From buying a used power washing machine from craigslist and how it turned out to be the worst decision of my life. Let’s learn from my mistakes and how exactly did I almost put myself in a $50,000 lawsuit due to property damages and not following the legality of the business.
Maybe some of you can relate with me but I genuinely dislike my job as a warehouse Stocker, it was painful, boring and most importantly depressing. One night I had woken up at 3am getting ready for work you know the usual, and to slave away at long shift, but before I had left to go to work I looked up “best side hustles to start”, and after typing that little did I know that my life would had become even more painful, and even more depressing.
In this personal blog I hope to assist you in starting your very own pressure washing business, even getting the right machinery, paperwork and most importantly how to get customers. It’s true the average pressure washing labor cost is between $190 to $401, and the median income makes $130,000 according to Forbes Advisor.
What exactly went wrong?
I am worth way more than just being a warehouse stocker, that is exactly what would go through my head every single morning while driving to my job site. But I had to figure out a plan, how much do I have to save up? At that time I was making $13.50 an hour and while looking for the right power washer I had seen some popular pressure washers such as RYOBI RY142300 Pressure Washer which was $389.00. Another one was SUN JOE SPX3000 which was known as a budget alternative at a price of $149.00.
Want to know what I did? Well instead of being logical and buying a new one with no mechanical defects, I had decided to go ahead and scout through craigslist and Offer-Up to find a used one at a fraction of the price. Feeling like I was brilliant, and thinking I had discovered a loophole, it quickly became a disaster. I had purchased a Honda 4000PSI 3.6GPM pressure washer for only $400, and they originally sell for $1,300. Right when I got home I thought I had just hit the jackpot but then I quickly realized that it might not be a jackpot considering the ad listing has been on the market for four months.
Welp, I didn’t really care and had gone ahead to post listings on the internet providing my service, cleaning the driveways and the walls of homes. How hard can it be? Don’t I just spray the water to the floor and walls and that’s it no? Just maybe I should have done thorough research before going from 0 to 100, I ended up listening to drake either way.
My first client, the disaster beings
After posting my listing through offer up, craigslist and even instagram, I received my first client after a week of patiently waiting. Oh boy I was so happy, getting ready to work and make some good money, I thought this is it I am done working at a job that I absolutely hated.
I drove to the clients house, not taking in consideration of the cost of gas, 45 min drive each way, looked at his home and his driveway needed some washing no doubt. He asked me “can you clean my walls they’re quite dirty” I said sure i’d love to.
If you’re not fully aware these pressure washers are all different when it comes to the strength, some pressure washers can clean cars without damaging it while other pressure washers can completely destroy the car.
As I am pressure washing the cement floor, I quickly realize that I am doing an amazing job, 5 seconds in and it already looks amazing. After cleaning it for roughly 30 min I had decided to now move to the sides of the house. The outside walls are Weathered Brick, which means if you hit the wall, you quickly damage the paint and completely destroy the appearance.
As I move to the wall without knowing nothing, I aimed the pressure washer directly towards the wall and I had just destroyed the wall, and accidently breaking it. I freaked out and I had told my client that I have accidently made a minor mistake. He quickly became irritated, asking whos the boss of this company. Fast forward the whole conversation with the individual he had every reason to sue me for damages but he decided to let me go and cover some small fees and not charge him for the cleaning of his driveway. Lets go over how you can do this the proper way and how you can avoid being liable if mistakes occur.
Starting your own Pressure washing business
Step 1. Establishing the legality Structure – The initial step in launching a business involves by selecting a the correct business structure and necessary paperwork to operate such business. There are three primary business structures, Sole Proprietorship, Limited Liability company (LLC), and corporation. The biggest difference between a LLC and Sole proprietorship are the liability risks, you’re still personally liable if you get sued under a sole proprietor, while under an LLC they’re not directly suing you but the company making sure that your personal income is not on jeopardy.
Creating an LLC will always be recommend if you’re providing a service, you’ll need to conduct a name search, to make sure your business name is not copying another one. You’ll complete basic information such as business name, contact information and whos the owner. The cost of establishing all this comes out to be ranging from $200 to $700, but worth every penny and will save you from unfortunate circumstances.
Step 2. Buying the right equipment and Supplies – This is where I personally had messed up the most, you’ll need the right equipment for certain jobs, not one pressure washer is capable of completing all jobs. You also need to decide between a gas or electric pressure washer, if you decide to go towards electric, you’ll need to disclose that you will be using the clients electricity. Do you need a light duty, medium duty or heavy duty, some heavy duty washers can be adjustable to perform all tasks but they often times cost more.
The equipment and supplies you will need for your washer include:
Lets hope you have a truck to operate this business, you can’t carry all this in a honda coupe, I recommend purchasing a van rather then a truck due to rust and water issues for having your pressure washer sitting in the sun. A Ford Transit is rated top vehicle to operate a pressure washing business due to reliability and mpg. A used Ford Transit with 50,000 miles will come out to be $35,000 or a monthly payment of $550.
Step 3. Figure out your pricing –Depending on where you operate your business, prices may vary. With most jobs the range is from $190 to $405. I personally recommend to start offering your service lower than your competitors at the beginning so you can build experience and making yourself look more legit. Find out what your competitors are charging so you have a clear understanding the market rates.
Will be charging hourly or per project. If you decide to charge per project you should be very well experienced already to know an estimated time for completion.
How much will you charge for?
- Fences and Walls per Sq Ft
- Sidewalks
- The driveway
- Windows and vehicles
Always keep track of expenses, from the water bill, gas to get to the location, car maintenance, and electricity. Be sure you’re charging enough to where you’re making profit and not putting yourself in a loss.
Final Step. Growing Your Business – Marketing is key, without marketing and putting yourself out there, you’ll quickly realize that you won’t have any clients. A great start as a new business is door-to-door knocking, introducing yourself and your new business, maybe offering a discount to new customers a great incentive that customers don’t want to say no to. You may also want to set up your website, its 2023 and setting your website has gotten so much easier using WordPress and accessing tutorials on youtube, so you can showcase your work.
Don’t quit and remember that every business is difficult at the beginning. Once you get your first client you’ll quickly realize that it’s possible. Be sure to capitalize off of free resources such as facebook, instagram, and yelp to promote your business.
Frequently Asked Questions
When operating a business such as Pressure washing, it is important to establish an LLC in which will protect your personal assets and holds the company liable rather than you.
If you are new to marketing, it is okay because this type of business does not need top notch marketing to get clients, if you just put yourself out there and door knock you’ll eventually get clients. Time is important.
You can pressure anything as long you have the right PSI and not damage any of the clients property. You can pressure wash driveways, sidewalks, fences, brick and pools.
Be sure to do your due diligence and research a lot before performing such tasks.
To Conclude
In closing out this article, we had gone over everything from my personal experience trying to operate a Pressure Washing business and it becoming a total disaster to giving advice and assisting you if you want to dive into this business venture. Going over the appropriate PSI for certain jobs, the chemicals and different pressure washing machines you need. How to establish a business and the proper paperwork you need so you can operate legally. I hope you had enjoyed the article, will you be opening up your very own Pressure Washing business any time soon, if not what side hustles do you recommend others to try? Leave in the comments below and wish you all a great day.
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