It's not hurting every one!

[Desk Jockey]

The economy is not hurting every one, we've been cleaning the air ducts in a house that just added 9,000 sq/ft.

The now 15,000 sq/ft home, has seven HVAC units in it.

Think the contractor might have accidentally dropped or swept a little debris in the boot?

 

[Bruce Humphrey]

What would the brown splatter marks be from?

 

[Larry B]

Chavez

Is that my roll of masking tape down their?

 

[Desk Jockey]

It's urethane, all the vent covers were wood and they just slopped it on and in the vent covers and it dripped down into the vent.

Larry keep your junk out of my ducts!

 

[Larry B]

Its funny how much stuff people hide in the vents on construction sites.

 

[-JB-]

The carpet installers "dustpan"

 

[Guest]

It was probably the HVAC installers

What cleaning system do you use?

 

[Desk Jockey]

A Meyers Portavac, it's a 20-hp collector.

I'd really like to get one of Caddyvac's big trucks, maybe this spring, not excited about a $1,300.00 a month payment but it would allow us to be more efficient with our time.

 

[Larry B]

Thats the best looking vac truck around

Buy it Chavez

 

[Desk Jockey]

I'd like to.

We've had air duct work the last 15-days in a row, normally only 1-2 a week.

If we could get at least 3-5 a week consistently I'd order the truck. :wink:

 

[The Asian Sensation]

Chavez is my idol.

 

[Desk Jockey]

Thang! Wazz up???

Oh and quit throwing darts at my picture! :wink:

 

[Robert]

Hello all. Richard we used to use a meyer porta vac but now have a meyer Zephyr truckmount and we love it! Its double the suction of the porta vac, no bags to cover when it rains and alot cheaper than the big trucks.We have used it with 250' of hose for commercial work with great results.It has saved us set up and breakdown time compared to the porta vac.We probably save 1-1/2 hours per day on set up.Normally we do 2 homes a day 5-6 days a week and most of the cleanings are for fire and mold remediation projects.I think the new zephyr with larger motor is under $16k so not too bad.
Thanks
Robert

 

[harryhides]

Couldn't you just spray it down with some "Anti-Browning" treatment ??

 

[Desk Jockey]

Thanks Robert, I'll check it out.

Did you have them do the install or do they drop ship?

 

[Robert]

Richard i bought a truck that was already set up for a sears franchise im guessing it was a repo.I'm assuming meyer set the truck up and man is it nice.Here is a link to my web page it shows the setup: http://www.rcsstl.com/index_files/Page682.htm
It sure is a time saver to have a setup this nice.
Thanks

 

[Desk Jockey]

Robert
You're right that is a nice setup, it looks like new.

Do you have to have a side door?

Looks like everything works out of the rear?

 

[Scott S.]

darn it, i thought maybe the splatter was from hitting a chipmonk or something in the duct. wow that would be crazy. didnt somone here suck one up in a carpet machine once, i remember reading about it here.

 

[Desk Jockey]

We did one where they new something was dead in the duct but didn't know what. When we it it the odor was awful. It was a snake that had died it there. We removed the solids but recommended the drywall be removed and that section be replaced.

It's not uncommon to find dead mice, birds, bats and even a petrified frog.

Can you imaging breathing air that passes over their dead bodies! :shock:

 

[Robert]

Richard we take the vacuum hose out of the side door for setup and storage.Without the side door its tough to maneuver around the box as the vacuum and air compressor is bigger than you think.We got the truck with 42.000 miles on it, its a 2003.We carry 200' of 8" vac hose, about 600' of air line, a portable electric vacuum,2 hepa vacs, 4 tool boxes, 4 drop cloths, and alot more.As you know with restoration work you never know what ya need till ya get there!Hee is a few more pictures of the setup.I cant find any pics of the side door inside.
http://rcsstl.com/files/Pictures/HVAC%20Truck/
Thanks

 

[Guest]

That thing doesn't look much bigger than the meyers portable(I use to have one)Maybe Richard can just through his in a truck and get the collector. :?

 

[Desk Jockey]

Robert do you have to clean the bags after every job?

Is it a bitch to clean them it says 33-bags, is that correct?

Called Meyers and he said he could get us one for $13,000.00

That sounds good. Would you get a trail wind or would you get another Zepher if you were to buy one today?

 

[Robert]

Richard i hated pulling a trailer! I used a 6x12' trailer with the porta vac for a few years.The trailwind trailer is 16' long and looks like a pain in the ass to park.I would buy another zephyr in a minute! I like the image of the box truck because most of the duct cleaners here use cargo vans.Also we carry alot of stuff prolly more than most duct cleaners because we do alot of mold remediation and fire cleanings.We have specialized techniques that i have developed over the years.

 

[Desk Jockey]

I meant the Hi-Range, sorry.

Would the larger 9000 cfm be worth the extra money vs the 7500 cfm of the Zepher? The Hi-Range is $20,000.00

The Porta vac has only 5000 cfm but it has done an awesome job for us.

 

[Robert]

Richard the hi range is awesome. i believe that meyer conservatively rates their equipment because the zephyr is about twice the vacuum of the porta vac.The lift is awesome we can pull anything that fits into the hose pieces of bricks, large nails, wood pieces, my cordless drill We clean the vacuum collector box about every 4-6 months, we take the bag filters out turn them inside out and blow them out.About once a year we will wash the bags at a commercial laundry. Its easy to clean the bags and collection box.This setup makes the porta vac look like a toy i dont think you could go wrong.The hi range is awesome and great for large commercial jobs.I knew a guy with one and he would run 300-400' of hose all the time.The truth is i dont see any reason to upgrade we do residential, commercial, industrial, healthcare , cleanrooms etc every day and really this setup works great.We also have a 5000 cfm and 3200 cfm electric hepa vacs for places where this truck wont reach.

 

[Desk Jockey]

Thanks Robert......you just ruined my dream of the big truck!

Actually you may have saved me and unnecessary expense.

Definitely something to think about.

 

[MicahR]

Awesome Before and After pics Robert!

Chavez,

In your state can you pull the blower without being a licensed electrician?

The company I was with in Wyoming has a Caddyvac like the one picutred above. We were able to pull the blower no problem in Wy. In Montana you can't without being an electrician, or so I'm told.

How many duct cleaners are actually pulling the blower out? Can you say you cleaned the system without doing it?

 

[Robert]

Thanks for the kind words we take alot of pics i prolly have thousands lol.Most duct cleaners dont pull the blower because they are lazy,dont know any better, or just are not skilled enough.We pull the blower on EVERY job if the customer does not want the furnace cleaned we may not do the job lol. We also clean the a coils and lower heat exchanger compartment. Most dont do that either.In our state you do not have to be HVAC certified to remove the blower.Its scary letting newer techs pull the blowers most newer furnaces have alot of electronics....one ruined circuit board due to wrong wiring could be $400 or more!So only a few of our techs handle the furnace cleaning.Richard i too had dreams of a builtwel but in 2 years this setup is paid for Ya cant beat paid for!

 

[Desk Jockey]

Yea we can and do pull the blower.

That's part of what slows us down so much, but without doing so you become just another suck and run guy!

 

[MicahR]

Ah, you need to be certified in HVAC not necessarily an electrician.

Needing to be a certified electrician sounded a little extreme.

I'll have to check if you need to have a cert in HVAC to pull the blower.