(EP. 2) Garbage Man - DAY 2 (Someone Already FIRED Me) 

My wife and I started a trash pickup company when Waste Management left our county. These videos will serve as an in-depth playlist that covers the growth and operations of the business. The items we use for the business: 95 Gallon Can Liners: amzn.to/45HeOdt Back Brace: amzn.to/3znkYmU Wireless Magnetic Strobe Lights: amzn.to/3zlJULH Hi-Vis Arm Sleeves: amzn.to/3zhGRUu Hi-Vis Balaclava: amzn.to/4cHf4LA Yard Signs: lddy.no/1k1nj

One advice I got during an internship, do not answer a message that upsets you on the very same day. Your answer will be very different and professional if you let one night go by to collect your thoughts and calm down, you'll be in the mindset "hey, not a big deal after all". Saved me many, many times.

I know you said you plan on getting an automated truck one day. If that’s the goal, don’t bring the cans up the driveway. People will expect that and will be angry when they get used to it and it is no longer done.

Idea for the liners: May or may not work. Magnetic harbor freight glove holder, paper towel holder or something like that. Cheap and can stick one on either side of trailer for quicker access and storage of liners

Just a friendly tip I’m a school custodian and what helps me a lot from caveing in liners is tying a knot in the corner of the liner

I have lived in South Florida all my life . The trash man never brings the trash cans in from the curve. If you leave them in place you will save so much time. Just pull them back a foot or two. Hope this helps. Good job. I'm rooting for you.

You should make those dirt road stops your first stops. You know that when we get one of those 3 day soakers that road will be impassable for a truck pulling a heavy trailer.

You can move your boards to one side of the trailer and if you need an extra height you could leave more boards on one side. best of both worlds having the boards

not sure how your video was on my recommended videos, but your positive attitude and great work ethics is amazing. keep it up! i look forward to seeing your future "can pick up truck". that should speed up your morning trash pick up and will be better for your back too. good luck and i wish you the best!

You need a catch-all basket for bags, gloves, and every stop items mounted on the trailer. Also a board stash on the trailer fender. That way it's a table, and you have the extra space when needed.

What I would recommend is grabbing the liner when you get out of the truck. Get out of the truck and grab a liner or two (depending on how many trash cans they have) and then empty the trash and put the liner in. It would help cut down on time as you wouldn't have to walk back to where you're storing the liners. Just get out, grab 1 or 2 liners, empty the cans and put the liners in. Would for sure save time as you pass the liners on the way to empty the cans so why not just grab them then. You could hang the liners on the side of the trailer on the wood slats and grab them when you need to replace the liner so you don't have to place them on the ground and hurt your back as you keep bending over. Just make it one smooth trip. Get out and grab however many liners you need, Empty the cans and replace the liners and get back in the truck.

You should either build or buy a liner holder and you can attached it to the fender of the trailer. Open the lid of the container and it’s ready to go. Save steps to save money

Enjoy these weekly Saturday morning updates on the new business Brad. Excited to see it grow for you!

Glad I could help with the liner tip

Brad, just a thought I know it may cost a couple a few dollars but I’m thinking of you back. See if there is a fabrication shop that could make you a small hydraulic lift for that trailer like the trash people have that pick up those bottles with the hook in the front, could lift it up and dump it for you so that God forbid you don’t hurt your back pulling out some of these heavy bags, it would just hook up press the button and dump the barrel

Quick idea: have something like door hangars made to put on gates or whatever that say “ I couldn’t reach your can sorry we missed the pickup today” or something along those lines it will definitely create a memorable moment for the client to make sure the cans are accessible in the future.

The liners are a great idea. Until you get a lift system this is the way to go.

I've always found that when people complain like that, a cheerful full refund is the best route. If they wrote that much and even consulted their accountant over such a small amount, they were going to be huge pains in the ass going forward. They did you a favor firing you.

