RV pricing?

[Southern Stang]

Okay guys, got a pricing question. I've never done an RV before. My GF's dad wants me to do a wash and wax on theirs. Its a 35 ft 2008, don't know the brand but you get the idea. It's not heavily soiled, and is fairly clean. Is there anything special chemical and wax wise needed to do this? Also I have no idea where to start price wise on this thing. Next, after this big guy is onto his vette :)

[CEE DOG]

The key words there are "girlfriends" "dad". That might confuse the pricing issue some. Im the MAN

[dragster]

Wash & wax would be 10 to 15 dollars per foot. I use Meguiars Marine grade products on RV'S & boats. Hope this helps Jim

[Southern Stang]

Thanks jim. Cee Dog, her dad is a fairly wealthy guy, which I think would have no problem with the pricing issue. As he has managed his business pretty well, and continues to do so. Im the MAN:dblthumb2:

[Mike Phillips]

I've detailed 2 RV's in my life, that was enough.

Lots of real estate, lots of work...


RV's with gel-coat finishes will oxidize
RV's with actual paint will get swirls and scratches

The goal for either will be to wash and then use a one-step cleaner/wax and hopefully with a DA Polisher.

For an oxidized finish you'll want to use a strong cleaner/wax so you can remove the oxidation and leave behind a clear finish that's protected. For a painted RV you can match the aggressiveness or lack thereof for the cleaner/wax to the condition of the paint but you still want to use a one-step product unless you have lots of time to invest into dedicated steps.


Wash
Clean or correct the paint (remove swirls, scratches and water spots)
Polish
Protect

Keep in mind that each step requires you to then use your arms to wipe the entire RV down to remove leftover residue.

The best of all worlds is a light colored, painted RV in good shape that you can simply wash and then machine apply a light cleaning or non-cleaning polymer sealant.


:)

[Wills.WindowsAndWheels]

I've detailed 2 RV's in my life, that was enough.

Lots of real estate, lots of work...


RV's with gel-coat finishes will oxidize
RV's with actual paint will get swirls and scratches
The goal for either will be to wash and then use a one-step cleaner/wax and hopefully with a DA Polisher.

For an oxidized finish you'll want to use a strong cleaner/wax so you can remove the oxidation and leave behind a clear finish that's protected. For a painted RV you can match the aggressiveness or lack thereof for the cleaner/wax to the condition of the paint but you still want to use a one-step product unless you have lots of time to invest into dedicated steps.


Wash
Clean or correct the paint (remove swirls, scratches and water spots)
Polish
Protect
Keep in mind that each step requires you to then use your arms to wipe the entire RV down to remove leftover residue.

The best of all worlds is a light colored, painted RV in good shape that you can simply wash and then machine apply a light cleaning or non-cleaning polymer sealant.


:)

Hmm well that helps me some...I wish I woulda had more of a price to go off of before I bid my guy today...dont do like me and underbid Southern Stang, especially if he's loaded lol! (just kiddin).

The guy I'm doin has a 31' and some change 5th wheel. He didnt want the roof done (i'm not sure if thats normal or not) but he wanted a wash/wax and rims polished. Only Exterior work but its a pretty big boy. I only bid it at $150 (yes yes...i know lol) but its my first one and i'm going to make sure to let him know we cut him a great deal BECAUSE he's our first, and to please not give prices to anyone he recommends us to...as i'm sure the job is worth at least $100 more (maybe he'll tip? lol)

So is there a way we can tell if its clear coat or gel coat. If he's unsure as to what it is...will a Megs Marine Wax as Jim suggested be safe even if it does end up turning out to be a clear coat?

[CEE DOG]

Thanks jim. Cee Dog, her dad is a fairly wealthy guy, which I think would have no problem with the pricing issue. As he has managed his business pretty well, and continues to do so. Im the MAN:dblthumb2:
In that case its a wonderfull thing!

[FastZR1]

Gel-coat will be on a fiberglass RV or boat.
Actual paint will be on an aluminum or some sort of metal exterior RV.

You'll know what you are dealing with as soon as you see it.

[nittyv12]

$10-15/foot is a bout right. 3 weeks ago i detailed an RV (wash and wax) and it kicked my @$$. i used mequiars marine RV wax. it smelled good and was easy to work with. still unsure if i would do another one. lots of real estate and little cover from the sun. drink and bring h20.

[Tom N]

I did A 30 FT 5th wheel today and charged $450.
RV`s and boats are a lot of work and if you intend to do it right then charge accordingly. Rarely can you just wash and wax a gelcoat RV unless it is done very regularly.

