I was asked to write a 30 day review of my thoughts on my SS870. Well, I am terrible with homework assignments, so here is my 30 day review. 30+ days late. So now it's a 60+ day review 
Sorry in advance for any typos.
On Oct 5th,and 6th 2015 I took delivery of my new SS870. I'll admit I purchased it out of frustration (for reasons I will not go into here). I didn't have the money to purchase a new unit but with a call to One Degree Capital, they had me approved and before I knew it my machine was on its way to Medford Oregon. I could not believe how fast things happened once I made that call, almost too fast.
When I arrived at Cleaning Solutions to meet my machine for the first time in Medford, I could not believe the size of the unit. I honestly was a little sick when I first saw it. It looked way bigger in person. I took out my measuring tape and I must have walked back and forth from my van to the new 870 no less than 5 times to make sure it would fit. I thought I had done my research, but it seemed to be bigger in person. One thing I did not account for was the filler neck protrusion inside the van. I thought for sure that would get in the way of the waste tank fitting against the wall of the van. I felt my heart sink. I then noticed that the back of the waste tank was angled in at 45° making it possible to fit the tank over the filler neck bump. Good job Sapphire!
The install of the new unit can be seen in the following thread, so I'll spare you the details of that. :
https://www.truckmountforums.com/threads/from-dragon-to-sapphire-from-van-to-box-truck.76311/
One of my issues is that I have always been honest with my opinions. I get a lot of flack. I don't plan on changing anytime soon. So this review will be honest. I will tell you the issues I had as I did with my former TM. Even if the company calls me and yells at me. I am here to exchange experiences and ideas freely with my fellow cleaners. If I can save another guy from a headache because of my bad experience, then good for me. I'm willing to take the phone calls and get nasty emails. So here it goes.
As I write this my SS870 has 95 hours on it. So far it has been a true blessing to work with. I have had a few little issues with it but nothing big. When I got it home and fired it up, I noticed that the water pressure regulator was set way low, allowing water to come out of the overflow tube. That was adjusted with a wrench and problem was fixed. I do notice that when I clean at higher altitudes it will start to leak a little, but not enough to worry about. My home is about 100 ft above sea level. When I get a call to clean up in Burney or other areas in the mountains, like weed or Mt Shasta, the altitude can get up to 4,000 ft ASL.
I had a pressure sensor also leaking. I had that corrected when I took it in for the 50 hour service.
The HGS on the vac relief valve were at about 10 hgs when I got the machine. We adjusted it to a higher setting. Very easy to do.
The LED light burned out on my third job. Not a hard fix. From what my dealer tells me it seems like the led's that Sapphire uses on the 870 all seem to burn out. I bought a replacement at AutoZone for $12. It's working fine. It's not as bright as the original, but it will do until my replacement gets to me.
From the first day I had a belt screeching problem. Only on the first start of the day I would get a screeching sound that lasted for about 3 to 5 seconds. After that, the machine ran quite the rest of the day. It turned out that the belt on the alternator was a bit loose and was corrected by loosening 1 bolt and then pulling the alternator back a bit to increase the belt tension. I have not an any screeching noises since.
Those are really the only issues I have experienced. I think one reason why things came so loose with the regulator, VLV, and sensor is because the Sapphire units are assembled at an altitude of 5,400 Ft ASL. I think the expansion and contraction during the shipping may cause some things to come out of adjustment.
Now for the good parts. The SS870 is absolutely a kick ass machine when accounting for its size and abilities, it runs quiet. I walk out to it and it sounds like a jet engine humming away. Smooth and quiet. Operation is easy as can be. There is no choke, no flow valves to worry about, everything just works. Turn the key to start, select your engine speed and temp (low, med or high) and your off.
I clean with a 8 flow Devpro wand. The TM holds a constant 220°+ on the engine/heat setting of medium. On high it will put out over 235°.
It takes about 2 to 3 minutes for it to warm up to cleaning temperature. But once the machine gets warmed up, its ready to go for the rest of the day. The puppy holds the heat. Getting it to cool itself below 170° during the shutdown process is a challenge. to cool it down, put the engine on the Low setting and turn off the heat. Then open the bypass or the courtesy line until 170° or below.
