PeakOfPerfection Report post Posted February 1, 2014 If you saw the last post I did...my ex employee managed to do a Dukes of Hazard on our last rig. Unlike the TV show, the jump didn't end well. To whit... Today...I just purchased an old school 91 F-350 with an 8 x 12 Aluminum flatbed. 68K original miles. Old school IDI non turbo 7.3 L diesel so it will be slow as heck...but given the last truck, I am okay with that. Plus those old diesels are very reliable and get pretty reasonable fuel economy. It was an Exxon Mobile welding truck. Not the prettiest thing in the world but I own it outright and if another employee crashes it, I am only out $3500. Time to change the bed material, do some paint touch up, line everything and start mounting all the new equipment as it comes in (the last rig was utterly destroyed). Going with an air pump with 18 cfm compressor and dual electric pump setup for triple redundancy. Hope to have it all built in the next month. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Yorkshire Driveway Cleaning Report post Posted February 2, 2014 That'll keep you busy for a bit, shame you had to be forced into making the change..... Sometimes I'm glad I don't have permanent staff.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
andy hinson Report post Posted February 2, 2014 That truck seems to have a very well built bed that should provide you with plenty of options for your business. The very first thing you should at least consider is having the steel sandblasted,primed and epoxy coated or protected in some way. Just having the chemicals close to the steel will ruin it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Advantage Roof Cleaning Report post Posted February 3, 2014 Looking forward to seeing photos of the finished rig... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PeakOfPerfection Report post Posted February 5, 2014 That truck seems to have a very well built bed that should provide you with plenty of options for your business. The very first thing you should at least consider is having the steel sandblasted,primed and epoxy coated or protected in some way. Just having the chemicals close to the steel will ruin it. It is actually all Aluminum, a bonus because it is light. I am thinking of doing a coating on the entire thing...maybe bed liner. I know Aluminum and SH don't get along very well, but not *as bad* as steel. Need to figure out the prep work needed to coat aluminum. Also trying to figure out what to put on the bed since the existing wood is toast. I can go with some diamond plate aluminum, but a piece that big isn't going to be cheap and it will still need to be coated. Don't want to do steel...dissimilar metals. I am leaning towards 3/4" CDX Ply because I can make it pretty well seamless with some PL Premium on the joints and then coat with Bedliner top and bottom. Maybe top it with rubber matting...horse stall mats are cheap, just not sure how rubber cement seams would hold up....have to see if PL Premium will work, nothing hurts that stuff. I will lay down a layer of Butyl window seal rubber against the aluminum frame to isolate it from the CDX chems and provide added sealing against SH getting into the gaps. Maybe not necessary if I do a good thick berliner coating...but I want to do everything possible to protect that Aluminum Bed since replacement for that is gonna run more than I paid for the truck. Also have to figure out what to do with the existing boxes on there. I know storage is always a good thing so leaning towards redoing them with rust converter and interior/exterior bed liner. Either that or sell them off and get some Poly under frame boxes and keep all the lovely real estate on top clean and shiny with lots of space. Then again, the boxes are there and they are paid for. Decisions. Biggest issue right now is the temps. It is well below freezing...supposed to be below zero with wind chill tonite and then rain all next week. Can't coat anything when it is that cold/wet. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PeakOfPerfection Report post Posted February 5, 2014 Looking forward to seeing photos of the finished rig... Me too. I have nearly 20 jobs booked when the weather gods smile on us again...plus we have a booth in the local Home and Garden show which usually drives a lot of business. Driving me crazy not being able to work. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PeakOfPerfection Report post Posted February 5, 2014 That'll keep you busy for a bit, shame you had to be forced into making the change..... Sometimes I'm glad I don't have permanent staff.... I have no choice but to have employees. I was rear ended twice in three years and had surgery to repair damaged discs in my neck...twice. The last surgery was 3 weeks ago. Means that looking up is difficult and being a Roof Washing Company owner...that kinda sucks. I do most of my residential quotes off my iPad Map application these days. Surgeon has me on limited activity for the next two months to boot and we should be washing by then...so the search for new Employees begins. