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Old 08-02-2008, 12:19 AM   #1
vacdaddy
 
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Trade: Exterior Cleaning and Pressure Washing Service
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: West TN
Posts: 5
A fleet of trucks

I have a chance to bid on a fleet of 25 trucks and trailors. I was wondering, what would be the most efficient method, using cold water to give these trucks a quick but thorough wash? I will be washing the trucks once a month and I have an inside connection to help get the job. I was told that the contractor doing the job now is not doing a good job. Any suggestions about methods and materials to use would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Dwayne

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Old 08-02-2008, 09:50 AM   #2
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Trade: Project Manager/Licensed Remodeler
 
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Can you set up your equipment in one central location near the vehicles and have 2-3 people as drivers to pull the vehicles up to the wash location and park them afterwards? With three people, there's always one vehicle being washed, one being picked up and one being parked.

I had a side job last month being a driver for a dealer-only vehicle auction and they were incredibly efficient with the drivers using this method but with more drivers. One day they went through close to 800 cars in two hours using two auction lanes (200 cars per hour) and another day they went through 2000 cars in three hours using up to eight lanes.
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Old 08-02-2008, 07:43 PM   #3
vacdaddy
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dustball View Post
Can you set up your equipment in one central location near the vehicles and have 2-3 people as drivers to pull the vehicles up to the wash location and park them afterwards? With three people, there's always one vehicle being washed, one being picked up and one being parked.

I had a side job last month being a driver for a dealer-only vehicle auction and they were incredibly efficient with the drivers using this method but with more drivers. One day they went through close to 800 cars in two hours using two auction lanes (200 cars per hour) and another day they went through 2000 cars in three hours using up to eight lanes.
Wow, that's alot of cars. If three people can go through 200 cars in an hour, I should be able to do the whole fleet of trucks, alone, in less than half a day. I was thinking about using a truck wash from Eacochems. Does anyone know the nearest distributor in or around West TN?
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Old 08-02-2008, 07:51 PM   #4
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Originally Posted by Power Shower View Post
Wow, that's alot of cars. If three people can go through 200 cars in an hour, I should be able to do the whole fleet of trucks, alone, in less than half a day. I was thinking about using a truck wash from Eacochems. Does anyone know the nearest distributor in or around West TN?
Nah, you missed the part where I said "but with more drivers". It's the concept that I was presenting.
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Old 08-03-2008, 11:14 AM   #5
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Trade: power washing - new construction and restoration cleaning
 
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We use EaCo Chems products all the time.

Be careful about the the Glory getting on aluminum, you might want to cover it, or spray some Sabre on it before you apply the Glory to neutralize it (Sabre is the same thing as Brightenol & Glory is the same as Cleansol). We don't do truck washing, we typically stick to cleaning buildings and such, but we have done that kind of cleaning before. The competative pricing can be brutal in that end of pressure washing.

Glory is an excellent cleaner, just be aware that it is not your typical harsh caustic or butyl based cleaner, its much better for the paint and the final appearance is superior, but the application is much different. It takes a double application with no rinse in between chemical apps. to achieve the brushless cleaning results, if the road stains are very harsh you may have to use higher pressure, higher ratio, or longer dwell time, (50:1 to 30:1 is typical) and some brushing may be needed, depending on the stains and your idea of clean.

Once you get the hang of cleaning with EaCo Chems detergents, you should be able to move just as fast if not faster, with much better cleaning results. Caustics and Butyls strip thin layers of paint off each time you clean, with routine cleanings the paint suffers tremendously.

Having to move and clean 25 trucks and trailers is gonna take more than half a day by yourself. The moving alone is gonna take some time.

To find the nearest dealer (sometimes its cheaper to order straight from EaCo Chem) give them a call. Ask to speak to either Mike or Lynn. They are all friendly and helpful. They can also help you out on any application and method questions you may have.


EaCo Chem:
1-800-313-8505
www.eacochem.com

Gutter Clean & Power Wash
Hickory NC

Last edited by tom connelly; 08-06-2008 at 10:02 AM.
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Old 08-03-2008, 11:47 PM   #6
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Thanks

Thank you, Tom. Your information was extremely helpful.
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