Cleaning Upholstery:
The SS870 is a bit overkill for upholstery cleaning, but what the heck, I use it anyway. I clean the upholstery on the Idle setting. I recently discovered when I forgot to turn the heat onto "low", that I didn't need the heat on to clean upholstery. The machine was holding 170° to 180° at the mount with the heat off and running on idle! I was pretty impressed by that.
Vibration:
The 870 is smooth. I was so used to things falling out of my van with my former TM. Now I can place my measuring cup on my step, and its there when I return. Things stay on my shelf in the van, and I am not finding mysterious nuts and bolt on the floor. Watching the blower belts is something else. It just looks so precision with the polished stainless pulleys turning under those big belts. Maybe I need to get out more, but I just love watching the machine in action. It is like watching a Swiss clock. Everything running smooth and balanced.
Interior heat and fit:
I got so sick of people telling me that the SS870 would not fit in my van, and the heat would be too much for the machine in such a confined space. Most of the people telling me this had never run an 870 before. So here is my take on it from a guy that is actually using the machine. Yes, the machine is big, but guess what, I got it to fit in my 2001 Chevy express 3500 non extended van. I have about 2mm of room between the barn door pillar and the edge of the 870. Very close!
The hoses from the blower to the tanks are massive 6" hoses. A real bear to deal with on install but we eventually beat them into place with a rubber mallet and a screwdriver.
As for the heat. Come on guys! I had an Amtex Dragon in my van before this baby. I think I know heat. My former unit melted my lights, itself, and my wiring for my lights. The SS870 gets warm, but not so hot that it's causing damage to itself or my van. When I clean I have all the windows open and the back doors open. The front radiator fan pulls a ton of air when running. I can lay a spotting towel on the front of the machine and it will stay because of all the airflow that thing sucks in. It also has a secondary fan that cools the belts. The air is piped through the frame rails. Pretty slick setup. There is enough airflow in and out of my van to keep it cool. People keep telling me I need a roof vent on my van. Nope. I'm fine.
The dealers seem to keep pushing the SS570 on guys. I have been told this by more than one person and have experienced it myself. I think the main reason they are pushing the 570 so much is because they have them sitting on their showroom floor. Of course they want to move them out. I had one dealer tell me that the 570 was not good for tile cleaning and the 870 was better for hard surfaces. Whatever, that just showed me dealers are full of crap. The 570 is more than capable of hard surface cleaning, so is the 870.
Guys, if you want the real story on things, ask the people in the field using them every day. Not the dealers. If you ever watch the movie Freakonomics, you will understand why I say this within the first 30 minutes of the movie.
Fuel Consumption:
I love not having to fill up with diesel anymore. I love that I have a heat exchanger unit that can produce as much steam as I will ever need with only one fuel. I love that my van stays clean and that my hands are no longer black at the end of the day from diesel soot. I love that I don't have to spend all my off time cleaning and wiping down my equipment.
I usually clean everything on the Medium setting for engine speed and heat. I can clean about 5 houses on a tank of gas. I am guessing that the machine sips about 2.5 gal per hour. Yes, the fuel injected water cooled Ford 4 cylinder engine uses a bit more fuel than my former 30hp Kohler, but now I am not burning additional diesel and am running a true performance machine. The fuel seems to be a pretty close draw. The difference hasn't been enough to make me regret my choice. Just knowing I have enough power, heat, and suction to tackle any job is of great comfort to me.
The engine does not bog down. The monster blower just keeps running and the Ford engine keeps it powered consistently no matter the load I put to it.
Chemical Injection:
What can I say, it just works as it should. No issues or messing around with it. Once you get it burped, it just works. No fuss.
Ok, there is my review so far. I love my machine and I don't regret buying it. The payment is a little much, but it is motivation to keep working. When I bought the machine I also upgraded my chem shelf, electric hose reel, and a real APO system.
Please feel free to hit me with any questions. As time goes on, if I hit any issues I'll post them. So far its like flying a lear jet.
