Upstreaming when washing and degreasing heavy equipment

[jakeman]

I am going to be shifting my work from cold water washing of mostly residential houses and roofs to hot water washing of trucks and heavy equipment. I went out on a job with another guy and he was upstreaming his chem. This seems to make the most sense to me . I would think that applying your soap and hot water at the same time with high pressure would take the grease off much quicker than downstreaming. Anyone have any thoughts on this?

[Tmrrptr]

I've seen really greasy equipment... used to build freeways and heavy earthwork... I see it as a multi-step process, but would advise you watch for other opinions !

Knock off the big stuff first.
Apply degreasers direct at strong concentration. pumped. Dwell time.
Blast 'er again with a downstream mix and rinse off if needed.

That's what I would do, but all situations different and expected end result different. Just be sure to clean the operator's area and console well!
r

[duner]

We upstream, and let dwell. This has worked pretty well. We do alot of heavy equipment on a weekly basis. We use a hot water machine. We changed our whole chemical line to a great degreaser. It's called powerclean. This chemical allows you time to sit without hurting the paint. We do big pieces of equipment and takes awhile to do, so time dwelling is important without hurting hoses, or paint. Just a thought, other might have great ideas always. Just my 2 cents worth.

[duner]

Why are you thinking of changing from Residential, and roofs? We also do commercial concrete, buildings, and residential. We have found it easier work, not so dirty, and pays good. Enquiring minds want to know. Heavy equipment is great steady work though, especially in the winter here in Oregon. The mud creates more of a problem to our customer's. They have it done weekly so i'm not complaining to much. Are you charging a flat rate or an hourly rate? You might want to contact Chris from Corpus Cristi Texas. He is on this forum also. He does alot of heavy equipment, and has been doing it alot longer than us. He could probably guide you in some good directions. I also agree with Rich. Knock of the big stuff first, then let dwell. We prewash our equipment with a fire hose, but this option might not be available to you. Good luck in your switch.

[jakeman]

Originally Posted by duner

Why are you thinking of changing from Residential, and roofs? We also do commercial concrete, buildings, and residential. We have found it easier work, not so dirty, and pays good. Enquiring minds want to know. Heavy equipment is great steady work though, especially in the winter here in Oregon. The mud creates more of a problem to our customer's. They have it done weekly so i'm not complaining to much. Are you charging a flat rate or an hourly rate? You might want to contact Chris from Corpus Cristi Texas. He is on this forum also. He does alot of heavy equipment, and has been doing it alot longer than us. He could probably guide you in some good directions. I also agree with Rich. Knock of the big stuff first, then let dwell. We prewash our equipment with a fire hose, but this option might not be available to you. Good luck in your switch.

I guess I worded that wrong. I am not giving up residential houses and roofs. I also do some commercial buildings. It has been very profitable doing these but it can also be hot and cold and is dead here in Dec., Jan. and Feb. so I just bought a 1ton cube van and a hot water unit. I'm hoping I can get some contracts to wash some trucks and heavy equipment and have a more steady and reliable income. I have been checking around in my area and there seems to be a big demand for this. I am charging an hourly rate untill I get more knowledge, experience and speed and then I will charge by the piece. Thanks for the advice.

[MMI Enterprises]

Hot degreaser is faster then cold at emulsifying so it stands to reason that it'll work better upstreamed. There are cons to getting hot soap throughout a machines inerds though..

[STAN]

If you are going to upstream then use a non-caustic soap or make sure you rinse the pump GOOD after putting soap through. It will save on seals later on.

[Babyjon]

I have an Xjet for cleaning residential
i know what a downstreamer is but what is a upstreamer please help Thanks

[GymRat]

Injector that puts the chemicals in the suction of the pump.

[Christopher]

There are so many different ways to clean heavy equipment, it just depends on what you are setup to do right now, what you want to invest $$ and what you want to be able to do. There are so many different degreasers out there, some are great, some are junk. There are many ways to clean heavy equipment, some are easier and some will send you home covered in grease. Let me know more about the situation and what you want to be able to do and what you want to change on your rig if anything. If you want to, just pm me.