Should You Buy A Soft Wash System Before You Buy A Pressure Washing System?

Choosing between a soft wash system and a high-pressure setup can be confusing when you're entering the exterior cleaning business. This article will help you decide which equipment is best for your initial investment and services. If you ever need professional guidance or exterior cleaning services, Tampa Bay Soft Wash in Clearwater, FL is here for you.

Just Starting Out in Pressure Washing

If you are just starting out and you have a contract to pressure wash some strip malls or a chain of fast-food restaurants, you can stop reading—you are definitely in a situation where a nice pressure washing setup would be your best investment. However, if you are anything like us and are starting with zero customers, you may want to hear us out.

Soft Wash Marketing Strategy

We focus on marketing toward roof washes; after that, we focus on house washes, fences, and pool lanais—all soft washing services. Not because we don’t like pressure washing our customers’ driveways, patios, and sidewalks, but because our soft wash services are much more lucrative. If the customer is interested in a roof and house soft wash, by the time I get to pressure washing their driveway, the customer usually doesn’t even blink at an extra few hundred dollars to round out the project with some pressure washing.

If you target people who hire you to “pressure wash their driveway and sidewalks” for a few hundred bucks and then you mention cleaning their roof for $700, the odds are—because they were not ready to spend that much money—they will scoff at your obvious upsell. Whereas upselling driveway pressure washing after you have already sold them on a roof and house wash doesn’t even feel like an upsell, just a helpful add-on while you are already on site.

You Don’t Have To Own a Pressure Washer First

You don’t have to own a multi-thousand-dollar pressure washer system to start generating hundreds of dollars per day in the exterior cleaning industry. You can focus solely on roof washing or anything that utilizes the soft washing method—mainly roofs, houses, fences, and pool lanais.

You can buy or even build your own soft wash system for a fraction of the cost of a mid-range commercial pressure washer setup. Not to mention the cost of the hardware and tools required to plumb a high-pressure skid. The price difference between a soft wash hose and a high-pressure hose is significant—and the cost to repair is equally significant!

If you are just starting out on a shoestring budget, your best bet is to build a soft wash system and start cleaning roofs, houses, fences, and lanais. After a few roof and house washes, you will have enough capital to buy a commercial belt-driven pressure washer and surface cleaner.

A 12-Volt Pump and a Garden Hose Are All That Is Needed Sometimes

With a reliable 12-volt diaphragm pump, a deep-cycle marine battery, chemical-resistant hose, and a heavy-duty garden hose for rinsing, you can tackle high-margin residential soft washing jobs immediately—keeping overhead low while building your customer base.