Problem with surface cleaner

[Speed's wash]

I did a job last night with my 24in steel eagle surface cleaner and I noticed that is some spots you can see perfect circle marks left by the surface cleaner. What is causing this? How can I fix it? Did I leave it in one place to long or should I replace the nozzels.
Please help I am going back out there tonight!

 

[Jhignutt]

I have no idea but I have wondered why my surface cleaner seems to out clean the wand like next to a wall for example . It seems as if the surface cleaner is taking the top layer of cream off the concrete b/c you can definately tell where the two tools have been used.

 

[Christopher]

I have made those circles in the past. For me, it has happened when I pull the trigger on the gun and wait a couple of seconds before I start moving. Now I start moving then pull the trigger on the gun and no more circles. Just make sure you get the area where you started because sometimes when I have started I left some areas that still need to be cleaned so I just go back or use the wand. Hope this helps.

 

[Carolina Prowash]

Halos are left when you are still too long in one spot. Like Christopher suggested, don't pull the trigger until you are moving and see if that is better. If you continue to have problems, you may not have the proper tips.

If it appears the creamcoat is being removed - too much pressure is being used...back the end of the wand away from the surface or change your tip.


JUST A REMINDER - NAME AND PHONE NUMBER SHOULD APPEAR IN ALL SIGNATURE LINES!

Celeste

 

[JohnB]

my homemade surface cleaner never does this.. But that junky $1200 dollar 30" adjustable steel eagle leaves marks all the time... I have to walk real slow with the steel eagle but with my 20" homemade job I can run a good sprint..

I also always use HOT Water.... I do this because it cleans faster and my customers like to see all that steam and stuff..

 

[Speed's wash]

Report!

I went by and looked at the job yesterday and there were the ring marks all over the sidewalks, but there was none on the parking lot. The concrete was poured in January.
I tried to start moving when I pressed the gun but I could still see the ring marks in places. Do you think that it might just be that the concrete is sub standard or should I try some different nozzel sizes? I think it has 15 degree tips now!
I also noticed that it looked like the top cream layer was being removed because the surface cleaner left stripes about 6in wide up and down the sidewalk like where I overlaped you can see where it removed to cream layer and on other sections it did not. It really looked bad to me but the customer thinks that it looks great.
Any ideas of how I can fix this if it happens again? What is the proper nozzel size for a 24in steel eagle? Would hurt to try 25 degree nozzels? Any suggestions would be great. I kind of pisses me off that the surface cleaner did this. I have not done many jobs with the surface cleaner but this is the first time that it has taken the top layer off of the concrete.
Could it be that on older concrete the cream layer is already gone?

Grady Speed
214-492-9727

 

[Carolina Prowash]

It's funny how folks think concrete is pretty much indestructible - it's a picky animal. Some concrete is yes, much more substandard than others and will halo or stripe quicker. Raising the bars (if you have an adjustable deck) will help. You should not be having this happen all the time though.

Celeste

 

[Speed's wash]

I do not have an adjustable deck so I should probably change out the nozzels!
I noticed the same thing happening one time when I was doing new construction clean-up, my surface cleaner started to eat away at the top layer of concrete so I just stopped and used my wand. I am probably producing to much pressure. I have a 3000psi 5GPM at 250 degrees.
Also, does everyone wash the surface after they use the surface cleaner. I have noticed that the surface cleaner will get the dirt off the surface but unless you rinse with the wand the dirt just settles back down.
When doing big jobs it sure takes along time when you have to go over the area twice.

Grady Speed
214-492-9727

 

[Carolina Prowash]

We do a good bit of new construction - you have to be very careful with that concrete or at least we do because they have us cleaning less than 30 days after pouring. This is not in the best interest of the substrate as it hasn't had long enough to cure. It is susceptible to top coat removal at that point and we use NO chems at that stage as well. We use the surface cleaner to lift up the dirt and then rinse with a wand.

Celeste

 

[Speed's wash]

last night I checked my nozzel position with the guide provided and I found that they were out of wack a little bit but they were not to bad.Could the difference cause striping on the surface of the concrete.


Grady Speed
214-492-9727

 

[Christopher]

Always ask how old the concrete is. The new concrete will be delicate eventhough they are driving on it and treating it like it was 10 years old. I just did a job with 30,000 square feet of concrete. They wanted the tire marks removed. I decided to let the chemicals do most of the cleaning. I checked in a couple of out of the way spots and the surface cleaner and wand would remove the cream. I had to reduce the pressure and move faster and leave very little overlap. I am thinking of getting some extra tips for reducing the pressure but still if you go too slow you might still remove some of the cream. I tell them up front that this is new concrete and you cannot usa a lot of pressure on it. I used some of Pressuretek's F-18 and it got most of the tire marks out. The ones that did not come out will not come out without destroying the new concrete. I am thinking that maybe after a year or two that maybe the marks could come out since the concrete will be able to handle more pressure. Using the F-18 I was able to move the surface cleaner quite a bit faster. I might be doing another job for the same company...Tire marks already there on brand new concrete not even 30 days old. The tire marks that would not come out are where a forklift with off-road tires were making tight turns while carring heavy pallets so the tire marks in some spots dug into the new concrete. All this was pointed out and explained before I put in the bid for the job and I did a demo spot so they could see the results and know what to expect. Hope this helps.

