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Posted:  06 Apr 2011 20:14
Registered User Currently Offline Join Date: Feb 2011	Posts:  10 Reputation:  1 User Rank: 1 - Seed
My technicians are very attached to their watering buckets.  I have noticed 3 diferent styles that they use.  Is there a specific brand that works best for our industry?  I tried to provide new ones but they are very protective of the old models.  I just want employees to look as professional as possible.

Posted:  07 Apr 2011 15:54
Registered User Currently Offline Join Date: Jan 2011	Posts:  386 Reputation:  20 User Rank: 11 - Orchid
We use Dillen 2-gallon cans for those accounts where we can't use watering machines...residential, mostly.  Otherwise, they mostly collect dust in our service vans.  To be truly professional-looking (not to mention truly professional actually), you should strongly consider investing in a small Aquamate or similar machine for each route that consists mainly of commercial properties with on-grade/ramp/elevator access to all areas.  Your techs will become instantly more efficient and effective, tools and paperwork will be secure and organized, and your clients will be most impressed. Clem

Posted:  17 Apr 2011 13:49
Registered User Currently Offline Join Date: Jan 2011	Posts:  38 Reputation:  2 User Rank: 1 - Seed
"machines" are not always more efficient.  It takes longer to get them in and out of vehicles, locate a water source that someone has NOT changed the nozzle on for your filling, (been there too many times!) Yes, some accounts this works for, beautifully.  Just saying sometimes watering is easier/faster with bukets.  I sometimes have to find new buckets just so they will fit under NEW faucets some client HAD to have!  LOL...  beauty isn't always practical for a water bucket to get under. I DO love my Aquamate products.  When used correcltly and maintained you can't beat them.  Staffers all want them too, for larger accounts.  Can't blame them.  The machines cannot stay outside in the freezing weather/in cars though.  If you are in a winter cold zone, know that.  You occasionally will have to check the bladder for proper psi/air, as this is what powers the pushing of water OUT of the machine.  Flat tires, occasionally, and by flat I mean they have a ton of miles and you need new ones.  biggest issue is leaky nozzles/missing your mark when watering...splish splash, take a bath!  Takes practice sometimes...but are great tools for our trade.

Posted:  17 Apr 2011 14:47
Registered User Currently Offline Join Date: Jan 2011	Posts:  386 Reputation:  20 User Rank: 11 - Orchid
I don't know of an account (other than residentials) that is easier to do with watering cans...lugging, spills, multiple trips to refill, wasted time running back and forth to the same spots...who needs THAT aggravation??? Getting the tank in and out of the van is no more time-consuming than loading and off-loading cans and buckets.  Maybe a bit more of a workout, but hey, we can all stand to be in better shape, no? It's 2011...go with the appropriate technology! Clem

Posted:  26 Jun 2011 13:52
Registered User Currently Offline Join Date: Mar 2011	Posts:  10 Reputation: Unranked User Rank: 1 - Seed
Speaking as a tech, with 17 yrs at the same company, I ALWAYS use a bucket. My Aquamate is for larger accounts. In my case, hospitals. I've never used the nozzle that is supplied. I fill my bucket from my Aquamate and use the bucket for watering. I think it quite awkward to haul a large machine into the offices for 1-4 plants. We get attached to our buckets because we know the flow rate. I dread getting a new bucket because of the adjustment period in learning the new rate. I clean the outside of mine with soapy water, as needed to keep it from looking dingy.

Posted:  27 Jun 2011 19:25
Registered User Currently Offline Join Date: Jan 2011	Posts:  386 Reputation:  20 User Rank: 11 - Orchid
We have almost no accounts that are too small to benefit from the efficiency and professionalism that accrue through the use of a watering machine.  Yes, there are a couple of residential accounts and maybe a couple of very small office accounts (ten plants or less, which are rare) that still get the "bucket" treatment, I'll admit, but those are really dinosaurs at this point. The "bucket" image is what is responsible for our industry's low esteem with many clients.  The machine definitely pays for itself in terms of efficiency and providing a professional image to the client and prospective clients who see you working with it.  Worth every dime. Clem

Posted:  28 Jun 2011 05:01
Registered User Currently Offline Join Date: Mar 2011	Posts:  10 Reputation: Unranked User Rank: 1 - Seed
This is where we differ, Clem. Our company is small. There are 5 employees (4 techs and one full time nursery) and the owner. I'm the PCO as well as being a tech. The bulk of our work comes from atrium and hospital clientele. I handle most of our companies small accounts. Quite a few are medical offices crammed with patients. It much more professional, IMO, to excuse myself as I slip by the waiting patients, with a bucket in hand, then it would be to haul my machine to the same places. I've serviced many of these accounts for well over a decade, personally. I have never had one complaint about be unprofessional. I'm sure I have quite a few complaints if I tried getting a machine by some of my clients' pregnant patients. I don't consider any of them or the way in which they are serviced, antiquated, or to you your term, dinosaurs. Machines definitely have their place and their uses. IMO, it's a judgement call in knowing your clientele and in knowing whether a bucket or a machine is the more appropriate (professional) approach.

