The X-Jet is known as that because it can be an "external" injection system, introducing the cleaner to the water after all of the hoses and fittings. Using an X-Aircraft prolongs the life of all of your wear products such as hoses and quick-connects.
Always soap from the bottom up and rinse from the top down. You can apply a strong cleaner to the surface of the house and let it sit for about 10 minutes before rinsing it off.
You can accomplish the work with many different ingredients, but degreasers and sodium hypochlorite will be the primary things that most professionals rely on. Our knowledge led us to choice for a butyl-structured degreaser for its terrific results on the hydrocarbons that produce the atmospheric dirt stick to the house surface.
When power washing with an X-Jet, you automatically dilute the cleaner at some ratio. If you have to dilute something before you operate it through your X-Jet, the math can get fairly confusing. Let's start with the basics of x-jets, and advance to Combination Ratios.
The X-Jet is merely a chemical substance delivery system disguised as a pressure-wash tool. While keeping you from ladders for housewashing, it will deliver any chemical substance to areas up to 40 feet up in the atmosphere without requiring that chemical to go through the pump, hoses, fittings, etc. The term we have coined because of this is "external injection". Instead of replacing brass QC fixtures in less than three months or replacing hoses as much as once every year (which occurs when you downstream solid cleaners) these wear products can last for years when all they ever touch is water. In the end, owners of X-Jets stay off ladders more regularly, save a lot of money on substitute parts, and save period and labor dollars.
We even demonstrated the X-Jet for our Function Comp carrier and got our premium reduced because it indicated that we would not normally use a ladder for a housewash job.
There are two inherent difficulties to overcome when you begin using this tool, however. Among these problems may be the math of dual dilutions. The additional is mobility while working on huge areas (like washing houses).
The double dilution math problem happens when you must first dilute a concentrated cleaner before putting it through the X-Jet (which dilutes the product a second time). Some of us have a hard time with ratios and proportions and appropriate dilutions, and double-dilutions are doubly hard to believe through.
When you use an X-Jet (and you are using detergent concentrates for his or her cleaning power and low cost) this may all be just too much math. Many contractors just experiment until they find a mix that works, but there exists a better, more precise way to check out these complex dilutions.
Let's say you would like to use Power House siding cleaner (which is so concentrated that the label advises not to use it on painted areas at a dilution less than 15:1). That means 15 parts drinking water to one component detergent. With an X-Jet which powerful cleaner, you have several options to get the desired results.
We will figure in using our 4 GPM power washer. (X-Plane proportions change based on the GPM of the gear.) Let's also not get worried an excessive amount of about being precise. If we are aiming for 15 : 1 and can simply get to 16 : 1, after that we just must accept 16 : 1 as "close enough".
Beneath the 4 GPM column in the X-Jet directions, we see the following:
No proportioner: 1.6 : 1
Grey 2.5 : 1
Black 5 : 1
Beige 10 : 1
Red 16 : 1
...and so on.
What options do we have? Well, we could dilute the product 10 : 1 and then operate it through the X-Jet with no proportioner and get 16 : 1. Or we're able to just drop the X-Plane hose directly into the jug of cleaner and use the crimson proportioner, which provides 16 : 1. Those two will be the easy ones.
If the only proportioner I possibly could get that day was the grey one, the math would get yourself a little harder. To be able to end up with 16 : 1 as my dilution, I would have to dilute the cleaner to some level. The math is easy, just unfamiliar. In that case, I know that I want to deliver 15 gallons of mix for every gallon of concentrated cleaner that I take advantage of. If I use the grey proportioner (2.5 : 1) i quickly divide the 15 gallons that I want to end up with by the two 2.5 ratio of my proportioner. That tells me that I must begin with 6 gallons of diluted cleaner - made from one gallon of my concentrated Power Home. Adding 5 gallons of water to 1 gallon of Power House gives me 6 gallons of cleaner, that your X-Plane will further dilute to 15 gallons of cleaner with the 2 2.5 : 1 grey proportioner.
Just how many gallons of cleaner in the event you plan for any job? A universal amount for using quality concentrated cleaners is certainly that, in their final dilution, they will cover about 150 square ft per gallon. If the top to end up being cleaned is approximately 3000 square feet, you then will need about 20 gallons of cleaner (3000 / 150). So, if the home we are washing provides about 2400 square ft of surface area (a good standard size), we will require (2400 / 150 =) about 16 gallons of cleaner.
Let's also assume that the recipe we will use is the following: 1 Component Power House
+ 2 Parts 12.5% Bleach
+ 7 Parts water
= 10 Parts of cleaner
Applied with no proportioner inside our X-Jet, meaning that we dilute this to 1 1.6 : 1, the 10 Parts of cleaner mix we focus on becomes 16 Elements of cleaner used to the surface. This is actually the right quantity for the 2400 square foot house we utilized as our example.
This recipe results in the Power House ending up diluted to 15 : 1 (15 Parts water and bleach to 1 1 Part Power House). It also eventually ends up with the bleach power washers company NJ Hackensack at a 1.8% concentration (14 Parts water and Power House to 2 Parts 12.5% bleach) which is enough strong enough for most situations.
Obviously should you have a power washer that only generates 3 GPM, your ratios change (therefore should your recipe). You will still want the same amount of gallons (16) to clean the surface. The X-Jet (without any proportioner) on a 3 GPM power washer will dilute the cleaner by a ratio of just one 1.2 : 1 (as opposed to 1.6 : 1). That means that we need 13 gallons of cleaner to do the same job. (16 / 1.2 = 13).
