washing curbs for paint prep........help

Mike Hughes

New Member
Would you wash 4000 ft of curb for $1000?? A local apartment complex (42 blds) wants me to power wash 4000 feet of curbing that is painted yellow (no parking zones, and a few speed bumps) The paint is flaking and nasty and needs to be repainted. I need to wash to prepare for paint. Hose bibs all over the place, just alot of moving around (its a big complex).

He asked if it would be under $1000.......thats what his budget allows..........I would like to keep it under that for him, but I'm not going to give it away!

What do you think? How long do you think it would take to wash a foot of curbing? (top and street side). I'm trying to figure out how productive I can be....... I figure alot of time will be wasted just pulling hoses around and moving the truck.

Here is a pic of a small section. http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=1471628&a=11073115&p=42299686

Most of the job is curbing, about 7 or 8 of these speed bumps, which are asphalt. I don't expect to do much heavy washing of the asphalt, so I don't chew it up.

Any recommendations for a tip to use?? I am going to start with a turbo tip........but, if I cant use that, would a 15 degree be good?

What do you guys think?
Mike

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Mike Hughes
Everclear
Souderton, PA
 

Cody

New Member
<FONT COLOR="e87400">Heyya Mike,,

Well,, the price is....Maybe good, maybe bad,, really depends on that yellow paint. If you find yurself having to remove 1000ft of yellow paint you'll be hating life, sometimes that stuff comes up fairly easy, hence the problem, you'll end up having to remove most all of it for the pre-paint. So if the paint is like the above you could be there for anywhere from 15 - 40 hours

Now if there isn't much paint removal then .25cent a linear ft is pretty fair price, I can probaly average about 15' per minute of a fairly dirty curb with 4000psi @ 5.6gpm. So with this scenario you could be out in under 6hrs!

Hope this helps some

Cody</FONT c>

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<FONT COLOR="e87400">
Hydro-Emulsification Surface Preparation Specialist
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Cody

New Member
<FONT COLOR="e87400">PS.. Myself I would think twice about doing it because of the parking issue and overspray problems, so long as the can keep cars at least 100' away it should'nt be a problem but often in apartment complexes getting access can be a real pain in the muffler!!

GL
Cody</FONT c>

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<FONT COLOR="e87400">
Hydro-Emulsification Surface Preparation Specialist
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Mike Hughes

New Member
Cody,

the parking is not much of an issue......room for my rig in the middle of the street and cars can go around it.

The entire job is washing painted curbs for paint prep.....so, EVERY FOOT I wash will have yellow paint on it. I don't intend on going nuts on it, I am not trying to remove it all.......just the loose stuff, maybe more.

By the way, I'm at 3000psi@5.5GPMs

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Mike Hughes
Everclear
Souderton, PA
 

Harold Brantley

New Member
Mike, I've done several large apartment complexes. The buildings aren't that bad, but curbs and parking bumpers are headaches because you cannot plan for the time it will take. You will have to come back several times because you will never catch all of the cars gone at the same time. For bare concrete, your price is OK, but the paint is going to fly everywhere and then you'll be cleaning it off the parking lot and cars. Offer to do a short section with the paint so you can make an informed decision about the total time it will take and fix the cost accordingly. Good Luck.

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Baldwin Power Wash, Inc. serving the Gulf Coast between Mobile, AL and Pensacola, FL.
 

Cody

New Member
<FONT COLOR="e87400">Yeah,,, what Harold said!!

One doesn't usually plan on going nuts on a job like that Mike,, unfortunately it can just happen,,as your doing the job you may notice that

"Damn this stuff is comming off to easy,,the paint will never stick if I don't remove it all"

So now, you're removing most all of it! This is the reason I no longer do paint prep, to much work for the money, and sometimes you never know til you hit it. Like sometimes you'll test a few areas with no problem then take the job only to find an area where the paint starts to fly off, next thing you know you've spent a couple of hours chasing loose paint and have'nt moved 20ft.

Not to say you don't want the job, just saying be prepared for the worse, then anything less is a bonus!

GL
Cody</FONT c>

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<FONT COLOR="e87400">
Hydro-Emulsification Surface Preparation Specialist
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Mike Hughes

New Member
I agree with everything above.......I'll be more likely to do the job if he will let me do it before March 15th or so........after that, I don't need the aggrevation.

