A. I have been down streaming with a 4gpm machine. Mainly doing vinyl siding. I have been researching equipment to start softwashing.
I went to the Rev Camp in Jersey & did the Certified Applicator Course. I Really like the whole SWS setup but I still have some questions, comparisons , and general "looking for advice" concerns.
B. I narrowed my equipment choices to :
SWS Blend Module
SWS Blend & Bulk Rinse Modules
Powerwash Store Gen 2 Twin Pump system http://www.powerwashstore.com/P/1457/GenerationIITwinPumpSystemw-TitanReelNo5401
with Pro Portioner
The powerwash store Booster Pump Skid http://www.powerwashstore.com/P/2901/115vBoosterPumpCompleteSkid5455BS
The SWS equipment is a lot more, I'm really looking for the differences to justify paying a higher price for the SWS equipment.
C. Is the bulk rinse/booster pump a real plus ? I'm hoping it cuts down time running hoses to water plants, simply plug in hose from bib , pull hose from truck and start watering, Am I on target with that ?
D. I'm also confused about a few things
Right now when we get to a property, we run hoses to the cutomers hose bib and start watering plants. Alot of the time they only have one hose bib working. so when we are spraying the house we cannot also keep plants wet. If your not one batching on a sofftwash system, then you really need to have two hoses hooked up to the customers house correct ? One going to the Bulk rinse/Blend modules (or pro portioner) and the other being used by the ground man, which means you really need some long hoses. What are you guys doing now to cover this situation ?
E. What if Blend Module goes down, are you shut down until you can get it fixed or can you just one batch and by pass it somehow ?
Thanks in advance for any help guys
Tim Teed said
Nov 20, 2016
B. If I was starting out with your concerns I would get a blend module. You can always add booster pump later. I would get Two 50 gallon tanks to carry SH. You could easily plumb one of the 50 gallon tanks to act as a mix tank.
You should consider what you are trying to accomplish with the business and where you want it to be in a few years. AC's equipment is not cheap but if you are trying to get a truck that will gross $200K the price difference between all of those systems in inconsequential. I believe AC's systems are the best laid out, user friendly and professional looking available. I like 12 volt systems best because if you have employees they are easy to fix and long lasting.
The twin pump is a nice little system but it looks like a handyman put it together. I want the wow factor.
C. We have booster pump but rarely use it. We are typically 20 to 30% higher than other guys in my market. We just use hose bibs. With blend you can always add later. Our biggest challenge is finishing too fast for what we charge. Thursday we were on job from 10 to 5:30 $2800. This is not uncommon.
D. With blend you will have a small water tank with a float valve. You aren't spraying much per gallon so you should be able to keep up. It doesn't take much water to keep plants wet. With experience you will see which plants are most sensitive.
E. Blend will not break down. Carry an extra pump that is really all you need.
With SoftWash Systems the value isn't in the cost of the equipment, but with the "Systems" - the knowledge that you get from AC and others in the network. I can buy everything cheaper from someone else. If I bought $10K in soaps, pumps, etc in a year and was able to spend my time and shop and save lets say 20%, I would have extra $2,000 in pocket. If I was doing $200,000 and using AC's help and was able to raise my sell price by 10% by increasing value to homeowner I would have extra $20,000 in my pocket. At my company we spend our time focusing on increasing value to homeowner and business.
Don't do equipment purchase yet. Invest in attending SoftWashapalooza in January. This will be my 6th year attending.
Chad Eneix said
Nov 20, 2016
I started with the Twin Pump System, and given the choice to do it over again, would get the Blend, which AC did not offer at the time. The twin pump works, but just requires a little more "fiddling" with on each job. You have to set up the system, transfer bleach, mix a batch, prime it, etc. Also, you will have to figure out how to carry more bleach, so you end up transferring and handling bleach more, which is less safe.
The biggest advantage of the Blend comes when you have several different surfaces requiring different mix ratios. Going from 4% to 1% and back to 4%, for instance, happens immediately with the turn of a dial. When one batching with something like the Twin Pump, it is very easy to have to much of one mix left to be able to make the proper amount of another, and the math gets a little tricky. Experience can help with this, but it happens. For instance, if the roof requires less than you thought and you end up with 1/2 tank of 4% left, and now you need to do siding at 1%, you can't. This is even more problematic when you have employees. In the above scenario, employees will likely just make a full tank of 2% and use it on the siding, increasing the likelihood of plant damage. Or they will dump it somewhere, exposing you to liability and wasting your money. If they make the full tank of 2%, you have a half tank of 2% left, so the next day, you are forced to make way more 4% than you will need for the small roof you are doing that day. You can avoid this by making only what you need, but then you may run out and have to mix up just a bit more. All of this also increases your time.
