Looking to start my own mobile detailing

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dangitsbrandon

New member
I decided to give this a go right before spring of next year. I do work full time and this would be on weekends and my days off. I'd like to go full time with this but for now I'll do it as a weekend deal. I will have someone helping me. I've came up with a basic list of things I want to get. Money isn't an issue. Give me some ideas and heads up on great products I could use. Everything mostly will be purchased at chemicalguys.com or somewhere else.

-tons of microfiber towels
-polisher
-mytee lite 2 extractor
-pressure washer?
-generator
-1 gal. of each...window cleaner, rim cleaner, carpet stain cleaner, leather cleaner, degreaser, tire shine, etc
-rim polisher attachment
-detailing brushes for interior
-brushes for scrubbing carpet stains if need
-good sprayers and bottles

if i go the pressure washer route id get the foam gun attachment possibly to save some time on washing...still debating on going the waterless wash route or pressure washer?
 
If your a true die hard detailer, think about what products would you use on your car (All of them from A-Z). Then take 60-75% of that list an that will probably be what "regular people" need done.
 
One thing that greatly helped me is the renny Doyle book on how to start a home based detailing business. I highly recommend it to anyone in your position. It's money well spent and I refer to it often if I need to.
 
if you're going pressure washer route you might want to consider a pop up canopy if you are going to be mobile and obviously some type of water container

also figuring out how to get all of this stuff into your truck or whatever, unless you're going to pull a trailer, is another issue

$0.02 deposited :)
 
The Driver said:
If your a true die hard detailer, think about what products would you use on your car (All of them from A-Z). Then take 60-75% of that list an that will probably be what "regular people" need done.
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^^This guy is right. A big part of doing other people's cars is knowing what products work and how to use them. You could have the nice fancy equipment and the best products but what good is it if you don't know how to use them? Practice on your own car, do your homework, might give you a little confidence when dealing with customers...
 
Also cut steps. If you can kill 2 birds with one stone do it.

Car-pro Trix - Having a decon that can kill tar and iron as well as clean wheels saves atleast 1 - 2 hours of hard scrubbing an marring.

Nano skin wash mitt - Will shave atleast a half an hour, washing an claying at the same time is huge!

Car-pro hydro2 - Will shave atleast an hour off a detail, instead of sealing or waxing by hand this is a way better alternative.
 
dangitsbrandon said:
Money isn't an issue. Give me some ideas and heads up on Everything mostly will be purchased at chemicalguys.com or somewhere else.
Click to expand...

Somewhere else like Autopia Car Care? I can't speak for him but I would suggest you give Todd a call. You'll likely be surprised at what he can put together if you are buying all the stuff you've listed in one go. You won't find anyone better to work with.
 
dangitsbrandon said:
I decided to give this a go right before spring of next year. I do work full time and this would be on weekends and my days off. I'd like to go full time with this but for now I'll do it as a weekend deal. I will have someone helping me. I've came up with a basic list of things I want to get. Money isn't an issue. Give me some ideas and heads up on great products I could use. Everything mostly will be purchased at chemicalguys.com or somewhere else.

-tons of microfiber towels
-polisher
-mytee lite 2 extractor
-pressure washer?
-generator
-1 gal. of each...window cleaner, rim cleaner, carpet stain cleaner, leather cleaner, degreaser, tire shine, etc
-rim polisher attachment
-detailing brushes for interior
-brushes for scrubbing carpet stains if need
-good sprayers and bottles

if i go the pressure washer route id get the foam gun attachment possibly to save some time on washing...still debating on going the waterless wash route or pressure washer?
Click to expand...

I dont know your previous detailing experience and if your jumping right into it you may want to get some training, i dont know your location but there are a lot of good places to go where you can gain a good, general knowledge of detailing.

And a pop-up tent is essential, all my work is mobile so knowing i have shade is a weight lifted off my shoulders.
 
ive got experience in detailing i just want to venture out away from work and make some extra money and im going to get that renny doyle book as mentioned and the pressure washer deal ive already got a canopy in mind and atleast a 100gal water tank for it. i do have a navigator that has some of the worst carpet in it from the previous owner not taking care of it so if i can turn that around i know i can get confidence on getting the job done right
 
Get good microfibers. Especially Drying towels and wash mits. Dont want to be that detailer where the car comes out more marred then before.

Also if you dont already have a polisher I would recommend a Griots Garage. Great price point and will get out almost all of what customers will want out of their paint. That's what I use and it definitely gets the job done.
 
Lots of great advice above. Something I always suggest is learning the ins and outs of the business aspects. If possible, take a business class. Its one thing that I didn't take as seriously as I should have early on, and its caused delays in my growth. Things like marketing, local laws, insurance, taxes, etc should be taken seriously, and taken into consideration when figuring out what you'll need to charge later down the road.
 
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