What People?? You have alot of good people trying to also help the industry.. There all around you.. Yesterday is gone. You can't get it back. But today is a new day and it only gets better. This is going to be a break out year for some newer people In this industry to get noticed as being experts along with some giants from the past.
To bad David Olsen passed on. He was an ultra expert in this industry who influenced many in such a positive way. He won't be forgotten.. I miss him already.. I truly looked up to him when I started out... A true Powerwashing friend and Expert.
Pressure Wash / Power Wash Discharges Compliance and Enforcement Quick Finder
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Section 301 of the Clean Water Act (CWA) prohibits a point source discharge of pollutants into waters of the United States without an NPDES permit. To legally discharge wash water, a pressure wash operator must obtain an NPDES permit for each discharge location. Due to the fact that many pressure washer operators are mobile, it is not realistic to pre-determine discharge locations and obtain permits for each location. Additionally, most NPDES permitted process water discharges require treatment and analysis of the discharge, which may not be practical for many pressure washers.
The most common method of compliance with the CWA is to prevent process wastewater discharges to waters of the United States. If your discharge does not reach waters of the United States, then there are no requirements under the CWA. Examples of compliance without a discharge are vacuuming up the process wastewater or berming the process water and allowing it to evaporate. An additional method of compliance is to discharge the water to an NPDES permitted sanitary sewer system (the municipality may have additional pretreatment requirements before accepting your discharge). The most common form of non-compliance is to discharge the process water into a storm sewer system or into a city street that drains to a storm water inlet. Most storm drainage systems in Region 6 discharge directly to waters of the United States without treatment, which means anything that discharges into a storm drain is the same as putting it directly into the waterbody receiving the storm drain discharge.
Vehicle Washing
Source http://www.epa.gov/region6/6en/w/pw.htm
Washing vehicles is an example of a process water discharge of pollutants requiring an NPDES permit if it reaches waters of the United States. EPA recommends that companies or individuals take their vehicles to car washes*. If a car wash is not available, NPDES permit requirements may be avoided and impacts on waters of the United States minimized if vehicles are washed in a vegetated or grassy area where the wash water will be absorbed into the ground instead of allowing it to run into the street and then into a storm drain. There may be additional requirements if chemicals (detergents, waxes, etc.) are improperly used or if the absorbed water will reach an underground water body.
*A properly operated car wash discharges all of its wash water to a municipal sanitary sewer system that treats the wastewater before discharging from the wastewater treatment plant to waters of the U.S. Most municipalities have a pretreatment program requiring car washes to perform some type of pretreatment such as discharging through a sand filter and grease trap.
Houston has gotten better, I'm happy to say it not over but its come a long way by only very little Help. When JW goes to Houston will be there.
http://contractorsfoundation.com/classes-on-epa-compliant-power-washing/
Please Henry tell people how they can avoid the MS-4 as a practice, talk about how reduction of pollution's increases a rain events chance of further pollution. Hire JErry
Now about MS-4, the current classes from the Contractors Foundation go in to quite a bit of detail on the MS-4 requirements and everything else we could find on EPA compliance.
Jonn, give Ron a call and he can probably teach you more about what you want to learn than most of the other classes out there, he has been doing this business for about 27 years and has helped to put Houston in their place and start to get on track, nobody else would bother (conflicts of interest probably by selling equipment) or want to help much with Houston.
If Ron did not go there several times and have talks with those clueless people, the situation there would probably be a lot worse.
If you look at it that way, Ron did more than the 2 orgs wish they could have done, Ron did more and knew more than the 2 orgs wish they knew, Ron helped more than the 2 orgs wish they could have helped and Ron told those clueless people how things are with the drains, how they work, which drain is which, etc..... You probably could have seen question marks appear over their heads when discussing these issues.
So a short class by one of the orgs and a piece of paper after paying your fee is not a lot compared to what ron could teach you over the phone and by sending you some pictures.
I did not know what a dry well was until Ron started talking about them many years ago here on PWI and he posted pictures of them, go and do searches for dry wells and look at those.
Walmart, Sam's Club, Target, Best Buy, Circuit City (when they were in business), Home Depot, Lowes and other store and district store managers had no clue that those were dry wells in the parking lots, those are not storm drains, those don't go to the sanitary sewer.
None of these orgs had this kind of info but wish they did and if any of them learned it from Ron, they sure did not try to volunteer the info to try to help out with the Houston issue where Ron spent his own time and expenses to go to Houston and help set them straight.
So, after reading all of this, I would say that when it comes to the MS-4, storm drains and sanitary sewer systems, Ron has more info by far than probably anyone else that is on the bbs, in the orgs or sells equipment/chemicals and has done more to help than any of those people or orgs.
It would be a very informative call and you would learn more and then have more info about these issues than probably most of the guys out there teaching the enviro classes or the students after taking the classes.
