Blower Wands Work like Magic!
Anyone in the duct cleaning business uses blower wands. These handy tools provide an intense stream of high pressure air to any surface that needs to be blasted. They aren't magic wands, but in so many situations they really do the trick! Our technicians use blower wands to clean registers and the areas around them that collect so much dust. These tools are also great for furnace elements and burners, furnace fans, air conditioning coils, and all those cracks and crevices in wood stoves and fireplaces. Basically, anywhere you need high pressure air in a small space, blower wands do the trick. At American Caddy Vac we offer a number of helpful variations on this tool. We offer this wand in two basic models. The small blower is 30 inches long with moldable 3/16 inch tubing. This tool works great for jobs on the ground and in tight places. The big blower is 60 inches long with moldable 1/4 inch tubing and works well for those projects that need some extra reach. We carry both models in all of our cleaning units because we use both of them on most jobs. Because they are moldable, [...]
Spinners
A big part of making a duct cleaning business profitable is having the right tool for the job in your kit. American Caddy Vac has the selection of tools you need in stock and ready to ship. These tools are all tested in our own duct cleaning business, B & F PowerVac, in Lewiston, Idaho. We've improved a lot of tools over the years, and created many others as we have seen the need. One of the best and most important add-ons for duct cleaning businesses is cleaning dryer vents. So often dryer vents get clogged with highly flammable dryer lint. Combine that with high temperatures, and of course you have a recipe for a fire disaster. Most homeowners are aware of this danger and are eager to have these dryer vents cleaned. Spinners are the ideal tool for cleaning dryer vents and round ducts. As the spinner goes through the duct, it creates a Venturi effect, making it an even more powerful cleaning tool. The powerful jets, combined with this spinning action really moves the dirt and lint and dust, making for a very thorough cleaning job. Spinners are the ideal [...]
The Parts You Need When You Need Them
We all work in a business with a lot of moving parts, moving assets from point A to point B, opening and closing doors, and lots of power. Inevitably, things wear out or get broken. That can be a problem if you have to wait for replacement parts before you can make repairs. That's why at American Caddy Vac, we keep replacement parts for your cleaner on hand and ready to ship at a moment's notice, quite often the same day you call. Because we build these units, we keep just about every single part in stock. So, if you break a hinge or a door spring, we have it in stock. If your air line loses a battle with an errant lawn mower, we can get it shipped right away. If your whips are getting worn, we'll get fresh ones out the door. Filter bags do wear out over time, and we have them on the shelf. The tools we use on every job eventually suffer from wear and tear, and all of our tools are designed so you can replace worn or broken components. That can be a big savings over purchasing a new tool! [...]
Why the Y-Box?
Why the Y-Box? A more likely question might be, "How did I ever get by without a Y-Box?" How many times have you wanted suction in two places at the same time on the same job? That is what the Y-Box offers. It's the ideal way to split the suction from your truck so you can clean two systems at the same time! Of course, it goes without saying that if you are going to split the suction, you need to have enough suction power to make both lines effective. In other words, you need American Caddy Vac, with the strongest suction in the industry. If you have that kind of suction available, the Y-Box can really double your productivity on a big commercial site. You can be running two crews at the same time from one unit. Or, if you simply have a large residential job, it may be more efficient to have suction running at two locations so your crews don't have to move things around so much. And think about those insulation removal jobs! If you have suction running at two locations instead of just one, you can really cut down the time that [...]
The Power of the Triple-Whip
May's featured tool at American Caddy Vac is the Triple-Whip (see featured tool video). If your Air Duct Cleaning business has not added the triple-whip to your arsenal of tools, you may want to consider this aggressive whip that works great in many applications.Start with any ductwork that has foreign material adhered somewhere in the run. Traditional whips may not be able to produce enough force to remove that material. But the triple-whip provides much greater force, and can eliminate materials that might otherwise have been left behind.The most obvious application for the triple-whip is chimney cleaning. If you've ever tried to remove creosote with a traditional 8-whip, you know this can be an exercise in futility, as well as a waste of time. And at the end of the day, your customer's chimney probably isn't very clean.Chimneys, and other applications require a much more aggressive agitation profile. At American Caddy Vac, we developed the triple-whip using thicker, more rigid whips. It requires strong, consistent pressure, working best with a quick recovery compressor operating between 200 and 250psi. The triple-whip produces a lot of pop. While it is moving through a chimney you will see an immediate difference compared to the 8-whip. [...]
Power is the Key!
