Getting back into the business. Need advice on machine.

[in4thewin]

Greetings, first post here

So after running a lawn care business for the last decade, I've decided to go back to carpet cleaning. I ran a part time side hustle business cleaning carpets many years ago that I probably should have kept growing, but life took me a different direction, (Long story).

Anyways, I recently did some carpet cleaning with a rental machine for one of the realtors that my lawn business works quite a bit with, as his long time carpet guy just retired. I just came to the conclusion that I enjoy cleaning carpets and floors more than working outdoors these days. I'm just over it. I'm also over the winter hustle cleaing gutters and pressure washing in the freezing Oregon rain when not much is growing.

I'm planning on slowly transitioning from one business to the other. I have a couple 5x10 enclosed trailers that I use for my lawn business. My plan is to convert one of them into a carpet and floor cleaning set up.

Here's my question things have changed a bit since the last time I was in this business.. The portable I just rented (Mytee contractors special) was shockingly more powerful than the portables I remember using 20 years ago when I worked for a carpet cleaning outfit right out of HS, and it certainly was more powerful than the one I used when I had a side hustle in my mid 20's.

From the research i've done, the machine I used is nothing compared to some of the biggest baddest portables they make these days. What I would like is a set up that I can use as a truck mount type set up in my cargo trailer that also can be used as a portable for apartments/dorms. I live in a college town, and I know that will be a lot of my business.

Recommendations on a set up that will do this? I've seen some set ups in videos where guys are using a high end portable in the van/trailer/truck that feeds into a booster. I would like to stay in the 5k range for this machine, As i'm gonna have to invest a bunch into product, tools, and other smaller machines. I understand if that's not possible, though, and I'm looking at a few grand more than that for a portable with possibly a booster that provides that type of power.

Once I make a full transition and the risk is gone, I will most likely sell off my lawn care set up and purchase van with a legit truck mount. I plan on keeping this set up as a back up. That's a couple years away, though. I'm already.
gonna have a pretty decent book because of my current business and connections, but I have no doubt it's gonna be a couple years before it will make sense financially.

 

[BIG WOOD]

I don't know about the specs on each portable, but the one thing I strongly suggest is that you use a portable for portable use only, and stay away from the idea of it being a "truckmount" setup. Especially since you'll be cleaning college apartments if that' the market you choose to target.

What's holding you back from selling out your lawn care equipment now to buy the right tools the first time?

 

[Mikey P]

Greetings, first post here

So after running a lawn care business for the last decade, I've decided to go back to carpet cleaning. I ran a part time side hustle business cleaning carpets many years ago that I probably should have kept growing, but life took me a different direction, (Long story).

Anyways, I recently did some carpet cleaning with a rental machine for one of the realtors that my lawn business works quite a bit with, as his long time carpet guy just retired. I just came to the conclusion that I enjoy cleaning carpets and floors more than working outdoors these days. I'm just over it. I'm also over the winter hustle cleaing gutters and pressure washing in the freezing Oregon rain when not much is growing.

I'm planning on slowly transitioning from one business to the other. I have a couple 5x10 enclosed trailers that I use for my lawn business. My plan is to convert one of them into a carpet and floor cleaning set up.

Here's my question things have changed a bit since the last time I was in this business.. The portable I just rented (Mytee contractors special) was shockingly more powerful than the portables I remember using 20 years ago when I worked for a carpet cleaning outfit right out of HS, and it certainly was more powerful than the one I used when I had a side hustle in my mid 20's.

From the research i've done, the machine I used is nothing compared to some of the biggest baddest portables they make these days. What I would like is a set up that I can use as a truck mount type set up in my cargo trailer that also can be used as a portable for apartments/dorms. I live in a college town, and I know that will be a lot of my business.

Recommendations on a set up that will do this? I've seen some set ups in videos where guys are using a high end portable in the van/trailer/truck that feeds into a booster. I would like to stay in the 5k range for this machine, As i'm gonna have to invest a bunch into product, tools, and other smaller machines. I understand if that's not possible, though, and I'm looking at a few grand more than that for a portable with possibly a booster that provides that type of power.

Once I make a full transition and the risk is gone, I will most likely sell off my lawn care set up and purchase van with a legit truck mount. I plan on keeping this set up as a back up. That's a couple years away, though. I'm already.
gonna have a pretty decent book because of my current business and connections, but I have no doubt it's gonna be a couple years before it will make sense financially.

Learn to clean all floors and furnishings


A decent portable, an OP, a CRB and all the fixings will get you far, when you're ready to go further faster any up for a decent truck mount.

If you want a 5-year head start, find your way to Mikey's Fest in Indianapolis April 3-5th
www.mikwysfest.com where are you meet and clean along side the best of the best and established relationships that will last a lifetime.

 

[Kenny Hayes]

What Matt said! We’ve discussed portys on here recently, you can search the conversations. Trailer, porty is not a bad way to start. The right porty won’t set you back a lot if you don’t try to make it what it’s not.

