Avg. Hrs. on T.M. per yr w/ 1 van operation?

[Don S]

Curious what is the average number of hours of a T.M. (in a one van company) per year. This will be with either a one or two person crew. How long do most machines last before time to sell with normal maintenance. OK to name how new or what brand purchased.

 

[bob vawter]

8 hrs/day times six days a week times 52 weeks.....

around 2500 hrs /yr!!!!

 

[TimP]

I think an average is about 1 thousand a year. And probably on the high end is like 1400. I run mine about 500 right now, I have 600 on my machine and I've had it 15 months. Keep in mind I'm a new business so I'm not at full capacity.

 

[harryhides]

Lot depends on where you live - for some the slow winter season is a lot longer that for others. Some months you may work longer hours and/or more days per week. Also some folks spend a whole lot more time driving instead of cleaning - amount of traffic or res vs comm work.

Vawter's answer was idiotic.

 

[bob vawter]

"Vawter's answer was idiotic"

Yes..sometimes we put maybe TEN hours on a day as well as working on Sundays when the dealerships come in...so you MAY be correct..

Mr DumbTie!

 

[Larry Cobb]

Don;

Most of my single-operator TMs average about 600-700 actual operating hours per year for residential work.

Multi-family cleaners will put more hours (about 1000) on their TM's.

5 Years or 5000 hrs is a good time to reevaluate the TM condition.

I have many customers with 15 year old TMs.

Larry

 

[breathe72]

Don,

We run one TM. We have been running right around 1000 horus per year, give or take.

We run Hydramaster Boxxer 427.

I hope others will chime in and reply to the second part of your question, as I'd too would like to hear what kind of life-span others are getting out of their units.

Last year while passing through Kansas City, we stopped at Interlink Supply & visited with their lead tech. Really nice guy, can't recall his name. Regarding our machine, he felt that if we treated it properly, it could last us another 10 years possibly.

That was encouraging, considering the hours we were putting on it. I will be happy if it makes it through the course of the 72 month loan. (49 months left to go) Anything beyond that would be sweet.

 

[hogjowl]

If you ICS cleaners don't have an hour meter on your vacuums, then you have no idea how much time you are wasting.

 

[John Watson]

Helen and I average about 300 machine hrs per yr. on our shaft drive machine. We aim for 2 jobs a day 4 days a week, sometimes we do more, sometimes we do less, that's for both jobs and days per week. We average about 240 miles per 25-30 gal. tank of gas. Some days we drive alot since we service a large, what some consider rural, area. Our machine of choice is just about 20 yrs old installed in a 10 yr old van (it's 4th and last) which has 145000 miles on it.

When we had multiple crews and trucks we avg. 800-1000 hrs per unit.

 

[Becker]

Oh man.. no standard answer for this.

Some guys prespray with the TM, some turn it off during the job. some lets it idle a lot more than others, i guess some even vac with the TM. Some use it for everything like upholstery, others use portables.

As for Mileage.
Do ya work from home? How close are you to your core work? I know some guys whom drive 30 miles each way or more to get into the hood they do most of their work, I knew a guy back home that lived in the sticks and drove in 50 miles each day to town.

I often drive less than 3 miles to my 1st job, sometimes put less than 10 miles on the van for a 3 job day.

I guess the answerer depends on you.

 

[Doug Cox]

For me probably 1600+

 

[Kelly]

I personally think that the length of time a machine usually lasts is dependent upon how well its taken care of. I personally dont think that 5000 hours + out of a machine thats taken care of is out of reach (thats probably a slide in with a v twin of some sort)

 

[Guest]

Most of my jobs are within 15 minutes or so of my house, and here in AZ i average about 1200 hours per year. Up until this past year I've always had to TM's around so the hours were split, now I've just got one....so the hours are climbing.

 

[Shane T]

If I work an 8 hr day my machine may only run 5 or 6. The last 2 yrs I have averaged 400 hrs/yr and for an older guy that's enough for me.

 

[KevinL]

Bob must let his truck run while he's picking up the crack pipes and baggies. If you work 8 hours per day doing 2-4 jobs your tm would run 3-5 hours. Average 4 per day for 250 days per year. 1000 hours. Most machines probably ugly out before they die.

 

[LeeCory]

I don't know what others average, but I have almost 1400 hours on my Genesis which will be 2 years old in March. I use a two person crew almost always, unless it is a very small job in which I send my tech only. Machines will always need repair from time to time, but a good truckmount is worth the money. As Larry said, I intend to keep this machine for at least 5 years before I even consider my options.

 

[Contemporary Carpet Clean]

hrs on machine

have 3 truckmounts one (Treat your feet TYF 1600) 11 yrs old around 6500 hrs w/ original briggs 16hp engine, and roots blower, cat pump has about 3500 hrs on it..now used mostly as a back up
Another (Treat your feet TYF 1600) that is 9 yrs old that has 5500 hrs, has about 1500 hrs on 16hp briggs engine original engine had an oil leak on shaft seal and had to be disassembled so we put a new one in and had other rebuilt for back up, cat pump has 3000 hrs on it, and original sutorbuilt blower. Another one (Hayclyon Hurricane) that is 5 years with 4900 hrs. Third Koehler 18hp engine during that time, 3rd sutorbuilt blower, and second hypro pump. First hypro pump lasted about 4000 hrs.
Maintenance, Maintenance, Maintenance is the key to van and truck mount longevity hands down. We change TM engine oil+filter religiously every 25-35 hrs with SAE 30HD oil the best for hot temps the oil doesnt thin out as much especially in summer months.
Ford vans have 171k, 169k, and 99k