A Clear Difference's set-up

[a clear difference lawn]

We (being myself and my wife) had a great year in terms of profit and growth in 2008. We thought we would post some pictures of the equipment that helped us get the job done. Any critiques or suggestions which might increase our productivity would be greatly welcomed.

[a clear difference lawn]

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[slamjamrockinman]

That's a really nice set-up. Glad to hear your first year went well. Btw I like how your trailer is so organized. I need to do something like that in the spring with my 5x8. Could we possible see some more pics?? Nice job and keep up the good work!!

[a clear difference lawn]

We (being myself and my wife) had a great year in terms of profit and growth in 2008. We thought we would post some pictures of the equipment that helped us get the job done. Any critiques or suggestions which might increase our productivity would be greatly welcomed.

pic 1 - hand tools

pic 2 - Hustler ZTR - the heart and soul of the operation. I love this lawn mower!!! 42" deck that gets into all my gates. Why don't they make more 42" mowers?

pic 3 - Rest of the equipment. (Note: that the Stihl blower is shown in it's vacuum/mulch set-up)

pic 4 - I figured out how to keep my overhead low, I started hiring cheap labor, hahahaha

pic 5 - I can surely get work done here.

[a clear difference lawn]

Here are the additional pics of the trailer set up that you asked for.

[JosephLawnCare]

Nice set-up. I'd do anything to catch some accounts around orlando. My parents live in titusville, thinking about maybe spreading to that area before to long. Everything looks well kept. how big are you wanting to get? You should get a hitch for your truck, insted of the bumper. Good luck to you. You have a nice crib by the way!!

[South Florida Lawns]

Nice setup ya have there and welcome to the site. Looks like your off to a great start. I have a friend that had the 36" hustler Z and he went through so many problems with it. I hope you have better luck with yours.

[slamjamrockinman]

Thanks for the pics. Nice sthils!!

[Green Finger]

NIce set up. Time to get a larger trailer:weightlifter:

Business is growing:waving:

[JMLandscaping]

what type of milage are you getting empty compared to hauling, I have a similar truck and curious if the milage is going to drop to close what a half ton would get.

[bighaydenslawn]

That looks great man. I would love to have a setup very similar to yours in terms of both equipment and number of accounts when I get my driver's license. BTW really like the organization of the trailer! That would probably be the ideal size for me, along with an S-10 or Dakota.

[Lakewlc]

looks good. what did the husler set you back if you dont mind me askin

[a clear difference lawn]

To JMLandscaping - I have 21 pools which I service as well using this pick up truck. I fit all my pool gear in the bed so I obviously do not pull the trailer. I am therefore in a good position to compare mileage with and without the trailer. I do see a significant decline in gas mileage pulling the trailer in the neighborhood of 30 - 35%. I try to keep the trailer light which is another reason I have not installed a hitch kit even though I know I should. The Huster weighs only 675lbs and most of that weight is right over the axle. One quick note I did get new wheels and tires for the trailer and this helped with the mileage issue significantly.

[a clear difference lawn]

I got the Hustler as a demo with only 19 hours on it. The dealer was using it to mow his own lawn so people were not taking it out. I got the full 800 hour commercial warranty on the machine and it was out the door for $4900. My family all banded together and got me the flex forks for Christmas. They were $199 and worth every penny. It seems people either hate or love these machines. For me it has been by far the best purchase I have made so far as it allowed me to quadruple my lawn route without having to dump any pools.

[fool32696]

Cool set-up man. 32 accounts in one year is great, that's a really competitive market. Check your PMs, I think we may be able to help each other out.

[JMLandscaping]

do you have any helper springs, AAL etc, looks good! Keep up the good work!

what do you do in the winter??

[mowerbrad]

Nice setup! I do have say that you should get your truck lettered up or at least magnets on the doors.

[a clear difference lawn]

That is a great idea that I still haven't gotten around to but I do have this on the back of the trailer.

[ed2hess]

Close the outlet on those mowers and mulch everything it makes cleanup a lot faster. I know that will work for you since our grasses are similar.

[a clear difference lawn]

Dude I took these pictures today. I mow grass all winter long. I do go down to bi-weekly visits for Dec, Jan & Feb but come March it is right back to full time business. This last week it hit 80 degrees 3 times so it never is really winter. Besides I also have a pool route that is year round. I have 5 customers for whom I do the lawn and pool and this combo service is what I am going to really try to push for this year.

[Lawn Freak]

Looks really good. A bigger truck in the future? How about some pictures of your work? Keep it up it looks like you are doing well.

