advice on oven cleaning franchises

« **on:** November 01, 2003, 08:12:32 pm »

Hi,

I have recently been looking at oven cleaning franchises (rather expensive) and I was wondering if anyone new where I could get the proper chemicals to carry out this myself. I am aware you can get oven cleaning chemicals but obviously the secret is in the oven cleaner that you use. Any advice would be very much appreciated.

Catherine

« **Reply #1 on:** November 01, 2003, 09:15:59 pm »

Hi Catherine

Have you had any experience in deep cleaning or oven cleaning before?

« **Reply #2 on:** November 01, 2003, 10:13:02 pm »

Hi Fox

No experience whatsoever, starting right from the beginning. My husband and I at present run a carpet cleaning business and he has been quite often asked about this service. In our local area there is only one franchise doing this and I wonder how easy it is. With our customers asking about it I am wondering if I can possibly add it on to our business.

Catherine

« **Reply #3 on:** November 01, 2003, 11:56:17 pm »

hi

there is an oven cleaning franchise round my area (sth London) these guys take the oven apart and put it into some kind of cleaning vat in the back of there van. Then put it back together, i must admit the oven looks like new but im not sure i would be confident in taking the bugger apart!!

« **Reply #4 on:** November 02, 2003, 01:12:51 am »

There are many ways to remove grease from a surface which is what you are doing , irrespective if its an oven or not.

The most common use of a tank system in vans is to clean grease filters from commercial kitchens. They nomally use crystals which you can buy from a number of places.

However the commercial guys often get them from Fans & Spares, who have branches up and down the country, no doubt there will be other companies with their own version.

To be honest if you clean in situ, your hard pushed to beat the domestic cleaners, the key is to use a foam to suspend the chemical long enough to work.

I used to use a chemical called F1 (5lt) which was ok in cold water however I then tried it in very hot water and it improved it by 500%, never found anything to beat it commercialy.

« **Reply #5 on:** November 02, 2003, 01:05:00 pm »

I've seen a franchise advertise recently in the YP I think they are called OvenU.

I have done a few deep kitchen cleans and used a product called S20 on the ovens - I think express cleaning may be able to supply this - but not sure - check it out.

I have now given up oven cleaning and sub contract when a client needs a clean. There is definately a gap in the market.

Go for it Catherine but make sure you do your research first.

« **Reply #6 on:** November 02, 2003, 01:38:19 pm »

Thanks guy's for your advice. I am waiting for an express cleaning catalogue to come. I have sent for it twice, hopefully it will come this time (hint, hint). I will definately continue my research.

Catherine

« **Reply #7 on:** November 03, 2003, 03:16:41 pm »

Hi Catherine
Yes we do S20 and it's very good. Sorry you seem to have had problems getting a catalogue. Unfortunately, we're re-printing our paper one and it's likely to be another 3 weeks. Can we send you one on CD for now? Please email me your details and I'll make sure it gets sent

« **Reply #8 on:** November 03, 2003, 11:41:17 pm »

Catherine

We have just started cleaning ovens as part of our service, we are in competition with the Ovenu man but there is definately a need for the service.

I have used Brillo oven cleaner after using a Vitera own brand product. It is much quicker.

When i first started it took about 3 hours per cooker now it's more like 2.

Like you I am waiting forthe Express catalogue, but will try the S20
Good Luck

Terry

« **Reply #9 on:** November 04, 2003, 01:00:27 am »

I sent off for some details regarding Oven Cleaning to an advert in Exchange and Mart, not a franchise.

The equipment costs were about £3000.

I think these guys have researched the correct way to clean ovens.

About a year ago I asked a supplier what equipment I would need and was told a steam cleaner.

However Franchise companies and Others use tanks.

Surley this info is around and does not cost £3000.

Like everything if you can market the service you will get your money back.

Marketing is the Key.

« **Reply #10 on:** November 04, 2003, 12:46:29 pm »

Hi Ian
Steam cleaners alone probably wouldnt do the job but would certainly help used in conjunction with chemicals.
What you have to bear in mind is that generally once people ask you to clean their oven it has got to the stage where the cleaning has been neglected and it is likely to have tough baked on fat and grease to remove.
Much like any so called 'deep cleaning' people want it done when its got to the point that it's so bad they cant do it themselves - whether they want to or not!
Regards Mike

« **Reply #11 on:** November 05, 2003, 12:44:01 am »

Hi All

From previous posts my feelings on franchises are clear!

I have talked to 2 oven business one of them Ovenu. Ovenu charge about £45 for a normal domestic oven and they do take it apart. They are well booked. I was on a prochem course today and was picking the brains of another oven biz and they are booked over a week in advance!

I feel that you do not have to franchise (my humble opinion) steam is useful, with racks and hard to reach areas, the foam cleaners are good also. For the black burnt on stains i feel only elbow gease and some implement will do it.

Hope this helps

Regards

Martin

« **Reply #12 on:** November 05, 2003, 02:10:55 am »

Easy Martin there might be children on here.