For the reason that situation, creating a recipe is simple. The recipe above outcomes in 10 gallons of cleaner with the substances in the right ratio. We need to end up with 13 gallons of cleaner, so we have to use 1.3 situations as a lot of each ingredient to get the proper result. Here is the easy conversion:
1.3 gallons of Power House
+ 2.6 gallons of 12.5% bleach
+ 9.1 gallons of water
= 13 gallons of cleaner
Once you have nailed down your home cleaning formula, you are ready to start work. Here is where "mobility" becomes an issue. Most contractors begin with an X-Jet and no accessories, because they're unfamiliar with the product and the potential. We see people concentrating on getting the lowest price on the internet for the tool, but not talking to somebody experienced at how to use the tool to its fullest capacity. The dealers who've by no means walked in wet shoes or boots just don't understand how important those accessories are.
The very best item on the list may be the spill-proof Closed Pail Program . This is a 5-gallon pail that is completely closed and cannot be spilled (even if it is tipped over). You just detach the mushroom filter from your X-Aircraft siphon hose and attach that siphon hose right to the tube appearing out of the spill-evidence jug. The tube operates down to underneath of the 5-gallon container, so you usually pull cleaner from underneath of the pail. The container, when full, weighs about 40 pounds, which is easy enough to carry in one side of the building to the next. It'll carry enough soap so that you will probably just refill it once to full the common house wash (particularly if you are using one of the proportioners). If you accidentally draw the hose and tip the jug over, your cleaner will remain in the jug and your X-Jet will continue steadily to siphon out cleaner at the proper ratio.
The producer used to produce a backpack container, but there were always inherent problems utilizing a backpack. I understand, through an extremely personal encounter, that backpacks develop leaks as time passes. You don't want something that will clean a residence dripping down into your individual areas. The brand new closed-system pail is approximately half the cost of the older backpack system, and far safer to use.
For those who have questions about how to use an X-Jet or where to buy one, please call us or look online at the Sun Brite Supply online store.
By the way, consider adding extras like 4 ounces of Wet Wax to create your house-wash mix 'special' for your customers. The Wet Wax provides a gentle sheen on aluminum or vinyl siding which will look great for weeks. This will help you get more jobs in the neighborhood. Since you don't charge extra for the addition of the wax, people are pleasantly surprised by the good appearance it leaves over normal home washes. Four ounces of Wet Wax could cost you less than 60 cents. Another great adder to customize your mix is to add 4 ounces of SoSoft Rinse Aid. This enables the windows to wash almost spot-free - an excellent "up-sell". We charged customers whenever we added the rinse aid to the final rinse of the house, but I understand several contractors who just toss it in as a part of their service. That is something that costs less than 40 cents per house, so you can economically include it in your combine without charging extra.
Finally, consider cleaning the outside of the gutters as an extra-charge service. Gutter Zap as well as your X-Aircraft make an unbeatable team for that job. Expect to be able to remove about 90% of those pesky black streaks without ever obtaining on a ladder!
In all, washing a house with an X-Jet is cost-effective from a labor/time perspective - with most jobs only taking an hour to accomplish (or up to two hours for large homes). The cleaner combine is inexpensive as well.
EXAMPLES:
Example 1: For our illustration, we use Power House focus for a house clean. This cleaner's label advises you to dilute the product at least 15:1 before deciding on a painted surface. To use Power House right from the jug (full-strength), you could simply utilize the XJet with the crimson proportioner and get a credit card applicatoin @ 16:1 (which is okay).
Example 2: If you have shed your red proportioner, you could add 1 gallon of water to at least one 1 gallon of Power House and use your beige proportioner. Because you "lower" the cleaner 1:1 before it went through the X-Jet at 10:1, you would actually end up applying at a final ratio of 20:1 (which is OK).
Example 3: If you didn't have any proportioner, you could "cut" the product by mixing 9 gallons of drinking water with 1 gallon of Power House. By enough time it ran through the X-Jet @ 1.6:1, your final application rate is in fact 16:1.
The math here can be complex and confusing at first, but consider it this way. In the event that you add up the total amount of gallons resulting from the first cut of the product, and then multiply that number moments the ratio of the X-Jet proportioner you select, you will discover the overall dilution rate. In Example 2, the first cut produces 2 gallons of diluted cleaner. Working those two gallons through a 10:1 ratio offers you the 20:1 final ratio. In example 3, which is a little harder to understand, you need to see that you have 10 gallons of diluted cleaner that you then run through your X-jet at 1.6:1 - gives you your final ratio of 16:1.
Therefore let's put all of this higher math to some practical use:
For discussion purposes, assume that you will use about 10 gallons of this cleaning mix to totally wash a 3-4 bedroom (2400 sq. ft.) ranch home. You can simply clean 5 or even more of the houses with an individual jug of Power House.
To create a KILLER STRONG housewash product using Power House and 12% bleach, mix 1 gallon of Power House with 5 gallons of water and 4 gallons of 12% bleach. That gives you 10 gallons of cleaner, with the Power House diluted to 10:1 and the bleach is cut down to 4.8%. Operating that through the X-Jet without proportioner (1.6:1) offers you your final dilution on the energy House of 16:1 and cuts the bleach to 3%. This is actually the strongest remedy of bleach you should ever make use of to clean the dirtiest, moldiest home.