I saw you at the landfill last week, I'm a local junk removal service in Jacksonville, Fl. It's great to see how things are progressing for you. I wish you and your wife the best of luck!

Glad to hear you were tickled pink brother ☺️👍

You could put spare liners in the bin so then when u take the old one out the new is at the bottoms of the bin

Just an idea in regards to the prep of liners: If your wife is with you during pickup, she could go ahead & pull out the amount needed for the next stop- and maybe even get out to shake them open so they’re ready for you (all while you are pulling the current house’s trash & loading it into the trailer / replacing the liner). Just an idea until you figure out what works best for you! 😊

You are doing great work Brad!! I'm sorry to hear that someone canceled service already, we all learn from our mistakes, and you acknowledging this shows that you are doing the right thing

If you could build a box for the front and a little jig to hold the bags through the hole and it can spin to dispense the bag. Its not perfect but it saves you more and you get a storage spot for the heavy use items. Just remember to take what you dont want taken in every day

I think the liners show a level of professionalism. I have personally never seen a trash can in my area with one. Im sure certain clients would be happy with paying higher price for the added touch

I always look forward to these weekly videos. Great work

Awesome video! Very interesting to see how your company is turning out! The new carts look amazing!

Hello, professional driver here. I’ve driven both garbage trucks and dumpster roll offs. The liner is a wise idea at this small scale stage of the business! What I do recommend is investing in a tarp. You don’t want to be liable if a bag or loose trash comes flying out when you’re driving. One on an automated arm like dump trucks have would save the most time

So cool, Brad! Loved the video…and the “twocans” ❤️

People probably think that they can throw loose trash because you put the liner in. They see the liner as a trash bag so they throw loose trash because they know that you're going to take the liner so basically everything will be bagged because you're taking the liner out and replacing it.

I'm looking into getting into curbside pick up. We do roll off dumpsters and use two dumptrailers as "dumpsters" as well. Your videos have been a blessing to actually see what it's like starting out! One tip for your tarp system. Tie a rope through the eyelets of tarp. When you're ready to tarp a load, you can just throw the rope to the back doors and pull tarp to you. Good luck out there!!

We run a very similar trash run in Australia, we use bin liners for each bin too, and to stop trash falling under the bin liner, we've tied a bit of elastic under the lip of the bin to hold it in place. It works pretty well. Cheers mate and best of luck

Super interesting watching the journey.

Ha I saw my past comment in this video. Bro its all done with love been watching you for a long time . I do hope this Adventure all works out for you guys. That tipper will be a great asset. 👍👍👍

I would want to carry a tire plug kit on the trailer if not already- those landfills give me anxiety in the off loading areas. My area has a mix of larger companies and one-truck operations for roadside service. Reliability of pick-ups, especially a plan for holiday/weather situations is huge. Thanks for sharing the experience. I can see you are thinking ahead and just trying to get through the backaches until you decide if it’s worth it for your business to invest in the hands-free equipment. You definitely have a huge advantage being limited on competitors in your area.

A few things. Make up some simple board holders for the side. Just a simple j style thats on the side of the trailer on each side. Simple grab a board put in in the holder its always with you and make it wide enough you can throw both bords down easier on the back.

Liners are great. We have to keep cans out of site, so garage it is. Liners mostly keep the can clean.

Weld a box on wheel well. Same you an extra couple steps. Good luck brother!!

A drain hole in the bottom is very helpful for draining juice and the infamous Florida rain. You are going to regret a client leaving the lid open and having to deal with a weeks worth of rainwater/trashjuice.

For bags, I recommend putting piece of PVC pipe on each side of the trailer with a slot in it and plug at the bottom basically as a dispenser for the rolls

You can buy bags that are flat packed instead of rolls that will help… then they could be right in the bed of the truck easy to get to

I randomly found your RU-vid a few days ago an absolutly love it. I am from germany and things here are so different so its very nice to watch you do all of that! Keep up the great work man!!

