Detailing in the garage.

E

Ern

New member
I have decided now that I have my garage done that I would like to do some side work. Close friends, family and clients of my parents personal buisness. I have a list of all the stuff I want to get but I want it critiqued. I used to do this on the side a long while ago but had to start selling off all my stuff when I moved. Im just thinking of 1 car a week right now.



Here is my list of stuff. Add/Remove/Change at will.



Equipment Prices



Troy-Bilt 2500 PSI Pressure Washer $299.99

Ultimate Detailing Machine $149.99

Little Green Proheat Machine $89.99





Standard Supplies



XL Latex Gloves $9.99

6.5 Orange Lake Country Pad $9.95

6.5 White Lake Country Pad $9.95

6.5 Blue Lake Country Pad $9.95

Chenille Wash Sponge/Mit $7.99

Supreme Guzzler Waffle Weave $19.99

Sheep Skin Wash Mit $8.99

OXO Wheel Brush $17.99

OXO Tire Brush $9.99

OXO Detailers Caddy $9.99

Detailing Brush $4.99

Cobra Microfiber Towel Combo $77.24

Microfiber Applicator $4.99

Cobra Microfiber Gloves $4.99

Pinnacle Polishing Pal $24.99





Wash & Drying



DP Xtreme Shampoo $45.00

Pinnacle Quart Foamaster Foam Gun $59.99

Pinnacle Complete Car Wash System $69.99

Stoners Tarminator $5.79

Engine Degreaser $4.99

Engine Bright $4.99

Optimum No Rinse $39.99





Interior



Stoners Invisible Glass $4.99

Meguiars Quick Interior Detailer $7.99

Stoners Upholstery and Carpet Cleaner $5.79

Pinnacle Leather Cleaner and Conditioner $19.99





Wax/Sealant/Polish



Meguiars Mirror Glaze #34 Final Inspection $6.99

Clay Magic Finish Kit $7.99

P21S Wax $31.99

Pinnacle Advanced Swirl Remover $19.99

Pinnacle Advanced Finishing Polish $19.99

Pinnacle Paintwork Cleansing Lotion $19.99

Klasse AIO $20.00

Wolfgang Sealant $29.99









Total: $658.41
 
if you are looking to save some money...you really don't need a pressure washer. Granted it does *help* but a hose and 2 buckets w/grid guards will do just fine too. I'd also invest in more microfibers.



Walter
 
Ern said:
Equipment Prices



Troy-Bilt 2500 PSI Pressure Washer $299.99 remove, you don't NEED a press. washerUltimate Detailing Machine $149.99 TOO MUCH FOR WHAT IT DOES just scrub by hand and extract, youll get a little more defined guns in the process



Little Green Proheat Machine $89.99 don't know what that is but if it's a steamer thats a good investment

Standard Supplies



XL Latex Gloves $9.99 a must6.5 Orange Lake Country Pad $9.95 x2 or 3 or 4, oh they are on sale for 6.50 right now at ag i think, if there are still supplies6.5 White Lake Country Pad $9.95 x as many as you want, one car a week though i guess youll be fine, make sure you order at least two of each though as you never know what my happen6.5 Blue Lake Country Pad $9.95

Chenille Wash Sponge/Mit $7.99 checkSupreme Guzzler Waffle Weave $19.99 checkSheep Skin Wash Mit $8.99 checkOXO Wheel Brush $17.99 checkOXO Tire Brush $9.99 checkOXO Detailers Caddy $9.99 if you want itDetailing Brush $4.99

Cobra Microfiber Towel Combo $77.24

Microfiber Applicator $4.99 get a bunch of em, megs has the two packs for like 1.50

Cobra Microfiber Gloves $4.99 i threw mine away a long time ago, only used em for applying paste to pc.Pinnacle Polishing Pal $24.99 never used it, why when you have a pc????





Wash & Drying

first three items are not needed but if thats how you want to do it go right aheadDP Xtreme Shampoo $45.00

Pinnacle Quart Foamaster Foam Gun $59.99

Pinnacle Complete Car Wash System $69.99

Stoners Tarminator $5.79 a must imo

Engine Degreaser $4.99 take your pick

Engine Bright $4.99 never used it

Optimum No Rinse $39.99 makes all your fancy washing tools null and void





Interior



Stoners Invisible Glass $4.99 uh huh

Meguiars Quick Interior Detailer $7.99 good stuff but you might want to just get yourself a gallon of interior dressing and a gallon of a good interior apc. save the 20 on the pinnacle and the 8 on the megs qidStoners Upholstery and Carpet Cleaner $5.79 good stuff, doesnt go too far though, youd be better off getting woolite and mixing it 8 or 10-1

Pinnacle Leather Cleaner and Conditioner $19.99





Wax/Sealant/Polish these are all user choice

Meguiars Mirror Glaze #34 Final Inspection $6.99

Clay Magic Finish Kit $7.99

P21S Wax $31.99

Pinnacle Advanced Swirl Remover $19.99

Pinnacle Advanced Finishing Polish $19.99

Pinnacle Paintwork Cleansing Lotion $19.99

Klasse AIO $20.00

Wolfgang Sealant $29.99









Total: $658.41
Click to expand...

yeah i'd change it up a little bit, but to each his own.
 
