The next step for me will be a 4GPM machine. I’m wondering if there’s a way to get in and out of the truck bed by myself a lot until I get a trailer.
Seeing 71/2 ft ramps online for about $110 but wondering if I’d be able to shove it up or maybe some kind of come along? Better way?
Is it necessary to take it in and out for every job? Just throwing ideas, if you’re not going to use a trailer at the moment, why not have garden hose and pressure hose running from the machine from your truck?
Depending on your unit, yes, you will likely be able to do that. Unpopular here (for good reason), but I do it when I need to. Lifting with your legs as much as possible is wise but you’re still going to put a lot of stress on your lower back.
It doesn’t sound like you’ve considered that it is kind of difficult to get out of the bed of the truck too.
Practice makes perfect and it will hurt your wrists and forearms the first 10x, but you’ll learn where to put your hands and arms relatively quickly.
One last tidbit, make sure your hands are dry before you load/unload.
Nice looks like the same on as Harbor Freight carries for a bit less
Truck’s got a shell on it that I want to keep.
Ah, understood…thanks for the clarity
Shoot man I’m not trying to lift that beast at all I like my back the way it is.
Haha. Thought you were talking about lifting in and out. It’s really not that bad at all when you get used to it. It just isn’t overly professional looking. :-/
Anybody used one of these?
Looks like it could be slick other than having to get around it for all the other stuff that’s in the truck bed. Seems maybe better than the deer hoists and cranes and stuff.
I lifted it for a few weeks. It takes all my strength, but doable. I’m pretty tall, so that helps. But, yeah, I was afraid I was going to hurt my back. So I tried to improvise some ramps with a pair of 2x6’s. One board slipped and I couldn’t catch it. My brand new $1500 pressure washer fell on it’s side. Broke one of my rims. Could have been a lot worse. Get yourself some Harbor Freight ramps. They are also handy for snow blowers and stump grinders and whatever.
Just get some ramps. It’s very doable then. Make sure to hook the ramps to the bumper or they will slip and you’ll have a bad day. As a disclaimer, it’s not the safest thing you could be doing.
Load it up one last time, sell it on craigslist and then go buy some good equipment and mount it permanently. This industry is swamped with guys working out of pickups with little machines and no decent equipment. Want to get quality prices?, purge the system of handyman washers, weekend warriors and those that don’t invest in their business.
I somewhat fall in that category of weekend warrior… I do 1 house a day after work and 6-10 on the weekends. I have 9 homes to do this weekend…
I like the information on this sight, but to see Innocentbystander who gives a lot of great information say something like that makes me look a little crazy eyed, my question is is did everyone start out with a 8 gpm washer? Did they know everything? Did they know every formula for mixes? We come to this site to learn, not be patronized.
If it wasn’t for me reading his comments about the differences in work output between the gpm I would have gone with a 5. Just ordered an 8gpm udor today and had it next day air shipped.
I understand that this is some of yours full time profession, but for us who do it it on the side as a supplemental income it can get frustrating seeing the comments. Yes we would love to have the best equipment, but if we can get a quality job done and the customer is happy then what is the problem. People ask me why I do this and I tell them, I am a guy and I like playing with water and fire. I do this because people need folks like us to make their property look good. There is so much work out there for professionals and weekend worriers. I see a lot of bashing coming from people on this forum, if you don’t want to give what you have learned over the years then don’t comment, keep it to yourself, but I have learned in my carrier of 30 years you teach the people below you your job, and you learn from everyone, and take home something at the end of the day. Just my two cents.
I sir am a “weekend warrior”… I’m a full time safety officer (head of safety) at a major university. I built my own 8gpm machine for what most people spend on a 5gpm machine. I also know weekend warriors can make 2-3 k in a weekend. I’m scheduled for about $2,200 this weekend. So if a weekend warrior like myself can make that much cash in a weekend why not have quality tools for the trade?
I understand putting money back into your business, but if you are doing a good job with what you have then why waste the money? Do the people on this forum pressure you into buying more or better equipment? The guy above is having to take his equipment in and out of his truck, he is doing the best he can, maybe he does not have a full time job like we do, maybe he is trying to provide for his family the best way he can, not robbing or stealing or using EBT. I bet he would love to spend a grand on a trailer with a this and a that. Thankful I am strong enough to lift my equipment in and out of my truck, and yes I have plenty of money to buy me a complete set up, but I choose not to.
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