I love this series 😩

Try mounting the liners on each fender. Thats right where you are loading so makes the most sense. You could probably make a temporary mount out of 2x4s or something and see how you like it. If it works well, then get a real metal one made and paint match it to the trailer

Note to the liners: a lot of times when I’m removing a lot of brush from jobs, leaves etc. I use the heavy duty bags and charge it to the customer so that way it’s easier to off load from my open trailer at the dump. So I get it. Some people will always have something to say but it’s just easier. It’s more work initially but saves time later. Untill I can get a Dump trailer. I would like to hear a breakdown of the schedule between your businesses and how you are organizing or regulating everything.

Once you have the tipper you will save so much more revenue and so much more of your body

Played at 1.75 speed.... Perfect! BTW our toter is bold blue. Also noticable compared to green, brown, dk red cans other companies use

As a former janitor the can liner is a great idea!

You should put stickers and logos on the bin that says to keep liners on. At all times with trash in.😊

Good job Brad!!

New subscriber here, I have always been enthusiastic about trash companies but never knew what it would take to get a new one started. I live ur color scheme for the cans and other things. An option is to possibly get a cart tipper that raises so you don’t have to lift all of those cans up, it looks hard! Good luck with ur business and I will be keeping up to date on it.

To save time on tying the bags but still have them closed you could use a zip tie on them up

SPRAY THE CANS EVERY TWO WEEKS WITH DISINFECTANT TO KEEP THE SMELL DOWN

If you tie a little knot in the top of the liner before you put it in it will keep them from falling into the can (and show off your logo better)

Buy a tool box that mounts to a tractor. Mount it to the trailer fender, cut a slit in it to feed the liners. Each step in walking you can save the better.

I like that you put the liners in the can. Not everyone might use a good quality thick bag. Some might use the cheapest bag they can get and then they have the tendency to rip open when lifted out of the can or thrown into the truck.

Loving the series. Your commentary and thought process is intriguing and I really enjoy the cost breakdown at the end. Although you mentioned you don't take into consideration overhead costs, I would be curious to know more information on your marketing strategy to get more customers. In the past video you mentioned door-knocking. I'd been curious to know what strategies you're finding and how you're acquiring these new customers. (fliers vs door-knocking vs word of mouth). I'd also be curious to know how you manage your time. These 10-min emails, acquiring customers, and etc must take time. Do you plan an hour a day to respond to emails? Work-life balance is vital so that would also be an interest concept to dive into. Keep up the excellent commentary!

I used to work in sanitation… it’ll cost a few bucks but you may want to look into a mini pac mac… it’s a smaller rear load body on a Isuzu cab (non cdl).

You gotta make a “trash bag rack” like for weed wackers and back pack blowers and mount it to the fender of the trailer or the side of the trailer

Been watching these videos since he started, And for the boards, you should make a holder on the side of the trailer to hold your boards, this will help to remove all them on early pick ups as you keep going through the day and your trailer fills you take boards off the holder and place them in, Just a idea! Besides that love the videos :)

battery box works. but, you could attach a toolbox over each wheel well so that you save a few steps every stop. it may only be 6 feet. but multiply that by the number of stops you hope for, and it adds up quickly. Maybe a step that has a spring to hold it up while driving on each side so you can get height, balance, and leverage to dump or throw easier and higher.

One thing that I just thought of it just have a fab shop or do it yourself but weld some bag dispensers on the side of the trailer that way you don’t have to spend that extra 10-30 seconds every stop to open and close where you have them and just grab and go!

Awesome video! Also just another fire extinguisher suggestion, if you do end up putting an extinguisher on the trailer I would recommend a 10lb. ABC Amerex extinguisher, they are expensive but high quality. If you get a 10lb. Amerex make sure to get the Amerex vehicle mount, they are very good mounts! More good fire extinguisher brands are Ansul, Buckeye, and Badger. I would never recommend buying extinguishers from big box stores because they are low quality. I would recommend going to your local fire extinguisher service and getting one of the brands I mentioned there.

