First off, you’ve got a great attitude and hustle. A lot of new guys could learn from that. Spot on advice about how to treat customers and jobs.
I think the issue people are having with what you’re posting, has to do with the specifics that have worked for you personally. Let’s face it, you’ve been “lucky”/blessed in your market, with apparently limited competition and a healthy amount of homeowners who can afford your services. You’ve also been fortunate with how long your 2.5 gpm machine has lasted you.
These are things that you cannot assume all newbies will have in their favor. Most guys starting out will be more disadvantaged in some way (I’m not saying you haven’t had your struggles as well, they’ve just been different from what’s typical).
Here’s something I repeat to myself as a bit of a mantra, to keep me humble and sharp, and avoid giving advice online that might be overly optimistic for most:
“In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.”
I know for a fact I couldn’t compete with guys in Florida with my current equipment. Sure, I could get enough work to make ends meet, but probably not enough to build a self-sustaining business that sees growth each year. But here in my part of the northeast, competition is limited and I run circles around all the old-school power washers. I am the ‘one-eyed man’ here in the land of the blind.
I also want to point out, that for many individuals starting out it absolutely makes good business sense to borrow money in order to start with reliable, mid-to-high end equipment that can complete jobs efficiently. It probably also makes sense to use some borrowed money towards marketing.
People borrow money to start (or expand) businesses all the time. Power washing is a unique field that requires a relatively limited initial investment compared with many other ventures like opening a restaurant or retail store, and the payoff is much quicker. If someone is smart about it, they could put everything on a business credit card at 0% and have it paid off before any interest hits. Or they can get a bank loan at a reasonable interest rate and have it paid off very quickly.
This isn’t to knock what you have built at all. You should be proud of what you’ve accomplished. But just realize that the path you took to success, is not necessarily the best path for all.
