X-Jet Question

Doug Rucker

PWN ADMIN TEAM -
Staff member
Wondering if you guy's use the plastic proportioners for your X-Jet when using for SH water and Dawn. For resi house washing. ANd if you do which one is best?
 
I realIy keep suggesting Espec products, and honestly I do not work for or profit the least bit from my Espec.

Okay, disclaimer out of the way. :confused:

I own an X-Jet, have never experienced an issue with it. But when I upgraded to my 9.5 GPM machines, and started getting some big commercial exterior structure projects, I bought a M-16 Thruster Nozzle from Espec. About half the cost of an X-Jet, and the M-16 works as good, if not a bit better as the X-Jet. Can easily reach 3 stories (without a strong wind).

Check it out for yourself: http://www..com/CATALOG/Noz_Thruster.htm
 

Doug Rucker

PWN ADMIN TEAM -
Staff member
Thanks for the info, but what about the proportioners, do you use them and which one do you find is best?
 

Doug Rucker

PWN ADMIN TEAM -
Staff member
I have had some guys tell me that when they use a proportioner they don't go through chemical as fast, versus when they don't use one. Not real familiar with the workings of theses exjet's, but I would think the proportioner is there to proportion the chemical, so even though it seems like your using less, your're probably having to apply more coats.
 

PressurePros

New Member
Doug, other than stucco, downstreaming is going to save you time and chemical. One bucket of mix left on the truck/rig will do a smaller house. Three things killed my interest in X-Jets (still a good tool to have in your arsenal).
- That chemical fog it creates that carries to neighbor's properties.
- Its higher pressure and can leave the "Mark of Zorro" on oxidized vinyl.
- The inconvenience and risk factor of carrying around buckets full of chemical.

I am not knocking, evading the question or trying to badger you. You do what's best for your efficiency. Give DS'ing a try and you may be able to knock 20% off your cleaning time. Most pros have switched over but there are also guys I respect that still use it. The proportioners and close range nozzle are good ways to overcome some of my issues with the X-Jet.
 

Doug Rucker

PWN ADMIN TEAM -
Staff member
Doug, other than stucco, downstreaming is going to save you time and chemical. One bucket of mix left on the truck/rig will do a smaller house. Three things killed my interest in X-Jets (still a good tool to have in your arsenal).
- That chemical fog it creates that carries to neighbor's properties.
- Its higher pressure and can leave the "Mark of Zorro" on oxidized vinyl.
- The inconvenience and risk factor of carrying around buckets full of chemical.

I am not knocking, evading the question or trying to badger you. You do what's best for your efficiency. Give DS'ing a try and you may be able to knock 20% off your cleaning time. Most pros have switched over but there are also guys I respect that still use it. The proportioners and close range nozzle are good ways to overcome some of my issues with the X-Jet.

Thanks for the info. I have always been a DS'er But I have found that when using lengths of hose that are 100ft, 150 ft you have make your solution stronger as the more hose you use the more diluted it gets. I ahve also sometimes just coneccted the DS injector at the last 50 ft section closest to the gun so that I do not have to mix more chemical. Only thing with that is, your back to moving that 5'er again as in X jetting. Do you find this to be true too? When I do exjet, I just strap my 5'er to a hand cart and whell it around as I need. That does seem to help because your right, hauling the 5'er can become pain. Appreciate the feedback as I know other's are watching too and it's always good to get all the input we can.
 

PressurePros

New Member
Doug, I found my diminishing return on strength at 200'. Up to 150' has been no problem. As long as the whole system is setup with no excessive back pressure (the right gun is crucial) the soap will flow. If we mix one bucket of solution, it gets 3 gallons of 12%. Another key is to use proper synergistic cleaners which boost the power of the sodium hypochlorite. We also downstream stripper and acid onto decks. To get to that stage I had to formulate my own stripper contining multiple caustics and sufactants.
 

