Do you have a portable surcharge?

[Shawn Forsythe]

The local Stanley Steemer location has a nifty real-time price quote system on their website. You punch in the zip code, rooms, articles, or vehicle types to be cleaned and/or protected, deodorized into the website form and it gives you a running total of your cost. If however, your job requires a portable due to area floor height, non-adjacent parking availability, or another reason, the portable surcharge is $100.00

It had me curious as to whether anyone else tends t bump up the price if they have to use a portable.

 

[Desk Jockey]

Yes and no.

Yes there is a set up charge but not necessarily because we are using a portable but for anything out of the ordinary that is going to take more time and not cleaning related.

If it's above ground level and setup is going to take longer due to a portable or extended hose lengths, the estimate will reflect the extra time.

If we can clean 2-rooms on ground level in an hour, it only makes sense that a job that requires an extra 30-minutes setup and tear down to clean because we are using a portable or extended hoses lengths would cost more. Our set up charge would most likely be in the $50.00-$75.00 range.

Our margins account for normal setup and tear down, anything more and there would be a set up charge to account for time that could be revenue producing.

 

[The Great Oz]

No surcharge just for using a portable, but we do have a higher minimum charge due to a lot of high-rise condos having very little installed carpet. Adding some furniture usually makes th job worthwhile.

We've been referred for high-rise and yacht cleaning by other companies that don't do portable work at all.

 

[Willy P]

Send one of your techs up here Richard- I'll teach them how not to dog fook and get the job done. Yesterday, first job 900sf DIRTY, 4 fully upholstered dining chairs, start 9 driving away at 10:30. ($185 because of seniors discount)
NO

 

[Desk Jockey]

Smarty pants! :mrgreen:


Do you have a truck mount surcharge Willy?

 

[Dolly Llama]

very similar to Rich

no "surcharge" but PITA set-up jobs are priced higher


..L.T.A.

 

[Willy P]

Smarty pants! :mrgreen:


Do you have a truck mount surcharge Willy?

As a matter of fact - I DO!
It's $40,000 to cover the purchase costs. So far, no takers.

 

[renegade_cowboy]

I use to refer them to DA Burns but now I just rent a porty from Jon Don and do them. I have a higher minimum charge but the pricing is the same for that area.

 

[Jtuseo]

$20 apartment or walk up fee and it goes to the tech.

 

[ruff]

Extra $50.00 here.
Unlike Willy, it always takes me an extra half to three quarter of an hour more time than the truckmount.

Not to talk about aching body parts, yet a happy chiropractor.
Or damage to my self esteem

 

[ruff]

Send one of your techs up here Richard- I'll teach them how not to dog fook and get the job done. Yesterday, first job 900sf DIRTY, 4 fully upholstered dining chairs, start 9 driving away at 10:30. ($185 because of seniors discount)
NO

I am doubly impressed!!!
I thought before that I was impressed with Art. A sofa, a love seat and a sofa chair in an hour.
However, you put him to shame.
What is it, that you guys eat for breakfast?

 

[Willy P]

Only thing they wanted moved was the sofa and the dining chairs, so that helped.I always scrub upholstery with a horsehair first, so that speeds things up. And just good, old fashioned organization. Everything comes in at once. 3 spotters, liquid rinse, 3 brushes and roll of stickys in the small bucket that sits in the big bucket that sits on the machine with the wand attached at the front with 35 feet of hoses held together by a bungee cord slung with hydroforce nested in the hoses over the rolling handles with the heater that sits on top of the buckets and helps stabilize them in the fresh tank is a filler hose and attached dishwasher quick connect with a bucket heater.

Arrive, greet while setting machine to fill with filler hose, roll out pressure line hook up heater and hydroforce , prime pump prespray add detergent to tank , hook up vacuum hose and wand, shut off water. If doing upholstery, prespray carpet after shampooing furniture.Clean carpet . Collect . GTF out and on to the next job. Time is money and anytime I can shave 5 minutes off of a job and still deliver quality results it makes me happy.

 

[Brett]

Wish I had a dollar for every time I've watched that penguin get knocked down

 

[Desk Jockey]

Send one of your techs up here Richard- I'll teach them how not to dog fook and get the job done. Yesterday, first job 900sf DIRTY, 4 fully upholstered dining chairs, start 9 driving away at 10:30. ($185 because of seniors discount)

Hell I want to keep them away from you!

That would have been a $500.00 ticket for us, 900 x .35 =$315.00, 4 full upholstered dining chairs @ $35.00 each = $140.00, plus a portable/Willy setup charge $50.00.

$505.00, but it would have taken them all morning. You're cheaper and faster, we're slower and charge more. :|

 

[ruff]

Only thing they wanted moved was the sofa and the dining chairs, so that helped.I always scrub upholstery with a horsehair first, so that speeds things up. And just good, old fashioned organization. Everything comes in at once. 3 spotters, liquid rinse, 3 brushes and roll of stickys in the small bucket that sits in the big bucket that sits on the machine with the wand attached at the front with 35 feet of hoses held together by a bungee cord slung with hydroforce nested in the hoses over the rolling handles with the heater that sits on top of the buckets and helps stabilize them in the fresh tank is a filler hose and attached dishwasher quick connect with a bucket heater.