[STIHL GUY]

nice setup. looks like you are doing pretty well. good luck in the future

[freshprince94]

Nice setp! Good to see another local guy on here. What areas do u work in?

[a clear difference lawn]

All of my lawn accounts are in the Bay Hill, Windermere, And Dr. Philips area. There is still a lot of housing growth in west orange county so no real need to advertise elsewhere.

[flatlander42]

how does that billy goat cut? looks like a great setup!

[DLAWNS]

Nice setup man. Good luck to you!

[Big C]

Nice rig:clapping:

[02DURAMAX]

NIce Z!!!!

[shepoutside]

Wicked set-up, nice to see some smaller set-ups !!

[a clear difference lawn]

The Billygoat cuts great if used for the proper application. I started out with 7 lawns and used it exclusively. Then I landed a $240 a month residential which is almost 2 acres. It took me almost 2 hrs just to mow with the goat. After doing the math I figured out that I was not making money on this account. That is when I purchased the ztr. Now i mow it in 28 minutes. I still use the goat on 4 small accts a week and keep it around as a backup if the hustler happens to go in the shop. At the beginning of my lawn business I chose not to listen to the pros on this site and got a belt mower. If you plan on doing this for a living--get something hydro!!! If interested I am cutting the house down the street with the goat on thursday and will have the wife post some picks. The cut quality is superb.

[a clear difference lawn]

To everyone who replied to this thread thank you for your comments--it is nice to hear that people agree a rig does not have to be huge to be productive. I plan on working even harder this year and really establishing my business.

[CNYScapes]

are you part time? or full time?

[a clear difference lawn]

I am fulltime with both of my businesses now. At the beginning I was still working in the restaurant industry but now I exclusively work for myself. I will never go back to having a boss if I can possibly avoid it. I would rather edge 20 miles of broken sidewalk in 100 degrees than would in that industry again!! My pool route is pretty profitable--especially in winter and covers all overhead for both businesses. The lawn, then, becomes straight profit.

[JosephLawnCare]

I am fulltime with both of my businesses now. At the beginning I was still working in the restaurant industry but now I exclusively work for myself. I will never go back to having a boss if I can possibly avoid it. I would rather edge 20 miles of broken sidewalk in 100 degrees than would in that industry again!! My pool route is pretty profitable--especially in winter and covers all overhead for both businesses. The lawn, then, becomes straight profit.

Good for you man. If you need help let me know! I will work for room and board, but I have to bring the wife and 2 kids. I'll do anything to get out of this cold weather!! I'm kidding:laugh:

[Chris1594]

you don't have a backpack blower? other then that very nice setup and shope and equipment

[a clear difference lawn]

When I purchased the trailer I got the Echo string trimmer and edger with the package. It also came with a craftsman backpack blower. Let me tell you- this blower sucked!!! It sucked so bad I guess it soured me on backpack blowers all together. I have a pretty even temper - but ended up smashing that blower - not very professional - last time I do that. The residentials I do have big porches the size of patios wth furniture and nooks and little areas that need to be blown. I have found that a hand-held blower is faster for my applications. Maybe its just that backpack blowers remind me of that evil craftsman!!

[Chris1594]

When I purchased the trailer I got the Echo string trimmer and edger with the package. It also came with a craftsman backpack blower. Let me tell you- this blower sucked!!! It sucked so bad I guess it soured me on backpack blowers all together. I have a pretty even temper - but ended up smashing that blower - not very professional - last time I do that. The residentials I do have big porches the size of patios wth furniture and nooks and little areas that need to be blown. I have found that a hand-held blower is faster for my applications. Maybe its just that backpack blowers remind me of that evil craftsman!!You should Check out Redmax Blowers or any other brand of Commercial backpack blower yea Craftsman usually has garbage stuff im impressed with your equipment you have I hope you have a very good 2009 :waving:

[dishboy]

How many miles per gallon on that set up fully loaded please? BTW real clean setup !4cylinder or 6 cylinder?

[a clear difference lawn]

It is a 6 cylinder chevy s10. Fully loaded and driving around Orlando I get about 15-18 miles a gallon. When I say fully loaded I have my pool equipment on too - so there is quite a bit of weight.

[Green Finger]

You should Check out Redmax Blowers or any other brand of Commercial backpack blower yea Craftsman usually has garbage stuff im impressed with your equipment you have I hope you have a very good 2009 :waving:

Echos are nice too.