 

[mtngoat]

Try smaller nozzles 25/30 and if your deck is not adjustable maybe come up with a way to raise the deck.Maybe some big heavy washers and longer bolts in the wheels?Or some sort of spacer to raise the deck.
Just my 2 cents.

 

[Speed's wash]

What will happen to the concrete if the cream is removed? The concrete that I cleaned the other night was poured in January 2005.I would think that it would be durable enough to withstand the pressure by now.
The parking lot looked okay but it did show some striping. The sidewalks on the otherhand showed halo marks,striping,and it looked like the cream was being removed because in some places the concrete looked real bright and other areas looked like a cream color. It was stained with red clay so that might be what I was removing. I wish I could just figure all of this out because it is about to drive me crazy.


Grady Speed
214-492-9727

 

[Speed's wash]

Does anyone out there have the same problem with to much pressure from a 24in steel eagle? Is this common?


Grady Speed
214-492-9727

 

[JohnB]

When I Built my Surface Cleaner,, My Machine calls for a number 4 nozzle so I got two # 2 Nozzles and I had a little striping , then I got two 2.5 nozzles this gave me less pressure but more volume .. When I run the surface cleaner my 3500 psi pump puts out about 2600 psi which is about 2100 psi with 150 ft of hose at the surface cleaner.. my gpm was raised from 4 gpm to roughly 4.5 gpm by using the slightly bigger nozzles.. also own my 20 inch surface cleaner I use a 25 degree nozzle instead of the recommended 15 degree. It seems to work pretty good. Oh yeah and HOT WATER.....

I loose a little heat with the bigger nozzles but I still manage to hit about 175 degrees at the surface instead of 200 degrees tha a # 4 would normally put out...

Oh Yes dont forget to rinse....I always upstream a little blech in my rinse water to make the waste water clear that way I don't have to rinse all the way down the road....LOL ...

For tough Stains on concrete I use Caustic soda mixed real strong in a pump up sprayer and then go over it with the surface cleaner.... Then rinse.. the caustic helps with the striping problem too.. The use of chemicals breakdown the grease and grime and keep them from re-adhereing to the surface therfore you will have less steaking...


Ok My Hands Hurt I will quit typing for now .. I did a 12 hour hood cleaning , concrete cleaning and fire system inspection at olive garden last night all by myself.. and at 39 years old ... I THINK I BROKE SOMETHING>>>>

 

[Christopher]

Hello Speed,
I have used both the 15 degree and 25 degree tips in my machine and the 25 degree tips are fanning out the spray a little bit more and it helps prevent some of the striping. I think you are dealing with concrete that is just too new or it is sub-standard. Do a check for yourself and to put your mind at ease....Go to a friend, relative or neighbor that has a driveway that is at least 10 years old and try your techniques the same way you have been doing and that will tell you. Remember...Start walking before you pull the trigger...I know that sometimes you do not have the room to do this but do this and you can always go backwards to get the the starting point...just keep moving because a lot of times if you stop moving and the spray bars are still moving it is likely you will leave a cleaning circle so you must keep moving as long as you have the trigger pulled. The surface cleaner is just like a large wand...you still have to rinse behind it to get rid of the dirt and other stuff unless you get the vacuum attachment surface cleaner and have the vacuum system and then it will clean and vacuum as you go so when you are done...you are done because it is vacuuming as you go cleaning up the water, dirt and debris. I wish I had one of these for a lot of jobs because you would not have to rinse. Try out your machine on good concrete and tell us how it went.

 

[GrimeDOg]

Do Not

Do not leave the surface cleaner on a deck - spinning. Keep it moving at all times.. Concrete in my opinion is a different story.. I came across a situation this week, where these black spots wouldn't come clean. I poured straight bleach on them as a test , and they disappeared...Just a tip...


W.Bohn www.grimedog.com ----> Cumming, Ga.

 

[allgreen]

Streaking

I have a 30" Hydro-Tek surface cleaner and can't seem to get it right. I get a 4 to 6 inch stripe on every pass. I tried over lapping more, I tried less, I tried chems and I just can't get it right. Doesn't matter if it's old or new concrete. I have tried it hot and cold. At my witts end and I'm waiting for that one Customer from Hell to tear into me. Any suggestions would be greatly appriciated.
Thanks

 

[Spencer]

I have a 30" Hydro-Tek surface cleaner and can't seem to get it right. I get a 4 to 6 inch stripe on every pass. I tried over lapping more, I tried less, I tried chems and I just can't get it right. Doesn't matter if it's old or new concrete. I have tried it hot and cold. At my witts end and I'm waiting for that one Customer from Hell to tear into me. Any suggestions would be greatly appriciated.
Thanks

Do they go away when the concrete is dry?

 

[Scott D.]

What tips are you using?