We do 60/40 too
60% water/40% 12.5% SH ?
Steve its more of a cost savings. If you mix sh at 50/50 you still save over the cost of a gallon of bleach. The walmart brand bleach is $3 per gallon at 5% as opposed to $2-3 per gallon of 12% (which equals out to $1.5-2 per gallon)
My mix is 2 gal sh to 3 gal water
Ok, so then if I can get 6% bleach at Big Lots for $1.50 a gallon and use that straight with Simple Cherry, it’s pretty much the same as 12.5% cut 60/40 with water?
I ask because I have to pay almost $4 a gallon for 12.5% SH where I am at.
from what I understand bleach can vary from 3-6% sh. If you are buying it at $1.50, you might be buying it weaker than you expect. I use fresh wash, everyone says it amplifies the sh, not sure about that but what I’m doing works.
$4 is rough! But still at $4 cut in half is only a $.50 difference than the cheap stuff at big lots. I would also think that if you bout 20 gal of sh, it would be a hell of a lot easier to store than 40 gal bleach.
yes
Plus who knows how long the stuff from Big Lots has been sitting around. You want this stuff fresh!
One more thing to consider , length of high pressure hose. DS injector will draw more with shorter hose(50-100 feet ) and less with longer
(250-350 feet). You have to adjust amount of SH in your mix , depending on hose length.
The “store brand” bleach is only 3% at best from the factory. Here’s a little dirty secret. It’s bottled at the same factory ((like Clorox)) and cut in half then private labeled. Clorox AT BEST AND FRESH FROM THE FACTORY is 6%. Walmart, Dollar General, Big lots, etc. is 3% AT BEST.
Don’t over think that percentage stuff. 3 gall of 12 % 2 gall of water & soap. Spray on house let it dwell rinse it off collect $ & move on.
I’m seeing 8% in stores now. I grabbed some the other day because my drum was about empty and it cleaned up a painted house just fine after I cut it 50/50 and added Fresh Wash.
Steve, it’s simple math. Sodium hypochlorite stabilizes at around 6% unless it has been further diluted. If the stuff from Big Lots cleans what you need cleaned and you don’t mind all the white jugs then go for it if it makes sense financially. Store bleach is way high on sodium so don’t use it for roofs but it is fine for other stuff.
I wish I knew how many houses and buildings I washed with store bleach and Dawn and how many thousands of dollars that generated.
I think we have all done this in a pinch 
Its about knowing what you are getting and adjusting it accordingly.
I think my main issue was when I added 100 ft of hose to make a total of 300 my injection ratio went south and I was blaming the bleach being too weak. My previous mix was straight dollar store bottle bleach and simple cherry. It always worked great until the injector issue. I was told that I could compensate with a smaller injector.
Steve, more than 200-250 ft of hose and an injector won’t pull. Some say you can put them in line but I never had luck doing that. This is where an x-jet can come in handy.
Walmarts here have 8.25%, and it is decent stuff. We have cut it 50/50 and gotten great results on painted wood and/or vinyl siding when we run low on our supply. The empty bottles can be a pain, but if you aren’t using too much, it’s not the end of the world.
Micheal, is it listed as “outdoor”? I have seen it at lowes and Home Depot for about $6-7 a gallon.
Down here in florida, I know a friend that was telling me that the D.O.T. pulled his friend over for having a pressure washer in his truck. and ended up giving him about $15,000 in fines. something in the effect of , transporting chemicals without proper licences, I haven’t checked on it yet, but it seems they have added alot of rules and regulations on us here. we need another licence, more permits. a licence to transport chemicals. It also is under scrutiny, that the E.P.A. is getting involved for dumping chemicals on the ground, (wth)…
