Learning More About Budgeting For Small Businesses

With a vehicle, a portable pressure washer, and a few extra tools, you can start your own business cleaning the exteriors of both homes and businesses in your neighborhood. However, you'll spend a lot more time and money than necessary if you start working with a base washer missing some of the most crucial accessories. Invest in at least these five important pressure washing accessories for better results and higher earnings from day one.

Extra Hoses

Start by investing in both low pressure water hoses and high pressure spray hoses. The first type is used to connect to your water source, such as an outdoor tap, while the second is used to connect the pressure washer to the spray tool you're using. The hoses that come standard with most washers are fairly short, so invest in at least 50 feet of both types of hoses so you can work farther away from your water source. If you're working on construction sites and other areas with limited resources, you may even want 100 or 200 foot long pressure hoses so you don't have to rent a water tank to reach the farthest parts of a cleaning job.

Plenty of Nozzles

Nozzles are categorized by the angle of the water spray emerging from the tip. To start a general purpose washing company, pick up at least one nozzle of each of the following types:

• Zero-degree, which is a straight and powerful jet of water that is used for the most stubborn stains and hard materials like mortar
• 15-degree, which still has plenty of power for scraping while covering a larger area for faster work
• 25-degree, which is less powerful and safer for cleaning wood, siding, and concrete that might be damaged by a direct jet
• 45-degree, which offers the fastest cleaning process when covering large areas like parking lots and multi-story buildings.

With these four nozzles, you can tackle all the basic cleaning chores at a business or home. Consider more specialized nozzles, like extra-wide 65-degree models, for specialty applications like water sweeping or spray bar cleaning.

Detergent Controls

Using too much detergent is one of the biggest ways that pressure washer business owners lose money. It's satisfying to watch a surface get covered in thick soap bubbles and suds, but it's wasteful and can damage surrounding landscaping, even if you're using plant-safe cleaning products. Fixed orifice detergent controls ensure that every employee uses the perfect amount of detergent to get clean results without wasting costly products.

Storage Tools

Of course, investing in all these time-saving accessories means you'll need better storage and organization equipment as well. Invest in a reel for each hose, even if it's just a basic hand-cranked model, since dragging hoses across the ground wears them out prematurely. Don't forget about tool boxes for separately nozzles and cases for your wands so you don't waste 20 minutes trying to find a specific tool in your van or work truck.

Different Wands

Finally, increase your safety and speed up your cleaning work by investing in heavy duty pressure washing wands. Telescoping wands are a must-have, especially models that extend 20 feet or more, in order to keep you off of ladders and scaffolding when cleaning roofs, upper story siding, and gutters. Getting on a ladder with a pressure washer is dangerous even for the professionals. Aside from telescoping models, you can also find wands that hold two or more nozzles at once while keeping the water streams separate. This allows you to squirt detergent with one nozzle and then rinse it away after twisting a knob to adjust which nozzle is active to save time and energy.

For more information about these and other option, contact a local cleaning equipment supplier like Ben's Cleaner Sales.