What you could do in regards to liners is start offering to sell your customers rolls the liner you are using. Just place it across the trash can whenever you go to pick up trash. Also you should look into getting some sort of magnetic box akin to a toilet paper holder but just for the liners instead

Keep up the grate job

Im from Northern Ireland, got to say, better job than most of our councils! If I was to move to Florida, I’d be going to an area near you!

Hey Brad, we have private trash company here in Texas. They have a trash trailer with compactor. It looks like a trash truck bed, but it's on the trailer. This might be something that will help you. It's low enough that you can just tip the can no need for liner and you can compact the trash.

would love to see you with your own proper trash truck eventually. here in the uk, pretty much all of them are manual load on the back, usually something like a mercedes cab, but there are some smaller ones that are running on izusus that still have a lift for the bin. something like that seems like it could be perfect for your business in the not too distant future. best of luck

What about your landscape side of things? Do you have a trimmer line spool holder for the trailer? This might also hold a roll of can liners. Maybe some slight modifications to it and a bungee to keep them from flopping in the wind?

Use good body mechanics! Bend those knees especially when using upward force to get the trash over the side of the trailer! You’ll see. it helps!

Nice job

Can you find some way to get a can lifter/ dumper attached to the side of the dump trailer? You could take all of the lifting and back breaking labor out of it and you could ditch the liner and speed things up at every stop.

You could add a pvc tube in either side of the trailer towards the back that dispenses the bags, I don’t know how to make it work well but it’s just an idea

Yeah, I have to agree the liners are to your benefit. The only thing I was wondering about is if you need to run the cans back up closer to the house the way you did with a lot of them? Is that in the service agreement, or just a courtesy to get them up further away from the road? That could save you some time if you're not obligated to take them back so far.

Mount a box that the box of bags can sit in, with a slit in it so you can just pull straight down and get a bag out. Mount it on the side you work on most

I agree that the liners are worth it👍 I would still try to roll without the boards until you get a tipper , if it were me 🤓☝️

You should try to see if there's a recycling plant that collects glass/cardboard you should try and start one of those as an additional service. It is also good for the community in terms of advertising and business responsibility to say that your business recycles/cares for the environment etcetera.

The way to do it is too offer two types of cans. Recyclables and general waste. Tip and sort your recycling into its own pile. And all your general waste you can hire a shredder, shred it in to 400mm and sell that to power companies

Par-kan makes a dump insert with a trash can lift. I'm telling you those dump inserts with a can picker (my own name, sorry) would save fuel and pulling the trailer around and would definitely save your back and the 75cents for bagging. Plus, you could then offer a can washing service if wanted later down the line

-Make sure the first thing you throw away on your next video is those meridian trash cans… can’t own a Chevy dealer and drive a Ford. -Maybe Cut a slit in the battery box lid so you can leave a bag hanging out and just pull them out without having to open the lid every time? Or mount/strap a milk crate somewhere convient and put the bags in that? Can even run the bags thru the milk crate handle to create a “dispenser”. Used to do this at my old job as the bags didn’t come in a box but just came in a big industrial roll. -How far apart are these stops?, is it possible to leave one of the rear swing doors locked open and just toss the bags in from the rear so you don’t have to toss them up and over every time? This won’t help you once your loading the trailer to the top but for the first however many stops of each empty trailer this will help your back and save some time. -I commented last week about why the trailer and not having the right tools for the job but it is what it is but I actually enjoy watching the videos and your commentary. I’ll comment when I see something and hopefully something I say can benefit you towards the goal of getting a trash truck.

Hi just wanted to say a simple suggestion is to Dubble or triple line it so every time u go just take the top on then u can go to make u faster

Need to get something to hold the hungry boards wile you are not using them. Also a box near the side for the liners

Def. a saturation based business Bud. I was about to comment sectioning off the 2x on your throwing side so you wouldn't have to toss the bags as high until trash built up & then you could add the removed section back on but, the tipper will be a huge advancement. Seems like you dodged a bullet with that customer Bud. Hoping all is well, Dirty Jersey out!!