I put in the Optimum No Rinse becuase I have hard water. I dont have a water softner either so I figured a cap full in the foam gun would help or in the water bucket.



I like the reponses though! Keepem coming!
 
I think that the ONR will do a fine job as your sole car wash product. Professional detailers like Scottwax use it exclusively with amazing results. You will save a lot of money, water, and environment if you go the ONR route.
 
First of all, check your math. All of that stuff adds up closer to $1200 and not $658.



That's a big investment for 1 car per week.



Here is what I would do.



First figure out how many cars you plan to do in a year. Then figure out your gross income. Then try to figure out your costs on a per car basis. For example if a bottle of Klass AIO is $20 and you plan on doing 10 cars with it, then its $2 per car for that product. For the bigger stuff like the pressure washer, try to figure out how many years it will last and then divide $300 by the number of years and by the number of cars per year.



After all of that, you should have your gross profit per car figured out.



You are assuming however, that you will do 52 cars per year. Do the same exercise and figure out your profit margin if you only do 30. What if you do 40? What if you do 75?



Once you've done that you can figure out how much you would make based on different levels of volume. Then you can find out how many cars you need to do to make it worth your while. You may find that it isn't worth giving up that much time, or you may find that you prefer only doing 25 cars per year because the difference in profit between 25 and 50 isn't worth the extra time you would have to spend.



Also, factor in catastrophies. What if you get hurt and can't work, you've lost a $1200 investment. What if you damage someone's car and have to pay to have it fixed? What if your garage floods and your products get ruined? How much will it cost you to recover from something like that? Try to think of this like pot odds in poker. If there is a 10% chance something bad will happen, but it costs you 200% of your investment, then it's probably not a safe bet because it will take you so long to make the money back.
 
Yeah i don't think the pressure washer is necessary either. But if you got the money for it then get one. They're fun and useful to have around the house anyways.



I have problems with hard water so i bought an inline hose filter setup with a rechargeable filter. I hook it up for the final rinse and it works good.



To be honest it seems like you are going a bit overboard. If you are just doing one car a week then you can get away with much less. But in my opinion the two things you can never have enough of are polishing pads and mf towels.



Oh yeah, WHERE'S THE 303 AEROSPACE PROTECTANT?!?!?! I even dress my garage door opener with the stuff. In my opinion it is a must have for any detailing arsenal.
 
One thing that is not on the list that will be needed is a shop vac/vacuum machine.



Other suggestions would be for things like polishing pads, towels, wash mitts and similar items, stock up on these items you will definately need more than one.



Products like Megs #34 - might be worthwhile buying by the gallon.



Didn't see an APC or wheel cleaner on the list.
 
Another thing I would do to reduce your initial investment is to consolidate brands. Try to pick as many products from one manufacturer as possible. Then go straight to them and ask for a custom quote for everything at once. Odds are you will get a better price rather than paying retail.
 
If your looking for a tools like a pressure washer, wet/dry vac, or air compressor I recommend checking out local tool rentals for ones they are selling. They maintain them after every clean up the right way, your saving your self money and buying used is friendly for the environment. ;-)
 
Check out the Excel Platinum Kit for $58.33 - high quality microfiber towels and sheepskin mitts at reasonable prices:



"The Excel Platinum, there's enough Microfibers and waffle weaves here to do the neighbors cars ! This kit includes 2- 24x36 Monterey Waffle Weave Drying towels, 2 Excel Sheepskin Washmitts, 5 Yellow Supreme 16"x16" microfiber towels, 5 Blue Supreme 16"x16" Microfiber Polishing towels, and 2 Elite 16"x24" towel. 14 towels in total ! You may have to buy another car ! Best deal on the web!"



Alternatively, get megs supreme shine towels, water magnet (waffle weave drying) and viking sheepskin mitts- nice OTC products.
 
mikebai1990 said:
I think that the ONR will do a fine job as your sole car wash product. Professional detailers like Scottwax use it exclusively with amazing results. You will save a lot of money, water, and environment if you go the ONR route.
Click to expand...



+1 ONR



with ONR you'll minimize water bills and with one product you can mix it for a wash, QD or clay bar lube.



if you haven't seen this http://autopia.org/forum/car-detail...rs-threads-here-mine.html?highlight=onrthread by Scottwax, it's worth checking out, both on how to use ONR for quick washes and for product recommendations.
 
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