You will not NEED a booster pump right away, although if you do a lot of work where people are on wells, it will really help a lot. We went without a booster for 4 years, and we always found a way, even on tall third story exposed basement homes with weak well pressure. We often had a hose running up an extension pole to rinse in these cases. The booster makes this go much faster.
I second all of Tim's points as well, except one. Anything can break down. The Blend can quit working properly, it has happened to me- not a pump failure, just a significant problem with blending. Troubleshooting the fix was a little time consuming and required a couple calls to SWS, and a trip to the hardware store. Luckily, you can bypass the "blending" part of the blend system entirely. You can one-batch in the tank, turn both blend valves off, and take your multi-tap hose and drop it into the tank. We ran that way for three days doing a 4 story hotel roof/EIFS job because there was no time to do the troubleshooting. We added a few hours to the job transferring bleach and mixing, though.
Jim Marchioni said
Nov 20, 2016
Thanks so much Tim & Chad for the input, I'm definitely going to make it a priority to get to the palooza.
as far as watering goes, ever have a problem where you didnt have more than one outlet ? if you need to run the hose and hook up to your modules, can you run both the rinse and blend at the same time ? or do you need at least two outlets ?
Chad Eneix said
Nov 20, 2016
With good municipal water supply on a residential job, you can run the Blend and bulk rinse at the same time on one hose. You do have to be "aware" of the fact that you are sharing a water supply for two things, but it is rarely a problem. Generally, you will not run yourself out unless both the guy rinsing and the guy treating are both spraying pretty much constantly. On commercial jobs, or really large siding jobs, where a lot of chem and rinse spraying is happening at the same time for long periods, I will hook up two hoses. Sometimes, you just have to bid knowing it may take a little longer due to water supply, like in the case of a weak well. I have done this. When bidding residential jobs, I carry an 8 foot section of garden hose and a witch's hat nozzle. If the home is on a well, I hook it up and spray water for a minute to test the pressure and volume of the water supply.
Jim Marchioni said
Nov 22, 2016
Another question, how hard is it to winterize a sws skid ? I would probably have to take it apart correct ?
Chad Eneix said
Nov 22, 2016
No, you just need a decent amount of antifreeze. In my GenII 5 gallons was more than enough. My GenIII with booster pump, etc will be more. You obviously rinse really good, running lots of water through the system, then just put antifreeze in the tank and run it through, making sure to move your valves around to get it in every hose and part. I go to a salvage yard and buy filtered used antifreeze for a buck a gallon, as I have 4 hot water pressure skids to winterize as well. I winterize even though my shop is heated, just in case of heating system failure. Also, antifreeze conditions seals, valves, and other parts. Some will use windshield washer fluid, which has the same deicing ingredient, without the conditioners. Antifreeze does not really go bad, so I reuse it for several years.
Jim Marchioni said
Dec 1, 2016
bump
Jeff Newman said
Dec 2, 2016
Howdy Jim, Not sure what I can add, but figured I'd try since this BB has helped me considerably. I have Gen II and just pulled it off to winterize last weekend. I don't have a garage and the rig sits outside all winter patiently waiting for spring. I live south of Boston. I only operate on the weekends and was straight out from March-November.
Last year (winter 2015) I used 5/6 gallons of -25 windshield washer fluid and run it thru all tanks, valves, all combos of to and from, reels etc., and took the pump off and brought it to the basement. When I fired it up this spring there were no issues, leaks, burst line or plastic connector issues.
Last year I bolted U shaped supports from Lowe's onto the 4 vertical ladder rack supports just above the tanks height, out of the way and slide 2x4s under /thru to lift the rig off the truck. The ends of the 2x4s extend out past the sides of the truck and are used as lift points. Sort of a King tut chariot. This makes it easier to lift up, get the weight off the bed rails, and move. I placed 4 pallets stacked at the tailgate on the ground and off it went. I did take off the reels and booster pump to bring inside this year, I wanted to do some maintenance and the weight taken off adds up for a lighter easier lift. we did it with three this year VS four last year.
