Line Cleaning Business Question

[edramshaw]

Hey Folks!

I hope many a good beer is passing through each of you. I have a question that I have been debating putting up here for a while. It is with regard to the business structure of line cleaners out there. I understand that this is sensitive information so anyone that wants to email me off line to maintain privacy should feel free to do so. I
am relativly new to the line cleaning business (6 months now) and was wondering if anyone would share some details of their experience with setting up a line cleaning business. Some of my main questions involve pricing (how much do you charge to clean lines? What kind of mark-up do you use?, etc. Another involves procedure and time, ie how long does it take you to clean an account with say 13 taps and a 40 foot walk to the cooler? I use a pressurized system with a 6 tap millington sytem to clean the lines.

A typical account w/o FOBs includes preparing the equipment, going to the cooler and attaching 6 couplers to the board and then flushing the lines with a line cleaner. I then move down the board and fluch and fill all lines with cleaner. I then move to the front where I remove and dissasemble all facuets and soak/scrub in a separate batch of cleaning solution. I do these one at a time because I have found that sometimes the pieces do not always line up if I don't put them back tgether wit the same parts. I assume this is due to subtle difference in facucet types and wear. Anyway, I reassemble the facuset and after scrubbing the piece the faucet fits into I reattach the faucets and proceded to flush each line with water and then refill with product. Am I missing anything? I watch the couplers in the cooler and hit them up every couple of weeks in detail but they seem to stay pretty clean from the flushing.

I want to make sure that I am doing the best job possible while being as efficient as I can (and profitable as I can). Eventuall I will build up my business enough to include a pump system for longer runs. Let me know if you guys have any input or suggestions as they would be very much apprectiated.

Ed

My email is ed@bluelinedraft for those that wish to comment via email.

[mctripj]

hey ed,
i am a draught tech for a distributor of A-Busch up in alaska. i have only been doing this for a little longer than you. i have both pressurized and pump systems available to use depending on the system i am cleaning. as far as using the pressurized tanks, i am required by a-b standards to push at least 5 gallons of cleaning solution through the lines, then rinse with another 5 gallons of fresh water before recharging the system with product. this is to ensure that the lines are cleaned thoroughly. with the co2 pot you are using, are you sure you are pushing enough cleaner through each of the lines before rinsing?
as for the business side, i charge accounts $30 per line that i clean (regardless of the length) that is not pouring one of my distributor's products. i do this on the side since i am already getting paid for cleaning "our" lines. there are 2 other distributors in this area and neither of them have a draught tech that will actually clean lines until there is a problem or complaint. unfortunately dont know what the market is like anywhere else, but that is what i charge. accounts up here are happy to pay me that every now and then just so they dont have to deal with the hassle of getting the other distributors to send their draught techs out.

jomo

-jomo

[edramshaw]

Thanks a lot for the reply. I live in a state where the distributors can't touch the lines which makes for a decent market. I have two tiers, for up to five lines I charge a flat rate and then per tap for each after 5. Once you hit ten it goes up, both the base and the per tap.

[coldsammy]

ed,i just started on this site.I am a draft beer line cleaner. my company services over 300 accounts in pa. please feel free to e-mail me if you wish to discuss anything i can help you with

[TAPMAN]

Ed, I am in the York, PA. area, I do work in my surrounding area as well,do yourself a favor and get a pump, they do a much better job. By circulating the chemical through the lines, there is also friction caused by the circulation, that helps the chemical work better.Ther are cheaper pumps on the market, in fact I build my own using 50gph carbonator pumps.As far as pricing goes, you are somewhat limited to what the other guys in the area charge. If I did what I do in Philly or Pittsburg, I could charge a lot more than I do in York or Lancaster counties.

[coldsammy]

ed.do you run into the b.l.m.s ( electronic ultrasound cleaning method ) in your area.they are being pushed very aggressive in pittsburgh area,they tell bar owners" just stick a brush up the faucett every week" to comply with l.c.b. laws. then they only come in every 8 to 12 weeks to chemically clean.ouch the systems get UGLY. but they are selling this product like it is the answer to everything and the greatest thing since.....beer

[Larry Tapper]

I've ran in to these 3-4 years back youare right the system gets ugly, the accounts that had them have taken them out,Because they were not doing the job, and where loosing bussness.

[Draught Prophet]

We've ran into a couple of the BLM 2000's here in our market. I'm not saying they don't work, but I give every bar owner the chance to see for themselves.

We take in a bronco pump and pour 7-10 ounces directly from the keg into a glass. Then hook the keg back up and pour another 7-10 ounces into a different glass from the same keg through their BLM lines out of their faucet at the bar. We show the bar owner the clarity difference between the two glasses.

If you are going to do this, shut off the pressure going into the keg, pull the pin till almost all of the gas is gone, then attach the bronco pump, but don't pump it. If you do, you'll contaminate the keg with air. Once we hook it back up, turn on the air and once the coupler is engaged, the keg will fill back up with gas.

There is no substitute for an electric re-circulating pump.