[flatlander42]

Yes i would love to see some pics of the place you are gonna mow later this week! not only cuz i want to see how that mower does, but i love pics of peoples work! Thanks

Nathan

[Lawn Enforcer]

Great way to start out. Low overhead. A big truck and a 20' trailer isn't the key for everybody. It sounds like you've done your research and have planned everything out well. If I had just residential I would have a smaller rig like that too, but I have a few big commercial properties that require 2 mowers. It's all in what kind of work you have. Keep up the good work and good luck!:weightlifter:

[freshprince94]

All of my lawn accounts are in the Bay Hill, Windermere, And Dr. Philips area. There is still a lot of housing growth in west orange county so no real need to advertise elsewhere.

Lucky. I hope to expand to those areas soon.

[South Florida Lawns]

You would be so surprised how much time you save with a good back pack blower. Especially if you have say 10 yards in a row to service, it cut my time down by a few minutes for each stop. At the end of the day I saved probably close to an hr. I just recently purchased an even bigger blower (went from a BR340 to BR600) and saved even more time.

[nnj18]

heres a question for you smaller guys.....how do you pay for your house and bills with just 32 lawns???? your wives work too or is this like a second job??

[a clear difference lawn]

I also have my pool route - 21 good paying, reliable customers. The profit from the pool route covers all overhead for both businesses. That is insurance, equip. payment, gas, taxes, misc - everything. So my lawns can all be viewed as straight profit. I have 1- $240 lawn, a few two hundred dollar lawns - all the way down to one I do for this old lady that I only charge $70. At the end of the day, I am billing over $3000 a month for lawns - which is all profit. Yes, my wife works as as executive admin. I only include her as part of the business because she does all of the paperwork - billing, taxes, flyers, website etc. She put in a lot of work so I want to include her. I do all the mowing and pool cleaning by myself. She has to keep her job because she gets great medical and dental benefits for the kids. Without her working it would be tough - I would probably have to go back into hospitality management.

[nnj18]

OK thanx for the response!

[Yard.Barber]

heres a question for you smaller guys.....how do you pay for your house and bills with just 32 lawns???? your wives work too or is this like a second job??


All depends on the person and what their bills are, overhead etc. For those who have a longer mowing season they are making more on yards, the others might do plowing which adds to total profit. On top of this you have all the extra charges and jobs you do throughout the year for your customers, how much you charge per yard.

I can see it being done no problem if you aren't in debt with things

[shepoutside]

my wife works the website


Whats your web addy?

[a clear difference lawn]

Web add. is www.acleardifferencepool.com. I am sure there is a way to put a link in, but wife is sleeping and I am a computer idiot. She has not made a website for the lawn business yet mainly because growth has been steady -but we talked about it and she decided to do one soon. She is very good with all paperwork and computer related issues. Without her I would be lost with the bookeeping, billing, etc.

[a clear difference lawn]

Wow- the computer turned it into a link for me!

[shepoutside]

Nice web site! :clapping: Yes, my wife & Kids, handles all the boring paperwork stuff here too. It is neat when it's a family business. I have had great memories, as the kids and business grew. Hope you do too!

[South Florida Lawns]

do you have any customers that you service both the pool and lawn? What made you decide to branch into lawn service? I hear pools are great business down here if you know what your doing, I talked to a guy that does pool service solo and can knock out 180 pools a week.

[a clear difference lawn]

I have 6 customers that I do both the lawn and pool for. My wife and I call it the "combo package" when we advertise. That is the service that I am really going to push this year. Pools are a great business- but here in Orlando it is very competetive. In the middle of summer I would need a semi to carry enough chemicals for 180 pools. My pool business was growing slowly and I just got tired of having a boss.

[diamondlandscaping]

Nice setup man! Good to see another florida guy on here. My friend has the 42 mini and the 52 super z and both have been great for him....

good luck this year. I started 5 months ago and have 19 accounts. i had about 22 but lost those couple to the economy.....im hoping to blow up this year and have like 50 by summertime so i can hire 1 guy so i can mainly ride the mower....my friends are doing my website right now so im hoping to generate some business from that. good luck to you!

[sgl41377]

Get some graphics for your truck. The best forms of advertising is the kind that only cost you money one time. Get graphics and you are a rolling advertisement.

[Ben's Landscape]

Nice set up!!! just wondering what model stihl trimmer you use and how you like it??

[TXNSLighting]

Instead of bringing old threads up, pm the guys you have questions for.

[flatlander42]

quit being a thread cop....this thread is not even that old GEEZE

[a clear difference lawn]

Ben's Landscape - I sent you a pm with the info you requested.