Ron will help you out if you let him. Help Ron Help You. (similar to Jerry McGuire saying)
Hey Chris I talk to Ron all the time. I love your Jerry McGuire remark.lolJonn, give Ron a call and he can probably teach you more about what you want to learn than most of the other classes out there, he has been doing this business for about 27 years and has helped to put Houston in their place and start to get on track, nobody else would bother (conflicts of interest probably by selling equipment) or want to help much with Houston.
If Ron did not go there several times and have talks with those clueless people, the situation there would probably be a lot worse.
If you look at it that way, Ron did more than the 2 orgs wish they could have done, Ron did more and knew more than the 2 orgs wish they knew, Ron helped more than the 2 orgs wish they could have helped and Ron told those clueless people how things are with the drains, how they work, which drain is which, etc..... You probably could have seen question marks appear over their heads when discussing these issues.
So a short class by one of the orgs and a piece of paper after paying your fee is not a lot compared to what ron could teach you over the phone and by sending you some pictures.
I did not know what a dry well was until Ron started talking about them many years ago here on PWI and he posted pictures of them, go and do searches for dry wells and look at those.
Walmart, Sam's Club, Target, Best Buy, Circuit City (when they were in business), Home Depot, Lowes and other store and district store managers had no clue that those were dry wells in the parking lots, those are not storm drains, those don't go to the sanitary sewer.
None of these orgs had this kind of info but wish they did and if any of them learned it from Ron, they sure did not try to volunteer the info to try to help out with the Houston issue where Ron spent his own time and expenses to go to Houston and help set them straight.
So, after reading all of this, I would say that when it comes to the MS-4, storm drains and sanitary sewer systems, Ron has more info by far than probably anyone else that is on the bbs, in the orgs or sells equipment/chemicals and has done more to help than any of those people or orgs.
It would be a very informative call and you would learn more and then have more info about these issues than probably most of the guys out there teaching the enviro classes or the students after taking the classes.
Ron will help you out if you let him. Help Ron Help You. (similar to Jerry McGuire saying)
Hey Ron, I've never met Jerry in Person but I have talked to him quite a few times on the phone when we were getting ready to clean the Lincoln Memorial, and he's a very knowledgeable guy. I would be happy to talk to him or anyone else that has a good training course for the power washing industry, anytime!
Now about MS-4, the current classes from the Contractors Foundation go in to quite a bit of detail on the MS-4 requirements and everything else we could find on EPA compliance.
Honestly I think it's pretty easy to meet them, and to provide EPA compliant cleaning services if you know what's involved. That's why our classes don't push buying equipment, we always suggest taking the course before you buy any equipment, so you can make an educated choice on what equipment you need, or if you need any equipment at all for the work that you do.
Right on Henry.. That's all I want to do. I read and listened to Ron when he talks or blogs about Enviro Cleaning, I've taken the PWNA environmental certification in the past when Pete had it, and for the future I'm looking at getting as much education on this side of the industry as I can thru multiple Classes and Certifications.In the 23 years ive been power washing ive learned quite a bit, and Ive always been a big believer in learning everything I can for my companies because they support my family, and all of my employees families as well. *
Ron definitely knows what hes talking about but laws and regulations change all the time, and from place to place, so just talking to Ron, Jerry, Everett or myself isn't good enough, not *when it comes to protecting your livelihood. You should do far more than that just chat with a few people, after all it's your company, not Ron's or anyone else's. *
I think Ron and and Jerry would probably agree with Everett and I, that educating yourself is important, and people should take advantage of any information they can get, because no job is exactly like another one and the local law authorities and municipalities in his area may have some different rules and standards than we have here in Maryland. *But I'm not just talking about EPA stuff here.
I do know what im talking about though. *I've cleaned an 8 story building that was 20' from the Chesapeake bay on three sides, I've cleaned retaining walls around lakes that went right to the edge of the water, I've also cleaned some decent sized boats as well that I would have never considered if I didn't take the time to get educated on this stuff.
Because if I couldn't prove to the local EPA officials for these projects that I knew the laws and, prove to them that I could do these jobs in compliance they would still be waiting to get cleaned because no one else at the pre bid meetings could answer their questions but me at the time. *
For example, in doing my own research for the Lincoln memorial, I had to get a copy of the blueprints to track where the drain systems ran, because there were drains at the bottom of the stairs and no one knew where they went. * After reading the plans i found out that they fed into the reflecting pool and into the Potomac river, so we had to find a way to divert the runoff away from the drains. *I'm sure Jerry will be happy when I say this, but we used Two of his PEV2 scirocco vacuum systems to do it, and they worked great!