Posted:  28 Jun 2011 12:42
Registered User Currently Offline Join Date: Jan 2011	Posts:  56 Reputation: Unranked User Rank: 2 - Taproot
theres nothing unprofessional about using watering cans. calling them "buckets" is very unprofessional howeveer

Posted:  28 Jun 2011 23:20
Registered User Currently Offline Join Date: Jan 2011	Posts:  386 Reputation:  20 User Rank: 11 - Orchid
Plant Lady, We do hospital work, too, as well as offices constructed with some of the most challenging pathways and cubicle-habitrail-layouts imaginable.  How do you water hanging plants or TOPSiders that are above your head with a watering can?  Do you drag a stepladder around each account to help you safely reach them?  Not us...we use the wand on our machine to do that.  Safer and more professional, IMHO, but to each his/her own. I still do tech work on a semi-regular basis, and I only use my watering can for a few accounts without elevators and at some residences.  But it's only because I have no better alternative due to the architecture and access limitations of the sites, not because I like it.  I love my (customized) Aquamate!!! Clem

Posted:  29 Jun 2011 06:54
Registered User Currently Offline Join Date: Apr 2011	Posts:  16 Reputation: Unranked User Rank: 1 - Seed
Marcus One of the best balanced water cans is the Dramm 7 & 10 Liter units. German designed and Swiss made, but also fairly expensive, but they can not be beat. Rick

Posted:  30 Jun 2011 23:37
Registered User Currently Offline Join Date: Mar 2011	Posts:  10 Reputation: Unranked User Rank: 1 - Seed
Clem, I love my Aquamate too The hospital I service has gone to floor plants only. I do have a few low CA10s, with pothos, in the Exec. area. Yes, I use a small step ladder for them. It's just 6 plants out of reach. They are done in less them 10 mins and the step ladder stows safely from its hook on my Aquamate. TPL

Posted:  01 Jul 2011 01:31
Registered User Currently Offline Join Date: Jan 2011	Posts:  386 Reputation:  20 User Rank: 11 - Orchid
Okay, Plant Lady, I forgive you! Clem

Posted:  01 Jul 2011 05:16
Registered User Currently Offline Join Date: Jan 2011	Posts:  9 Reputation: Unranked User Rank: 1 - Seed
I agree with Rick, Dramm is my favorite!

Posted:  01 Feb 2012 22:01   Last Edited By: italirican2003
Registered User Currently Offline Join Date: Jan 2012	Posts:  36 Reputation:  3 User Rank: 1 - Seed
We use an OXO watering can for watering the plants all over campus and I love it! Our instructor wanted to take it to the greenhouse we rent for a class and me and the other person who water plants on campus almost had a fit! The instructor thought it was funny and allowed us to keep ours and is going to buy another one for the greenhouse. It has a soft/grippy handle. The spout rotates so it's easier to carry without accidentally catching on things and storing. And, it comes with a removable attachment that makes the flow more fine and gentle.http://www.amazon.com/OXO-Watering-Can-liter- ...

Posted:  02 Feb 2012 05:25
Registered User Currently Offline Join Date: Jan 2011	Posts:  386 Reputation:  20 User Rank: 11 - Orchid
I just brought home one of those Oxo cans to replace my missing European watering can that I use for my windowsill collection of orchids, succulents and other oddities.  It's okay, but I can see the potential for leakage at the point where the spout rotates before too long.  The removable sprinkler head is a problem already, falling off the storage nub as it does so often...it will probably get lost soon, but that's okay, because it's about as useful as a screen door on a submarine. Clem

Posted:  03 Feb 2012 18:15
Registered User Currently Offline Join Date: Jan 2012	Posts:  36 Reputation:  3 User Rank: 1 - Seed
Clem, I've wondered about the leakage probabilty at the base of the spout also. I take the head off when using it. I've used the can for a while now and still like it. I'll probably continue using them for a while.

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