Blast Off Graffiti Remover

During the month of March, 2011 call us at 800-762-7911 to order your first bottle of Blast Off at a 20% savings, $19.99 instead of $24.99. Just watch our video and see how fast Blast Off works.

BlastOff.flv Watch on Posterous

Our other graffiti product Shadow Away is also on sale for 20% off.

Shipping costs are additional, but added discounts for multiple units are available.

How to figure chemical soap dilutions?

I must try and help out customers with this almost everyday so I thought I would make a post out of it and possibly a white paper to send out so I would not have to repeat my self as much and for easy reference.


Plus I can easy get confused or tongue tied on the phone sometimes so it is a good idea to have it all written down some place.

First you will need to know how you are going to apply the chemical mix to start with. Figuring ratios for a pump up sprayer is easy, but the most common piece of equipment for this need is the pressure washer. So you first must know what dilution ratio or fixed mixing ratio your machine puts out. This can be easy for some, but many customers call me all the time saying they have no idea how much chemical their machine takes in and how diluted it is sprayed out.

The first place to look is in your machines owner’s manual. It should give you info like its flow rate or the gallons per minute the machine can generate plus its fixed mixing ratio. This can vary by machine and some larger models may even have a dial that allows the operator to change the mixing ratio. Another place to look if you no longer have your manual or if you bought your equipment second hand and never had one is on the internet by putting you make and model number into the search engine. You can also sometimes go to a local dealer that may have manuals in stock or that can order one for you.

A harder way to figure it out is to use a do it your self method. Take a measured 1 gallon (128 fluid ounces) and place it in your machines chemical mix tank or insert your down stream hose into the gallon container. Turn you machine on and run it dispensing all the water coming out of the wand into a much larger container, such as a 5 gallon bucket. Take care to have the machine set at a low PSI so all the water makes it into the container, a closed 5 gallon tight drum is good for this. Once you have drained the gallon of water out of your chemical mixing tank or with your down stream hose measure the amount of water you ended up with and then divide the amount by 128 (ounces in one gallon) to find out your machines ratio. If you ended up with say 900 ounces you would get the results of 7.03125 which I would consider being a 1:7 ratio. I would run this experiment at least 2-3 times comparing the results and taking the average for best results. Some of our customers have even been known to add food coloring to the original gallon to help them gauge when they have used all of it up.

So lets us say your machine has a permanent setting of 1:7 and you need to take your concentrated chemical and get it up to a 1:25 application ratio. So you need to figure out how much water to add to your chemical, that once it is placed in the chemical mixing tank or suction hose dropped in the container you are down streaming from, your machine will produce the needed 1:25 ratio.

This means we have to use the algebra we never thought we would ever need once we learned it and then forgot back in school and create a mathematical equation to do our work for us.

First we will put the dilution we need to end up with on the left side of the equation (see below)

Next we have the detergent, ‘d’ and water to think about. Say we want to make a 5 gallon container, ‘p’ of chemical product mix. And (p-d) is the amount of water we need in the container and 7p is the additional amount of water that the machine will be adding while dispensing the contents of the container. So we set p=5 gallons and we solve for d and find that d=1.538 gallons of detergent.

1 = ____d_____
25   (p – d) + 7p

Now I am not going to sit here and teach you how to step by step figure an algebra equation that many would not be able to remember just like back in high school. But I am going to give you the link to a web site that has a dilution calculator right there for you.

http://jansson.us/mixingratio-concentration.html#pressureWasherCalculator.

What I suggest is that you go to this site, make the calculations for all the products you regularly use knowing your own machines ratio and our products dilution rates or the ones you use with our products. I would then round the results and make a dilution chart to keep as a mixing guide.

Here are just a few examples from what some customers I know have and the products they use.
Customer #1 uses Brown Derby with cold water that we suggest mixing at 1:50. His machine is set from the factory at a 1:20 ratio and he mixes his premix in 5 gallon pails that sit on his truck.


His equation would look like this:

 1 = ______d_______
50     (5 – d) + 20*5

But in the calculator it looks like this:
Detergent Water
Final Mixing Ratio: 1:50
Pressure Washer Mixing Ratio: 1:20

Desired Volume of Pre-mix: 5 gal

Pre-mix Concentration: 41.18/%
Detergent: 2.059gal= 263.5 fl. oz
Water: 2.941 gal= 376.5 fl. oz

Giving this customer the directions to take 2 gallons (rounded down) of our Brown Derby with 3 gallons (rounded up) of water to make his pre mixed 5 gallon pails to down stream with his machine to get a very close 1:50 ratio of cleaner to water.