Arrive, greet while setting machine to fill with filler hose, roll out pressure line hook up heater and hydroforce , prime pump prespray add detergent to tank , hook up vacuum hose and wand, shut off water. If doing upholstery, prespray carpet after shampooing furniture.Clean carpet . Collect . GTF out and on to the next job. Time is money and anytime I can shave 5 minutes off of a job and still deliver quality results it makes me happy.

Thanks Willy, great and efficient cleaning procedure.
However, with that level of production rate that our previous champion- Art; and now you our current champion (please note, we are yet to hear from uncle Kenny) we are dying to know.

Be generous.
What's the secret ingredient for this awesome production rate?
Spill the beans Willy............... please.

What is it that you guys eat for breakfast?

 

[Dolly Llama]

Wish I had a dollar for every time I've watched that penguin get knocked down

LOL!!!..ME TOO

..L.T.A.

 

[Willy P]

Wish I had a dollar for every time I've watched that penguin get knocked down

Stupid bastard never learns.

[quote="Willy P":2as9vxr9]Only thing they wanted moved was the sofa and the dining chairs, so that helped.I always scrub upholstery with a horsehair first, so that speeds things up. And just good, old fashioned organization. Everything comes in at once. 3 spotters, liquid rinse, 3 brushes and roll of stickys in the small bucket that sits in the big bucket that sits on the machine with the wand attached at the front with 35 feet of hoses held together by a bungee cord slung with hydroforce nested in the hoses over the rolling handles with the heater that sits on top of the buckets and helps stabilize them in the fresh tank is a filler hose and attached dishwasher quick connect with a bucket heater.

Arrive, greet while setting machine to fill with filler hose, roll out pressure line hook up heater and hydroforce , prime pump prespray add detergent to tank , hook up vacuum hose and wand, shut off water. If doing upholstery, prespray carpet after shampooing furniture.Clean carpet . Collect . GTF out and on to the next job. Time is money and anytime I can shave 5 minutes off of a job and still deliver quality results it makes me happy.

Thanks Willy, great and efficient cleaning procedure.
However, with that level of production rate that our previous champion- Art; and now you our current champion (please note, we are yet to hear from uncle Kenny) we are dying to know.

Be generous.
What's the secret ingredient for this awesome production rate?
Spill the beans Willy............... please.

What is it that you guys eat for breakfast?
[/quote:2as9vxr9]

I always spec a thorough vacuuming or add a "housekeeping" charge at the customers option.Again, I didn't move any furniture other than the sofa and dining chairs, so maybe 500 sf of open area. Ultrachem Clean prespray is the best all around product I've ever used - it'll even move rust.Move it, not hide it. I go there to work, not chat up the customer. I try not to waste motion- period, once I start, I just bust ass until it's done. I'm not paid by the hour so if I'm able to get the job done to THE CUSTOMER'S COMPLETE SATISFACTION in as timely a matter as possible, good for me. If a stain doesn't come with the 3 spotters I use, a solvent, a general spotter (Clean in a stronger solution) and a peroxide, than I add to the bill for work over and above the cleaning charge. I don't sweat the petty things and I don't pet the sweaty things.

How are these results? (Just tap hot water on this one, a greasy trail from the kitchen to the bakery at an old folks home.)

Just playing in a doorway to see what to expect.

A dirty olefin?

Commercial nylon?

 

[Willy P]

Oh, and breakfast? A bowl of 5 grain porridge with a half cup of blueberries and 6 egg whites.And 8 cups of coffee. :shock:

( 3 mornings a week I run 5 or 6 miles before work.)

 

[ruff]

Willy, Nice diet. I got to try it. You sure it ain't the shoes?

As you work only with the portable, how do you deal with circuit breakers.
Whenever I get over motivated and start using the heater + portable (Mytee 1003DX; two three stage motors and 500 psi pump) it starts tripping the breakers like there is no tomorrow.
Sometime it trips it even without the heater (Yes, I make sure the cords draw from different breakers, one from the kitchen for 20 amps.)

I have the electrical box to connect to the dryer's 220 outlet. However, damn it, I certainly ain't going to deal with that hassle.
So, 99% of the time I rely on the chemical strength in the pre-spray + agitation + some dwell time part of the pie.

Do you do anything different?

 

[Willy P]

Pump and one vac at the kitchen counter, one to the stove outlet. Dining room and bedrooms are usually seperate circuits so I use those two for my heater.

Is your heater internal or inline?

 

[ruff]

Pump and one vac at the kitchen counter, one to the stove outlet. Dining room and bedrooms are usually seperate circuits so I use those two for my heater.

Is your heater internal or inline?

It's a fancy Mytee heater (a separate box) that can use one or two circuits.
Many places especially in old places can not take such heavy loads.