Clean County

New Member
Doug, I found my diminishing return on strength at 200'. Up to 150' has been no problem. As long as the whole system is setup with no excessive back pressure (the right gun is crucial) the soap will flow. If we mix one bucket of solution, it gets 3 gallons of 12%. Another key is to use proper synergistic cleaners which boost the power of the sodium hypochlorite. We also downstream stripper and acid onto decks. To get to that stage I had to formulate my own stripper contining multiple caustics and sufactants.
And who says Ken Fenner is not smart[124578] I still think Ken Fenner when he gets all of his cylinders in operation he is going to pass the HoodZ guy and sell over 100 franchises a year for over $50,000 a clip if not more. Ken has that type of mind set if he wanted to go that route.

But with that being said Doug I downstreamed for many years. I hate it for a couple of reasons. One I use to corode the hoses due to the harsh chemicals going thru the Powerwashing hoses. Quite a few times I had the hose ends pop off at high pressure probably due to the corrosive chemicals that went thru them.

Also there were times I just want much more strength of chemicals being sprayed and downstreaming for me could never get the right mix. You would be lucky to get a 7-1 mix ratio with downstreaming and also don't forget to clean all the soap out at the line before you begin to rinse.

The X-jet is our answer. A good tank for it would be a 15 gallon square tank on a hand cart with at least 30 feet of houe attached to it. You can X-jet at 2-1 on your strongest mixes. If you want to top that then you need a specialized pump set-up which we have also.

One last thing the M5 X-jet is adjustable so you can shoot the chemicles up close or shoot them as high as 40. Now what you do and this will be part of my new modified set-up for next year. Where going to have a shutt off valve right below the x-jet nipple on the hose. So once the chemical is up on the house from bottom up we can now disconnect the M5 xjet and rinse the house from top to bottom with out ever changing the tip because the M5 adjustable x-jet can do all of that.

I love my X-jets. When I need a stronger chemical that has to go on stronger then the x-jet can put it on we use this plastic pump which will be mounted on a truck soon. This you can put Clorine and soap on straight which is good for some nasty roof washes.
 

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New Look

Registerd User
And who says Ken Fenner is not smart[124578] I still think Ken Fenner when he gets all of his cylinders in operation he is going to pass the HoodZ guy and sell over 100 franchises a year for over $50,000 a clip if not more. Ken has that type of mind set if he wanted to go that route.

But with that being said Doug I downstreamed for many years. I hate it for a couple of reasons. One I use to corode the hoses due to the harsh chemicals going thru the Powerwashing hoses. Quite a few times I had the hose ends pop off at high pressure probably due to the corrosive chemicals that went thru them.

Also there were times I just want much more strength of chemicals being sprayed and downstreaming for me could never get the right mix. You would be lucky to get a 7-1 mix ratio with downstreaming and also don't forget to clean all the soap out at the line before you begin to rinse.

The X-jet is our answer. A good tank for it would be a 15 gallon square tank on a hand cart with at least 30 feet of houe attached to it. You can X-jet at 2-1 on your strongest mixes. If you want to top that then you need a specialized pump set-up which we have also.

One last thing the M5 X-jet is adjustable so you can shoot the chemicles up close or shoot them as high as 40. Now what you do and this will be part of my new modified set-up for next year. Where going to have a shutt off valve right below the x-jet nipple on the hose. So once the chemical is up on the house from bottom up we can now disconnect the M5 xjet and rinse the house from top to bottom with out ever changing the tip because the M5 adjustable x-jet can do all of that.

I love my X-jets. When I need a stronger chemical that has to go on stronger then the x-jet can put it on we use this plastic pump which will be mounted on a truck soon. This you can put Clorine and soap on straight which is good for some nasty roof washes.

I have a small valve (wont call it a shut off valve but I guess it is one) attached at the middle of the xjet hose - between the tip/nozzle and the inlet screen. This came with the xjet when I purchased it??

John you talking more of having this right at the nozzle?
 

