Most important aspects of the business? Bare minimum equipment for residential? What % of gross is profit?

First I want to say hello to the community here. I have a few questions so work with me if you could. First I live in Michigan. I am wondering just what are the most important aspects to maintain longevity in the business? What are some things I can do through the winter to keep some income coming in? I only plan to start of with residential driveways, sidewalks, patios, and decks, then build from there.

Also I am not opposed to humble beginnings and any good information out there to further educate myself. What is the bare minimum setup I need to properly clean houses? Pressure washer, wand, surface cleaner, good safe cleaning solutions etc. Do the job w/o damage.

Me and a friend of mine did a job a few years back washing fleets over the weekends. It was pretty tough work I would say. About 60 to 80 cabs a day. What % of gross would I expect to bring back as profit.

Any good educational resources online or from anyone here. Willing to pay. Got about 1k to put towards some education.

Hi Adrian, Welcome to the PWRA.

I’ll pm you my PayPal for the 1k payment and I’ll send you weekly PWRA links that you can read. This forum is worth it’s members weight in gold :wink:

Keep reading daily for a few weeks before purchasing anything

1 Like

Get back into fleet lol. 60-80 cabs a day is about $2500 gross at my rate. I’d be in serious business if I could line that many up. Currently at about 40 per weekend.

My expenses seem to be around 30%?

Rule of thumb for a sole operator is about 65% before tax.

There was 3 units. two guys one spraying one brushing. Most trucks werent really dirty as they are washed weekly or bi weekly. Not sure the prices. It was one of the first jobs I ever had they guy payed us $10/hour

What do you think of partnerships? Are they usually worth it?

My experience, not from this industry, is to run as far away from partners as possible.

2 Likes

The best way to start and end a partnership is to give your potential partner half of your money, let him kick you in the privates and then move on. It just gets it all over at once and you can move on from there

13 Likes