,

How did the course go?

« **Reply #13 on:** November 06, 2003, 11:56:49 am »

The carpet and upholstery courses were great. very intense though. the trainers were thorough.

Recommend to anyone!

There were some guys there from an oven cleaning biz and they were booked over a week in advance but he did say that he needed 40 ovens a week to survive.

Interesting...

Regards

Martin

« **Reply #14 on:** November 12, 2003, 02:32:01 pm »

He needs to take 1600 a week to survive.

He must have several vans on the road or lives in a mansion or one bed flat in chelsea

« **Reply #15 on:** November 12, 2003, 07:09:24 pm »

Hmm very true.

There was him + another guy who worked for him, so that was 40 between them. No idea what his costs are. He stated he does take the door off and about 2 hours per oven. Will have ovens in my advertising. Have done a few, some of them minging. Had good results with the foam cleaners and scourers and elbow grease.

Regards

Martin

« **Reply #16 on:** November 12, 2003, 09:53:12 pm »

A lot of the Chemicals I have seen in Tesco you have to wait 40 mins for oven to warm up, does the same apply to commercial.

I also note that the Franchise companies use odouless chemicals.

That reminds me my oven needs a clean

« **Reply #17 on:** November 12, 2003, 11:38:53 pm »

I use a commercial oven cleaner for work and my own oven, but i do find that combining it with the steam cleaner takes the elbow grease bit out of it ( but writing this I have realised I only use the steam cleaner combi for my own oven. That must be because one of my girls loves oven cleaning)
Petra

« **Reply #18 on:** November 13, 2003, 01:15:21 am »

Why buy into a franchise.Surely it must be possible to source what you need and devise your own system, a lot less expensive by far.
Fintan

« **Reply #19 on:** November 14, 2003, 08:28:50 am »

Hi Fintan

I find myself agreeing with you.

Although clues are in the posts

Nobody has come up with a list of what you need.

I will make a start.

Kens Marrigolds.

Protective goggles

White Coat

Oven Cleaner, Best Brand?

Steam Cleaner ?

Floor protector

Wire wool

Brillo pads

TaNk for de contaminating parts ?

Manufactures instruction books?

Leaflets

Press adverts

Canvass team

Referal letters Gift Vouchers etc.

Insurance cover to clean ovens

Practice

« **Reply #20 on:** November 16, 2003, 01:24:29 am »

You have covered most of it there Ian.
Fintan

« **Reply #21 on:** November 16, 2003, 03:59:52 am »

You just forgot one thing.

Someone else to do it !!!!! it realy is a filthy job

« **Reply #22 on:** November 16, 2003, 07:00:49 pm »

I forgot smart well motivated staff in uniform at £5.00 and hour.
Who have signed a confidentiallity contract, and unable to work for any other cleaning company for a period of 6 months on leaving.

Two P reg Escort Vans in good conition at £1500 each.

Probably Red (Ex GPO.)

Good Insurance Broker.

« **Reply #23 on:** November 25, 2003, 09:33:01 pm »

Hi catherine
We used to clean ovens at mister clean but after seeing ovenu we gave all are work to him .After he has finised they look like new , and you can not get them like that with the products that you can get in the shop .Its the heater in the back of the van that does the work .but the down side is the smell .I do not think it is good for you des at mister clean 07971840492 :-/

« **Reply #24 on:** October 08, 2007, 05:41:16 am »

Martin thanks for your posts am finding them helpful.....

B

« **Reply #25 on:** October 08, 2007, 08:02:32 am »

Hi Brian

Sent you an email!

I now send all my Ovens over to another cleaning company, they seem to think 'm bonkers for giving them work, but I have come to hate ovens over the years.

OvenU in my area are booked 6-8 weeks in advance. This is due to repeat customers booked at the time of the first clean.

This is an oven I did last year...

« **Reply #26 on:** October 08, 2007, 02:39:33 pm »

There was someone selling an oven cleaning set up on ebay under oven cleaning equipment at the week end don't know if it's sold or not.
charley.b.

« **Reply #27 on:** October 08, 2007, 04:25:27 pm »

To get the ovens as clean as the guys like "ovenu"

You will need to have a LPG heated (stainless steel) tank mounted in your van - (just contact a local engineering company).

You just renew the door seals when putting everything back!

The chemicals used are - "carbon-off" (don`t use on aluminium) for removing the burnt-on stuff and "catersan" degreaser for the tank, although there are other makes!

Its also a good idea to have a wet & dry vacuum cleaner handy for the spills and mopping up!

« **Reply #28 on:** October 08, 2007, 09:38:09 pm »

My memory is not what it used to be but ......

I seem to remember a similar thread on here about oven cleaning & franchises but the bit that I think is of most interest / relevance was that there was somebody who could provide a complete setup ie all the equipment and training etc for a one off fee.