I have the SWS booster pump setup running to a 275' hose reel of the back deck. Use it on every job as SOP. One hose from the HO bib to the booster pump, and can either fill the buffer tank or run from the bib straight. We put another hose out at the rear of the house bib if they have one as SOP in case needed and to sped up the wrap up using plant wash. There are time when there is not enough water pressure to run both straight from the bibs, so we fill the buffer tank and use the booster from there, while the back house hose is running. When we run from the buffer tank to booster, we get average pressure at the hose end VS from the house bib to booster which is higher. It definitely save time for plant wash, final wash application, rinse etc.
I don't have a blend or proportioner but have been looking at both for cost comparison, best application for me . I like the concept to save time, bleach, surfacant etc. but with a Gen II it's all about retro fit compatibility.
Always keep a spare pump, pressure gauge, wand parts etc. on board! We got good at swapping out!! Long winded, hope it helped some and good luck!!
v/r Jeff
Jim Marchioni said
Dec 3, 2016
Jeff
Thanks for the info
Did you start with a SWS System ?
Whats has been your experience with reliability ?
I pretty much decided on the sws skid with the blend, still deciding on the bulk rinse module
Jeff Newman said
Dec 4, 2016
Howdy Jim,
I started off from the get go with SWS for on line and hands on training. I purchased the SWS Gen II skid with the buffer tank as my initial start up. Overall it has all performed well and held up to expectations.
1. I replaced the throttle valve once after the first winter I had it, but that was after the winter storage and think the temps did it in.
2. Went thru a few liquid filled pressure gauges, but keep spares on board.
3. Couldn't fine tune the the original DPI pump so I went to one batching and disconnected the DPI. Blend module or similair process sounds like the way to go, and hope it is successful.
4. The main 12V pump has been replaced numerous times and I always keep a spare on board. The last model purchased spring this year from SWS held up for the season but was losing pressure by the time I shut down. I always have a spare on board and was happy with the pump life cycle, it served the rig well.
5. Bulk rinse pays for itself in labor/time saved quickly.
Hope this helped.
V/r Jeff
AC Lockyer said
Dec 20, 2016
Wow great thread!
AC
Thomas Justice said
Apr 20, 2017
Hello everyone, I have questions about different Soft wash machines.. Not sure which is better.. I'm new with softwash.. and Trying to start cleaning Roofs and the whole softwash system.. Not a lot of money and need something that will get me making money so I can get better Machines
I would put pictures but not sure how so.
I'm Looking at a 12 volt machine or gas machine and wasn't sure which is better...
1) Maverick Softwash
12 volt, 7 GPM 100psi.
2) Comet pump gas machine
9.6 GPM 140psi
Self Prime
Thomas Justice said
Apr 20, 2017
Hello everyone, I have questions about different Soft wash machines.. Not sure which is better.. I'm new with softwash.. and Trying to start cleaning Roofs and the whole softwash system.. Not a lot of money and need something that will get me making money so I can get better Machines
I would put pictures but not sure how so.
I'm Looking at a 12 volt machine or gas machine and wasn't sure which is better...
1) Maverick Softwash
12 volt, 7 GPM 100psi.
2) Comet pump gas machine
9.6 GPM 140psi
Self Prime
Jeffrey Kirby said
Apr 21, 2017
Call the office at SoftWash Systems and inquire about the 50 gallon blend unit. Best start-up unit.
855-763-8669
9-10 gpm softwashing is a disaster. don't do it. you don't want gas powered equipment of any kind to softwash correctly and safely
Tim Teed said
Apr 23, 2017
You are so close, you should go to their next softwash academy before you move forward.
John Aloisio said
Apr 24, 2017
tim is dead on. Educated before you buy anything.
Jeffrey Kirby said
Apr 24, 2017
Tim Teed wrote:
You are so close, you should go to their next softwash academy before you move forward.
I agree. And I hear this month's teacher is Superior
Mardy Isaacs said
May 4, 2017
I agree with Tim and Jeff. Definitely go to the academy, and 9-10 gpm gas power is to much chemical waste and to noisy for most projects.
Troy Layman said
May 4, 2017
Thomas Justice wrote:
Hello everyone, I have questions about different Soft wash machines.. Not sure which is better.. I'm new with softwash.. and Trying to start cleaning Roofs and the whole softwash system.. Not a lot of money and need something that will get me making money so I can get better Machines I would put pictures but not sure how so. I'm Looking at a 12 volt machine or gas machine and wasn't sure which is better... 1) Maverick Softwash 12 volt, 7 GPM 100psi. 2) Comet pump gas machine 9.6 GPM 140psi Self Prime
Great advice - gas powered equipment is not only more difficult to do field repairs on, there are communities that look down on loud work equipment during certain hours. a 12 V pump is pretty quiet. You can have a normal volume conversation standing next to an active pump with no trouble hearing. Unless I'm at my pump mixing or something, I never hear my pump.