@the organic cleaner @TConway @See Spots Run @Blacktiedetailing @DJCarpetService @Rob Allen
Sorry in advance for any typos.On Oct 5th,and 6th 2015 I took delivery of my new SS870. I'll admit I purchased it out of frustration (for reasons I will not go into here). I didn't have the money to purchase a new unit but with a call to One Degree Capital, they had me approved and before I knew it my machine was on its way to Medford Oregon. I could not believe how fast things happened once I made that call, almost too fast.
When I arrived at Cleaning Solutions to meet my machine for the first time in Medford, I could not believe the size of the unit. I honestly was a little sick when I first saw it. It looked way bigger in person. I took out my measuring tape and I must have walked back and forth from my van to the new 870 no less than 5 times to make sure it would fit. I thought I had done my research, but it seemed to be bigger in person. One thing I did not account for was the filler neck protrusion inside the van. I thought for sure that would get in the way of the waste tank fitting against the wall of the van. I felt my heart sink. I then noticed that the back of the waste tank was angled in at 45° making it possible to fit the tank over the filler neck bump. Good job Sapphire!
The install of the new unit can be seen in the following thread, so I'll spare you the details of that. :
https://www.truckmountforums.com/threads/from-dragon-to-sapphire-from-van-to-box-truck.76311/
One of my issues is that I have always been honest with my opinions. I get a lot of flack. I don't plan on changing anytime soon. So this review will be honest. I will tell you the issues I had as I did with my former TM. Even if the company calls me and yells at me. I am here to exchange experiences and ideas freely with my fellow cleaners. If I can save another guy from a headache because of my bad experience, then good for me. I'm willing to take the phone calls and get nasty emails. So here it goes.
As I write this my SS870 has 95 hours on it. So far it has been a true blessing to work with. I have had a few little issues with it but nothing big. When I got it home and fired it up, I noticed that the water pressure regulator was set way low, allowing water to come out of the overflow tube. That was adjusted with a wrench and problem was fixed. I do notice that when I clean at higher altitudes it will start to leak a little, but not enough to worry about. My home is about 100 ft above sea level. When I get a call to clean up in Burney or other areas in the mountains, like weed or Mt Shasta, the altitude can get up to 4,000 ft ASL.
I had a pressure sensor also leaking. I had that corrected when I took it in for the 50 hour service.
The HGS on the vac relief valve were at about 10 hgs when I got the machine. We adjusted it to a higher setting. Very easy to do.
The LED light burned out on my third job. Not a hard fix. From what my dealer tells me it seems like the led's that Sapphire uses on the 870 all seem to burn out. I bought a replacement at AutoZone for $12. It's working fine. It's not as bright as the original, but it will do until my replacement gets to me.
From the first day I had a belt screeching problem. Only on the first start of the day I would get a screeching sound that lasted for about 3 to 5 seconds. After that, the machine ran quite the rest of the day. It turned out that the belt on the alternator was a bit loose and was corrected by loosening 1 bolt and then pulling the alternator back a bit to increase the belt tension. I have not an any screeching noises since.
Those are really the only issues I have experienced. I think one reason why things came so loose with the regulator, VLV, and sensor is because the Sapphire units are assembled at an altitude of 5,400 Ft ASL. I think the expansion and contraction during the shipping may cause some things to come out of adjustment.
Now for the good parts. The SS870 is absolutely a kick ass machine when accounting for its size and abilities, it runs quiet. I walk out to it and it sounds like a jet engine humming away. Smooth and quiet. Operation is easy as can be. There is no choke, no flow valves to worry about, everything just works. Turn the key to start, select your engine speed and temp (low, med or high) and your off.
I clean with a 8 flow Devpro wand. The TM holds a constant 220°+ on the engine/heat setting of medium. On high it will put out over 235°.
It takes about 2 to 3 minutes for it to warm up to cleaning temperature. But once the machine gets warmed up, its ready to go for the rest of the day. The puppy holds the heat. Getting it to cool itself below 170° during the shutdown process is a challenge. to cool it down, put the engine on the Low setting and turn off the heat. Then open the bypass or the courtesy line until 170° or below.