Let’s take one more case:

Customer #2 uses Mighty Max as a house wash at a 1:20 ratio and his machine is set at a 1:7 ratio. He on the other hand only wants his 5 gallon pails filled with 3 gallons of mix so they are easier to carry and move around the houses. His results would be this:

Detergent Water
Final Mixing Ratio: 1:20
Pressure Washer Mixing Ratio: 1:7

Desired Volume of Pre-mix: 3 gal

Pre-mix Concentration: 38.10%
Detergent: 1.143gal = 146.3 fl. oz
Water: 1.857 gal = 237.7 fl. oz


Or if rounded, 1 ¼ gallon of Mighty Max to 1 ¾ gallons of water, making a slightly greater than 1:20 mixture.

Once you know your normal values you can more easily adjust the mixtures as needed for other considerations like water temperature, air temperature, or amount of product you have left available to do a job. How to estimate soap use for your season will be kept for a later post. Use this winter time off now to make these charts and be better prepared for spring.

Blast Off Graffiti Remover, no water needed.

Soap Warehouse is introducing it's latest group of products.

Blast Off Graffiti Remover, Shadow Away Graffiti Remover and Cleen Fast commercial spray cleaner.

First we will tell you about Blast Off, it works like nothing else on the market today for removing graffiti.

You spray it on a dry hard surface that has a graffiti tag of paint or permanent marker on it, wait around one minute or less and then just wipe off with a dry cloth.

See for your self, watch our 60 second video. No water is needed, in fact water reduces the effectiveness of the product and the surface needs to be dry before applying Blast Off for it to work properly.

You will not believe how easy graffiti will come off. Blast Off works on metal, plastics, fiberglass, vinyl, tile, grout, composites and many natural stone surfaces. It is great to use on vehicles, metal buildings or machinery casings, in bathrooms on walls, stall dividers, and fixtures.

Blast Off is pH neutral, biodegradable, non corrosive and contains no petroleum distillates and is safe of factory applied paint and powder coats. Easy and very safe to use.

Blast Off can of course not be used on surfaces that have been spray painted, or painted with Latex or Epoxy paints as this is what it is designed to remove. It should also not be used on Screen printed signs as it will remove the dyes as well.

Blast Off is most effective on new graffiti on hard non porous surfaces that have not had any other cleaner used previously to try and remove the tag.

Our next product Shadow Away is for larger graffiti tagged areas on concrete or masonry or when a shadow has been left from trying to remove graffiti with a cleaner that did not entirely finish the job.

Shadow Away is also pH neutral, biodegradable, non corrosive and contains no petroleum distillates and needs to be applied to a dry surface.

Shadow Away will remove shadows or ghosting that has been left behind by other cleaners. It is a spray that is designed to make a gel to get down into the pores of concrete, mansonry and to cling to verticle surfaces. Shadow Away will continue to work and stay on the surface dissolving the paint or marker as long as the area is keep wet with the Shadow Away or Blast Off until it has completely released the stain from the surface. A brush may be used to push the paint around to be sure it has been completely released. A white powder will apear as the product is allowed to dry but that will rinse easily from the surface once you know the painted area has been loosend and or removed by wiping. Once you have released all the paint with Shadow Away you may use a pressure washer to rinse the area clean.

I will talk about Cleen Fast in our next post.

National Cleaning Expo coming to Charleston.

The next National Cleaning Expo event will be held September 29th and 30th at the Embassy Suites North Charleston - Airport/Hotel and Convention Center located at 5055 International Blvd., North Charleston, SC 29418.

This event is in the same location and imediately follows the CETA Powerclean show being held the 27th and 28th.

Soap Warehouse was a sponsor of the Tampa NCE event and will also be a sponsor in Charleston.

We would like to take this time to congratulate the winner in Tampa of the Soap Warehouse $250.00 product prize coupon, Mr. Brian Welker of 'Great Panes Window Cleaning and Under Pressure Cleaning' from Statesboro, GA.

Soap Warehouse will repeat this $250.00 product prize coupon again at the event in Charleston.

Our main product manufacture I.T.D. will be at the CETA Powerclean show so those that plan on attending on the 28th, for CETA's first ever Industrial Users Day, should be sure to stop by and say hello to them and tell them how much you like their products that we sell.

