VCT

[vincent]

Daycare I clean bi-weekly wants me to clean their vct also. They want a strip&wax every 3 months and a buffing (whatever that means) every 2 weeks.

Never done this stuff before, but there is 5k of vct. Means I would have to buy equipment and learn the trade.

Whatcha think?

 

[Mikey P]

Re: should I do it

Get Von Nida to show you how.

 

[vincent]

Re: should I do it

Damn forgot about him, I will.

 

[Larry B]

Re: should I do it

Save yourself some time and purchase a burnisher and use it every 2 weeks.

If they are stripping every 3 months they need to use better floor finish.

 

[Scott S.]

Re: should I do it

there is money in VCT but typically 1 job doesnt pay enough to warrent the machinery. would depend alot on what they pay.

 

[vincent]

Re: should I do it

Save yourself some time and purchase a burnisher and use it every 2 weeks.

If they are stripping every 3 months they need to use better floor finish.

Thats kinda what I thought, but then again I've never done it before.

What's a good price to charge. The owner said the guy was charging 15cents.

 

[Larry B]

Re: should I do it

0.15 are you kidding?

No wonder the finish only last 3 months. On 5k we would charge a min of 0.55 a sq ft and the price goes up the more we have to move stuff.

We just done 2200 sq ft split into 20 rooms this weekend $1350.00 or .61 sq ft


You would be crazy to strip that much floor and refinish it for 15 cents

 

[vincent]

Re: should I do it

0.15 are you kidding?

No wonder the finish only last 3 months. On 5k we would charge a min of 0.55 a sq ft and the price goes up the more we have to move stuff.

We just done 2200 sq ft split into 20 rooms this weekend $1350.00 or .61 sq ft


You would be crazy to strip that much floor and refinish it for 15 cents

There would be nothing to move, but the 5k is contained within 6 rooms in the building.

 

[Larry B]

Re: should I do it

Purchase equpment:

175 Scruuber with pad driver
Vac system to remove stripped finish
Mops
Buckets
Edger or Doodle bug holder
Finish applicator

Stripper for 5k approx $70 - $100

Finish for 5k 4 cots $240

Stripping pads Lets say you use 3 $15 - $20

 

[Larry B]

Re: should I do it

Plus keep in mind the time it will take to do this.

You will need a min of 2 or 3 people if you are wanting to do this in 1 day.

After the stripping you have to wait for everything to dry.

Then wait for each coat of finish to dry.


It takes alot of time and for 0.15 a sq that guy would have to buy the equipment and supplies plus come help.

 

[vincent]

Re: should I do it

Plus keep in mind the time it will take to do this.

You will need a min of 2 or 3 people if you are wanting to do this in 1 day.

After the stripping you have to wait for everything to dry.

Then wait for each coat of finish to dry.


It takes alot of time and for 0.15 a sq that guy would have to buy the equipment and supplies plus come help.

Lets say if its done right with the right products and me being new to this, 40 cents wouldn't be out of the question to start. Need room to grow on price.

What would be a great stripper(chemical) and finish?

 

[Larry B]

Re: should I do it

If they are having to strip ever 3 months I would bet they have some junk finish on the floor now. For that I would go to your local sams club and get their ecolab floor stripper for $6.00 a gal and that junk will work fine for the stripping. (dont ever buy finish their)


Get your floor finish from a local janitorial supplier to save the huge shipping cost and go with a high solids for a daycare something like 24%. Premier22 is a good finish if you can find it without shipping.

In a daycare setting you are going to want 4 to 5 coats to make it last then with your burnishing every 2 weeks it should hold a shine for a long time.

Keep in mind a grocery store where hard wheeled carts are pushed all day start with 6 coats of finish as a base.

 

[Dolly Llama]

Re: should I do it

I know just enough about VCT to be dangerous..
so take anything I say with a grain of salt


stripping is the PITA part.
spray buff /burnishing is the cake part

as mentioned, i don't know why you'd need to strip it every 3 months.


Looks like LarryB got you pretty well squared away with gear
With the exception of a high speed burnisher.
You can find them new for about $1000.
That's for a hi-speed electric model.
I bought a 1600rpm like new demo unit for $625.
So shop around and maybe you can find a good deal.


"should you do it"???

hell, I don't know.
If you can make money, why not?
It's not our favorite work, and we don't do much of it
(hard to get what we $want$)
but if you need/want a steady account and it's profitable, why not do it?
It's not hard to do.


..L.T.A.

 

[Larry B]

Re: should I do it

Get the equipment used on ebay. Even with the shipping its cheaper than buying used from a dealer.


If you dont like to paint you will hate putting down new finish. When you put the finish down leave no dry streaks in the first coat or it will show. Go edge to edge with the first coat then stay back about 1/4" on each of the other coats you put down.

 

[RickL]

Jeremy

Contact Jeremy Sweetland send him a pm from this board he'll give you all the tips/info/products you need and how best to do the job.

 

[SRI Cleaning]

Re: should I do it

I would do it. You'll learn at the very least.

 

[Jimmy L]

Re: should I do it

Scrub and recoat.

Scrub using a red pad and nuetral cleaner.
Rinse and recoat.

 

[vincent]

Re: should I do it

If they are having to strip ever 3 months I would bet they have some junk finish on the floor now. For that I would go to your local sams club and get their ecolab floor stripper for $6.00 a gal and that junk will work fine for the stripping. (dont ever buy finish their)


Get your floor finish from a local janitorial supplier to save the huge shipping cost and go with a high solids for a daycare something like 24%. Premier22 is a good finish if you can find it without shipping.

In a daycare setting you are going to want 4 to 5 coats to make it last then with your burnishing every 2 weeks it should hold a shine for a long time.

Keep in mind a grocery store where hard wheeled carts are pushed all day start with 6 coats of finish as a base.

I have jon don about 15 miles from my house. I am guessing they sell quality products for this line of work.

 

[Larry B]

Re: should I do it

You would be correct.