Cleaning Upholstery:
The SS870 is a bit overkill for upholstery cleaning, but what the heck, I use it anyway. I clean the upholstery on the Idle setting. I recently discovered when I forgot to turn the heat onto "low", that I didn't need the heat on to clean upholstery. The machine was holding 170° to 180° at the mount with the heat off and running on idle! I was pretty impressed by that.
Vibration:
The 870 is smooth. I was so used to things falling out of my van with my former TM. Now I can place my measuring cup on my step, and its there when I return. Things stay on my shelf in the van, and I am not finding mysterious nuts and bolt on the floor. Watching the blower belts is something else. It just looks so precision with the polished stainless pulleys turning under those big belts. Maybe I need to get out more, but I just love watching the machine in action. It is like watching a Swiss clock. Everything running smooth and balanced.
Interior heat and fit:
I got so sick of people telling me that the SS870 would not fit in my van, and the heat would be too much for the machine in such a confined space. Most of the people telling me this had never run an 870 before. So here is my take on it from a guy that is actually using the machine. Yes, the machine is big, but guess what, I got it to fit in my 2001 Chevy express 3500 non extended van. I have about 2mm of room between the barn door pillar and the edge of the 870. Very close!
The hoses from the blower to the tanks are massive 6" hoses. A real bear to deal with on install but we eventually beat them into place with a rubber mallet and a screwdriver.
As for the heat. Come on guys! I had an Amtex Dragon in my van before this baby. I think I know heat. My former unit melted my lights, itself, and my wiring for my lights. The SS870 gets warm, but not so hot that it's causing damage to itself or my van. When I clean I have all the windows open and the back doors open. The front radiator fan pulls a ton of air when running. I can lay a spotting towel on the front of the machine and it will stay because of all the airflow that thing sucks in. It also has a secondary fan that cools the belts. The air is piped through the frame rails. Pretty slick setup. There is enough airflow in and out of my van to keep it cool. People keep telling me I need a roof vent on my van. Nope. I'm fine.
The dealers seem to keep pushing the SS570 on guys. I have been told this by more than one person and have experienced it myself. I think the main reason they are pushing the 570 so much is because they have them sitting on their showroom floor. Of course they want to move them out. I had one dealer tell me that the 570 was not good for tile cleaning and the 870 was better for hard surfaces. Whatever, that just showed me dealers are full of crap. The 570 is more than capable of hard surface cleaning, so is the 870.
Guys, if you want the real story on things, ask the people in the field using them every day. Not the dealers. If you ever watch the movie Freakonomics, you will understand why I say this within the first 30 minutes of the movie.
Fuel Consumption:
I love not having to fill up with diesel anymore. I love that I have a heat exchanger unit that can produce as much steam as I will ever need with only one fuel. I love that my van stays clean and that my hands are no longer black at the end of the day from diesel soot. I love that I don't have to spend all my off time cleaning and wiping down my equipment.
I usually clean everything on the Medium setting for engine speed and heat. I can clean about 5 houses on a tank of gas. I am guessing that the machine sips about 2.5 gal per hour. Yes, the fuel injected water cooled Ford 4 cylinder engine uses a bit more fuel than my former 30hp Kohler, but now I am not burning additional diesel and am running a true performance machine. The fuel seems to be a pretty close draw. The difference hasn't been enough to make me regret my choice. Just knowing I have enough power, heat, and suction to tackle any job is of great comfort to me.
The engine does not bog down. The monster blower just keeps running and the Ford engine keeps it powered consistently no matter the load I put to it.
Chemical Injection:
What can I say, it just works as it should. No issues or messing around with it. Once you get it burped, it just works. No fuss.
Ok, there is my review so far. I love my machine and I don't regret buying it. The payment is a little much, but it is motivation to keep working. When I bought the machine I also upgraded my chem shelf, electric hose reel, and a real APO system.
Please feel free to hit me with any questions. As time goes on, if I hit any issues I'll post them. So far its like flying a lear jet.
@the organic cleaner @TConway @See Spots Run @Blacktiedetailing @DJCarpetService @Rob Allen
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