Guys, I swear I did use the search, but there is too much information and too much variation.
For purposes of this example, I have a 2 story house, vinyl siding. I have SH, and Elemonator and water. What is my mix? How is it applied?
Where I got hung up is that the X-jet seems to draw at a 2:1, others have talked about 20:1, I’m confused on how it’s all going in and on and how it’s mixed with water…and even WHEN it’s mixed with water.
Throw a girl a bone and spell it out in small words for me? Pretty please? Tomorrow is my last day at this job and I really want to explain it to my boss before I go.
So, downstreaming is probably the most common method of house washing. It requires a downstream injector plumbed into your pressure line. The injector will draw SH mix from a container only at low pressure due to the Venturi effect. The SH mix will be injected into the pressure hose and come out the end at a certain percentage according to the size and draw rate of the injector. Most vinyl homes will require between 0.5-1% of SH to kill off organic growth.
So, starting with 12.5% SH and diluting with H2O in a container and then when the pressure is set low enough with the use of different tips on your wand, the injector will begin drawing soap into the pressure hose where it is diluted further and exits the hose onto your vinyl siding. There are tons of YouTube videos that do a much better job of explaining than I can muster at 9:30 on a Monday LOL
I have never used an XJET so I couldn’t comment on them but from what I understand they use a small proportioner to induce the Venturi effect and also control the draw rate. It seems more of a PITA to XJET a house than it would be to downstream it.
DSing will dilute your mix around 10-1. X-jetting will dilute it around 2-1 max but can be adjusted lower by changing out the Barb inside.
DSing you would create a mix of around 3 parts SH and 1 part water with a few ounces of Elemonator. With an X-jet it would depend on what Barb you are using.
So when I X-Jet, I have straight SH in my bucket and use the beige or red proportioner (beige = 6:1 & Red = 9:1). If I am cleaning stucco, I usually use the beige, so I’m getting roughly 2% onto the surface. I also mix the surfactant into the bucket of SH.
The smaller the machine (in gpm), the higher your draw rate tends to be (both with an xjet, and ds injector)
Most guys that are using straight SH with elemonator in their ds’ing tanks are using large (8 gpm) machines, and/or using a proportioning system like the GP stainless/kynar injectors from Dultmeier.
For a small (2.5-4 gpm) machine, you would likely want to start off with diluting your mix 50/50 with water and SH, and then add some elemonator to that. You can always bump up the strength if it’s not cutting it.
If the proportioners you’re using with your xjet are working for you, without causing collateral damage, I wouldn’t change your mix. My reply was to Mary (@CaCO3Girl)
Btw, if you’re getting steady work, get a small business loan or a credit card and upgrade now. It takes money to make money, and it’s ok to use someone else’s money to do it
Gotcha…I tried it first with my own house…after I spray the surface, I’m usually rinsing everything else down, including windows, but pretty much everything here is stucco. I’ve found that if I go any weaker with the mix, then I’m having to either wait longer than 10 min, or I’m going over areas too much.
Yes, exactly. Most guys just mix SH, surfactant and water in a 5 gallon bucket or tank and put their downstream injector pickup line in the bucket. That mix is then injected inline with the water coming from the pressure washer pump through the high pressure hose and out the end at a very low pressure.
@CaCO3Girl, see downstreaming by WeWashedWindows.
Downstream Injection for Pressure Washing Michael Kriesle.
2 very good ones on You Tube. Best of Luck!!
Well I was replying to the guy that said “When you’re using SH you premix the water, elemenonator and SH all togethere and then THAT mixture gets diluted further”. All my question is is why would you use your downstream injector to pull from a mix of water, SH and surfactant rather than JUST SH and surfactant, DW dilutes whatever solution you’re pulling from so much already so I don’t get the point in adding more water to the batch you’re pulling from since it gets injected and ends up being 1% SH anyway.
