Soap Warehouse Blog

This can be a big question with plenty of Pros and Cons. Here is a list of 10 things you should ask yourself before making a decision.

1. Do we already own the equipment needed to do the job properly? Is it in good condition? How much is the yearly up keep? Have the room to store it? Cost of Insurance for theft?
2. If we do not own, would renting equipment for the times needed during the year make sense economically? Available when we need it?
3. If we own or rented do we have personnel qualified and trained to safely use the equipment, the chemicals?
4. Do we carry the correct insurance to do the jobs needed? Including any damage that could be caused during cleaning?
5. Do we have access or have purchased the correct chemicals to do the different jobs we need completed?
6. What and how often do we need cleaning to be performed? Ex: exterior siding, roof wash, parking lots, sidewalks and driveways, play ground equipment, pool deck area, pool tables, chairs and lounge chairs, tennis courts, entrance signs, Brickwork and fences.
7. What is our cost per job in labor, equipment and chemicals compared to hiring a contractor to do the work?
8. If we hire a contractor for the labor and equipment, would there be a savings in buying and storing the chemicals our selves to have control over what is used?
9. If we hire what criteria are we to use to vet the applying companies? Are they member of a professional organization, have they taken courses and are certified in certain work, are they licensed and insured, do they specialize in property maintenance?
10. Do we know and can follow the local regulatory cleaning and waste water issues for our location?

All these factors will need to be addressed to know which is better, in house vs. out sourcing.

If you decide to go in house we suggest you purchase professional pressure washing equipment, NOT the consumer grade washers sold at the home improvement or department stores. For the long term investment, multiple and wide range of work the above listed tasks require, you need to purchase equipment made to hold up to long hours of service.

For most large properties, you can have at least one type of cleaning job per month on site all year long to properly maintain it. Same goes for purchasing the accessories such as hoses, wands, tips, brushes, poles etc. We suggest to buy from the same companies the professionals do such as Pressure Washer Direct, Landa, Hydro Tek, Hotsy. Also try to buy from a local distributor that can give you local support, service and repair.

Many local distributors also sell chemicals but there are some companies that specialize and only deal in chemicals like Soap Warehouse. Here you may find you can purchase chemicals that is more cost and cleaning effective than buying from the big box stores or paying a contractor to use his own chemicals. This can also sometimes save time or a delay in a contractor having to get the chemicals before they can come and do the work. It could also give you a greater reduction in the cost of the job when you take the cost of chemicals away from the contractor.

If the cost is too expensive overall for you to do your self then we suggest you look to find a qualified contractor in much the same way as any equipment. First go to professional organizations in the pressure washing industry to find contractors who have taken the time and money to be a member and most likely has taken classes and training over the years. Power Washers of North America, United Association of Mobile Contract Cleaners, Pressure Washing Resource to name the largest.

Even if hiring a contractor you may want to purchase the chemicals yourself. This way you know what and how much is being used, that the correct chemical was used for the job or if you have environmental issues you need to control that you know it was being followed.

You may find that hiring a contractor or two, if you need specialize services, may be in the best interest of your property in the long run.

Many small business owners just decide one day, for what ever reason, that they want or need to work for themselves and up and start a self business. But sooner or later there will come a time when this single person business will be asked for or need a business plan. Maybe it is the bank for a loan or to open an account or a CPA that files your taxes, but no matter the reason why, every business owner should make a plan to help them manage their business during its life.

If you do not have one already the governments Small Business Administration is a good place to start to get a template of what should be included in a plan. http://www.sba.gov/category/navigation-structure/starting-managing-business/starting-business/writing-business-plan. And if you are really new to business and just jumped right into it you might even want to back track and take a look at the steps of starting a business they offer as well, http://www.sba.gov/thinking-about-starting. You may find you have missed a few things you should still think about doing.

A business plan is just a road map of where you are to where you want to end up. It will include things like your mission statement, the who, what, where and how of your business. What type of work you will perform, in what locations, who is your prospective customer, what prices are you expecting to charge or how you will calculate your pricing, what equipment you will buy, at what cost, will you spread this cost over a set number of years, will you do all the work yourself or hire employees, how will you deal with these employees, and what your expected profit will be in a set period of time from the start of your business.

