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B

Balthazarr

New member
I've visited Autopia numerous times in the past, but I never thought I'd be here as a pro... (sortof)

Been a member of Bimmerforums for a number of years and became enthused about making my car beautiful...well-cared for, anyway.

Hence the reason for my frequent visitations.



So, I began detailing as a pro a few weeks ago and my first project was a 22" airstream and

Landcruiser for $275 for a friend.

Since then I've had a few more cars and am scheduled to do an '04 740i on Saturday for a $100.

My pricing is all over the place bc I'm new, but the Durango I detailed Tuesday garnered me

$150 plus a 10% tip.

Just wondering, am I setting the prices too low? Judging by what I've read here, it seems I am.
 
Oh, btw, is a 2 hp wet and dry vac strong enough to suck up carpet wetness after shampooing?

Which brand is recommended? I'm thinking of Craftsman or Shop Vac since I want something affordable, but good.
 
Everyone's pricing systems will vary according to your intended market and level of detailing that you offer. Are you doing any paint correction work at the moment? Depending largely on size and condition of vehicle, such details including full interiors run anywhere from $2-300 and up. I personally wouldn't do those type of jobs for under $200 due to the amount of hours required. Expect a full 6-8 hours from start to completion.



Regarding your question on the shopvac... you'll definitely want to get something stronger than a 2hp Motor. I would recommend a Ridgid from Home Depot with the 5 or 6HP motor and whatever gallon capacity you feel you need. I have a 4 gallon and a 12 gallon. The 4 gallon is more than enough. And they aren't very expensive at all. Maybe around $50 or so for the 4 gallon if I recall correctly.



But, you have to understand that shopvacs are not designed, nor are very effective at "extracting" carpets and fabric seats after shampooing. They just don't have the ability to remove cleaning products and damp dirt For this task, you will need a hot water carpet extractor. Expect to pay around a grand or so for a good one such as a Mytee HP60 (which I have). Pricey, yes... but definitely a necessity in any pro detailer's arsenal.



BTW, I knew I had seen that user name before somewhere. I go by NLR on bimmerforums.
 
Howdo NLR,

no, paint correction is out of my scope of performance right now.

I need to do some to the touchup points on my own before venturing into doing so for customers.

I spent 9 hours (minus 30 min for lunch the owner's wife fed me-great meatballs and pasta she cooked especially for me) really good looking too-we sort of connected. lol



Well, I did the engine with Gunk Engine Brite Citrus, washed, polished/waxed with AIO and quasi-detailed the interior (no shampooing carpets, but Pristine Clean the leather after washing with Woolite and H2O, SGreen on the mats, 303 the vinyl and interior trim panels.

Finally, Black Again on the exterior trim and windows with Stoner's.

Problem I had was getting waterspots off the glass.

ISO, windex, clay, AIO and nothing.

I even tried vinegar and water as a last resort, but got nowhere.

I didn't think to use the PC, I was so frustrated.
 
I just blew up my rigid. It served me well for about 3 years. Went to a craftsman 6.5 HP You definatly want a minimum 5 HP. wet/dry vac. If you can't get a carpet extractor you're only real options would be shop vac the crap outta it and let the heater run on the floor until dry. The very last thing you want to do as a pro detailer is give a customer their car back with wet carpets. Just creating a huge mess by doing that.
 
Jakerooni said:
I just blew up my rigid. It served me well for about 3 years. Went to a craftsman 6.5 HP You definatly want a minimum 5 HP. wet/dry vac. If you can't get a carpet extractor you're only real options would be shop vac the crap outta it and let the heater run on the floor until dry. The very last thing you want to do as a pro detailer is give a customer their car back with wet carpets. Just creating a huge mess by doing that.
Click to expand...





You mean let the heater run down the battery? That would really go over well. :furious:





Isn't there something that doesn't require saturating the carpet with water that will dry quickly?

I just bought some TW Oxy Power Out carpet cleaner. Tried it?



Those vacs are just too large to lug around in my poor little M3 so I guess I will just take my Oreck canister with me tomorrow and see how it goes.

If I can get by without carrying around a W&D vac, so much the better.
 
start the car

full throttle the AC and air ( I use heater on dark carpets and warm on light colors, someone said heat will turn the carpets brown if too hot while wet)

crack the windows



do all this and then move onto the exterior touchups...wells, tires, trim, wax step...

then roll up the windows with the car and air on while you do all the glass cleaning



let the mats dry in the sun hanging up if possible, or at an angle instead of flat on the ground as the water and moisture will gravitate down to the bottom helping the dry process



there are a couple of my two cents...
 
Thanks for the tips, Toyotaguy.



I'm going to give this TW a try today on a 740i and Lexus TL carpets so I'll see whether or not I have to use the heater/AC.



What do you do about drying the back seat carpeting?
 
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