 

[hogjowl]

No, it’s not a good idea for you to go to a Mikey’s fest in the beginning. All that will accomplish is introducing you to equipment you can’t afford and people trying to sell it to you. I’d suggest you talk to @Jim Pemberton
He’ll give it to you straight without confusion and not try to sell you something because he sells it. Stay away from Mikey for awhile until you get your sea legs.

 

[in4thewin]

What's holding you back from selling out your lawn care equipment now to buy the right tools the first time?

I don'have enough guaranteed accounts to pay the bills, yet. In order to jump from one business to the other, I need to at least be able to net around 4k a month, or I'll be living on credit. I'm pretty sure I could be there in a few months, but I'm not in a horrible situation, where I'd take that risk.
I need to slowly transfer from one business to the other. I'm an adult with a mortgage and mouths to feed.

I can't make the transition without an entry level machine, and I'll need one as a backup down the road anyways, so it makes since. My busy season for lawn care starts in a month. I'll pull around 30k in April, may, and June. I at least need to capitalize on that before I jump ship, but the problem is that it will be the wrong time of year to sell off my lawn care equipment, anyways. It makes since to kill it for the grow season, and then back off come summer and slowly start picking up carpet accounts.

 

[in4thewin]

No, it’s not a good idea for you to go to a Mikey’s fest in the beginning. All that will accomplish is introducing you to equipment you can’t afford and people trying to sell it to you. I’d suggest you talk to @Jim Pemberton
He’ll give it to you straight without confusion and not try to sell you something because he sells it. Stay away from Mikey for awhile until you get your sea legs.

I could purchase a 100k unit tomorrow if I wanted to. I already run a successful business and have my finances sorted out.

I'm just looking to slowly transfer into a different business. I'm not interested in spending piles of money in the beginning because it won't be what's right for me. I know this through running a lawn business for the last decade. I just cringe when I see guys go down to my xMark dealer and finance a trailer full of equipment that costs as much as a new car to start their business with. I always tell them to start with trim mowers and build it because they're ultimately going to buy mmachines that don't work for their business.

I think you have to find what's going to work best for your market. The only way I'm gonna learn that is by getting my feet wet in this market. I have enough experience in this field to probably figure that out in my first 6 months.

Unfortunately, I have to start somewhere, so my first unit is going to be an educated guess. Portables have really changed over the years, so I've been doing research, tried one out in the form of a rental, and am asking for advice in here. There's just no way to know. This first machine, I am going to be taking a chance with, and there's just no way out of that.

I've already gotten good advice in here by someone shutting down the idea of using a portable as a truck mount. Maybe I just get a quality portable and focus on apartments, dorms, and senior living parks? Probably learn a lot real fast. That, and floor cleaning, which I also have experience, but am certainly no expert. I'm going to have to just learn as much as I can and build it like I did my current business..

 

[Kenny Hayes]

You’ve got a good plan. Work with a porty as a porty. Mikey is correct about a crb, even though some not so much. Don’t try to make it a truckmount. Get a PEX 500 and you’ll thank me later. You can even lay it down in your trailer.

 

[in4thewin]

You’ve got a good plan. Work with a porty as a porty. Mikey is correct about a crb, even though some not so much. Don’t try to make it a truckmount.

Yeah, that makes sense. If I just focus on accounts that the portable works for, I'll probably gain a ton of knowledge to help me decide on what's going to work for me as far as a truck mount down the road. I mean, The first time i do a job where that portable is going to suck the profit out of it by being inefficient, I'm going to get a much better idea of features I want when I'm ready to really invest in the new business.

 

[Mikey P]

No, it’s not a good idea for you to go to a Mikey’s fest in the beginning. All that will accomplish is introducing you to equipment you can’t afford and people trying to sell it to you. I’d suggest you talk to @Jim Pemberton
He’ll give it to you straight without confusion and not try to sell you something because he sells it. Stay away from Mikey for awhile until you get your sea legs.

Jim will tell him the same thing I did.


It's a well proven recipe for sucess

 

[BIG WOOD]

The right machine is only a small part of the business you need to focus on

The other major part is designing your business model (branding)

Picture it as a 4 legged chair. Each leg supports the other when it’s a slow time of the year in each area. There’s many areas to target in the carpet cleaning
Apartments/rentals
Restaurants
Residential
Offices, etc
Churches

The one I would not chase is restaurants. Everything else supports the other. You’ll make sacrifices (time, money) to clean restaraunt. They’re almost always a money loss or loss in sleep unless you do restaurant franchises only.

Apartments are good training and cash flow jobs. Residential are good profit jobs. Offices are bulk big jobs that bring a big check on that 1 Sunday and churches are just great jobs.

 

[Kenny Hayes]

Jim also sells the PEX, and I don’t work for Jim, and he’ll confirm what I’m typing is true.

 

[hogjowl]

Well, if you can afford a $100,000 piece of equipment, then don’t start with a portable in a trailer. Nobody thinks that was a good idea looking back. Even Matt realized it after awhile.

 

[Cleanworks]

I could purchase a 100k unit tomorrow if I wanted to. I already run a successful business and have my finances sorted out.