Now many business owners think that they only need to make a business plan once, when they are first starting out or to fulfill a loan requirement for a banker, but a good business owner will review and adjust their business plan as the years go by as their business grows and evolves. For instance when just starting out you may have worked alone and mainly did house washing, but over time you added employees, these grew into multiple crews and you found you enjoyed cleaning and staining decks, while doing house washing, more than washing homes and your business shifted to mainly deck work. With this change your business plan should also be changed and rewritten. In fact many business plans are made to cover a finite amount of time after which a new plan is expected to be made to cover a next set amount of time. There are other places and groups available to help you with this, like SCORE http://www.score.org/resources/business-plans-financial-statements-template-gallery, Bplans.com or even Microsoft Office. Even here in your own industry there are groups that have done the work for you or will help you, such as http://www.powerwash.com/articles/pressure-washing-business-plan-power-wash-contractor.html. Also free examples to watch and learn from on youtube.com, just search "how to write a business plan".

So during this month of December, being National Business Plan month, I encourage you to make or revisit your business plan.

As of December 1, 2013 you need to have given and completed with all your employees training about the new Safety Date Sheet (SHS) requirements. Not to will make you non compliant and you could face fines.

OSHA has been sending out information about this first deadline for GHS (Global Harmonization System) for quite some time but many small business owners and contractors still have no idea what this is, why it is needed and what they have to do. There are many companies that are charging businesses for this training at various price levels but all this information is also free. 

To first understand what exactly must be complete by 12/1/13 you can read the OSHA fact sheet; https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3642.pdf 

If you have never gone and looked at the OSHA web site before, you need to check it out and bookmark it on your computer, https://www.osha.gov/dsg/hazcom/index.html

Here they answer many frequently asked questions in regards to the new changes. 

There are free quick cards available to print out for use in training:

https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3492QuickCardLabel.pdf

https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3491QuickCardPictogram.pdf

https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3493QuickCardSafetyDataSheet.pdf 

Along with a sample new SDS to use in training 

https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3514.pdf

This current requirement of training should not take more than 30-60 minutes for most businesses to give to their employees but with all OSHA training more time is required of the business owner to document all steps that are taken for training; what supplies, print outs or manual was used in the training, details of the time and place of training. A list of all of the participants with their signatures next to their name acknowledging they attended training and a short test page, usually multiple choice, showing the employee understood, by passing the test, the training they received. 

This is why many businesses just pay for training, they do not want to bother or take the time to do these above steps themselves. 

But at this late date, if you have done nothing by now, what can you do to be done in time? 

First be sure you are currently in compliance with the old MSDS training and OSHA rules; that you gave each employee upon hire and annually MSDS training. That you have MSDS books or binders in all locations OSHA required i.e. at your office/location where the chemicals are received, handled, stored or distributed. A duplicate MSDS binder anywhere off site where employees would come in contact with chemicals ex: on your vehicles, wash rigs/trailers. If you have never done this, now is the time while OSHA is taking a hard look at all business due to the HCS deadline. 

Here are the steps you need to do:

• Obtain and understand the OSHA rule (29CFR1910.1200) osha.gov
• Read and understand the requirements you must follow
• Assign someone responsible for tasks, such as an HAZCOM Coordinator
• Prepare an inventory of all chemicals used in your business

Then the important tasks that effect your employees

• Ensure all containers are properly labeled
• Obtain SHS for each chemical
• Prepare a Hazardous Communication written program
• Make SHSs available to workers via a book or binder
• Conduct training for workers upon hire, annually and with any change

Lastly

• Establish procedures to maintain the current program
• Establish procedures to evaluate effectiveness of all steps 

There are many companies that have created and uploaded to the web, slide shares and Youtube videos of their GHS training. So feel free to take a look at them. 

Slide Share

http://www.slideshare.net/theukfan/ghs-training-approved

http://www.slideshare.net/CrisNeuman/presentation-haz-com-26065530 

Youtube.com videos

OSHA GHS training (this one is free)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCI7XXExs7s

ClickSafety is very inexpensive for on line training

http://www.clicksafety.com/osha/globally-harmonized-system-ghs-courses  

I hope this helps get you moving toward HAZCom compliance.

When you are thinking about adding or replacing a wood deck to your home you need to do the math.

First is the actual cost of the materials. Pressure treated lumber is the most affordable decking material running at about $15 per square foot installed as a national average. A little bit more if you want additional decorative features. Cedar can run twice as much at around $30 per square foot but should last longer with proper maintenance, with Teak wood setting you back the most between $40-60 per square foot, but it can stand the most weathering with the least amount of maintenance. You can also consider composite decking which will not require repeated staining or sealing but that will run between $25 to $50 per square foot installed, almost as much as Teak, for your initial investment.