So if you are interested I would do a fairly comprehensive trawl of the archives

And apologies to whoever "the guy" is that I can't remember your contact details etc

Mick

« **Reply #29 on:** October 09, 2007, 08:03:28 am »

dont buy franchise, i had ovenu one , you pay money up front, and after training you are on your own. i clean ovens indepedantly . still kept alot of my custys.

« **Reply #30 on:** October 09, 2007, 11:42:01 am »

Franchises can be expensive. But they can also be useful for those completely new to the game. Firstly, you will be operating under a sometimes well known brand. They can act as a go-between for you and your clients. Many will sort out your advertising and flyers etc. Some of them even supply a booking service through their own head office, a dedicated website just for your area and even sort out the billing and payment side of things. It depends how much you want them to do for you and how much you want to pay. If you use one that acts like an agency, they will only take payments from you as you earn it (after start-up fees) The downside is you might as well be working for someone else on an hourly rate, without all the self-employment hassle that goes with running your own business.

All the best with whichever way you decide to go...

« **Reply #31 on:** October 09, 2007, 02:38:16 pm »

Most of the big oven cleaning franchises cost in the region of 12k and that does not include the van which is about another 10k, then add to this the annual percentage of turnover you have to pay them , lets say 5k ,also you have to buy all your cleaning materials from them at an inflated price to what you could buy on the open market.
So round that lot up and you get a total of 27 k +
I own an oven cleaning business which my brother in law runs for me and He charges £35 for a standard double oven.Our customers are quoted £60 for same type of oven from the franchised companies they ring for quotes.

On a lighter note I see this thread was started 4 years ago in November 2003 is this a record ?

Regards
Big Paul from the toon

« **Reply #32 on:** October 09, 2007, 05:09:41 pm »

Personally I would not go down the franchise route of any business unless its a high profile brand name with proven audited accounts and is researched properly.

To me £35 for a large oven clean is a little cheap, to do this job properly will take 2 or 3 hours, I think £50 to £60 is about right, but I guess it depends where you are in the country!

If you are dealing with large corporations, then it may be worthwhile hiring the services of a company to chase unpaid bills!
A telephone answering service can cost around £35 to £65 a month, depending on what you want, you can also offer to clean household cooker extractor fans and replace filters for extra income!

You can buy a decent little (second hand) starter van for around £3000, (something like a "Dihatsu") then probably another £2500 for a heated tank, chemicals/spares/wet & dry vac/sudries etc along with advertising costs to begin with should not amount to more than £8 to 10K in total.

You will also have think about fitting fire proof boarding in your van!

Your best bet with getting work is by offering your service to other cleaning companies who can`t or don`t want to take on the work!

« **Reply #33 on:** October 09, 2007, 07:14:36 pm »

If you do your homework and only go with an established franchisor where you can identify other franchisees and ring them at random, then there are many significant benefits of buying a franchise. The biggest advantage is that more franchisees succeed than sole traders but you have to check them out thoroughly beforehand.

Regards

Mike

« **Reply #34 on:** October 11, 2007, 01:25:27 pm »

I am sorry but I have to comment on this. With respect Mike I totaly disagree with you. Being an ex franchisee I feel I am qualified to comment. I was ripped off from the beginning, I was told when I tried to sell "We will never loose money its a win win situation for us (The Franchisor)". I lost everything, my money, my house everything, because I thought buying into a franchise was safe, in reality its not all they want is your money and thats that. This is a fact 'I lost more business due to my franchisor messing around than to my competators'.

Since walking away from my franchise all I have heard from people who have been involved in franchising is horror stories.

I am sure there are a few that will do what they say but I feel most wont.

My advice to anyone who is thinking of going down that route is DONT. If you want to throw your money away, give it to me I will happily take it off your hands

. It is not only your initial stake you loose, I worked for 2 years only able to pay myself a minimal wage because they took all the profits. I paid £25000 for the fanchise, in reality in money terms I lost more like £75000+ in that time (not including my house etc)

If you want to set up a business then research on your own, you will find every thing you need to know by attending courses, talking to suppliers, and surfing the web. you will save thousands and thousands of pounds..

Can someone give my a hand off this soap box now my rant is over

« **Reply #35 on:** October 11, 2007, 10:21:39 pm »

If you are looking to purchase an oven cleaning tank with Gas bottle, cleaning solution, advice and a manual on how to do it. I have one for sale at offers over £150.00 (Based N.W England)

« **Reply #36 on:** October 13, 2007, 11:49:59 pm »

i'd say that's bargain paul....just got £175's business over the phone this evening

dave ovenking

« **Reply #37 on:** October 15, 2007, 05:13:32 pm »

Hi Paul,

Do you still have the tank for sale?

Nick

« **Reply #38 on:** November 02, 2007, 11:47:36 am »

I trained through a company called Ovenmaster Shropshire. Much cheaper than a franchise but you are comitted to buying chemicals from them as long as you're trading as an oven cleaner. You're also restricted to an area of your choice (as long as it's not already taken). They give 2 days training and advise to practice on family and friends' ovens. They supply all materials for a month and diptank for around £2500.