I.T.D. is a manufacture for many distributors and suppliers across the country not just Soap Warehouse and has a great reputation in the industry.

I hope to see you in Charleston.

 

What is the best truck wash soap?

This is a topic that has been hotly debated in chat rooms, on forum boards and at round table discussions for years. And the fact is there is NO SINGLE best truck wash soap.

The best soap is what ever gives you the best results for the job and regulatory situation your business may come across. For you this may change quite often to hardly ever at all.

Here are 5 things you have to consider and determine for your self, what soap is the best truck wash soap for you for each job.

1. Do I have waste water issues to consider that can not be easily fixed, possibly with just reclamation?

If so you may first want to see if the job can be done effectively with a “Green” product or by using a two step, waste water neutral process. Remembering though that even when using a 100% “Green” product the materials that are being washed off will NOT be “Green” and you will still have some waste water issues to deal with.

2. Is the soap going to require that the washing process take too long and take too many steps to complete to be cost effective?

For instance is the soap a no brush that can just be sprayed on and rinsed off? Or could the soap cause an additional step, like having to apply aluminum brightener, to be required for surfaces dulled by the use of the wash soap or a wax applied? Is the soap a safe finish product that won’t harm poly coats, glass or aluminum?

3. Is the soap easy and safe to use for equipment and operator?

You need to find the right balance for you and the job you are doing. Can the product run though the washer pump or must it be down streamed. Some times you must take added safety measures, goggles, wet suit, water proof shoes, etc to have a chemical strong enough that will do the really tough work fast. Other times the best cleaner can be as safe as plain water.

4. What will be the final cost to use the soap you chose?

Just because a product is expensive or inexpensive should not be the biggest factor in what you choose. You can buy an expensive product and end up using only a few ounces, spending a dollar or two a gallon, compared to another inexpensive product that you must use at full strength that ends up costing you many dollars a gallon. Take the time, Do the math!

5. Finally how good and for how long will the vehicle' look last once washed?


Because face it, if a soap does only a fair job of cleaning, and does not get the results the customer wants, they will find someone else to do the job next time.

Here at Soap Warehouse we have products that will cover all these different needs.

Our #1 seller Brown Derby is a fast, no brush, great results product. But you may have to follow the wash with an aluminum brightener or use it in a two step process on some types of vehicles. You also have to be sure it does not dry on hot metal or glass. But it is #1 for a reason, IT IS A GREAT SOAP that does a great job fast!

We have quite a few no brush "Safe Finish" truck washes, one that even leaves a near wax shine with no wax build up because there is no wax in it, it just looks that way, our Big Rig Truck Brite. It is our best results safe finish for that reason. Not to be out done though by our top selling safe finsh Blue Lighting.

We have a super concentrated ecomonical truck wash like our Truck-N-Tuff aka T-N-T. One 6 gallon pail can be mixed 1:9 to yeild you 54 gallons of product you just spray on then wash off in most cases. Pump it straight through a pressure washer with no added diltution with a low volume fine mist nozzle and you can wash whole fleets of rigs with just a few gallons.

Our two step wash products give you that "dirt just falls off the truck" action plus leaving you with pH neutral waste water that all you will need to do is filter to the required level before discharging into the proper sewer line.

All of our truck washes even those that are DOT hazardous when shipped in thier concentrated forms, once mixed and used at the recomended dilutions rates on their labels are Biodegrdable and all cassified under the USA's CLEAN WATER ACT as non toxic pollutant's.

If you have any questions about any of our truck wash products call us today at 1-800-762-7911.

Leave more than just your good work behind after a service job.

I hear about and see everyday in forums where satisfied customers can not find the contractor that provided a great job or service for them.


Take the below example just posted yesterday at http://www.thegrimescene.com/ as an example:


“Mildewed in Morton Grove, IL

About 5 years ago I signed on to this forum as my mom needed her cedar deck and fence washed and sealed. I found some great people who thankfully advised me to stay away from sealmax and others and hooked me up with a great contractor. The guy did a wonderful job but moved to Florida--he gave me another name and we rolled on. Now, Mom needs her deck and fence done again in a big bad way and I can find no one. I am just looking for an honest worker who will do a superior job. I know workmanship should not come too cheap and I put attention to detail above all. Anyone out there that could steer me in the right direction? Chris”


Here is a customer that would love to find the same person he last used and was recommended but can not locate the information since it has been so long ago.