Once you have decided on the size of your deck and the material you can not forget the maintenance costs. This is the major contributing factor of how long your deck will last. Most decks will cost over their life time any where from $300 - $1,200 dollars a year to maintain. This will vary not only because of the size and material of your deck but with the amount of cleaning, type of staining and sealing that is required and if you do the work yourself or hire it out to a professional. Even with a professional the costs will vary due to the quality of the contractor and the materials they are using. It will not pay in the long run to hire some one cheap that uses inferior products that will cause you to rehire some one the very next year vs. a competent contractor using superior products that will last 3-5 years before the work needs to be repeated.

The way to tell if your deck needs treatment is to throw a bucket of water at it or look at it right after a hard rain. If the water beads up, then your sealant is working. If the water is absorbed by the decking, then it's time to reseal. A deck that isn't sealed properly is vulnerable to the elements and could experience rotting, warping and splitting. Routine maintenance is far cheaper than replacing the deck so make sure you keep your decking in tip-top shape. Stain is not weather proofing, only a color enhancer, you need a sealer for that.

Even woods that do not requiring routine staining and sealing to be cleaned and cleaned correctly so not to destroy the wood and its own natural properties. Be sure the contractor you hire is experienced with your type of decking. Even composites need cleaning, especially for mold and mildew and can be damaged if cleaned with improper chemicals.

Knowing the costs beforehand can help you make the right decisions when it comes to choosing materials and who to hire to do the job. Keeping your deck in top shape will increase its life and there by reducing the yearly cost by spreading them over a longer period of time.

To find a professional contractor to clean or stain and seal your deck check out one of these links:

http://pressurewashing.net/
www.uamcc.org/
www.pressurenet.net/
www.bbb.org/search under “deck cleaning and waterproofing” or “pressure washing” in your area

You can also get products to use for your self at www.shopsoapwarehouse.com.

A great product just got better. Bio Barrier will now be available in 55 gallon drum kits and at a lower price. So not only will you save on the cost of keeping mold, mildew and algae at bay you can save on shipping cost too.

Previously a full drum of Bio Barrier weighed 520 lbs and cost $650.00. But now with a kit you will get a 6 gallon pail of supper concentrate you will add to your own 55 gallon drum, add water to make that 55 gallons of RTU for $550.00, a hundred dollar savings. Plus this kit weighs less than 60lbs. This will drasticly reduce the shipping cost as well. You could easily be saving over $200 for just one kit. 

Bio Barrier of course is designed to remove odors that come from mold, mildew and algae and retard thier regrowth after a cleaning. Roofs, siding, even side walks and decks can see months of care free use with out the return of ugly stains.

After cleaning & treatment

Call 1-800-762-7911 to order.   Before cleaning. 

When I say "long tail" I am talking about the key word phrases that you place in your web site pages body copy, photo meta tags and in your blog posts that allows search engines to chose to show your web site page over another.

You first need to weekly or at least monthly research with your available anylitics to find out what current visitors have used for their search words to find you.

Gone are the days of just a few key words working. You need to create complex long tail phrases to help pin point customers directly to you instead of the competition.

And don't be suprised by the phrases you find. Some may be very difficult to figure out how to incorperate into your page copy.

I will go through some of ours to show you what I mean. I knew right away that Soap Warehouse was going to have a hard time with certain key words, especially with product  names. One - because most of the names where too common ie: "Hood Cleaner" for our hood cleaning product or because the name was senominous with something else ie: "Brown Derby" like the restaurant of old in LA or currently at Disney World. Or "Top Gun" our aircraft cleaner with the same name as the movie.

Because of this right away we had to use multi key word phrases "Top Gun aircraft cleaner" "Brown Derby truck wash" "Hood Cleaner kitchen exhaust cleaner". But these will not help if people are not actually using them to search with. More often we would see that our top search results where things like: "brown soap", "truck soap", "aircraft soap", "sodium hydroxide cleaner" but even these would bring in very low numbers because too many sites had simular key word phrases.

So we constantly are adding long tails we knew people had used to find us like: "acid cleaners for aluminum", "best degreaser for chinese kitchen grease", "algea cleaner for gloeocapsa magma". You have to take these phrases and go into your page content and match the phrase word for word to gain the maxium effect.