A 12 volt 7 GPM 100 PSI pump is a good pump, but more power and GPM than you want for roof cleaning. Confucius say, "Do not use a cannon to kill a mosquito!" With the GPM and pressure on that pump you'll find it difficult to manage the amount of cleaning solution you spray on a roof and end up wasting chemicals and possibly causing damage to plants from too much overspray and runoff. It is actually a bit frustrating....take my word for it, my pump is very similar. Call the office at SoftWash Systems and ask for their pumps. The cost of the pump itself is about the same, but it has a lower GPM and lower pressure to help avoid over spraying. It is also fit from end to end with the bleach resistant parts you need to get a longer service life out of your pump, and the pressure and flow are easier to manage to avoid excess runoff. Several high production companies have said great things about these pumps. They were replacing pumps ever month or two, and the SWS pump has lasted much longer. I know money is tight, but when you get a chance, carrying a spare pump is a good idea. if you have a pump die in the middle of a job, you don't really want to have to leave, wait for a replacement pump and come back to finish. Not only is it a hassle, it looks bad and is just downright embarrassing!
And as the gentlemen above said, get to a training class first. They are worth the price of admission, and AC will cover exactly what equipment you need to do the job right, what each item needs to be made out of to be durable, and will be able to answer questions on the spot. I was very OCD in my studying before I went to the training class, watching every Youtube video, reading these forums over and over and asking questions, and everything I learned in 6 months didn't cover 20% of what we learned in class. AC has his sales classes separate now, but if you pay close attention you will get a wealth of sales information too. AC just can't help spilling the beans here and there if you are observant. You will also have a much easier time with sales too because you will know the jargon, what works, what doesn't, what is right, what is dangerous and why, what simple mistakes will cost you thousands that you would likely never think of until the error is made... :0)
A. I have been down streaming with a 4gpm machine. Mainly doing vinyl siding. I have been researching equipment to start softwashing.
I went to the Rev Camp in Jersey & did the Certified Applicator Course. I Really like the whole SWS setup but I still have some questions, comparisons , and general "looking for advice" concerns.
B. I narrowed my equipment choices to :
SWS Blend Module
SWS Blend & Bulk Rinse Modules
Powerwash Store Gen 2 Twin Pump system http://www.powerwashstore.com/P/1457/GenerationIITwinPumpSystemw-TitanReelNo5401
with Pro Portioner
The powerwash store Booster Pump Skid http://www.powerwashstore.com/P/2901/115vBoosterPumpCompleteSkid5455BS
The SWS equipment is a lot more, I'm really looking for the differences to justify paying a higher price for the SWS equipment.
C. Is the bulk rinse/booster pump a real plus ? I'm hoping it cuts down time running hoses to water plants, simply plug in hose from bib , pull hose from truck and start watering, Am I on target with that ?
D. I'm also confused about a few things
Right now when we get to a property, we run hoses to the cutomers hose bib and start watering plants. Alot of the time they only have one hose bib working. so when we are spraying the house we cannot also keep plants wet. If your not one batching on a sofftwash system, then you really need to have two hoses hooked up to the customers house correct ? One going to the Bulk rinse/Blend modules (or pro portioner) and the other being used by the ground man, which means you really need some long hoses. What are you guys doing now to cover this situation ?
E. What if Blend Module goes down, are you shut down until you can get it fixed or can you just one batch and by pass it somehow ?
Thanks in advance for any help guys
B. If I was starting out with your concerns I would get a blend module. You can always add booster pump later. I would get Two 50 gallon tanks to carry SH. You could easily plumb one of the 50 gallon tanks to act as a mix tank.
You should consider what you are trying to accomplish with the business and where you want it to be in a few years. AC's equipment is not cheap but if you are trying to get a truck that will gross $200K the price difference between all of those systems in inconsequential. I believe AC's systems are the best laid out, user friendly and professional looking available. I like 12 volt systems best because if you have employees they are easy to fix and long lasting.
The twin pump is a nice little system but it looks like a handyman put it together. I want the wow factor.
