Well i am highly considering using a portable man-lift, when i get my business started. I have a fear of using the ladder, but the portable man-lift seems like it will be more safer. I would have to ability to stand up, instead of doing the work on the ladder. Now i was just interested in knowing if anyone has ever done this before. I saw some portable man-lifts online, and they can fit into the back of a pick-up truck. But the problem is i haven’t found one that can go over 14 feet yet, but i am still searching for one. So do you think this is a good solution for cleaning residential or commercial windows.
I might be wrong but I don’t see how you could get in between landscapes and other obstacles. Might be ok for commercial, but seems like a waste of time and money for residential
I would stick with 1 story work residential or commercial or both, use a step ladder, 2-piece sectional or a 16 foot ext. Once you are over your fear, and feel comfortable with those then move on to second story work. You can control where and who you give your business card and flyers to, focus on those homes and businesses that you feel comfortable doing, once you get the ladder experience in move on to bigger things. I don’t know what a portable lift would cost, but in a real world setting the ladders mentioned above will be more practical and much cheaper in the long run.
The most practicle lift for residential work is a crawler mounted boom (I.e. Hinowa LL series). Currently a used one in BC for $94,000. Get used to ladders for now.
You are right haven’t thought about how much trouble it would be to move it around other obstacles.
Thanks i just wanted to hear some advice, it seems that a ladder would be better to use in the long run.
Well i just wanted to rent one, i wasn’t looking into buying one i know they are expensive. But 94,000 is a lot to spend.
I have rented lifts a handfull of times over the years for jobs other than WC’g. Most commonly for roof and soffit painting on 200+ year old houses where the soffits jut out 3-4 feet with intricate cornice work. I have also used them for efficiently accessing roof points where a ladder just won’t do the job.
Each time a lift was used, the rental fee was paid by the client. And there-in lies the problem with starting out as you are. I highly doubt that a residential client is going to pay the $100-$400 rental fee for a lift. It [B][U][I]might[/I][/U][/B] be feasable if you have an entire weekend of appointments scheduled so that you can spread out the rental fee across the invoices for several clients. Or you eat the rental fee altogether and consequently net less.
The options for keeping more of the $$ you make are:
- Learn how to use ladders so that you are safe and comfortable
- Learn to poles, starting with extension poles and working towards WFP’s