For instance the part of the discription we had for "Hood Cleaner" read "This product has a good performance history in Chinese restaurants." That phrase now reads "This is our best degreaser for chinese kitchen grease." See how we incorporated the long tail search phrase into the body copy. Now the next time someone searches that same phrase we have a much better chance of being the first page to show up for that.

For the phrase "algea cleaner for gloeocapsa magma" we wrote a blog post on the topic and included that phrase in the text.

Even using long tail phrases in free on line directory sites can bring you targeted searches especially for your local area. This is not something we do since we do not try to get just local business but for contrators limited to a specific geographic location it can be key to new business. For example if you would like to have more clients in an affluent area, like Brookhaven here in Atlanta, you might list or showcase some before and after photos with the photo named and meta tagged as "Spectacular house wash in Brookhaven". Then when someone in Brookhaven searches for "house washing Brookhaven" you will be at or near the top of the list.

Keeping your crews safe and working in the Summer should not be hard or expensive but there are things you can do that will make a difference in them wanting and being able to do the work you need them to do the entire summer.

First have your equipment working in tip top shape and that includes the A/C in your trucks. Although it is not good for workers to experience a large temp shift going in and out of a vehicle while working (from the Sahara to the Arctic), having the A/C set at a reasonable temp, 10 degrees cooler than the outside temp, with a large volume of air moving does help.

Have plenty of water available while at work. Large plastic water coolers, like Igloos are a good investment for your employees. Every worker should have there own water bottle that they can fill from the cooler. Remember they should be consuming at least 8-12 oz of water per hour while working outside.

Tip: Save on the cost of buying ice; clean and use 1/2 gal or quart size (juice or milk) bottles filled with water that you freeze over night in your work freezer (or at home). You can fit 3-4 of these at the bottom of the cooler before filling it each day and the ice bottles will slowly melt and even when the cooler is empty the melted bottles can be poured out and used them selves. Have extras and each morning when you take the frozen ones out put new ones in and they will be ready for the next morning.

Make sure everyone has and wears a hat and UV sun glasses. Wide brims are better then baseball caps but anything helps. If your uniform or employees own shirts are short sleeved ask them to use sun screen. Long pants and water proof shoes are best to work in but can be hot. Suggest light cotton instead of jeans for pants and suggest thin moisture wicking socks instead of the heavy cotton which will trap sweat and become even heavier. Heat escapes the most from the head and feet, keeping the feet hot can really make you feel worse. Materials should be light weight but tight weaved or come with UV protection in the fabric if possible.

Believe it or not but Dollar Stores like the chain "Dollar Tree" can be both you and your employees best friend. They carry many things for summer. You or your employees can spend around $5 per person and be set for all day in the sun.

Things you can get for $1:

Neck bands that you can soak in cold water that contain water gel beads that expand and then retain the cold that you tie around the neck. These are a Great value. I use these myself when working outside or down at hunt camp and they are great.

Sun Screen Sticks UV rated 30-50 in packs of 2-4 (depends on the store) great for the face, ears and neck. They also carry sun screen in liquid and sprays.

UV lip balm, because almost 70% of lip cancer is from the sun, not tobacco products.

UV Sun Glasses, even ones that wrap around, to stop eye sun exposure. May not be the most fashionable and supplies vary but at least worth a look, plus not a big loss when they are lost or break. Be sure to check that they are UV, some of them are not.

Water bottles. They have all types, plastic and metal, and in all sizes, shop around to find what you like. Some even have belt clips or loops. 

Fine mist spray bottles. Keeping a spray bottle with cold water in it that employees can mist on themselves will help keep body temps down, fend off heat stroke and allows evaporation from dampening clothing keeping them cooler.

Tip: these bottles can also be put in the freezer half filled with water so more water can be added beginning of the day and lets the ice melt over time.

Hats or visors. They may not be a fashion statement but I have seen some nicer ones sometimes. Keep checking and when you find one you like buy 2-3.

Small hand fans or clip on fans. Even though you have to spend another $1 for batteries these little fans can help a lot when used while sitting in the shade on a break to cool you down.

Dollar Tree even has a web site where you can buy items direct by the case so you do not have to go looking for them. Check out http://www.dollartree.com products change all the time so check often.

If you want to spend a little more money, then head to a Wal-mart or similar and buy the spray bottles with the built in fans. Those mist and blow air at the same time. 