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Advantage Roof Cleaning Report post Posted February 5, 2014 Me too. I have nearly 20 jobs booked when the weather gods smile on us again...plus we have a booth in the local Home and Garden show which usually drives a lot of business. Driving me crazy not being able to work. How many home shows have you participated in? Roughly how many jobs does each show bring in for you? There will be a home show coming soon to my area but I have not signed up yet. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PeakOfPerfection Report post Posted February 7, 2014 How many home shows have you participated in? Roughly how many jobs does each show bring in for you? There will be a home show coming soon to my area but I have not signed up yet. I did one show for Peak last year...brought in about 20-30 jobs....one just booked a week ago. I've done shows for my mold remediation company for seven years. More importantly are the contacts you make in the industry and incidental jobs. Roofing companies, property managers, real estate agents, plus jobs you get from friends of customers you talk to at the show. Worth it? Absolutely. I made the $900 I spent back in two jobs, very worth it. And the contacts I made brought in a lot of jobs. Hint...bring an IPad or tablet with a map function. You can look at potential customer roofs on the spot and give them an idea of price. Also allows you to show them how much GM is on their roof since it can be seen from SPACE! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PeakOfPerfection Report post Posted February 22, 2014 Progress (or lack there of) report on the rebuild of the rig. Spent the first week working thru a Glowplug issue on the truck. Kept telling the mechanic...check the harness! He insisted on replacing everything else. Finally checked the harness and lo and behold...bad harness. Built a new harness. Now it starts up effortlessly and with everything replaced...should continue to do so. New plywood is down...1 1/8" solid ply. Still waiting on coating the !&#@! flatbed. It has been raining raining raining and supposed to snow this weekend. Tank supply guy forgot to put my two new tanks on his trailer for delivery...Grrr. Went with a 65 and a 150. Yes, I know the 119 Gal rule...but we can throw two 55G drums of 12% onboard and mix and use onsite. 65 will be a freshwater supply or used as a secondary mix tank...maybe house wash? Whatever...it was cheap. Still working on a hose reel. Working on having a Reel made up with a Hastelloy manifold, that will be the last reel I ever need to buy vs replacing it often (yes, we clean it out every time). Found a good deal on a Yamada 1/2" pump and still searching for the right compressor. Harbor Freight has a good deal on a 30 Gal truck mount Compressor with electric start. 18 CFM at 90 PSI. Will buy the 2 year replacement warranty on it...they don't ask questions just hand you a new one. Planning on mounting a secondary 30-60 gal air tank inline for a nice large tank supply. More reserves=Good. Anybody have a good lead on a reasonably priced AIR Hose reel that can hold a solid 200' of air line? Since I will have a compressor, air is good to get rid of loose debris on the roof vs using the gas blower we used before. Run the line up, blow the loose stuff off. Yes, obviously not for anchored stuff. Got the battery system down. 250 AH Marine Deep cycle with an onboard charging system and monitoring system. To be mounted. 1/0 leads to a dual switch to select one/both pumps. Does anybody here with a flatbed run their plumbing lines UNDER the truck? I can house them in PVC or work up a metal shield to protect from impact and it would be a FAR cleaner looking setup on top. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PeakOfPerfection Report post Posted March 8, 2014 More Progress... Tanks are here. 150 Mix tank and a 65 Gal FW tank w/Bulkheads. Pump...after going over performance curve after performance Curve, I just ordered an All-Flo KT-75 3/4" pump. Kynar body with PVDF diaphragm. Should be inert enough. Went with 3/4" after seeing the posts on the 1" pumps and the 1/2" pumps...decided 3/4" was a good compromise. I can always stick a 1" pump on there if I decide we need more reach. The goal this year is to step foot on as few roofs as possible. I figure a 3/4" pump should give me a solid 50' reach that will get me most of the high pitch roofs from a ladder. Going with a 19.6 CFM 30 Gal truck mount compressor from Harbor Freight. Hard to beat it for $1099 plus their 2 year no questions asked replacement warranty. Reel. Still waiting on a reel. Truck bed coating. Rain Rain Rain...Snow....Rain Rain Rain...Snow again...Rain RAIN LIKE CRAZY...Rain. That is the weather pattern so no coating for now. Still debating on whether to install a Dual Fatboy electric backup setup. I may just plumb it and have it there...or sell the two FB-2's off. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Apple Roof Cleaning (813) 655-8777 Report post Posted March 8, 2014 do not forget the air/water seperator/regulator from harbor frieght. Use the larger 3/8 air line and regulator, not the smaller ones Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