Amazing power! Our customers say it all the time, especially our customers who switch from using portables to using a truck-mounted American Caddy Vac. The most effective way to clean air ducts and ventilation systems is to place the system under negative pressure. With the powerful vacuum employed in an American Caddy Vac, most of the time your team can place the entire system under negative pressure. This saves so much time over weaker units (portable or truck-mounted units) that require your team to set up one zone for cleaning, clean that zone, resetting for another zone, and so on. If you can place the entire system under pressure at one time, your team can clean the entire system at one time! This saves man hours, and allows for a more thorough cleaning. And make no mistake about it, having a powerful truck-mounted unit also saves a tremendous amount of frustration. If you have good employees, who want to do a good job for their customers, it is frustrating for them to have to settle for less. The American Caddy Vac is the most powerful unit on the market today, allowing your crews to clean residential, commercial, and industrial systems in [...]
Get To the Problem Area: Rods are the Perfect Tool!
American Caddy Vac offers a great selection of tools for your Duct Cleaning business, including a number of tools designed to incorporate air and agitation to remove dirt and dust and mold. But often the dirt that needs to be eliminated is deep within the duct work of a home. In order to reach those places, we use Rods to extend the reach of compressed air. Rods are a critical tool for every air cleaning business. At American Caddy Vac we offer a selection of color coded rods with variable flexibility to allow maximum reach from each access point. We're all familiar with the White, semi-flexible rods. These have been the go-to tool for many cleaners for many years. They are a great general use rod, able to reach a fair distance if there aren't too many obstacles along the way. The red rods are rigid. They are excellent for vertical shafts and long, horizontal straight runs. You don't have to worry about them bending under their own weight or when they encounter minor obstacles. The blue rods are extremely flexible. Great for flex duct and getting you around [...]
Make some Green with American Caddy Vac!
Spring is just around the corner and spring cleaning is on the mind of your residential customers! Now is a great time to get the word out about the importance of duct cleaning! Air ducts are "out of sight, out of mind" for most home-owners, but no house is clean if the air handling system is blowing dust every time the furnace or air conditioner runs! Use your favorite media to remind your customers to think about this fundamental part of spring cleaning! Traditional advertising, using TV, radio, newspaper and billboards still offers a significant market in most cities. Direct mail advertising can offer a more targeted approach. Social media allows you to target your demographic in ways unheard of just ten years ago! Many companies find that a mix of traditional and new media allows them to reach a broad audience while keeping advertising costs down. While you're reminding people about duct cleaning, be sure to let them know that you clean dryer vents and chimneys as well (assuming you offer those services). These are additional services that home-owners know they need, but often don't think about unless they are reminded. You may want [...]
Customer Service: The American Caddy Vac Difference
At American Caddy Vac, we have a terrific relationship with our customers. Part of that is based on the quality Air Duct Cleaning units we sell. Customers appreciate owning the most powerful, best built, longest lasting, most reliable unit on the market. But when it comes to ordering a second, or third unit (or more!), one of the key factors that keeps our customers coming back is the reliable customer service that American Caddy Vac offers. Our customers appreciate the prompt and useful response to their calls. American Caddy Vac is a family run business. We know how we like to be treated and we try to treat our customers the same way. In fact, we try to treat our customers like family. And our customers have noticed this... Steve Underwood owns Mighty Ducts in Cheyenne, Wyoming with his wife Jo. They started their duct cleaning business from scratch, without any experience, and found American Caddy Vac to be a huge help. Steve says, "Working with American Caddy Vac is like working with family. It doesn't matter who picks up the phone, whether it's Steve or Bob or Justin or Mac or whoever, they always [...]
Whip it Good!
At American Caddy Vac we are constantly looking for ways to make duct cleaning more efficient and more profitable. Of course, like any business, having the right tool for the job will save time and make your crew more effective. Whips have been in use for a long time in the duct cleaning industry, but we have found in our own duct cleaning business that different numbers and styles of whips can make a big difference in cleaning effectiveness. Of course, the traditional 8-whip is a great tool, perfect for cleaning trunk lines. But we noticed that we couldn't access commercial laterals with an 8-whip because it wouldn't fit through the vent opening. So at American Caddy Vac, we developed the original micro 5-whip with a much smaller diameter. With this tool, you can easily access those laterals through the vent openings. Some applications require a much more aggressive agitation profile, such as chimneys that need a lot of pop to dislodge creosote. At American Caddy Vac we developed the 3-Whip with a thicker whip and more powerful punch! Our techs love this tool because it makes cleaning chimneys so much [...]
The Beauty of the Dyna Probe
It's an American Caddy Vac exclusive, and it is one of our best selling and most productive tools: The Dyna Probe. Built from our own custom design, the Dyna Probe is ideally suited to provide the perfect combination of air washing and brushing in a single tool. It's the perfect tool to clean metal or flex ducts. The Dyna Probe runs air and brush action through branch lines, return lines, and trunk lines, knocking loose debris and blowing it toward the suction in a single tool. Perhaps one of the best things about the Dyna Probe is that it can be operated by a single technician! The Dyna Probe is entirely powered by compressed air! Operate it with any compressor with a minimum of 6 CFM, at 90 PSI. As usual, the folks at American Caddy Vac allow you to customize your Dyna Probe, offering either a ball valve or thumb valve, and we designed it with easy maintenance in mind. Simply apply 4-6 drops of Dyna Probe Golden Oil to the end of the motor at the end of each work day! The Dyna Probe is a modular system with multiple configurations to make this the perfect tool for residential, [...]