[Southern Stang]

Wills, good luck on the 5th wheel! Over all the rv is fairly clean on the outside which is very good. I'll talk to him on pricing soon. We just got back from a trip to GA and the weekend prior VA so the truck and trailer is in need of a major overhaul! The trailers got plenty of Diesel soot :) :props: down the side, and the trucks beyond nasty inside and out. Along with fresh coke covering the passengers floor board. Apparently some people have no clue what they are doing when hauling trailers going from 25 to 65 then back to 35 back to 60 then decide to stop and make a turn out of nowhere. It's kind of harder to stop this thing than most people think. Literally had the trailer locked up and ended up in the other lane, thankfully no one was coming. :eek:

[Wills.WindowsAndWheels]

Wills, good luck on the 5th wheel! Over all the rv is fairly clean on the outside which is very good. I'll talk to him on pricing soon. We just got back from a trip to GA and the weekend prior VA so the truck and trailer is in need of a major overhaul! The trailers got plenty of Diesel soot :) :props: down the side, and the trucks beyond nasty inside and out. Along with fresh coke covering the passengers floor board. Apparently some people have no clue what they are doing when hauling trailers going from 25 to 65 then back to 35 back to 60 then decide to stop and make a turn out of nowhere. It's kind of harder to stop this thing than most people think. Literally had the trailer locked up and ended up in the other lane, thankfully no one was coming. :eek:


Wow...crazy!
Well we worked on the 5th wheel today. For washing we just used Dawn soap (a lot of it, you'll have to refill your bucket plenty of times lol) just to really get all the grime off of it, plus the owner said he use to just use car wax on it, and thou it looked like it had been a while since ANY wax was put on it, I wanted to use the dawn to wash it down real good. Used a brush on the high parts and wash mitt on everything else i could reach from a step stool (which was about 80% of it).

Here is the wax we used 32-oz Meguiar's Flagship Premium Marine Wax (http://www.autodetailingsolutions.net/m6332.html)

I like it :). Heres what i learned...first off wax going onto fiberglass is a lot different than going onto clear coat! In my case, since the paint was pretty 'dry' so to speak, it soaked up the wax...so i found that how usually working in 3x3 ft areas with wax on cars is good....sometimes I had to narrow it down to 2x2 ft spaces because if i didnt, after applying and wiping off (i wiped off as soon as i was done applying) there would be a few spots here n there that i coudl see it missed...because the surface wasnt 'smooth' like a car...it had a strange texture to it (look closely at your g/fs dads and you may see the same thing).

I also found that something of this size can eat up a pad pretty quick. I used a Megs softbuff Polishing pad (there was some oxidation so since the wax had some cleaners in it, i opted for the polishing pad over the finishing pad) that was 6.5"...and it did a number on it. Its a lot of area...decal ink (at least on this one) ended up on my pad. You will have to clean your pad A LOT so have plenty of terry cloths with you (unless you can talk him into buying you a pad washer lol).

The guy ended up really loving the work we did, and after telling him we really underbid it etc...he came back out an hour or so later when we were only 1/2 done...and asked me what i would have charged him if i had known the amount of work it would have taken. I told him I probably would have done $8-10/ft and asked him his thoughts on that from a customers standpoint. He said to him it would be well worth it because A. We did great work and put more into it than anyone ever had (and he bought it new in 02') and had it looking better than it ever had. And B. He wanted us to come back out next year and do it again. He also said his neighbor wanted us to give him a bid.

After telling me that he then said he'd make the check out for $250 instead of the $150 we had agreed on. I told him no that I had misquoted and that was my mistake, but he insisted it was well worth it and with the hours we'd put in he had no problem paying it.

So thou I misbid the job...I did read the guy right as far as he seemed like a pretty nice guy who wasnt gonna break my balls lol....and ended up tipping quite nicely and seems like we'll have a repeat customer already.

My advice to you is go at least $8/ft for wash and wax...IF its in decent shape and a light color. If its in really bad shape...and/or a dark color...i'd go more.
At first i thought that anything more than 8 a foot was too much, but after tackeling this thing...I can tell you its worth every penny and you will WORK to earn every penny.

Be sure you have a nice size pad...and if you have a more 'used' one...use it, not a brand new one. Personally I think i'll be leaning towards $10/ft from now on, because even just a 'wax' takes a lot of work...simply because of the beating these things take and the fact that most are in the sun almost all the time.

Also note that this was for JUST exterior...interior (as in your case) is a whole seperate job...and i'd charge it as a seperate job...especially if your cleaning up all the crap you listed! I should also note I didnt have to do the top of this thing either (it has a canvas top for the record). But i did get up there and use a power nozel to spray it down for him.

I'll try to post some pics for you to see tomorrow if I can. Give that wax a try thou...its good stuff...just make sure you use enough...put a good 'X' bead on your pad...you'll need it!

[NuthinFancy]

Are the prices you guys are suggesting include your materials?

[NuthinFancy]

When you are pricing per foot, what $$$$ per hour are you "hoping" to get?

[Cruzscarwash]

So if it's a 40 ft at $10 a ft that's only $400 for the entire event correct or is it $10 a ft per 40 ft side so it would be $800??