garyw Report post Posted March 8, 2014 I run 1/2" air line. Same thought as" bigger is better" on chemical hose. 1" pump, pumps like a MF'r. 1 Richard Frisson reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PeakOfPerfection Report post Posted March 9, 2014 do not forget the air/water seperator/regulator from harbor frieght. Use the larger 3/8 air line and regulator, not the smaller ones Thanks! I will add it to the list. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PeakOfPerfection Report post Posted March 9, 2014 I run 1/2" air line. Same thought as" bigger is better" on chemical hose. 1" pump, pumps like a MF'r. I was planning on a 3/8" line but can switch to 1/2" easily if you think it will make a difference. I was still thinking of switching up to the 1" pump and can change my order, but the difference in air consumption between a 3/4" and a 1" All-Flo PVDF pump is significant and the reality is, I won't get much more flow with my planned compressor. 17 GPM at 15 CFM vs 41 GPM at 40 CFM, so the 1" pump can pump a massive amount of material, but to do so it needs a LOT of air. With my compressor, comparing the performance curve on the 3/4" pump vs the 1" pump at just under 20 CFM the flow rates are actually pretty similar...17 GPM vs 18 GPM. To reach the higher flow rates with a 1" pump requires double the Air supply. You must have a SERIOUS compressor to take full advantage of the 1" beast! Air supply goes up exponentially (from $1100 to $5000 to go from about 20 CFM to 40 CFM), so unless I can find a killer deal on a bigger compressor, a 3/4" pump may be all the pump I can use for now. Besides which, a Fat Boy 2 setup which I was using before, delivers 5 GPM at 60 PSI and that is open flow without any head, so I have to figure that 3x the flow will be....adequate! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
garyw Report post Posted March 9, 2014 What is more important than cfm is air tank storage. I run an 80 gallon tank. . Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PeakOfPerfection Report post Posted March 9, 2014 What is more important than cfm is air tank storage. I run an 80 gallon tank. Funny you should mention that... Was looking at a 60 Gal Secondary tank giving me 90 Gal total. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PeakOfPerfection Report post Posted March 14, 2014 More Progress. We actually had a rain break, giving the bed wood a few days to dry. Seeing as how it is supposed to rain again tonite, I rushed down and bought a few gallons of Herculiner. They had Black, black and...black, so it is black. Customers won't care and it is now protected. To Whit... In other news, I stumbled across this little beastie locally for $1200 and jumped on it. Yeah, it hurt...those things are HARD! Then I bought it. These are $2800 new and this one was bought by a guy who owned a tire shop, used it about 5 times for mobile servicing and then shut down his shop. It has been riding in the back of his truck for the past year doing nothing. 18.5 CFM, still more than enough to easily run the 3/4" All-Flo pump that is on the way. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
garyw Report post Posted March 14, 2014 Looks good. I also like the UK WILDCAT blue. LOL Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
richard bond Report post Posted March 14, 2014 Hey Peak, bummer about the accident. How did it go down, half full tanks, weight transfer, another driver,cell phone or texting or just looking at too much leg? I'm sure everyone is curious? I've had trucks totaled in the past from icy/snowy conditions but mostly from plain old driver error. What are you gonna do, if you want to make the bigger bucks you have to grow your company past the owner operator stage and be willing to take the risks. We do driver training every so often where we bring in a company to show video and run a defensive driving class, that seems to help. Giving out annual driver bonuses for no accidents is big as well. Keep us updated on the new rig, plenty of pictures and info. I'm sure more people would switch to air if they knew how to build one. Plus its a great way to get your post count up and get CERTIFIED! It sounds like you do things the right way, good luck on the rig, the birds are already starting to chirp over here in Maryland! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
