PressureWashingBossPro Blog — Crew App

Surfaces, Square Feet, Stories, Siding and Method: Reading the Pressure Washing Job Card

Under every address in the crew app is one short line that tells the washer what the job is. “House Wash, Driveway · 3,800 sq ft · 2-story · Vinyl · Soft Wash.” It takes three seconds to read, and it answers the questions that used to take a phone call: what did we sell, how big is it, how high is it, what is it made of and how do we clean it.

From the Curb to the Card

Getting to the address is covered in One-Tap Navigation: Getting the Wash Rig From One Driveway to the Next. Once the rig is parked, the job card is the first thing the washer should read, before a hose comes off the reel.

The job details line is the same one the office sees on the lists. It is built from fields on the job, and those fields usually came from the estimate. Details entered on an estimate carry onto the job when the customer approves it, so the person who quoted the house and the person washing it are reading the same information.

Surfaces: What Was Sold

The first part of the line is the list of surfaces on the job: House Wash, Roof Soft Wash, Driveway, Sidewalk, Patio, Deck, Fence, Pool Deck, Gutter Brightening, Storefront, Drive-Thru, Dumpster Pad, Parking Garage or Fleet.

This is the most important part of the card. If it says House Wash and Driveway, the patio is not on the job, no matter how dirty it is. If the homeowner walks out and asks about the patio, the washer can say yes, it can be added, and let the office know. The office adds it as a line item from your own service list, so the invoice matches the work. Doing it for free because the crew was already set up is how washing companies give away money every week.

Square Feet: How Big It Is

Square feet tells the washer how long the job should take and how much chemical to plan for. A 600 sq ft driveway is a quick pass with the surface cleaner. A 3,800 sq ft house is most of a morning.

The square footage often comes from the property map, which can measure square feet and linear feet from the satellite view: driveways, roof areas, fence runs. Estimates can price off those measurements. If the number on the card looks badly wrong once the washer is standing there, a note on the job helps the office fix the measurement before the next quote or the next yearly visit.

Stories: How High It Goes

One story or two changes the setup. It decides how much hose to pull, whether the extension wand comes off the rack, and how the washer reaches the soffits and the top of the gable. A 2-story house on the card at the curb means no surprise halfway through the setup.

Siding or Surface: What It Is Made Of

Vinyl, brick, stucco, wood, fiber cement, stone or concrete. This part of the card is about protecting the property as much as cleaning it. In general terms:

• Vinyl and fiber cement siding are usually soft washed rather than blasted.
• Stucco and wood can be damaged by too much pressure, so crews tend to go gentle.
• Brick and stone vary a lot with age and mortar condition.
• Concrete flatwork is where the surface cleaner earns its keep.

Whatever the surface, the rule is the same: check the manufacturer's guidance and your own experience, and when in doubt, start gentle in a spot nobody looks at.

Method: How to Clean It

The last part of the line is the method: soft wash, pressure wash, hot water or surface cleaner. It was decided when the job was quoted, by someone who looked at the property. Showing it on the card means a new washer does not have to guess, and an experienced one does not have to argue with the office about what was promised. A roof soft wash on the card means nobody gets on that roof with a high-pressure tip.

Below the job details line sit the access notes and past notes, which have their own guides. The access notes are next in Spigots, Gates, Dogs, Plants and Cars: Access Notes in the Pressure Washing Crew App.

Make the Card Worth Reading

A job card only shows what someone entered. The habit that makes it work is simple: fill in the surfaces, square feet, stories, siding and method on every estimate, and let them carry over. For everything else the crew sees, see the pressure washing crew app overview.