hard water

JohnNakalamic

New Member
Am looking into starting truck washing at a truck stop and found out the area has hard water. I am mobile, but will be using water from the truck stop. Surveyed several drivers in the area and they said their major complaint was the water streaks left on their trucks after leaving an area with hard water. No driver that I interviewed liked the idea of the 2 step cleaning process, so I will be using soap and brush. I would like to keep this process at under 20 minutes. Any suggestions ? Will certain soaps help / hurt the streaking process ?
 

ron

New Member
ron p

work from a tank and put a water softner on the intake
and if i were a truck driver and you walked up to and asked if
you could spray acid all over my $200,000 rig i would tell you no also
but if you told me that you had a brushless system that left my rig
looking like new. I would say show me.
then if you did'nt know what you were doing and ruined my windshild
my foot would connect real hard with the seat of your pants.
but if it came out the best i have ever seen i would talk about you and
recomend to everyone.
what is the truck stop going to charge you for that water?
what type of reclaim are you going to use? you did'nt think you were going to let
the water go down the drain did you?
lets see about that 20 min.
pre-spray soap on painted surfaces,brush,prespray chrome and aluminum,brush
then rinse[if you rinse with a good wax you could prob. get away without the water
softner.] use wash mitt,long handle brush,wheel brush,acid brush for brightners,
stack brush, one man show 20 min just for the cab maybe but then the trailer.
you better get a hold of steven rowlett and talk to him about chems.
 

Larry L.

PWN TEAM - Moderator Emeritus
For a one man team brushing a truck in 20 or less is going to have to know how to handle that brush will.There is alot of spots on a big rig a brush cann't get to,careful and not hit the other truck setting beside the one your washing with your long handle brush.I have seen every few one man shows that cann't brush the whole truck before rinsing b/c of the soap drying before they can do so.Sometimes a one man has to stop and rinse his soap off 2,3 or 4 times on the same truck depending alot one the weather and soap.Ron's water softner is a good ideal also b/c of the rust colored run off work area.
 

JohnNakalamic

New Member
OK, answer this !!

You guys are good. I plan on paying the truck stop owner $5 for each truck I wash and .50 a truck for water. He agreed to this. The price of the truck is $30.00 (not including trailer). I went to the town about this, they told me of a water source I can use, but was under the impression (through the grapevine) that if I wasnt a 'permanent building', I didnt have to worry about water. If that is a problem, what would you suggest ? It sounds like it would be a MAJOR factor and an expensive one.

If I am charging a trucker $30 for his truck, does he deserve such detail ? I was under the impression that, depending on the soap, chrome wouldn't need special attention.

What brand soap are most people using ? I have heard about the powerful soaps that may ruin windshields, chrome, etc., am staying away from those.

Please reply.
 

Larry L.

PWN TEAM - Moderator Emeritus
First to me your over paying on the trucks,5 and .50 is to much,I'd take you up on that too,,but a fellow has to do what he's got to do.

""I didnt have to worry about water."""...you talking supply or run off?

30 you should give a good wash,chrome needs more tention when paint.......

be back later,,got to go
 

JohnNakalamic

New Member
I didnt think water run off would be a problem. Need to talk to the town, huh ?

Any suggestions on where to read up on the proper ways of washing a truck ? I was going to ask the truck stop owner if I can get some truckers to agree to a free wash and I would ask their opinions.
 

ron

New Member
ron p

once you ask, then you have been told so you will get no free chance. I would get some OIL TUBES[they suck up the oil but let water pass] DELCO sells them i think they also sell learning tapes.
why dont you find the closest or farthest, mobile truck wash guy and give him a free weeks worth of help and learn from him. Dont wash peoples trucks for free,you wont learn much.
also are you planning to sit on site all day waiting for a customer?
you need to spell out your plan and let some of the folks here give an opinion on whats-what
if i were you i would not ever open the hood of the trucks i were to wash at the place you are planning to wash.
Sooner or later the EPA will catch up to you[your high profile] then you'll be in a world of stuff that aint going to smell like roses.
at $5 per truck going to the house it should have a wash pit area and let them worry about it.
at $5 per truck you could afford to find a place off site to rent and wash out of sight where the water dont go down no drain[get wash jobs by word of mouth] set appointments
see thats a plan
trainning,then equipment,then advertise,ect... a plan you need a plan and do it in steps
look for small fleets and forget the truck stops-you need steady work[once a week or every 2 weeks] to pay the bills you need to wash a bunch of trucks for a couple of days to see this aint no cakewalk.
as far as " does he deserve such detail" you got a long road to haul.
that rig is his pride and joy,his house,and the way he feeds the kids
if you are going to make it in the type of trucks your thinking on doing, you better put everything you got into every wash. The better you get the more you can charge.
i really suggest you start with fleets not big rigs[one owner types]
but who the hell am I
 

Bill

New Member
I agree with Ron stay away from the truck stops. I did it for a short time years ago. I wound up sitting around a whole lot just waiting, the drivers were weary of what kind of job I would do. also they would work you to death on "their rig" becuase they knew you were relying on them to spead a good word about your work. Stay with the fleets we have been doing it for 16 years, they to want a good job also, but their main consern is there business. If you do a good job and are RELIABLE you will have customers for a long time. Good Luck
 

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