OSHA does not have set rules as to how much water you need to supply, just that you do. They do not require employers to supply clothes, sun screen, UV sun glasses or other sun protection items but anything you want and can give your employees will make them feel like a well thought of and valuable member of your business.

But Please follow OSHA guidelines they do suggest  https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3166/osha3166.html 

and OSHA also has a new Summer campaign "Water. Rest. Shade." that you can read about here; https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/heatillness/heat_index/work_rest_schedules.html 

Have a great rest of your Summer and stay safe.

Our newest catalog is out and you can see it here:

docs/2013 PRODUCT BROCHURE.doc

It also encludes a current price list at the end. We have new products and some that we have had but have not been listed before in our print catalog.

To learn how to place and order on line please view the short 1 minute video here:

How to use the Soap Warehouse web site.

Or just feel free to call us at 1-800-762-7911. You can leave us your order as a message after hours, or call during business hours, 8:30 -5:00 M-F EST, to speak directly with us to place your order. If you leave a message we will be sure to call you back with a complete total including what the least expensive shipping cost will be for your order.

In today's work place mobile connections are becoming more and more important. That is why for many mobile contractors a smart phone is a requirement and necessity not a luxury.

But what applications are ones that can help you in your business and which ones may not or may even be dangerous for you to have on your phone?

Do you really understand what each application is doing for you and what you are allowing it to do that you may not want it to be able to do?

Any time you add an application to your phone to are giving that program granted permissions and in fact you are giving up certain rights you may not want too without realizing it.

When you first look at an application someone has told you about or that you have found on line the first thing to look for is who (or what company) has created it. Is it a name you trust? Next read and understand the permissions this application program will be giving and ask yourself if this permission is really necessary for the program to work? And are you able to limit or turn off some of the permissions when you get it or will you have to uninstall it to do so. And even scarier are you sure the application will stop having access even if you uninstall it?
Many programs will be constantly working in the background even when you are not using them which can significantly drain your battery life. So if you notice that your battery is draining down faster than it use to, it may not be normal battery wear but application programs instead. Application programs can also cost you money you may not know you are spending until it is too late.

Here are a few normal permissions you will see and what they mean:

Network Communication: Full internet access.
CONNECT AND DISCONNECT FROM WI-FI
Allows the app to connect to and disconnect from Wi-Fi access points and to make changes to device configuration for Wi-Fi networks.
This can cost you money if you do not have any unlimited plan or will deduct minutes from your service plan while it is connected.
CONTROL NEAR FIELD COMMUNICATION
Allows the app to communicate with Near Field Communication (NFC) tags, cards, and readers.
Allows the program to do things like "tap to pay", read QR codes, UPC readers.
FULL NETWORK ACCESS
Allows the app to create network sockets and use custom network protocols. The browser and other applications provide means to send data to the internet, so this permission is not required to send data to the internet.
This means when ever the program wants to go out and find information or send information you want to transfer it does not have to ask you each time it will just do it. Programs like Instagram, Facebook, and file transfer programs all need this to work.

Your Location
APPROXIMATE LOCATION (NETWORK-BASED)
Allows the app to get your approximate location. This location is derived by location services using network location sources such as cell towers and Wi-Fi. These location services must be turned on and available to your device for the app to use them. Apps may use this to determine approximately where you are.
This is how programs like Foursquare work and can also cost you money if you do not have an unlimited plan and will also eat up your battery life.
PRECISE LOCATION (GPS AND NETWORK-BASED)
Allows the app to get your precise location using the Global Positioning System (GPS) or network location sources such as cell towers and Wi-Fi. These location services must be turned on and available to your device for the app to use them. Apps may use this to determine where you are, and may consume additional battery power.
All phone security programs like "Find my Phone" use this type.

Phone Calls
DIRECTLY CALL PHONE NUMBERS
Allows the app to call phone numbers without your intervention. This may result in unexpected charges or calls. Note that this doesn't allow the app to call emergency numbers. Malicious apps may cost you money by making calls without your confirmation.
READ PHONE STATUS AND IDENTITY
Allows the app to access the phone features of the device. This permission allows the app to determine the phone number and device IDs, whether a call is active, and the remote number connected by a call.

And these are just a few of the 22 permissions such as your accounts, personal information, messages, storage, system tools, Bluetooth, camera, microphone, social information, application information, sync settings, hardware controls, how it affects your battery like controlling the vibrator and not allowing your phone to sleep, ex: Movie programs need to keep your screen awake while you are viewing and not touching the screen.

