Gives me that warm cuddly feeling inside..

[Mikey P]

How many of you BD one truck wonders get that sick feeling when you come home from a date with the old lady and you look at that aging cleaning van in your drive way and a moment of truth slaps you on the head and you realize or remember that that four wheeled pos is your life's blood? (phew!, run on sentence galore)

Even worse when it's a Vortex and you know that fixing that UD will take loads of time and money..

Down time really sucks as a owner op.



Make it your goal this year to take advantage of the economy and pick up a decent used van/machine combo if for nothing else to help you sleep better. Who knows, maybe you can get your out of work brother in law to hack out your over flow jobs during the summer.
















excuse me while I go out side and dry hump the Lima Bean.

 

[Mountain View Carpet Care]

Upgrade my van and machine last year about this time. This year I bought a new Clarke CFP 175, Cimex 19 inch, New medium water claw. Windsor Presto suite case spotter $795. Looking to buy a Titanium wand. Unless that would not be a upgrade from my Green horn? Oh and a ton of market material. Oh and I almost forgot one bad butt PC. 27-1080p HDMI Monitor Next a Vortex.

 

[Doug Cox]

I fix mine all the time. Thats why it never breaks down.

 

[Jim Nelson]

We pulled in and it was gone o we're out on a date in it that's a BD.

 

[Steve Toburen]

you realize or remember that that four wheeled pos is your life's blood? ... Down time really sucks as a owner op ... Make it your goal this year to take advantage of the economy and pick up a decent used van/machine combo if for nothing else to help you sleep better.

I agree, Mikey. Given the profit potential of these machines AND the negative Moments of Truth that ensue (not to mention lost profit) when your only machine breaks down I don't know why more owner-operators don't keep a back-up machine handy. Plus, as Mikey says, you can always have your brother-in-law handle your over-flow work. (Run your back-up unit 10 hours a month and you will have paid for it.)

Steve "Island Boy" Toburen
www.StrategiesForSuccess.com

PS Let me stress I have NOTHING to do with TM sales (either new or used) at Jon-Don. Heck, I don't even know what brands we carry. I do know that any TM, with proper marketing and pricing, is just a cash machine.

 

[Ron Werner]

thats what friends are for

Not worried about it breaking down, just all the gov't nonsense mods I need to keep adding

 

[CleanEvo]

Spending a few bucks on preventative maintenance is well worth it. My business plan calls for a new TM every 7 years, so I hope i won't have that problem.

 

[adamh]

Having a cheap back up van or trailer is worth its weight in gold.

 

[Erik]

In all the years I've been cleaning carpet, I have always had a back-up truck. As Steve said, loosing revenue can be hard on a business, but losing a large customer could break you. I can't count the number of times the truck was down for a few days to a week and the old back-up would pull you through every time.

P.S. Merry Christmas to all!!!

 

[Steve Toburen]

.. losing a large customer could break you. I can't count the number of times the truck was down for a few days to a week and the old back-up would pull you through every time...

Having a unit in reserve also let us take care of those "have to have it done today" jobs. I loved those because their sense of urgency meant there would be none of that "the other guy is cheaper" garbage.

Steve "Island Boy" Toburen
http://www.StrategiesForSuccess.com

PS Remember that the reserve unit doesn't have to be a new one. We would rotate our units out as they hit 5,000 hours. We'd buy a new van/truck mount, sell off the existing reserve machine (which would have maybe 6,000 hours) and put the 5,000 hour unit in it's place. Even if the reserve unit sat there all month without moving I didn't mind. It was worth it for peace of mind and what the heck- it was paid for! (When I sold the business we had three TM's in more or less continuous operation and a fourth reserve unit as a back-up.)

 

[harryhides]

Two things that come to mind.

If you think that if your one and only van being damaged or written off is the worst thing that can happen to you think again.
If it is stolen, the Insurance will NOT remit any funds for a replacement for at least a month, during which time they naturally hope that your van will be found.

This problem is one of the biggest drawbacks to having a PTO unit.
We had slide in's and whenever a Kohler engine or pump or burner became problematic we'd replace it a new component but keep the aging one either for parts or a stand-by while the newer component was fixed. If your supplier did not have all of the required parts for a fix, you'd be losing a grand a day while parts were shipped in. Don't become dependent on anyone have a back up plan. Even with tools, every one of our vans carried spare, wand, hand tools, hose etc. We also stocked spare mirrors, headlights, belts etc also for a fast fix.

 

[hogjowl]

If that TCS pos Warrior unit had been a bit beefier, I wouldn't have sold it. It would be nice to be able to afford to put a slide in unit in the spare van I have for a backup.

The V payments are all I can afford.