Cleaning Equipment
Starting out on your own, you
really need only a push broom, two regular brooms, a couple of large mops,
small dust mops, buckets, water pails, sponges, spray window cleaner, scouring
cleanser, (Ajax) gloves, some cleaning rags, a toilet cleaning brush, a floor
dustpan, a wet dry vacuum, a hand-held vacuum, furniture polish, and some all
-purpose cleaners, depending on your first job it may be less items then this.
Regular dishwashing liquid like Dawn is good enough to cut through light grease
and dirt on most surfaces. You will also need a few trash bags, can liners,
floor wax, and feather dusters. Remember that in a lot of cities and small towns,
you have dollar stores and discount chain stores where, at little cost, you can
get a lot of cleaning supplies and small equipment to help you get started.
As your business grows,
however, you may be interested in some/all heavier, industrial cleaning
equipment. This is when you may want to invest in some of the following: new or
used heavy-duty sweepers, large floor scrubbers, heavy-duty scrubbers,
high-speed buffers, high-pressure washers, extra-heavy-duty industrial vacuum
cleaners, automatic floor strippers/scrubbers, steam carpet extractors, regular
heavy duty buffers, cleaning carts, large dust mops, heavy -duty extension
cords, large mop buckets with wringers, industrial window cleaning supplies and
heavy-duty professional window cleaning equipment for your experienced window
cleaning employees, and all types of industrial supplies, soaps, cleaners,
polishes, etc. Please read the heavy duty supplies instruction with each
product you buy, before using any of these supplies.
I
have found that after a little research, you will be able to purchase used
equipment at yard sales, auctions, business close outs, and flea markets. You
may also be able to buy used equipment from larger cleaning services who are
selling these items. There have been some situations in which someone is trying
to get out of the cleaning business after making a lot of money. In such a
case, they just want to sell their equipment. Maybe it is time for a large
cleaning company to upgrade their equipment after a year or two of use, and
they want to get rid of their old equipment. You can even call some of the
larger cleaning companies and ask if they have any old equipment in storage
that they want to sell or give away to make room for new equipment. Some
companies want to get rid of these items because they are moving out of the
cleaning field to do building repairs or building construction contracts. This
used equipment will work just, or almost, as well as new equipment you can pay
much more for at the new equipment store.
You
really can often find equipment at remarkably low prices, which will save you a
lot of money. You can then use that extra money in other areas of your
business. You can find some of these deals by checking the newspapers every few
days and on weekends. You will find yourself gathering all types of equipment a
lot faster and more cheaply than buying equipment at new prices. However, if
you decide to purchase all-new equipment, there are plenty of places to shop.
Your local cleaning supply store is a very good starting place. For addresses
and phone numbers, check your yellow pages or the Internet under “Professional
Cleaning Equipment and Supplies.”
I promised you a few tips on cleaning, so here they are. There are certain parts of a cleaning job that I call “Interest Areas.” Interest areas are places that people notice and frequent on a daily basis. They are also areas that make the first impression for a business, so they need to look and smell great. Interest areas must be a high priority on your cleaning to-do list, so I have chosen to share tips on two important interest areas. Another important issue is trash. Every business has a proper and legal way to dispose of waste, so that should be one of the first questions you ask your main contact. That way you know how to handle trash before you even begin the job.
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