When to "make the leap"?

1

First, thanks for all of the information provided in this forum! It has been a great benefit in getting me started.

Now the real question…

Im new to the business. I decided to start a pressure washing business doing both residential and light commercial cleaning. My primary focus will be house and deck washing, plus concrete cleaning. Ive done months of research on equipment and have purchased what I hope to be quality supplies. I’ve also watched tons of videos on technique. My equipment consists of :
Pressure Pro - 5gpm 3000 psi hot water skid
325 gallon buffer tank (this uses a hudson fill valve at the 75 gal level. I’ll only use the 300 gal if no water is avail)
Surface Cleaner
24 foot Extension Pole
Downstream nozzle kit
Second story nozzles
Various size nozzles for light to heavy cleaning
Various chemicals (Bleach, Elomonator, F13 Gutter Cleaner, Degreaser, and auto/truck wash)
14 foot Enclosed trailer
Ive also used a graphics designer to help with trailer lettering, shirts and business cards. These will be done next week.

So now my problem…Ive run the unit several times, Ive cleaned my house, garage, barn, cars, driveway, etc. I also plan on cleaning several friends houses next week to get more experience. I’m pretty comfortable with the unit and supplies however, I wake up at 1 am every night wondering if Im ready. I don’t want to start prematurely and screw anything up and get a bad reputation but I also can’t wait forever. I have about reached my limit on spending (excluding advertising) and need to start having an income. I want to look professional, and have professional results. When do you just “make the leap” and start advertising? I realize the more work I do, the more comfortable I’ll become. When do you start to feel comfortable? When do you stop waking up wondering “what the heck have I done”? Thanks in advance…

2

What if I told you… I never --really feel comfortable even after 13 years… Once you get comfortable.

“Watch out”… —You might as well go ahead and pull the trigger. !! Good luck !

3

Now. You seem to be way ahead of most people that come on here asking questions. You’ve done your research and even done some washing. Go make some money.

4

One thing to keep in mind: the winter slow season is coming. If you’re in the subtropical part of the U.S., that’s no big deal. Most other places it means a very slow season, especially if you’re just starting out. If you have a decent day job, you may want to hold onto it until April or May, and work “on the side” building up business, gaining experience, and reading the forums like crazy.

Just my $0.02

5

The slow season is part of my plan. Hoping to get a couple months of work this fall, then take the winter off. I plan on advertising heavy in the spring for the busy season. Thanks for the advice and words of encouragement. I already have several jobs lined up with no advertising. I plan to practice some more this week and then start making money next week after my trailer is wrapped. My equipment seems to be working great and I’m slowly getting more comfortable. Now I just need to figure out pricing!

6

There’s never a perfect time, you’ll still learn as you go. As long as your not purposely trying to damage property, I think you’ll be fine. When you run into unusual things to clean, you refer back to here or other places to learn and get advise. Good luck to you, being professional is more than the logo on your shirt or biz card.