I’m in my second season of pressure washing and I feel that I’m moving super slow. My typical jobs are surface cleaning homes that are on lot sizes of 40’x100’. Basically pavers and concrete clean ups front and back including front steps and porch as well as rear. They are taking me Between 7 and 8 hours to complete, which feels like a long time. Customer claimed last guy did it in about 3 hours. I’m running a 4000psi 4gpm machine with a 16” eagle surface cleaner. Just looking for tips to better manage my work flow. I’ll include a pic of a typical property as soon as I figure out how. Lol.
Can’t post pics to a certain number of posts. Text it to me and I’ll post it. 9195243875
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Thank you. Texting now.
I have the same setup. That would take me about 4 hours judging by the picture, maybe less.
Do you use a ball valve for the surface cleaner? That way as you buzz along on the concrete you can disconnect and rinse every few feet.
I did add a ball valve and swivel this season. Definitely has been a game changer for switching out surface cleaner and wand. I’m thinking i have to revise my plan of attack. 4 hours front and back would be sweet! Thanks.
Post your typical routine for one of these homes. It may be beneficial to download a time tracker app so you can actually time exactly how long each step is taking you and maybe that would be a more accurate way for critique.
I have the same set up and just like brock above, it would take me maybe 3-4 hours even with a pre/post treatment.
Rinsing every few feet would kill a lot of time. You’d only need to rinse a couple or few times doing that whole job. Are you pre treating? If so, how and what %
Pre-treat and post-treat in my opinion. 
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Basically I’m not set up to be most efficient in pressure washing. No reels or truck or trailer mounted set up yet. So approximately 1 hour is spent on set up and break down. Then I start at the far end with a pretreat of my house wash mix which is 3 gallons of 10.5 SH and 2 gallons of water along with 5-6oz of elemonator, downstreamed, and work my way to the front. One thing that holds me back as well are drainage issues.
3 gallons 10.5%sh plus 2 gallons of water and elemonator.
That’s a weak mix to pre treat with. Using a 12v or x-jet to put down a stronger mix would speed things up a lot.
Down stream straight SH. That will help some, but there something in your process. Rinsing and edging usually takes more time than surface cleaning. One thing that helps is to really watch how the water flows around a property and go with the flow. Sounds corny, and hard to describe, but you will get faster over time.
Also one thing i learned after my first year, is try to get more house wash’s. They pay better per hour (if charged correctly).
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Yes I agree, house washes have been my best jobs!
Best $45 investment you could make is right here. Suttner ST36 Sludge Pump - Pressure Tek Had to break it out today and fell in love with it all over again lol!
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I’ve had one sludge sucker, two machines. One 5 and 8. Up until a few days ago it worked on both machines. Now it only works on the 5. I ordered a new 0 degree tip with an 8 orifice. Hoping this will get me back in action on both machines. I read on PressureTeks q & a that suttener only makes them with an orifice as big as 6. I imagine it’s for a reason. Time for some trial & error.
I had a 5 orifice originally.
I believe mine was for a 5-6 gpm machine. Throttled my 8 down today and it worked fine with it.
I got one last week and was so annoyed with the 3/8 male nipple sticking out. Why would a manufacturer do that? Still haven’t had a chance to fix it so you can plug your wand into it
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I don’t think it’s good on your motor to throttle down while under a load.
That thought never crossed my mind but it’s a great idea. I use a ball valve with it but it’s somewhat of an awkward position until you get used to it.
