Chewing Gum Removal Steam Cleaner

boyo8023

boyo8023

New member
What do you think about this machine. Steam cleaner vac. Over 300deg. temps. Good for tile cleaning also. Gum control may be a good monthly service to offer hotels, restaurants, etc. Waste of money $2500.00 or good investment?
 

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I suppose it depends on how long it takes to "pop" the gum off compared to a hot pressure washer. Usually it's more than gum that is trying to be removed although I could see it being good on certain types of jobs.
 
There are uses for those kind of machines but they will leave clean spots in the dirty concrete which will also look bad unless the customer understands this beforehand.

There are places that this type of machine would be a good idea, I have been thinking about one for many years now but never pulled the trigger.

The brushes are about $12 on up and they don't last too long.

There are a few guys on the bbs that have similar machines, the gum buster machines.

The company that makes the one you pictured claims that they are the best, blah, blah, blah, etc.......I tried dealing with them a few times but ended up catching them in lies, ended up hanging up on them and the owner himself (a prick) called me back several times just to argue about me catching them in lies. They have a nice website and have a lot of products but I would hate to deal with them on warranty issues as I don't trust them. If I remember correctly there are a few companies out there re-labeling those steam machines but I believe that they are made by Daimer.

At the Houston meeting a few years ago I talked to a rep to bring one down to demo and show it for us to see and he would not even consider it unless someone had a check there to buy it on the spot, before the demo. Wow. I hate dealing with dumbass high-pressure salesmen who think that they can manipulate you into buying by using what those dumbasses call "swag" and other nonsense to try to justify their manipulation and high-pressure nonsense. I called him out on it and got into an argument and finally just hanged up as he was not willing to show the equipment, just try to manipulate a sale. O Well.
 
I say if you own a hot water pressure washer, with some modification, you would out power these machines by far, with no brushing. You may need to add vacuum.

The disadvantage of a pressure washer, it may cost more to operate (depends on the rate of cleaning), noise and indoor operation.

Temp is key you should at least hit 300 deg and use a steam nozzle
 
For you guys going to extreme temps, what hoses are you using? We have an 8gpm machine with high BTU burner. We cut the throttle back on pump for roughly 3gpm and crank the thermostat to 250 or bypass it. We have tried 1/4" carpet hoses, but we can smell burning rubber and the hoses begin to mark the floors (blue and grey hoses). Anyone solved this problem?
 
I never liked steam it is just so dangerous and too easy to burn yourself. It would work well in some applications and good for popping the gum but for me I would say no unless I had a specific job I had to have it for.
 
There are a lot of hoses that are rated for 250 deg and 3500 PSI. I have talked to a lot of people influential in the industry about them, and they are unanimous in the opinion that, even though they have those ratings, they are not capable of doing both at the same time. What is more, once you release the super heated water from the water, it disperses so quickly that the striking power of the water is diminished to non existent. That is why all these steam cleaners need the brushes in order to be able to remove gum, etc. The steam, released in a controlled manner, super heats the gum, and the brush releases, for a lack of a better term, the surface tension, or adhesion that is holding it on to the surface.
I remember when a contractor brought his super rig to Las Vegas, that while a little heated 4 gpm pressure washer was removing gum like most of us typically do, his rig, that purported to reach 300 degrees just couldn't get the gum to budge. If he had a brush, he probably would have been able to remove the gum as fast, or faster then the little machine, because of the scrubbing action. That is the HUGE problem that I have with pure steam cleaning anything like garages. Sure, it will release oils, etc, and that is necessary, but removing dirt requires mechanical action, and a steam machine, just because of the way steam works, just can't do it.
If that same contractor had nozzles that were less restrictive, he would likely be able to remove oils, etc, just as quick in a parking garage, and reduce the fuel consumption on his machines.
Of course, this is just my opinion. I may, or may not, be a legitimate contractor. I need to check with my accountant.
 
(calm tone....) Hey guys I did not post 300 degrees to start a fuss, notice what I mentioned, modified pressure washer.

Most contractor grade units can hit 300 F, the question is at what flow????

With safe adequate pressure, adequate flow, the correct energy harnessing nozzle, safety precautions/devices (hose etc),

its a different realm of cleaning... "steam cleaning", ....like water blasting, whole different realm compared to your typical hot water pressure washer cleaning.
 
I'm assuming these machines dont do anything for the shadow? Just quicker to remove the gum? Or am I wrong in that?
 
Doug Rucker said:
I'm assuming these machines dont do anything for the shadow? Just quicker to remove the gum? Or am I wrong in that?
Click to expand...

If the gum has been there a long time the shadow will remain, this has been damaged by the acids from our mouth. I have no proof put I have looked at the surface magnified in the past to only realize they are not stains, the concrete cream was etched slitghtly.

Steam cleaners, real steam cleaners not these portable ones are the fastest safest way to remove gum on a large project. using them since the day I started, used them with cold washers to clean the surface and steam to safely remove the gum.
 
Ron, few here have experienced the raw power of an industrial steam generator.


Chewing gum removal could get as difficult like tire mark removal, in most cases chewing gum today is made from synthetic materials "rubber"

Not sure what leaves the mark/sain, if it the syrups or what. The mouth pH is actually slightly alkaline.
 
Like the Steam Genny?
 
I have seen those Steam Jenny machines on the internet but do not know that much about them but they mention that they are the very first type of steam machine that was made for steam cleaning.

They are still sold from what I remember but sometimes you see them used on craigslist or ebay.

I was thinking about getting one just for gum removal for some of these places that have about a billion pieces of gum that are petrified.

Thanks Ron.
 
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