I'm just looking to slowly transfer into a different business. I'm not interested in spending piles of money in the beginning because it won't be what's right for me. I know this through running a lawn business for the last decade. I just cringe when I see guys go down to my xMark dealer and finance a trailer full of equipment that costs as much as a new car to start their business with. I always tell them to start with trim mowers and build it because they're ultimately going to buy mmachines that don't work for their business.

I think you have to find what's going to work best for your market. The only way I'm gonna learn that is by getting my feet wet in this market. I have enough experience in this field to probably figure that out in my first 6 months.

Unfortunately, I have to start somewhere, so my first unit is going to be an educated guess. Portables have really changed over the years, so I've been doing research, tried one out in the form of a rental, and am asking for advice in here. There's just no way to know. This first machine, I am going to be taking a chance with, and there's just no way out of that.

I've already gotten good advice in here by someone shutting down the idea of using a portable as a truck mount. Maybe I just get a quality portable and focus on apartments, dorms, and senior living parks? Probably learn a lot real fast. That, and floor cleaning, which I also have experience, but am certainly no expert. I'm going to have to just learn as much as I can and build it like I did my current business..

A lot of guys have used high performance portables as truck mounts but despite what they say, they don't perform as well as even entry level truck mounts. A few guys who have added boosters, propane or diesel heaters have d cent performance but the cost is the same as a truck mount when you add everything up. Depending on the work you do, you may need a portable anyway for apts, condos and places where a truck can't reach. If you like the Mytee you rented, take a look at some of the more powerful Mytee machines. Rather than try to use it as a portable, bring it into the house. You will get much more performance. Don't get a heated model, just a basic 2 cord, 500 psi, dual 3-stage vacuum machine. Add in a CRB or a 175 for agitation. You can do great work with that and for 2 or 3 story houses, you can additional hose instead of hauling the machine up the stairs. Doing houses with a portable instead of a truck mount takes longer but you can still do excellent work. Good way to start until you know where you're going.

 

[in4thewin]

Well, if you can afford a $100,000 piece of equipment, then don’t start with a portable in a trailer. Nobody thinks that was a good idea looking back. Even Matt realized it after awhile.

I think the problem lies in that I have not got my feet wet enough in this market to understand what I want in regards to a pro level truck mount. I don't know my needs yet. I have experience, but it was years ago in another part of the country.

I'm going to need a portable regardless, So it makes since to start with one and learn a bit more about my market before I drop real money on a truck mount. I'd rather buy it once and not take a loss on it. Like, get a good idea of what I will need, and then go finance something for 60k or so with a monster down payment after Liquidating my lawn care equipment.

I just feel like you learn a lot when you're running small machines. I sure did in lawn care. I started out with a couple commercial Honda trim mowers, instead of dropping 15k on a huge rider. 6 months in, I realized, anything over about 36" Would not fit through half of the gates around here, and I had an idea as far as the type of power I needed. I purchased a 32" walk behind as my work horse, and the Honda trim mowers still served me for years as bagging mowers, back ups, or as extra machines for when I ran my route with a helper/temp.

I'm trying to take that type of approach to this.......Buy it once

 

[Luky]

I could purchase a 100k unit tomorrow if I wanted to. I already run a successful business and have my finances sorted out.

I'm just looking to slowly transfer into a different business. I'm not interested in spending piles of money in the beginning because it won't be what's right for me. I know this through running a lawn business for the last decade. I just cringe when I see guys go down to my xMark dealer and finance a trailer full of equipment that costs as much as a new car to start their business with. I always tell them to start with trim mowers and build it because they're ultimately going to buy mmachines that don't work for their business.

I think you have to find what's going to work best for your market. The only way I'm gonna learn that is by getting my feet wet in this market. I have enough experience in this field to probably figure that out in my first 6 months.

Unfortunately, I have to start somewhere, so my first unit is going to be an educated guess. Portables have really changed over the years, so I've been doing research, tried one out in the form of a rental, and am asking for advice in here. There's just no way to know. This first machine, I am going to be taking a chance with, and there's just no way out of that.

I've already gotten good advice in here by someone shutting down the idea of using a portable as a truck mount. Maybe I just get a quality portable and focus on apartments, dorms, and senior living parks? Probably learn a lot real fast. That, and floor cleaning, which I also have experience, but am certainly no expert. I'm going to have to just learn as much as I can and build it like I did my current business..

Most of the guys own one or two portables, so there is no harm in starting with one. Even though there isn't a universal recipe for success, everyone would agree that the best way to start is with minimal debt .

If you're a practical fella focusing on quality and production time ( and with common sense), you'll learn quickly not to waste your time and get everything you need for cleaning in one or two trips. You already have a system for your current business, so starting a new one will be much easier. It's the same concept as with languages: you learn one, and before you know it, you're a polyglot. Efficient portable, good chemistry, agitation means(Crb, Oreck-stairs), and perhaps external heat( I've seen 2400 W Mytee Turbo going for around $400) will benefit you.

Whatever machine you choose, get going now; spring is around the corner, and this is the best time for you. Because of your background, your chance to transition to a new industry and succeed is quite large. I have an acquaintance who does janitorial, window washing, and carpet cleaning. He's doing great.

Good luck, sir!