Now many times the helpfulness of an application to you and your business out weighs the scariness of this big brother control but that is for you to decide.

There are ways to keep yourself and your phone as safe as possible:
Where did you find this application? If it came from one of the big app stores like Google Play store or the iphone app store it is a safer then some but it could still be questionable so let an app be used for a while before downloading it. Apple is the safest because they vet (check out) every app added to their offerings.
As I mentioned use only applications created by well known and trusted companies. Not full proof but you would not be alone if fooled. Plus big companies do not want bad publicity. Try to be wary of foreign generated apps and apps with names that are close to what they really should be. For instance a game app "Bad Pigs" was a fake for the popular "Bad Pigges" with a carbon copy of the legitimate games icon but the developer was listed as Dan Stokes not the real game creator Rovio. This app asked for a large number of unneeded permissions and used push ads or installed links to ads onto unsuspecting down loaders devices. 

Use apps that have a very high download count. Again not full proof but the more an app has been used the higher the chance any misuse will be found out. The above mentioned "Bad Pigs" had 10,000 downloads before it was discovered!
Use an application like Bitdefender's Clueful to tell you what applications are really doing on your phone and when it may be harmful. Clueful uses only what it needs to work and nothing more, unlike others. It was actually booted from the Apple app store for being too revealing (Apple did not want something's known about some of its own programs) Clueful is now available for Android.
PC magazine's SecurityWatch is another great place to find out about harmful apps, just subscribe to it for it to be e-mailed to you at http://securitywatch.pcmag.com/
Use a highly rated security and antivirus application on your phone. The best ones must be paid for but most have a free trial or limited function application as well. When I checked the Google Play Store; "Antivirus Security" from AVG was the highest downloaded application at over 549,000 downloads with "Lookout Security & Antivirus" at 432,000 down loads.

The last line of defense is you. With many applications, when you start to download they go through the list of permissions and you should be able to deny access to the permissions you do not feel is needed, like a game asking for access to all your contacts. Most times you will have to reboot your phone after each denied permission and sometimes the application may tell you it will not be able to function without the access or may just crash when you try to use it. At that point you can be the judge if granting access and using the app is worth it. To get the app working again you will have to restore the permission to "active", possibly reboot again or at the worst uninstall and reinstall the app.

I hope all of you use your smart phones to the best of their ability and that you get the most value of what you are paying your monthly phone access charges for.

If you have an application you could just not live with out on your phone, please share it here for others to view and check out for themselves.

Here in the late Spring early summer is a great time to start thinking about what may happen if you have a dry summer. I wanted to bring you an article that my friend Mr. Don Schwerzler wrote a while ago about rainwater harvesting. If you own or even rent office space or are just working out of your home, starting a rainwater harvesting plan could be a benefit to your business. Water is the biggest commodity your business uses, why not try ways to get it cheaper?

"Rainwater harvesting makes a great deal of sense as a strategy for many family businesses," suggested leading family business expert Don Schwerzler at a recent family business workshop - discussing strategies that can help family business entrepreneurs as they go about Future Proofing Your Family Business

Schwerzler began studying and advising family business entrepreneurs in 1967 and is the founder of the Family Business Institute and the web organization Family Business Experts both of which are headquartered in Atlanta GA.

The rainwater harvesting presentation was conducted by Bob Drew, a nationally recognized expert in rainwater harvesting and a member of the environmental consulting team at the Family Business Institute. A process design engineer with a Chemical Engineering degree from the University of Wisconsin and a MBA from UCLA, Drew serves as chairman of Southeast Rainwater Harvesting Systems Association (SERHSA) and a board member of the American Rainwater Catchment Systems Association (ARCSA).

“We have passed the point when we can take any available water source for granted”, said Drew. “Ignoring rainwater harvesting as a readily available means to increase water supply, stimulate and protect our economy, provide environmental and financial benefits and to preserve our quality of life makes no sense.”

The eastern U.S. remains largely unfamiliar with rainwater harvesting because abundant water resources have always been more than sufficient for residential and commercial use, with reserves to spare. Dramatic population increases are rapidly outstripping our resources.

In concept, rainwater harvesting is as simple as the popular rain barrel used by many gardeners to maintain their gardens and landscapes.

But rainwater management systems can be far more sophisticated.Rainwater management systems start by collecting rainwater from roofs and flat surfaces and are adaptable to any size or type of structure, from a residential house to an office building or a retail shopping complex.

