Advice On Big Rigs

DOUG BROWN

New member
Hey guys and gals I need some advice. I am not into fleets yet but I do owner/operator big trucks most of which are with polished chrome/aluminum and large sleepers. I am a one man operation. I have a Tuff 3000 PSI @ 5GPM skid with down stream injector and 100' hose. The problems I am having is when I use truck soap it does not always completely clean and often leaves streaks especially underneath the top rail on trailers due to soap getting trapped behind lights and running down after rinse. When I brush it slows me down too much. I have read about two stepping but I am concerned about etching windows and dulling polished aluminum. I get $35.00 per truck, $30.00 per trailer, $10.00 for engine wash and $10.00 tire gloss. A job with all of these services takes about 21/2 to 3 hours by hand. My question is can anyone give any advice what would speed my process up without risking possiblity of damage to truck and are my prices in line? Thanks. Any information or advice would be greatly appreciated.
 
ron p

use a PH acid not a HF acid
phouspheric acid is safer and wont etch glass like the hydrofloric
add a rinse aid to your water to help rinse.
What soap are you useing?
 
THose prices are alright , Is it just a couple of trks. or a big fleet...?


Find your self a good soap ... and rince rince rince ........

It goes by dif. names but , one of the best soaps I have found is "powerbrite"
It works great on alum.

0 waite a min you said polished tanks?

if ya use powerbrite ya gota be carefull

 
Thanks for the info Ron & Dan. Where can I get PH Ron and how safe is it on the polished alum.? As for the soap I'm using its called "E-Z TRUCK WASH CONCENTRATE". It's made by a local distributor. He won't say what is in it. I've tried several and its the best I've found, but it is still not perfect. It does'nt always clean completely and will turn alum. brown if left on too long.
Dan, I've only been in the buisness for about 6 mos. and don't feel confident about a whole fleet yet. I have 12 customers owning 1 truck each and I wash each truck once every 2 weeks.
 
Ask the distributor for the MSDS. YOU are required to have it in your vehicle. If there isno MSDS you and the distributor are in major violation of a ton of different laws. About $250 k worth. You might want to get it.
If it is turning aluminum brown, then it probably has sodium Metasilicates in it. In all likelihood, it also has some NaOH in it as well.
As for the fleet thing, it is a lot different from Owner Operators. More consistent, and one time setting up and tearing donw. the disadvantage is that you are more likely to have the company request reclamation.

Scott Stone
 
RON P

Set-up and brake down 12 times for 1 truck each time sucks.
your soap is caustic thats why it turns the alum. brown.
exsplain how you wash a truck and maybe someone can try and tell you what to use.
i down stream my acid then upstream hot soap.
Some downstream soap , brush, then rinse.
there are lots of ways.
 
All but the sucks part I agree with Ron P,to keep from turning the polished brown with caustic try useing a Al'kline soap.
 
ron p

i dont have bigboys set-up[rig] he can push turn 1 key and a valve or 2,3,4,5,6 and unwind his hose and hes ready to go.
im still working out of a little trailer and buckets no big supply tank either. So the sucks thing is just for me not everyone.
 
Did not know about the MSDS thing. I thought it was only if you have people working with you. I will check into that. As far as for how I wash, trucks with polished aluminum I brush with a bucket of soapy water and for trucks without polished aluminum I downstream soap and rinse.
 
For a one man team its hard to beat 2-stepping with acids.
Use HF acid on alum.
Use PH acid on polished.

Do not aPPLY the HF acid on top of the truck for it to run down on the windsheild,trucks are usually dirtier from the windsheild down,you can prespray the tops with soap before you start your washing if upstreaming,its usually all is needed for the top,as your prespraying the top spray the windsheild with soap it'll keep the HF acid from burning the windsheild if any splashs on it.

You can apply HP acid to the windsheild without harm but its not as good a cleaner as HF acid but it will not hurt polished.

I couldn't name all the soaps I've tried,right now using R109,DNB-1430 and DNB-1433 but still looking for that special wonder soap.I use the 109 and 1433 on polished rigs.

caustic is bad for polished if to strong,use a al'kline soap.
 
BIGBOY,THAT WAS THE ANSWER I WAS LOOKING FOR. THANKS.WILLTHIS ALSO REMOVE THE BAKED ON DIRT,SOOT AND BUG PROTEIN FROM CHROME STACKS? AND USEING THE 2-STEP METHOD ,HOW LONG WOULD IT TAKE YOU TO DO THE BIGGEST RIG W/ POLISHED ALUM. & TRAILER?
OH STEVEN & SCOTT I TALKED TO MY CHEM. MAN TODAY AND I WILL HAVE MY MSDS TOMORROW.:D
 
THE BAKED ON DIRT,SOOT AND BUG PROTEIN FROM CHROME STACKS?.....yes the HF will,sounds if they are over do for a cleaning.

If they are on polished rigs(stacks),you can still use HF on them BUT you'll have to be careful are it'll run down the stack onto the polished tank.I use a stack pad not a stack brush,Delco sales them but you can make your own,I haven't yet b/c the one I ordered long time ago is still brushy brushy,just haveta replace a pad now and when,it's better than a brush if ya use the blue pads,think white pad is the one for it which is ok,the blue one cuts alittle better.

I'm not fast it takes me 45 mins. to do the truck and trailer which also takes me that long on a alum rig,these are grainhaulers I'm talking about with alum and polished hopper bottoms,can do a box rig alittle faster,3 rigs within than a hour and thats without my superman kape on..
 
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