New here looking for advise

Hey guys. I’m new here looking for advice on starting my own small pressure washing business. I’m a full time firefighter working 24/48 shifts so this will be a side job. Any help will be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Also, where should I post for general newbie questions? I starting from scratch here.

first thing you should do is fill out your signature a little so we know who we are talking to.

second thing you should do is join the pwra

third thing you should do is provide a little more info on what work you want to do:
-house washes?
-decks and fences?
-roofs?
-driveways?
-commercial?
-residential?

I made a signature and clicked save but it hasn’t shown up yet. I’ll play with it some more. Still learning the site. I’ll look more into joining when i get a plan set up. It looks like a great deal.

I would like to stick to residential and do houses, sheds, barns, decks, fences, roofs, driveways, etc. If business takes off, I would possibly expand to commercial. It will just be me working on my off days(I work every 3rd day at the fire department). I just want to go about and do this the RIGHT way instead of jumping into it blind.

Read, read, and keep reading. Use the search button when you have specific questions. If you still can’t find what you need, then ask. Try and stay away from cleaning roofs by yourself, you should have a ground guy for that. Try starting with at least 5.5 GPM machine or bigger. Good luck!

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Would something in the 3.2-4 gpm range be unwise to start off with? I don’t want to waste my money but if it would be OK for now, then I could upgrade if business goes up and have a back-up. Thanks!

A lot of people start with 4. If you are going to get a surface cleaner I would advise at least 5.5 if you can afford to.

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Ok great. I just dont want to spend a ton of money before I find out what business is going to be like in my area.

My suggestion would be to gather as much info as you can now. Come up with a business plan of some sort.

Then take a few months and read through the forums. You will be much further ahead by doing some research than by jumping into it. Of course there is no substitute for experience, but you can learn from the experience of those already on the forum.

By reading here you can learn what a good starter machine is, how to market your business, and the correct methods to use. Trust me, do your research so that you don’t have to learn from so many mistakes. You will still make plenty but you can avoid a lot based on other’s experiences.

And if you do your research, you will learn that a 4 gpm machine is really the minimum you want to start with.

Dustin, everyone is correct, reading will be your best friend for a long time. I’m in the fire service as well, give me a call if you’d like I’ll try my best at pointing you in the right direction. 704-200-4131

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Thats the wrong approach.

If you decide to get into this you need to treat it like its your ONLY form of income and it will be successful. Look at it this way, if you had a power washing business now, would you join the fire dept. for extra money but not willing to put in 100% to save lives? If you go at PWing half assed you can and will ruin property or you could hurt someone with the equipment or chems.

Read, read, read and read some more until your eyes are bleeding and then decide if this is a route you want to take.

Hey Dutin, like the guys are saying here, read and search here to get some more answers. I was a police officer for 25yrs and for 16 of those yrs I also power washed. I had helpers and then workers by my 3rd yr and passed up my income as a PO by my 10th owning my own business.

Your in the perfect job to do both as well. The quickest tip I can give you is just “refuse to fail” and you’ll do fine.

Best of luck;)

Check out some of the other forums to. Pwra is getting there but doesn’t have years and years of threads yet.

Check out

Windowcleaningresource.com (has a lot of pressure washing threads)
Ptstate.come (pressuretek.com is a good supplier and they also have a forum
Propowerwash.com (lot of willing helpers on this forum also)

It’s not easy building that database if new users are directed somewhere else, Bret.

:slight_smile:

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Thanks for the replies everyone. That gives me some homework. I’ll keep doing research on here and try to get a better understanding of what to expect. So far I’m really hopeful about this. I’ll keep your number in mind Firedog. I appreciate it!

Hey Dustin-- I’m going to throw you a plug for an FYI-- if you go forward with the Powerwashing business you should consider joining the PWRA association. Not only do you get discounts all across the board where you will save much more then your membership cost you can continuously network with these guys in the private area’s and at the Conventions/events as well.

Heck I saved thousands here just being a member for 3 yrs now…and even though I have 19yrs owning my PW business I still learn a ton from these guys as well.

Ok-- there’s my plug:)

Same here. Been in business officially three years. Joined PWRA last year and seems like my business transformed over night! Tons of information and knowledge gained, still reading everyday to learn more. Buy a ticket, come to Nashville, be AMAZED!

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Keep reading up, keep asking questions. Befor I opened I stalked out every website I could , hours and hours of reading and asking questions. Well worth it

Hey if the mans truly hungry to learn you got to feed him… :slight_smile:

Dustin, what’s helped me the most has been reading forums, experiments with many chemicals, not being afraid to hop in and get working. Speed comes with experience but you should always leave the projects clean, no matter how long it takes (in the beginning). Basic knowledge will show you that there are 4 principles of cleaning (volume, pressure, chemical, heat).
In regards to volume, 4 gpm will get you started but believe me, I have 2- 4gpm machines and can’t wait to upgrade to 8 gpm. Rinsing is essential to wash away contaminates and to flood areas where chemicals meet the earth and you will spend much time rinsing. The lower gpm’s, the longer it will take.
Pressure is important when approaching concrete but If you find yourself using pressure to clean decks, fences, houses, or heaven forbid a rooftop, you are going to damage something.
Find a good chemical mix you can rely on and you will make life easy and profitable. Experiment, read, call vendors, etc…
I personally do not have a “hot box” so I work strictly with cold water and when dealing with residential I can’t see myself needing hot water at this point.
The main thing is to realize that your skills, knowledge and equipment will evolve with trial and error, study and experience. I started by renting, I now have 2 - 4 gpm machines, the bandit roof cleaning system from pressure Tek, surface cleaners, etc… And my rig is very basic still!!! I can’t wait to set up a trailer, but… You’ve gotta start somewhere!! Good luck!!!

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