Butler or Not? Decisions Desisions

[cdmurray65]

First off, I am a new member to the forum. I am in the process of developing a business plan for a new start-up. I have about five years of cleaning experience from several years ago. My past experiences with truck mounts are exclusively with Butlers. Obviously my initial instinct on which truck mount to buy starts and ends with Butler. After reading this forum for the past few weeks I have heard very little about Butlers and much more about ProChem, AeroTech, etc. I would love to hear the pros and cons of the Butler system compared to the other systems out there. I am probably 30 to 45 days away from making a decision and want to make sure I make a good one.

Thanks for everyones help,

Chris

 

[ThomasRestoration]

I had a butler when i started in 1989, it was a solid machine. Easy to work on, and requires very little maintance. I have then bought only slide in units. I ick the slide ins because of the ease in which you can switch units. If you want a new van and your unit runs well than just switch them with a fork lift a few bolts a fuel tap and presto "new". I have not ran a butler ( other than at a show) in a long time. They are popular here in TN. I dont know how they rate power/heat-wise. We use blueline thermal waves and two blue waves here, 4 Vans, and they are powerful and haven't nickeled me to death. I dont know how the buy out with Dri-Eaz is going to change the product. I have also had hydrmasters, Genisis xt, Prochem brand over the years, some good some terrible.

 

[Scott W]

I try to be as unbiased as possoble when talking about the competition, but you should know that our company distributes other brands of truckmlunts - Prochem, Hydramaster and Blueline are the main brands.

Butler is a good truckmount. The maintenance is simpler than many other units. It has been around for years and is dependable. The company provides good materials to help solve problems and will help via phone and email.

On the downside, they are not sold by distributors across the country. You are dealing factory direct. So if you are not mechanically minded and something major does go wrong, it can be difficult finding parts and someone who knows the machine to repair it.

There are many machines that offer more power - heat, vacuum, water pressure - but few as dependable. It comes down to what factors are important to you when you purchase a truckmount.

 

[dak]

i think scott's reply is dead on. i have run butlers for 14 years with very little maintenance. one of my unit has over 11,000 hours on it and has been very dependable. they have fairly good vacuum power and adequate heat.
i recently purchased a prochem everest and the heat and vac are much better than the bulter. too early too tell on dependability but so far so good. plenty of great units out there. it truly depends on your unique situation

 

[James Cooper]

I bought a used butler about 6 months ago . First thing I did was get rid of the live vac and the top filter in the waste tank - vac improved immensely . I now use a pool type filter and its easier to clean out between jobs.

As everyone else has stated , very simple to run - 3 switches on , 3 switches off. Make sure you get ac .

James

 

[cdmurray65]

Thanks for all of the information. I think this forum is going to be a great resource for me going forward. If anybody else has experience with Butlers vs any of the other options I would appreciate it.

Chris

 

[Classicboss]

:welcome: to the forum. Here is my view on truck mounts... Remember this is just my opinion. when I was in the market to buy my first truck mount I was looking at the butler units, I like how the vans were set up. as I was talking to some owners and previous owners on the butler systems over all they liked them but here is my take on them now, if you want heat... Many owners told me they start out hot but then loose their allot of heat during the cleaning process which if the heat is not consistent then you will be working harder the later part of the job than when you started, I was told the drive shafts were not that reliable, maybe they have improved them in the last two years? If a part fails it could take some time to get it fixed as you need to go to their shop to get it fixed, My big factor in decision was that I did not want to drive for hours to pick up my unit. I am partial to hydramaster units now. I have a slide in unit which has been extremely great and my Interlink supply distributor is only 2 hrs. away so its not too bad. I was at my distributor in Rochester NY yesterday for a class and and they are having some great deals on turnkey packages and you can get a direct drive cds unit too. I chose interlink supply because there are many distributors around the country and I know that hydramaster makes a very dependable durable machine and I have had great customer service from them too. Remember this is just my .02 cents. before you buy any machine it is worth your time to check out any local distributors Interlink, Jon-Don or whomever is in or around your area in reasonable driving distance see what machine fits you for the business/goals that you want to accomplish. I have a unit than can accomplish tile and grout cleaning which we will be offering at the end of this month for our customers, I suggest that if you are purchasing a unit you may want one that it is very capable of adding different services/tools of the trade as you grow your business. you have come to the right place TMF as there is always allot of help/knowledge to be had here. I wish you great success on your business venture.peace