While putting the garbage bags in the hydraulic box may be handy, it's definitely a time consuming step. I would get a magnetic bag or glove holder that'll attach right to the side of your dump bed. Since a full roll of bags is kind of heavy you may just have to make one yourself. If that doesn't work, keep the box of bags next to you in the cab. You can easily see how many cans are at each stop. If you have 1 can, pull 1 bag before you get out and stuff part of it in a back pocket. If you have 2, pull 2 bags. Ez Pz. Walking back and forth to grab bags is costing you a lot of unnecessary time, which cuts into the bottom line.

Can you possibly have something made similar to a weed eater string spoil for the trash bags?

For your trash bags, get a cheap "glove dispensing box" or similar, attach magnets to it that allow you to move it around, You can attach it to the side of the trailer and have them come off really quick. That way you can try different spots and see which works best before making anything permanent. If you are going to be doing 50/100/200 houses in a day and you have to open that trailer box, pull out a trash bag each time but it costs you an extra 15 seconds, it's an extra 12.5, 25, 50 minutes each day. Another thing to consider if you get into doing this more than a few days a week is getting a Ford Lightning or Cybertruck, 25 to 40 a day in fuel could be replaced by 7 in electricity, when the miles are getting added, the savings start to really add up, especially if you have overnight cheap EV rates with your energy provider. For the moment, the truck you have works, just something to consider.

I know it’s another expense, but you could have a custom box made out of diamond plate made for the liners. You could put that box on the wheel well so they right there where you need them.

i would install something on the fender area that is a box that holds the bags that you could just grab from there as well. Something that is like the boxes when you buy them where you can pull one out at a time and its set for the next one to come out or if there tear off then you just pull till you hit the tear of line.

A tip. - you could bring the bags with you while grabbing the bins and then you could put the bins at the mailbox

You need to make yourself a couple metal trash bag holders that can go on both sides of your trailer. Have a tilting lid on top to put in the bags, and a rectangular slot of the bottom side to pull them out. If you google it, you should get some good ideas. This would save you tons of time!

We have the same trash cans but different color. Our city has trucks with an arm that picks up can by hooking it in the front.

Not sure if it’s been mentioned but I bet you could fabricate a box to mount on both sides of the trailer. Bolt them into the wood and use them to dispense the trash bags.

How about having a bag holder box welded to or otherwise attached to the trailer over the fender area, similar to a paper towel dispenser. Maybe have one on both sides. Just a thought.

If I was you, I would either get tween (rope) to tie the bins. The other option is cable ties be a bit more cost but might be a small bit quicker and would save your hands getting a bit dirty. Great videos and really enjoying the channel just came across it and catching up on videos. Regarding the bins I would of put a roller on that plank of wood and had like a little saw/blade attached just to cut bin liners as well just looking at long term savings time

For the one behind the gate, you should not charge charge for pick up for that week. You should church them whenever they can is out you could get to if you cannot get to the trashcan then you should not charge the client. 12:05 12:47

Great video. I loved all the numbers. I’m curious. Why trail ridge landfill and not Tri-County landfill?

Install a paper towel holder to hold the bags right where you are working

Also I don't know if you already do this but I'd recommend using the stopwatch app if you have an iPhone or another counting app on Android. That way whenever you finish a stop you can Lap the stopwatch and it will show you how long it took on each stop.

You should buy a small crane you can mount to the trailer to lift the cans. Or have a local fab guy make you a hydraulic lift for the cans. Saves backs

I would of invested in a used rear end trash truck so you dump the cans with hydralics rather than your back...did trash pickup for several years in a city gov't environment, had all rear packersand then the city thought they could save money and got rid of the rear packers for side dumpers...well long story short I no longer work there...even front end loaders have a tipper mechanism you drive on the right side and dump from the right...just a thought...Great Content!!