House Washing - All Brick

[American Exteriors]

Tom posted a message the other day about pricing house washing. Does the .90 - 1.10 apply to all types of exterior surfaces?

The reason I ask is that I am bidding onmy first housewashing job for a home that is completely bricked. It is an older home but the brick work is in good shape - just has some discoloration and mildew.

The foundation size is approximately 60' by 30' and is a single story square ranch - the garage is actually built into the house. Using the above estimating technique - that comes out to $162 - $198 for the complete job. For some reason this seems way to little for the job. I would expect I should be asking at least $250 - $300? Any thoughts?

Also, in terms of chemicals, I was going to try bleach with tide, but I am concerned that I will not get the color of the brick back as much as I would like. I am considering using a LIGHT muriatic blend at say 8:1 instead. Any thoughts?

Finally, I am considering adding a back page to my estimate offering a sealing. Will v-seal work on the brick or are there better products out there specifically designed for brick?

Any help would be much appreciated.

Thanks, Tim



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[TONY ELL]

Tom;
You figured correctly! I used to do a lot of homes before I got into the car lot business. Being that the house is a one story ranch is why the figure seems so low to you. You won't have to use ladder or anything. I have cleaned brick sided homes before, 1 and 2 story homes. They never seemed to take any longer to clean than vinyl or steel sided homes. Don't underestimate it. It might be dirtier than you think. You should bid the job what you think that it is worth as well. How many hours? How much chemical? Travel? There are so many variable's. The delco price survey could prove very benefical to you.
Good Luck!!!
Tony Ell

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[Stateline P/W]

Like Tony said, being that it's just a ranch style house you'll not need a ladder. Meaning that it will be easier to do resulting in the lower price. Without seeing it maybe around $175 to $200. You'll be looking at around 4to5hrs. I would use a good detergent with a little bleach.

Just my .02



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Stateline P/W
"We put the pressure on our work, not our customers"