 

[dak]

the bearing on the pto for the butler has failed me 2x in 8 years of service and they can be a p.i.t.a to replace. i am not very mechanically inclined but my local auto mechanic has never had any issues with repairs to the unit. however, there are certain replacement parts you have to get directly from butler and are priced fairly high but they get them to you right away. best of luck with your decision

 

[Buster123]

I currently own my second Butler system in 10 years and I will never stray from butler. In my opinion, its the best machine on the market today. Its so user friendly and easy to maintain. Although the downside is of course is trying to find someone local for repairs. These units hold there value. I personally wouldn't look at any other TM because this is the machine I know like the back of my hand. I would hate to invest into something else, fearing that I wouldn't be happy with the performance of another machine. "Once you go butler, you'll never go back"!:AddEmoticons0423:

 

[TracyWalker]

I use to own slide ins. Started with a Genisis 59 then a boxxer 421. I just in the last month purchased a White Magic 1200 and LOVE it. So far i like the ease of use over my two previous slide ins. I can not explain why but having a PTO system has not only improved my set up and break down time, but my referral business has exploded. I advertise that I have a machine that runs off the powerful engine of my van. Works for me. Can't go wrong with the Butler either.

 

[delubiod]

I worked for a company in Connecticut and they had 4 vans, all Butler systems.
I'm starting my own business in Florida in August/13 and I alredy got my Butler mounted on a GMC Savannah 2004.
Great machine, reliable, dependable, and like the other guys said, once you learn how it works you're good to go!
My experience was 2 full years of hard work with my Butler. Never had a problem.

 

[tri-state]

I've got my Butler for sale on eBay. It's in a 2007 GMC savana 1 ton extended. If any of you guys are looking to buy/add Butler Truckmount.

 

[matt30577]

Stick with what you know until you get your feet wet in this business. If all you've used was butler, then that will be a good machine for you to get started. don't buy new...you'll go broke. make sure the van that it's coming in is under $100k miles. And keep in mind that for every hour that you have on your machine, that's the equivalent to an extra 35miles on the tachometer of the van. So if the tachometer reads 100k miles but has 1000hrs on the butler, you actually have 135,000 miles on the van's engine, so keep that in mind.

And look for a Ford van with a Butler. Chevy has went cheap in quality in the last 10yrs, and I wouldn't depend on a used chevy.

 

[Buster123]

I've got my Butler for sale on eBay. It's in a 2007 GMC savana 1 ton extended. If any of you guys are looking to buy/add Butler Truckmount.

Hey if you have any trouble selling it on ebay, put it up on jondons used truckmount site. I sold 2 there quick! Used butlers go like hotcakes. Good Luck!

 

[Mr. Esteamy]

Butler smutler

 

[Mr. Esteamy]

The whole point of buying a truckmount is to increase heat and cfm. If a butler cannot clean consistently over 200 what's the point. I don't care if it runs forever if it can't clean with high heat and dry carpet s within a few hours its not worth it.

 

[EVDOG]

Is this true? The Butler doesn't hold heat? I'm thinking of buying one.

 

[Smtwn janitorial]

What I have heard is that butlers respond really well to a few modifications. Easy modifications. The suction and heat can be improved alot over stock, if you are willing to tinker.

 

[ACP]

They are pretty awsome I tested a used one out once.

The main consideration I would say is lack of space for other equipment. They do have a box truck model but it isnt cheap.


We offer other services so we need space

 

[EVDOG]

They are pretty awsome I tested a used one out once.

The main consideration I would say is lack of space for other equipment. They do have a box truck model but it isnt cheap.


We offer other services so we need space

From what I saw it's just the opposite. Plenty of space. Thats what I liked about it. Truckmount, hose reels, fresh water and waste tank all in line with eachother, leaving plenty of open space in the back.