Atlanta GA is an excellent example of a major city facing a water supply crisis.

After a summer of drought conditions in Middle and South Georgia, water levels in Lake Lanier are now close to the record lows established in the drought of 2007-2008.

USA Today reported on Nov 11th that drought conditions throughout the South and Midwest have inflicted more than $10 billion in economic losses to the U.S. economy, a number projected to rise if dry conditions persist through the winter months as expected

State and regional business leaders are appropriately alarmed about the looming gap between demand for water in metro Atlanta and available supply. That dreaded condition could reach crisis proportions as soon as five years from now.

Intensive efforts are under way to identify and establish new reservoirs to provide long-term reserves that will support metro Atlanta’s continued growth and prosperity.

In addition to those efforts, proven policies and techniques already established by regions long accustomed to drought – such as New Mexico and Arizona as well as the nation of Australia – show us that more can be done in the interim.

In those places and many others, rainwater management is widely practiced and embraced as a means of making the most of every precious drop of available water.

So, rainwater harvesting’s time has come in Georgia, offering significant benefits that every policymaker should understand as they develop water conservation policies and practices. Rainwater harvesting could provide key elements for a state water policy that supports business development (jobs) and quality of life.

More than half of all Georgia’s municipal water use, especially in the summer, goes to irrigation! Rainwater management could have a huge impact on water supply.

Consider this – research reviewed by a team of academic experts at Georgia Tech indicates that a relatively modest 10 percent adoption of rainwater harvesting techniques from metro Atlanta rooftops could save an average of 27 million gallons of water per day within five years.

“This is an achievable goal with widespread public education and reasonable encouragement from state and regional leadership. Adoption rates in places where water supply was in crisis or aggressive policies were enacted have been much higher and could be possible here,” noted Drew.

The best part of all is that this goal can be reached primarily through private investment that produces practical benefits and measurable returns. Those returns include savings on water bills which are higher in Atlanta per 100 cubic feet than any other city in the nation, a significant reduction of destructive storm water runoff and preservation of landscaping investments during drought conditions.

According to Drew, “While rainwater usage varies by state, Georgia law allows rainwater use for more than lawn and garden irrigation and filling swimming pools.

Under specific plumbing guidelines established by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, rainwater also can be employed for toilet flushing and laundry use for individual homes as well as for commercial businesses, office buildings, warehouses, schools, hospitals, senior residence centers, restaurants and apartment/condo complexes.

Metro Atlanta and the state of Georgia would reap meaningful rewards from rainwater harvesting, too. “Rainwater harvesting can increase current water supply and can extend the capacity of existing water supplies while new reservoirs are being sited and built, a process that takes 10 to 15 years at best,” observed Drew.

As a public policy, rainwater harvesting promotes economic development. In addition to system designers, suppliers and installers, the industry creates jobs for many Georgians hard-hit by the recent economic downturn such as plumbers, electricians and landscapers. It protects the region’s economic climate, which stands to lose as much as $39 billion annually if demand for water outstrips supply as predicted, according to the Metro Atlanta Chamber.

For family business entrepreneurs, rainwater harvesting provides an immediate, tangible response to an urgent problem without significant changes in state law or time-consuming regulatory requirements.

One of the major components within the field of landscape architecture is stormwater management. Before any land development occurs, a landscape architect must study the contours of the land and its watershed. Where will the water flow when the land and its natural water pathways are disturbed?

It is imperative, therefore, to design for heavy rain events, as they can be very destructive. Torrents of water cause land erosion, pollution, stream scouring and sedimentation build-up, and flooding, among other things. Measures to channel, retain, detain, decelerate, and capture stormwater must be considered.

Recycling stormwater is a sustainable measure that needs to be practiced more often. It is an old technique that has been resurrected in recent years and is now in vogue. Rainwater harvesting saves money and water use. It simply makes sense to capture rain and use it for non-potable uses or made potable with additional filtering.

"In the building industry, the addition of a water harvesting system will earn a project LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) points," suggests Mickalonis. "I was first introduced to rainwater harvesting while I was a student in the Master of Landscape Architecture program at the University of Georgia."

"Presently, as a practicing landscape architect, rainwater harvesting is a viable, sustainable system that I often put in my designs. It is an effective tool for mitigating stormwater, saving money and using water wisely."

For more information on how your family business can benefit from rainwater harvesting, go to their ASK THE EXPERT form to contact their family business rainwater management expert.