richard bond Report post Posted March 14, 2014 PS - Stay tuned for the unveiling of our new website, Barry with Contractor Hosting almost has it ready to launch! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PeakOfPerfection Report post Posted March 14, 2014 Hey Peak, bummer about the accident. How did it go down, half full tanks, weight transfer, another driver,cell phone or texting or just looking at too much leg? I'm sure everyone is curious? I've had trucks totaled in the past from icy/snowy conditions but mostly from plain old driver error. What are you gonna do, if you want to make the bigger bucks you have to grow your company past the owner operator stage and be willing to take the risks. We do driver training every so often where we bring in a company to show video and run a defensive driving class, that seems to help. Giving out annual driver bonuses for no accidents is big as well. Keep us updated on the new rig, plenty of pictures and info. I'm sure more people would switch to air if they knew how to build one. Plus its a great way to get your post count up and get CERTIFIED! It sounds like you do things the right way, good luck on the rig, the birds are already starting to chirp over here in Maryland!If only I was so lucky as it being ice or inattentiveness. No...the reality was worse. Trusted employee asked to borrow the rig. Then he went out drinking. He was speeding, then passed out at the wheel, drifted into a culvert, launched out of it, flew over a road, took out signs, poles, cut off the tops of trees at 15' in the air, then landed on the roof and flipped back upright. Said EX Employee then fled the scene of the accident with witnesses watching. Said employee then gave false information to the Police when they finally contacted him by phone, then he subsequently fled the state. Long story short, it turned into a felony. I found out about it when somebody was pounding on my door at 1:15 AM. Dogs barking, Grabbed my shotgun...it was the police asking me if I knew where my truck was. Cost me $860 to get it out of impound and for the recovery. Insurance? Felony...no. Had to pay out of pocket for everything. Ex Employee doesn't have a pot to piss in so not worth my time and expense to go after him legally. Karma will have to take care of the rest. The Good news is that I have a ton of jobs booked with inspections of two large 30+ building complexes scheduled today. Looks like it will be a good season. We haven't done driver training, but I have had fall safety training sessions. Will need to add driver training to the list. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Apple Roof Cleaning (813) 655-8777 Report post Posted March 14, 2014 If only I was so lucky as it being ice or inattentiveness. No...the reality was worse. Trusted employee asked to borrow the rig. Then he went out drinking. He was speeding, then passed out at the wheel, drifted into a culvert, launched out of it, flew over a road, took out signs, poles, cut off the tops of trees at 15' in the air, then landed on the roof and flipped back upright. Said EX Employee then fled the scene of the accident with witnesses watching. Said employee then gave false information to the Police when they finally contacted him by phone, then he subsequently fled the state. Long story short, it turned into a felony. I found out about it when somebody was pounding on my door at 1:15 AM. Dogs barking, Grabbed my shotgun...it was the police asking me if I knew where my truck was. Cost me $860 to get it out of impound and for the recovery. Insurance? Felony...no. Had to pay out of pocket for everything. Ex Employee doesn't have a pot to piss in so not worth my time and expense to go after him legally. Karma will have to take care of the rest. The Good news is that I have a ton of jobs booked with inspections of two large 30+ building complexes scheduled today. Looks like it will be a good season. We haven't done driver training, but I have had fall safety training sessions. Will need to add driver training to the list. I lived in Seattle from 1976 till 1989. My ex lives in Anacortes, know where that is, LOL Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PeakOfPerfection Report post Posted March 15, 2014 Oh yeah...done many projects in Anacortes and taken the Ferry out to the Islands from there for many others. We are currently on a Mold remediation project in Oak Harbor just over Deception Pass. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
garyw Report post Posted March 15, 2014 Get one of these nozzles and you'll be all set. This is what I use and so does a lot of others. Tell Barry you're a member of RCIA. Free engraving to help with theft problem http://www.masterindustriesllc.com/ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