C. We have booster pump but rarely use it. We are typically 20 to 30% higher than other guys in my market. We just use hose bibs. With blend you can always add later. Our biggest challenge is finishing too fast for what we charge. Thursday we were on job from 10 to 5:30 $2800. This is not uncommon.
D. With blend you will have a small water tank with a float valve. You aren't spraying much per gallon so you should be able to keep up. It doesn't take much water to keep plants wet. With experience you will see which plants are most sensitive.
E. Blend will not break down. Carry an extra pump that is really all you need.
With SoftWash Systems the value isn't in the cost of the equipment, but with the "Systems" - the knowledge that you get from AC and others in the network. I can buy everything cheaper from someone else. If I bought $10K in soaps, pumps, etc in a year and was able to spend my time and shop and save lets say 20%, I would have extra $2,000 in pocket. If I was doing $200,000 and using AC's help and was able to raise my sell price by 10% by increasing value to homeowner I would have extra $20,000 in my pocket. At my company we spend our time focusing on increasing value to homeowner and business.
Don't do equipment purchase yet. Invest in attending SoftWashapalooza in January. This will be my 6th year attending.
The biggest advantage of the Blend comes when you have several different surfaces requiring different mix ratios. Going from 4% to 1% and back to 4%, for instance, happens immediately with the turn of a dial. When one batching with something like the Twin Pump, it is very easy to have to much of one mix left to be able to make the proper amount of another, and the math gets a little tricky. Experience can help with this, but it happens. For instance, if the roof requires less than you thought and you end up with 1/2 tank of 4% left, and now you need to do siding at 1%, you can't. This is even more problematic when you have employees. In the above scenario, employees will likely just make a full tank of 2% and use it on the siding, increasing the likelihood of plant damage. Or they will dump it somewhere, exposing you to liability and wasting your money. If they make the full tank of 2%, you have a half tank of 2% left, so the next day, you are forced to make way more 4% than you will need for the small roof you are doing that day. You can avoid this by making only what you need, but then you may run out and have to mix up just a bit more. All of this also increases your time.
You will not NEED a booster pump right away, although if you do a lot of work where people are on wells, it will really help a lot. We went without a booster for 4 years, and we always found a way, even on tall third story exposed basement homes with weak well pressure. We often had a hose running up an extension pole to rinse in these cases. The booster makes this go much faster.
I second all of Tim's points as well, except one. Anything can break down. The Blend can quit working properly, it has happened to me- not a pump failure, just a significant problem with blending. Troubleshooting the fix was a little time consuming and required a couple calls to SWS, and a trip to the hardware store. Luckily, you can bypass the "blending" part of the blend system entirely. You can one-batch in the tank, turn both blend valves off, and take your multi-tap hose and drop it into the tank. We ran that way for three days doing a 4 story hotel roof/EIFS job because there was no time to do the troubleshooting. We added a few hours to the job transferring bleach and mixing, though.
Thanks so much Tim & Chad for the input, I'm definitely going to make it a priority to get to the palooza.
as far as watering goes, ever have a problem where you didnt have more than one outlet ? if you need to run the hose and hook up to your modules, can you run both the rinse and blend at the same time ? or do you need at least two outlets ?
Howdy Jim, Not sure what I can add, but figured I'd try since this BB has helped me considerably. I have Gen II and just pulled it off to winterize last weekend. I don't have a garage and the rig sits outside all winter patiently waiting for spring. I live south of Boston. I only operate on the weekends and was straight out from March-November.
Last year (winter 2015) I used 5/6 gallons of -25 windshield washer fluid and run it thru all tanks, valves, all combos of to and from, reels etc., and took the pump off and brought it to the basement. When I fired it up this spring there were no issues, leaks, burst line or plastic connector issues.
Last year I bolted U shaped supports from Lowe's onto the 4 vertical ladder rack supports just above the tanks height, out of the way and slide 2x4s under /thru to lift the rig off the truck. The ends of the 2x4s extend out past the sides of the truck and are used as lift points. Sort of a King tut chariot. This makes it easier to lift up, get the weight off the bed rails, and move. I placed 4 pallets stacked at the tailgate on the ground and off it went. I did take off the reels and booster pump to bring inside this year, I wanted to do some maintenance and the weight taken off adds up for a lighter easier lift. we did it with three this year VS four last year.