But let me tell you another story about a pre bid conference that I was at a couple months ago*for a decent sized contract. * After they went over all their detailed specs on equipment and some details on EPA compliance. * I asked if they had any training requirements as well, and they all looked up kind of surprised and said there is training for power washing? *I said sure, with pressure washing there are a lot of variables involed with cleaners and different equipment. *They seemed quite surprised that there was training and started asking some questions about it and said they didnt realize how much there was to know about the cleaners, flow rates, heat and pressure that we use in our industry. *At that moment i think i actually saw our industry raise the bar a little bit. *
Then they asked how many people at the meeting had taken any training in the industry and 3 of us raised our hands out of about 20 people in the room. *At that point, I could see them mentally check off the contractors in the room and their opinions of the three of us went up quite a bit for the three of us. *
Then they looked at everyone in the room and said, do you all think that training is really important for a contract like this? * Then, before anyone could speak, one of the other guys with training spoke up (I'll just call him dumbass to protect his anonymity) and he said nah, if youve been doing this for a few years you dont need it.*
*Now if your wondering why I nicknamed this guy dumbass, it's because the job we were all bidding on was a state college. *I still can't believe this guy said education wasn't important when he was bidding a job for a college, a place dedicated to learning for christ sakes! *I still cant believe anyone would make a boneheaded comment like that, especially one of the guys with training!*
To add insult to the injury, that this dumbass caused to the power washing industry, he also lowballed the bid and undercut even the saddest looking outfits I've seen in the area. *The bids ranged in price from about 20,000 - 80,000. *In case your wondering, my bid was 30,000 and honestly, I'd rather have given the bid to the other trained contractor if I'd won it, then to see the dumbass get it, because at least he invested his time and money into improving his company, and the industry by educating himself, and he didn't kick our industry in the gut by saying training and education isn't necessary in the power washing industry. *
I honestly believe that anyone that doesnt invest in their companies future with training to improve your services skills, your business skills and your marketing skills, to improve your company is making a huge mistake.
In the 23 years ive been power washing ive learned quite a bit, and Ive always been a big believer in learning everything I can for my companies because they support my family, and all of my employees families as well. *
Ron definitely knows what hes talking about but laws and regulations change all the time, and from place to place, so just talking to Ron, Jerry, Everett or myself isn't good enough, not *when it comes to protecting your livelihood. You should do far more than that just chat with a few people, after all it's your company, not Ron's or anyone else's. *
I think Ron and and Jerry would probably agree with Everett and I, that educating yourself is important, and people should take advantage of any information they can get, because no job is exactly like another one and the local law authorities and municipalities in his area may have some different rules and standards than we have here in Maryland. *But I'm not just talking about EPA stuff here.
I do know what im talking about though. *I've cleaned an 8 story building that was 20' from the Chesapeake bay on three sides, I've cleaned retaining walls around lakes that went right to the edge of the water, I've also cleaned some decent sized boats as well that I would have never considered if I didn't take the time to get educated on this stuff.
Because if I couldn't prove to the local EPA officials for these projects that I knew the laws and, prove to them that I could do these jobs in compliance they would still be waiting to get cleaned because no one else at the pre bid meetings could answer their questions but me at the time. *
For example, in doing my own research for the Lincoln memorial, I had to get a copy of the blueprints to track where the drain systems ran, because there were drains at the bottom of the stairs and no one knew where they went. * After reading the plans i found out that they fed into the reflecting pool and into the Potomac river, so we had to find a way to divert the runoff away from the drains. *I'm sure Jerry will be happy when I say this, but we used Two of his PEV2 scirocco vacuum systems to do it, and they worked great!
But let me tell you another story about a pre bid conference that I was at a couple months ago*for a decent sized contract. * After they went over all their detailed specs on equipment and some details on EPA compliance. * I asked if they had any training requirements as well, and they all looked up kind of surprised and said there is training for power washing? *I said sure, with pressure washing there are a lot of variables involed with cleaners and different equipment. *They seemed quite surprised that there was training and started asking some questions about it and said they didnt realize how much there was to know about the cleaners, flow rates, heat and pressure that we use in our industry. *At that moment i think i actually saw our industry raise the bar a little bit. *
Then they asked how many people at the meeting had taken any training in the industry and 3 of us raised our hands out of about 20 people in the room. *At that point, I could see them mentally check off the contractors in the room and their opinions of the three of us went up quite a bit for the three of us. *
Then they looked at everyone in the room and said, do you all think that training is really important for a contract like this? * Then, before anyone could speak, one of the other guys with training spoke up (I'll just call him dumbass to protect his anonymity) and he said nah, if youve been doing this for a few years you dont need it.*
*Now if your wondering why I nicknamed this guy dumbass, it's because the job we were all bidding on was a state college. *I still can't believe this guy said education wasn't important when he was bidding a job for a college, a place dedicated to learning for christ sakes! *I still cant believe anyone would make a boneheaded comment like that, especially one of the guys with training!*
To add insult to the injury, that this dumbass caused to the power washing industry, he also lowballed the bid and undercut even the saddest looking outfits I've seen in the area. *The bids ranged in price from about 20,000 - 80,000. *In case your wondering, my bid was 30,000 and honestly, I'd rather have given the bid to the other trained contractor if I'd won it, then to see the dumbass get it, because at least he invested his time and money into improving his company, and the industry by educating himself, and he didn't kick our industry in the gut by saying training and education isn't necessary in the power washing industry. *
I honestly believe that anyone that doesnt invest in their companies future with training to improve your services skills, your business skills and your marketing skills, to improve your company is making a huge mistake.