely pleased with our service – he had tried unsuccessfully for years to get the drainage to flow properly – and even wrote a great review on Angie’s List for us. Oh, and I also used the hose to unclog my own kitchen drain pipe that clogged one day. Saved me money over calling a plumber. I must add though that I would never use this to unclog plumbing pipes in a house and always recommend a plumber for that. Most areas you have to be a licensed plumber to do this and our insurance would not cover any damage if we caused it. There are many opportunities for this add-on service that we can perform though. Clearing underground drainage, heavily impacted downspouts, and pool drainage pipes are just some of the possibilities. Doug Rucker owns Clean and Green Solutions in Kingwood, Texas, and is the founder of the Pressure Cleaning School, www.PressureCleaningSchool.com
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ow to Raise the Prices You Charge to Your Cleaning Customers
eClean Magazine
by Steve Hanson, The Janitorial Store
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Y
ou started your cleaning business to company is doing? Most people understand make a profit and earn a living. Most price increases and will stick with your cleaning businesses, whether they do cleaning company as long as they are happy residential or commercial cleaning, start out with the job you are doing. After all, looking with the owner doing everything - marketing, for a new cleaning company takes time and cleaning, buying supplies, and even the your customer may not get a better price or the bookwork. As your company grows and you quality of work they want from someone new. hire employees and add more clients, your But don’t be afraid to raise the price on expenses grow too. When you started out you a customer who is constant complainer, may have under-priced your services either to especially if their complaints are not justified. get new clients or because you lacked bidding You may need to raise your price to cover the experience. So now that your expenses are extra time you spend in their office (or home). growing and you’ve discovered you underOnce you have all your facts and the new priced your services, what do you do? price you need to charge, send a letter to your First off, understand that raising prices is customer. Let them know that you are raising necessary in any business. Just take a look your prices, why you are raising your prices, at things you buy on a routine basis - gas, and the benefits to them to continue using your milk, cleaning supplies, electricity - prices do cleaning company. Make sure you inform your increase and sometimes take a big jump! customer at least 30 days in advance that the Before you raise your prices to your price will be going up. Keep in mind that large customers, go back and take a look at your corporations and government agencies may original contract. Does your contact state the need more time if they have to run the price original bid price will be good for a certain increase through a committee or get approval length of time? If it does you will not be able by a board. to raise your price until that time frame The phrase “you get what you pay for” has expired. If not, how long have you been is often true when it comes to cleaning cleaning for that client? Even if you originally companies. Too low of a price may mean the under-priced your services you may not want company is not doing satisfactory work or that to increase your price if you have only been the company has undervalued its services and cleaning for the client for a short time. will soon be out of business. Most cleaning companies wait at least a Pricing your services so you make a profit year before increasing prices. If you don’t have is not a bad thing! Your cleaning company’s anything written in your cleaning contract survival depends on charging your customers about price increases, you should start adding appropriately so you can stay in business a clause about it with your next client. Many and make a profit. Good customers will companies guarantee their price for a year and understand a price increase and be happy to state that they take cost of living increases continue using your services. And don’t be each year (for example, four percent). Or they surprised if a customer that leaves because may state something like, “we reserve the right of a price increase soon comes back! Many to increase prices after one year”. people eventually realize that a lower priced bid Before figuring out a new price go back from another cleaning company means their through your original bid and make sure that building (or home) is not as clean as when your you have everything covered so you are making company provided their cleaning services. a profit. If your supply costs have gone up Steve Hanson is co-founding member of The dramatically or if you have added expenses Janitorial Store (TM), an online community (workers comp or more insurance because that offers weekly tips, articles, downloads, of hiring employees), make sure the price discussion forums, and more for anyone who increase will cover the extra expenses. would like to learn how to start a cleaning Another factor to consider before raising business. Visit The Janitorial Store’s blog and prices is your customer’s current satisfaction get inspired by reading cleaning success stories level. Are they happy with the job your cleaning from owners of cleaning companies. eClean Magazine www.eCleanMag.com 25
Name Drop Your Way to a Lot of Customers by Steve Wright, The Customer Factor, www.TheCustomerFactor.com
As everyone knows (or should know), getting customers is the most important ingredient necessary to building a successful cleaning business. With that said, you should be looking at any and all opportunities to promote your business. Here’s one that works: After you get done with the job and you’re sure your customer is happy, ask your customer who her neighbors are on either side of her house. She may even expand and provide you with more names, but the key is to just walk away with some names to mail a simple introductory letter which can be typed on your letterhead. The letter should read: Dear Mrs. Jones: This is just a quick note to introduce my company to you. I own Clearview Window Washing Service and I recently had the pleasure of cleaning Mr. and Mrs. Smith’s windows in your neighborhood of Haile Plantation. I realize that cleaning windows is at the bottom of most people’s “to do” list, so help has finally arrived. Give Mr. and Mrs. Smith a call at 256-555-1111 and I’m sure they’ll attest to the quality of the job I did and the care I placed on cleaning their windows. Clean windows will make your home sparkle. In addition, I use a special solution that forms a protective barrier on the glass. This prevents minerals like Calcium and Iron to form and cause hard water stains which can make windows look ugly. If I may be of service, don’t hesitate to contact me at 352-555-2222. I’ll rush over and give you a free “no hassle” written estimate with plenty of additional references