I have the SWS booster pump setup running to a 275' hose reel of the back deck. Use it on every job as SOP. One hose from the HO bib to the booster pump, and can either fill the buffer tank or run from the bib straight. We put another hose out at the rear of the house bib if they have one as SOP in case needed and to sped up the wrap up using plant wash. There are time when there is not enough water pressure to run both straight from the bibs, so we fill the buffer tank and use the booster from there, while the back house hose is running. When we run from the buffer tank to booster, we get average pressure at the hose end VS from the house bib to booster which is higher. It definitely save time for plant wash, final wash application, rinse etc.
I don't have a blend or proportioner but have been looking at both for cost comparison, best application for me . I like the concept to save time, bleach, surfacant etc. but with a Gen II it's all about retro fit compatibility.
Always keep a spare pump, pressure gauge, wand parts etc. on board! We got good at swapping out!! Long winded, hope it helped some and good luck!!
v/r Jeff
Thanks for the info
Did you start with a SWS System ?
Whats has been your experience with reliability ?
I pretty much decided on the sws skid with the blend, still deciding on the bulk rinse module
Howdy Jim,
I started off from the get go with SWS for on line and hands on training. I purchased the SWS Gen II skid with the buffer tank as my initial start up. Overall it has all performed well and held up to expectations.
1. I replaced the throttle valve once after the first winter I had it, but that was after the winter storage and think the temps did it in.
2. Went thru a few liquid filled pressure gauges, but keep spares on board.
3. Couldn't fine tune the the original DPI pump so I went to one batching and disconnected the DPI. Blend module or similair process sounds like the way to go, and hope it is successful.
4. The main 12V pump has been replaced numerous times and I always keep a spare on board. The last model purchased spring this year from SWS held up for the season but was losing pressure by the time I shut down. I always have a spare on board and was happy with the pump life cycle, it served the rig well.
5. Bulk rinse pays for itself in labor/time saved quickly.
Hope this helped.
V/r Jeff
AC
Call the office at SoftWash Systems and inquire about the 50 gallon blend unit. Best start-up unit.
855-763-8669
9-10 gpm softwashing is a disaster. don't do it. you don't want gas powered equipment of any kind to softwash correctly and safely
tim is dead on. Educated before you buy anything.
I agree. And I hear this month's teacher is Superior
I agree with Tim and Jeff. Definitely go to the academy, and 9-10 gpm gas power is to much chemical waste and to noisy for most projects.
Great advice - gas powered equipment is not only more difficult to do field repairs on, there are communities that look down on loud work equipment during certain hours. a 12 V pump is pretty quiet. You can have a normal volume conversation standing next to an active pump with no trouble hearing. Unless I'm at my pump mixing or something, I never hear my pump.
A 12 volt 7 GPM 100 PSI pump is a good pump, but more power and GPM than you want for roof cleaning. Confucius say, "Do not use a cannon to kill a mosquito!" With the GPM and pressure on that pump you'll find it difficult to manage the amount of cleaning solution you spray on a roof and end up wasting chemicals and possibly causing damage to plants from too much overspray and runoff. It is actually a bit frustrating....take my word for it, my pump is very similar. Call the office at SoftWash Systems and ask for their pumps. The cost of the pump itself is about the same, but it has a lower GPM and lower pressure to help avoid over spraying. It is also fit from end to end with the bleach resistant parts you need to get a longer service life out of your pump, and the pressure and flow are easier to manage to avoid excess runoff. Several high production companies have said great things about these pumps. They were replacing pumps ever month or two, and the SWS pump has lasted much longer. I know money is tight, but when you get a chance, carrying a spare pump is a good idea. if you have a pump die in the middle of a job, you don't really want to have to leave, wait for a replacement pump and come back to finish. Not only is it a hassle, it looks bad and is just downright embarrassing!
And as the gentlemen above said, get to a training class first. They are worth the price of admission, and AC will cover exactly what equipment you need to do the job right, what each item needs to be made out of to be durable, and will be able to answer questions on the spot. I was very OCD in my studying before I went to the training class, watching every Youtube video, reading these forums over and over and asking questions, and everything I learned in 6 months didn't cover 20% of what we learned in class. AC has his sales classes separate now, but if you pay close attention you will get a wealth of sales information too. AC just can't help spilling the beans here and there if you are observant. You will also have a much easier time with sales too because you will know the jargon, what works, what doesn't, what is right, what is dangerous and why, what simple mistakes will cost you thousands that you would likely never think of until the error is made... :0)