So how can you improve the chance that you will be contacted for the follow up business, one, three even five or more years down the line?


1. Leave a card or collateral print pieces behind when you leave. This can be a nice flyer with a tear off business info card area to be placed in a Rolodex or passed on to a friend. Least effective unless person is a pack rat.


2. Leave a useful promotional item like a magnet, note holder clip, jar opener, or any thing that has the potential of staying around for a long time to keep your name in mind and in front of your customer.


3. Leave a business card, sticker, magnet or laminated info card near or attached to the work that was done. And be sure to tell the customer that you have done this. Great way to be used again.

4. Follow up contact with the customer by mail or e-mail. Number one way to get repeat and referral business.


I know that the third suggestion sounds strange but here is where I have seen it work.


Take a deck builder that staples laminated business cards to the underside of the decks he builds in a number of places, including top stair risers and the anchor board against the house etc. he knows later, if any repair work needs to be done, that owner or even the following home owner has a good chance of finding out who built the deck, gazebo, fence etc.


I know our electrician puts his magnet inside our electric fuse panel door. Or the AC furnace man that leaves his sticker on the back of the AC unit or side of the furnace.


Same with a carpenter friend of mine; he leaves a small info card stapled along the back edge of doors or inside door frames he hangs, window frames of windows he installs, under chair rails or moldings. This way later he may get the call to do other work. Sure the customer might forget its there or it not get found until repair work has started, but once found, the owner will remember who did the work the first time and could call or recommend him again to others.

The fourth item is the reason that yearly or quarterly informational post cards and seasonal e-mails to former customers help retain these customers as future income or as part of a great referral business. You need to keep your name and business fresh in past customers minds with out irritating them by contacting too frequently.

Don't underestimate the impact of the great work you have already done in bringing you new and repeat business.

Laundry products from Soap Warehouse

For most of you that are in the pressure washing business you might be asking why should I care about what laundry soaps Soap Warehouse sells, I'm not a laundry?

Well good question! One reason is that just like being able to buy superior, concentrated chemicals to do your cleaning jobs you can also benefit buy getting superior professional grade laundry products that commercial laundries, dry cleaners, hospitals and other commercial operations use. Second is that it can save you money while making you and your employees in your business look great.

Do you use uniform shirts for your business? Are you paying to professionally clean uniform shirts and pants? Are you having trouble getting your uniforms clean enough? Are some employees uniforms fading faster or looking dingier than others?

It is important for your businesses image to be sure that all employees look clean and professional at all times.

Crescent is our best selling detergent for washing uniform shirts and pants, especially medium to dark colors to release dirt and grease in hot temps of 100 - 140 degrees. This is an oxygen enhanced enzyme detergent using 2-4 oz in your home washer per load. Also great for khaki pants and white shirts too.

Flex is an all in one detergent with built in oxygen bleach that is safe for all colors. Flex also has great deodorizing power when washing at 110 degrees and above. Get those sweat stains and smells out of shirt collars, pits and cuffs and leave them clean with no lingering scent. Can be used at lower temps and still remove latex paint, blood and other stains. 2-6 oz per load depending on temperature and soil level.

Rave Plus is great if you are mainly a cold water washer. It is phosphate free and great for jeans to keep them dark longer. Economical yet effective and can be used at all temps. Great for permanent press or khaki pants as well. Use 4-8 oz per load depending on temperature and soil level.

Then we have Scat! our all purpose stain remover. Don't want to buy professional detergents to get rid of sweat stains and odors? You should never have to worry if a stain or odor will come out. Spray Scat! on when you take off the stained item, saturating the stain past the stain line. Just throw it in to the hamper, sort and wash as normal even days later. The stains should all come out. Visit the Scat! site at http://www.scatstainremover.com/ to see all the ways to use Scat!. Scat! comes in 1 gallons or 16 oz trigger spray bottles and in cases.

Any of these items can be added to your regular chemical order.

The detergents come in 40 lb pails (5-6 gallon size)

and you can try any one of these products once for half price when you add it to your regular order. This offer of course may be limited or changed at any time but will be valid from the time of posting at least until the end of September 2010. Please mention this offer when ordering.

Visit our site http://www.soapwarehouse.biz/ anytime for a complete product list, descriptions and pricing.