Anyone Here Tank Cleaners?

[kevin34]

My friend and I are looking into starting a small tank cleaning business for some extra money. We are 15 years old but we know what we are doing. So I was wondering if anyone here does this for a job and if you can give us a few tips such as price estimates, what we need to get started, who have you found that are the best clients (resturaunts, drs. offices, etc.), and what kind of equipment we need. Any other info would be great as well. Thanks in advance.

 

[jonthefishguy]

First, you have to get yourself insured. So that anything you destroy in their home, such as maybe you accidently flood their home and ruins furniture, carpet, or wooden floors. Second, get yourself bonded so that if they accuse you of stealing anything, the insurance will cover it. Get yourself cleaning supplies, all elements that are required for reef tanks, meds, buckets, ro/di system to make water, (you dont want to use tap water and then put phosphates or dirty water in their investment.) KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT. you dont want to give out the wrong information and find out that you were wrong and destroyed something of theirs. Have enough funds to purchase the items you need in advance. thats just a few....by the way, pricing differs from city to city and distance, along with the frequency of visits.

 

[tangwhispr]

no one will insure or bond you at 15...at least no company i am aware of

 

[fishwanabe]

maybe they can get their parents to get the ins. good luck

 

[jovial]

No but if you want to mow my lawn I'll give ya 5 bucks.

JK
I looked into what your talking about in my area and found that most of the places mentioned use the services provided under contract by the stores that rent them the tanks.
They are right, you will need to be bonded to perform this job. As a side business I build custom tanks for nursing homes, restaraunts, lobbies and waiting rooms and provide the maintenance service as an option on the weekends. Most of the tanks I build now are over 10ft in length and have the potential to cause catastrophic damage if an accident were to occur. Especially in populated areas. Another reason Im a big fan of acrylic. Should have a small catalog out soon. If your serious about this you might want to volunteer at a LFS that provides this service and try to get hired on. This is how I got started when I was your age. Dont give up Kevin, you can make this happen if you talk to the right people.

 

[maxalmon]

There are so many things that can go wrong, I have a buddy who cleans tanks and you can't begin to understand how deceptive customers can be. 1st problem with the tank after you take over will be blamed on you, matter of fact most of the customers will try and blame him for everything. Then there are the great customers who follow the rules and the tanks look awesome...It's a major responsibility

 

[shogun323]

Originally Posted by maxalmon
There are so many things that can go wrong, I have a buddy who cleans tanks and you can't begin to understand how deceptive customers can be. 1st problem with the tank after you take over will be blamed on you, matter of fact most of the customers will try and blame him for everything. Then there are the great customers who follow the rules and the tanks look awesome...It's a major responsibility
Agreed. The liability you will assume is huge!!!! There are too many costly what-if's to do this with out being insured and having a bulletproof SLA for each customer.

 

[teen]

kinda weird, i have an interview friday for a tank cleaning service. i was about to ask if anybody else ever worked in the business. anyway, i hope i get eh job. itll be better than my other 2.

 

[ric maniac]

Originally Posted by shogun323
Agreed. The liability you will assume is huge!!!! There are too many costly what-if's to do this with out being insured and having a bulletproof SLA for each customer.
and at the age of 15 once someone loses something you will be the first to blame. sad but true.