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Scorecard · Atlanta, GA

Pressure washing driveways and houses

68/100

How much does it cost to start a pressure washing business in Atlanta? $6,000–$18,000 in Atlanta, GA, on the figures below.

Profit
A
An Atlanta driveway is $180–$260 for two hours of work. A house wash is $450–$700 for half a day. Chemicals and fuel are under $25 a job.
Difficulty
B
A Georgia LLC, general liability, and water reclamation rules if runoff hits a storm drain on commercial work. Residential work needs no trade licence.
Capital
B$6,000–$18,000
A 4 GPM commercial washer with surface cleaner is $3,200–$6,500, a used trailer or truck bed setup $2,500–$9,000, tanks and hose $1,200.

Break-even

The number that has to be true
12 driveways a month at $220
Fixed costs a month
$1,600
The assumption
March to October stays booked; two winter months carry no revenue.

Opening for less

All three together take $9,900 off: $18,000 becomes $8,100.

  • Mount the washer in a pickup bed instead of buying a trailer rig

    −$6,000

    Costs you: No room for a soft-wash tank, so house washes stay off the price list

  • Buy the washer used from an operator leaving the trade

    −$2,400

    Costs you: No warranty on a pump that costs $900 to replace

  • Sell door to door on the street you are already working

    −$1,500

    Costs you: Your Saturdays, and a lot of doors that do not open

How you’d do it

What you need

  • A 4 GPM machine: 2 GPM consumer units cannot finish a driveway in two hours
  • General liability, roughly $900 a year, because a wand strips paint
  • Before-and-after photographs of ten local jobs
  • A plan for December to February, when the phone stops

First 3 moves

  1. 1Wash five driveways free in one subdivision and knock on the neighbours' doors the same day.
  2. 2Price three Atlanta competitors and undercut nobody: match and photograph better.
  3. 3Add soft washing only after 30 driveways have paid for the tank.

The hardest part

Seasonality with no recurring revenue: every month starts at zero and the winter is long.

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