# Pressure washing/softwashing business?



## TedH71 (Jan 19, 2003)

Basically you do have to sell yourself and have to start out with equipment. Anyone have success in this area?


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## painterswife (Jun 7, 2004)

You could start by renting the pressure washer as you need it. This would help if you have a down season. It would help you decide what equipment you might want to buy. You can also often make a deal with rental companies to rent to own.


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## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

TedH71 said:


> Basically you do have to sell yourself and have to start out with equipment. Anyone have success in this area?


That is the formula for most every service company out of the gate.
Having start up money so you have decent equipment and don't look like it is your first day on the job everytime you show up makes it a little easier, but you are still going to have to pay dues, work hard and not be afraid to fail...and you will have fails.


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## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

A guy I worked with 30 years ago decided to buy a commercial pressure washer and be his own boss.
This was before the internet, so he was out after work and on weekends, hitting local businesses, door to door knocking, passing out business cards, posting flyers, etc. Nothing for about a month.
His first job came from the local town. The mayor hired him to pressure wash the water tower before they painted it. The guy was scared to death of heights, but he pressed on and took the job. He said later he was never so afraid for so long in his life.
His work on the tower led to the beginning of a pretty good career that expanded into other areas as well.


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## ed/La (Feb 26, 2009)

If you are washing houses you do not need that big if machine. To much pressure damages wood and mortar. You want to remove the dirt not the paint. I did commercial work mostly and used a machine with 13 HP Honda. I recommend having 100 ft of hose so you are not to close to the noisy machine. You will need a few different wands. A short one for working off extension ladder a long one and a medium. Also the rotating ground surface attachment is handy. We usually painted after washing. The power washing was miserable work. It was not my main business just part of the job. It is young man's work. I couldn't imagine doing it every day. I would rather be a painter with a small power washer.


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## weaselfire (Feb 7, 2018)

TedH71 said:


> Basically you do have to sell yourself and have to start out with equipment. Anyone have success in this area?


The guy I pay for pressure washing seems to.

Jeff


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## tiffanysgallery (Jan 17, 2015)

TedH71 said:


> Basically you do have to sell yourself and have to start out with equipment...


You've probably found plenty of websites on the internet to read about the business. There looks to be pages of pressure washing equipment on Craigslist. The first thought I had was to power wash windows for senior homeowners and then build your business from there. In sales, 'word of mouth marketing' is important and it saves money on advertising. 

https://www.godaddy.com/garage/how-to-start-a-pressure-washing-business/


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