you may contact. My schedule is always four to six weeks backed up, but if you have a special occasion coming up, I can juggle my schedule to accommodate you. Have a great day. Regards, Steve Wright Clearview Window Washing Service P.S. I am fully insured and bonded for your total peace of mind. P.P.S. If you’d like to see exactly what type of service I provide, please check out my website at www.yourdomainnamehere.com That’s the letter. Obviously make adjustments that fit you, and of course make sure that you get Mrs. Smith’s permission to list her phone number in the letter. Reassure Mrs. Smith that she’ll rarely get phone calls. It just doesn’t happen. The simple fact that you even list her phone number is enough to make a prospect believe in you. You can take this marketing technique one step further and purchase a mailing list for that zip code area where you did Mrs. Smith’s home. The key is to be a name dropper. A prospect’s resistance to you or your company will drop if they know you took care of someone they personally know or at least have heard of within their subdivision. That’s why I believe it’s important to mention the subdivision within the letter just in case Mrs. Jones doesn’t know Mrs. Smith. Get your foot in the door and watch your business take off. It works. Steve Wright is the author of How To Start Your Own Residential Window Washing Business and the developer of The Customer Factor (www.TheCustomerFactor.com), which is a fully automated contact management/follow up software solution for service businesses. Please contact Mr. Wright at 256-546-2446 or steve@thecustomerfactor.com for additional information. 26
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PRESSURE WASHING TIPS FOR GRAFFITI REMOVAL by Paul Horsley, Publisher Photo courtesy of the World’s Best Graffiti Removal Products, www.GraffitiRemovalInc.com Graffiti is a stubborn eyesore. Because paint can penetrate deeply into porous wood and concrete surfaces, graffiti cannot typically be removed with conventional cleaning approaches. No amount of elbow grease will allow you to remove graffiti with just soap and water. Sometimes it is possible to quickly repaint the surface that has fallen prey to tagging; some cities even employ paint crews to quickly paint over fresh graffiti. However, as many business owners appreciate, sometimes it’s just not possible to paint over a tag. Not all surfaces may be repainted; if the street-facing side of your business features a brick exterior, for instance, painting over graffiti probably isn’t an option. In such circumstances, pressure washing can be a godsend. Pressure washers can emit water at 300 times the power of a standard garden hose. Oftentimes, this is enough to loosen and lift paint. If traditional pressure washing isn’t effective, graffiti removal service providers may be able to remove the graffiti by pressure washing with a specially-formulated, environmentally-friendly cleaning agent. Many pressure washing cleaning formulas contain nano-level technology to break apart paint at the microscopic level. For this reason, it’s smart to hire a pressure washing company when eClean Magazine
attempting to remove especially intractable graffiti. Below, we’ve gathered tips on how to use pressure washing to remove graffiti, especially from commercial buildings: Choose a high pressure setting. Pressure washers offer adjustable pressure settings; for graffiti removal, you will probably need to adjust your washer to a high pressure setting. Don’t overdo it, though – too much pressure could wear away the surface you are trying to clean. Some recommend pressure washing at a setting of 3,000 PSI when removing graffiti; this may vary according to the paint and the surface to be cleaned. Don’t work in very cold or very hot temperatures. Many paint removers do not work well when the ambient temperature is extremely high or low. Set your pressure washer to a high water flow setting. The rate of water flow is another setting that may be adjusted on pressure washers. For removing graffiti, it’s best to have a high rate of flow, around three to five gallons per minute. Again, don’t go too far with this; slowly ratchet up the rate of flow until the graffiti begins to lift. Avoid jumping directly to a very high pressure or water flow setting; instead, slowly increase pressure to the absolute minimum required to remove the tag. www.eCleanMag.com
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Consider adding heat and/or steam. Heat and steam have long been recognized as powerful ways to strip paint from interiors. Similarly, graffiti paint may more easily be removed with heat and/or steam. Both heat and steam soften paint film, making it easier to lift the paint. Modern pressure washing machines can deliver heated water at temperatures as high 330 degrees Fahrenheit, which helps break down and remove grease and other substances. Again, don’t go directly to the highest temperature available on your machine; experiment until you find the lowest possible heat or steam setting that will remove the tag. Choose the right cleaning agent. As conservators can tell you, each exterior surface has its own cleaning requirements. Masonry will require different cleaning solutions than wood, and different types of masonry require different types of cleaners. Research your building’s exterior to figure out which type of cleaner to use. Then follow the manufacturer’s instructions to avoid causing permanent damage. As an example, alkaline paint removers
require a pre-wetted surface to work. In contrast, solvent-based cleaning products are incompatible with water. (If you’re at all concerned about the possibility of damaging your building’s exterior, it may be best to simply hire a pressure washing company for graffiti removal service.) Start at the bottom and work your way up. As you apply pressure, heat, steam and cleaning agents with your pressure washing machine, work upwards. That way, you’ll avoid staining lower surfaces. Generally, it is best to hire a graffiti removal service when attempting to have tags removed from the exterior of your home or business. Graffiti removal service professionals understand how advanced pressure washing technology, such as heat, steam and specially formulated soap, can work together to quickly lift graffiti from nearly any exterior surface. Rather than struggling to patch together a haphazard education on pressure washing, consider hiring a pressure washing company that offers a specialized graffiti removal service. This approach will save you money, time and irritation down the road.
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represented contractors in the Power Washing industry. We stand for all power washers: fleet washing, concrete cleaning, kitchen exhaust, wood restoration, as well as everything in between. The PWNA provides quality education and certification to power wash contractors along with conventions, networking opportunities, and a clear voice for our industry. Visit www.thepwna.org for more info on becoming a member.
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