Doug Rucker

PWN ADMIN TEAM -
Staff member
I have a small valve (wont call it a shut off valve but I guess it is one) attached at the middle of the xjet hose - between the tip/nozzle and the inlet screen. This came with the xjet when I purchased it??

John you talking more of having this right at the nozzle?

Same here Carlos.
 

Clean County

New Member
I have a small valve (wont call it a shut off valve but I guess it is one) attached at the middle of the xjet hose - between the tip/nozzle and the inlet screen. This came with the xjet when I purchased it??

John you talking more of having this right at the nozzle?
Yup that little plastic shutoff. I have a few of them because the x-jet hoses were never long enough for what I wanted to do. I do have those x-jet hoses that we use once in awhile when we put them right into a 5 gallon can of chlorine and carry them up on the roof. Since we now have that roof pump we use the typical x-jet hose less and less.

As for the nipple on the x-jet I'm think of using those little plastic squeeze clamps so the hose doesn't pop off when using the x-jet and then you can squeeze them to pop off the hose so now you can use the X-jet to clean with. The question is these plastic clamps seem they might break so easily. I have to figure out what to do about that but rinsing the x-jets is going to be a priority in 2011 because we just go through to many of them.
 

Mathew Johnson

New Member
Yup that little plastic shutoff. I have a few of them because the x-jet hoses were never long enough for what I wanted to do. I do have those x-jet hoses that we use once in awhile when we put them right into a 5 gallon can of chlorine and carry them up on the roof. Since we now have that roof pump we use the typical x-jet hose less and less.

As for the nipple on the x-jet I'm think of using those little plastic squeeze clamps so the hose doesn't pop off when using the x-jet and then you can squeeze them to pop off the hose so now you can use the X-jet to clean with. The question is these plastic clamps seem they might break so easily. I have to figure out what to do about that but rinsing the x-jets is going to be a priority in 2011 because we just go through to many of them.

We have put 1/4 inch stainless quick connects on the X-Jet and on the hose so we can easily disconnect and we dont have the hose popping off. We also have the plastic ball valves to shut the flow off when we disconnect.

Also - we run 50 feet of hose on the X-Jets and we meter our detergent a little different. If we need heavy detergent application we use a the 50 ft 3/8 inch X-Jet hose. If we need less detergent, we use a 50 ft 1/4 inch X-jet hose. It makes mixing the house wash easier (pretty much use the same mix) On some Roofs (where vegatation exposure and risk is a minimum), we use the 3/8 X Jet hose and drop it right into a 5 gallon pail of fresh 12 percent bleach with the soap and rubbing alcohol added to the bleach. It works great!

PS: If you are going witht he quick connect setup, use stainless instead of brass and the brown vitron O rings.

Hope this helps.

Matt
 

Doug Rucker

PWN ADMIN TEAM -
Staff member
We have put 1/4 inch stainless quick connects on the X-Jet and on the hose so we can easily disconnect and we dont have the hose popping off. We also have the plastic ball valves to shut the flow off when we disconnect.

Also - we run 50 feet of hose on the X-Jets and we meter our detergent a little different. If we need heavy detergent application we use a the 50 ft 3/8 inch X-Jet hose. If we need less detergent, we use a 50 ft 1/4 inch X-jet hose. It makes mixing the house wash easier (pretty much use the same mix) On some Roofs (where vegatation exposure and risk is a minimum), we use the 3/8 X Jet hose and drop it right into a 5 gallon pail of fresh 12 percent bleach with the soap and rubbing alcohol added to the bleach. It works great!

PS: If you are going witht he quick connect setup, use stainless instead of brass and the brown vitron O rings.

Hope this helps.

Matt

MAtt, rubbing alcohol??? What's that for?
 

Mathew Johnson

New Member
MAtt, rubbing alcohol??? What's that for?
\\

I use it in lieu of TSP, It seems to give the roofwash an extra kick in the a$$. I get better results using it than TSP and I don't have to dissolve anything, seems to clean quicker and it is cheap at wally world.
 

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