All of the areas that need to be washed have no cars......they are no parking zones (yellow curb)

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Mike Hughes
Everclear
Souderton, PA
 

Clean County

New Member
Hi Mike,
I would do it if the guy would let you get it done sometime in March. The big problem I see with this Job is the mess that you will create with the flying paint comming off the curb. If is was me I would have my worker there also to pick up the mess while I powerwashed the curb. This seems like a two man job because while one powerwashes the other can powerwash the paint chips together so they can be picked up before they dry into the pavement and that can be a real pain in the ***. -John-

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Wild Man

New Member
Mike,
I cleaned one 3 yrs ago that was 5600 ft same type of cleaning, Took me 2-days. The price isn't reasonable but if you want the job go for-it!
The only advise I can give is invest in a fire hydred hose like the fire dept use I did & it makes a big difference in getting all the paint flaks up fast!!!!
Wash em away QUICK!!! And fill up a 500 gallon tank in 3.5mints....Saves time.
Good luck .............Rick......



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David Saulque

<b>PWN TEAM - Hood Moderator</b><br<b><font color=
We did a test on around 40 feet of red curb using a dry soda system. The paint was a standard government epoxy. 90 % of the paint came up fast but the other 10 % slowed everything down. We change the soda, to larger grade and the paint came up with no problem.

I would not do the the job for that price. All I can see is problems, that is a lot of work for $1000. Just to let you know we had issues at 40 feet.

David

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Mark Dadian

New Member
Hi Mike:

You've received a lot of good advice and I can only think of one thing to add. The customer is the one telling you what he wants to spend (he calls it his "budget") on the project. If I learnt anything while dealing with corporations (as a head hunter) it was that they would always find the money needed to hire the guy they wanted (even during a mandated hiring freeze). Another point to consider is, if he really is limited in his funds then he needs to determine what other projects might be put off until the resources come around again to do those (it might be that he puts off the curb for a while). Is it likely, he's going to rent a 2000 psi, 3.5 gpm cold water machine and thoroughly wash almost a MILE of painted curb AND pick up the chips? He may have to re-evaluate his priorities.

My whole point is this: since I've been reading the various boards, one point keeps coming up and that is the issue of professionalism. Are we or are we not worth what we reasonably charge. *****'s "Heard on the Streets" is a good place to start for prices, and the responces from friends on these boards fill in the gaps. I have no qualms showing my customers what the industry standard is, so lets educate the client and keep it the standard.

Stick to your guns. You've read what those who have done this have come up against. Tell him what you would normally charge... and then negotiate, but for the sake of every PW contractor out there (with the exception of Cody, the resident Hydro-Emulsification Surface Preparation Specialist) DON'T go at his first price and (and I heard this in one of many seminars) if you negotiate on your price, get him to negotiate something back to you (referrals, contracts, etc.).

I didn't mean to go off on a thing like this. I just want to encourage you to do the "right" thing by yourself and the rest of us.

If I'm off on any of this, feel free to tell me to go pound sand. I've been told worse.

Hope this helps.

Have fun playing in the water.

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GBU

Mark A. Dadian
 

PUREPOWER

New Member
Mike,
I usually take any job that comes my way, but never will I take a job like that for 1G. I did one similar to that, but smaller, and I was about to put bamboo skewers under my toe nails after about two hours!!!

After about two hours...I looked back...watch out where the huskies go, don't you eat that yellow snow... Half of the lot, sidewalk, and my rig(100ft away) was covered with yellow chips. It was kinda of funny to see but a real tedious clean-up.

If the guy wants the job done the right way, sell yourself and your service...not his budget. The guy may have a 2G budget and is gonna submit your bid at 2G and spend the other G on hookers or cheap whiskey and horse betting. I have run across these guys before...you look like the putz and they look like the hero to their company. I have talked on the phone with you and you seem to have your head screwed on tight(with the exception of this powerwashing thing) so stand beside YOUR company's and your own worth.

Ain't beatin' you up...just givin' you my thoughts.

Jordan
beer.gif


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Walt Graner

New Member
We do this all the time.
Usually they don't want it 100%
So we tell them the prep for this type of job is minimal.
Spinner tip, hot, blow and go.
One guy power wash the other to pick up as you go with water hose / broom.

Price should not be too far off, just make sure you tell the guy that you are focusing on the loose stuff. Parking lot curd paint jobs usually dont last longer than 5 years anyway, and usually apartment complexes have there stuff coated every 4 - 8 years and the striping is included in the price.

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Walt Graner
"Off The Wall" Graffiti
 

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