Why Toss It? Repair and Replace!
Did you know that most of the tools we offered by American Caddy Vac are made with replaceable components? We invented or improved many of these tools for our own use, and we are tool people, so we prefer to be able to replace components of our tools rather than replacing the whole tool! Many of our customers feel the same way. For example, whips tend to wear down over time. So we provide whip replacement sets. The rest of the tool is still perfectly functional, so why throw it away? Just replace the whips and you're good to go! The brass or stainless fittings in many of our tools are all replaceable as well. Just call us up and order the part, or use the tool finder at CaddyVac.com. When your replacement fitting arrives, just remove the old one and replace it! In fact, if there is a part on your American Caddy Vac that is damaged, we probably have it in stock and can get it to you right away. We have pilot valve repair kits with all the interior components of the [...]
Is 2021 the Year for a New American Caddy Vac?
As the new year begins, it is a great time to plan for 2021 capital expenditures. Planning for tax advantages, managing your company's employees to greatest efficiency, and staying ahead of the competition, are all great reasons to begin thinking about your new American Caddy Vac in January.Think about what you need your new Caddy Vac to be... Is it going to be your new residential cleaning rig? Or are there commercial and industrial clients you want to be prepared for? January is a great time to call American Caddy Vac at 1-800-879-5382 and talk with our knowledgeable staff about building a custom rig that will suite the needs of your company. There are lots of options and upgrades to choose from. Many of our customers are going with full stainless steel construction for their cleaning units. When properly maintained, these units will last for the life of multiple cabs & chassis! Other popular upgrades include:Qunicy 370 compressor, providing virtually unlimited air.Electric hose reels which save time, along with wear and tear on your air hose and your crew!Motorized bag doors also save wear on your crew in addition to being a great convenience and providing an added safety benefit.Deluxe shelving units [...]
American Caddy Vac Cold Weather Advantages
Working in the great outdoors always has it's challenges, but winter just ramps things up! At American Caddy Vac, we know what it is like to work in cold weather, rain, snow, and ice. We've designed a number of standard and optional features to take a bit of the edge off in cold weather. First, think storage. Every American Caddy Vac is designed with storage in mind. In cold weather that can make a huge difference! There is room to include extra items for the crew, like gloves, coats, hats, snow gear. There's room for tire chains. There's room for items you may use to keep your air lines from freezing, like pool noodles! Room for heaters, blankets, drop cloths... anything that may make a cold job a little more friendly. Next, think access. In cold weather you need to be able to easily drain your air tank at the end of the job, and add some methyl hydrate to avoid condensation building in the tank and icing up. You need access to change to your winter compressor oil. You need to be able to access all the components in your [...]
The Stainless Steel Advantage
Winter is hard on cleaning trucks, especially in very cold regions. All the added moisture in the air, along with corrosive ice melting agents on the roads add up to the potential for rust! If this is an issue where you live and work, a great option for your cleaning business is a stainless steel cleaning unit from American Caddy Vac. Stainless steel costs more, but it's a great remedy against rust. All those heavy use and exposure areas, like doors, bumpers, and all the parts of your cleaner that ride lower to the ground will hold up better in damp and corrosive conditions if they are made from stainless steel. But stainless steel offers other advantages too. Some of the benefits of stainless are: the corrosion benefits we've already mentioned fire and heat resistence (stainless retains high strength in high heat conditions) strength to weight advantage (stainless construction adds incredible strength, leading to longer life in any conditions) impact resistence (stainless can take a beating and hold up just fine... that's especially important in commercial and industrial applications) long term value (a stainless steel unit will most likely last longer than the truck it [...]
The Perfect Tool for the Job
American Caddy Vac is well known for building powerful, reliable, and durable, truck mounted Air Duct Cleaning Units. In fact American Caddy Vac is the industry standard by which all other units are judged. But many people don't realize that American Caddy Vac also creates and manufactures the best air duct cleaning tools in the industry as well! Of course, this stems from owning our own Air Duct Cleaning business for decades (B & F Power Vac in Lewiston, Idaho). Over the years, we realized that many of the tools we had be using had simply been re-purposed from other industries so we decided to make improvements. Other times, we created completely new tools designed from the beginning for cleaning air ducts, dryer vents, chimneys, and industrial jobs. So American Caddy Vac has the right tools in stock that you need to keep your business running efficiently. Dave and Colleen Weltz (Owners, Dick's Vacuum Service, Bismarck, North Dakota )really appreciate being able to get the right tool for the job. Dave says, "They are excellent tools. They work great and they last a long time. It's important to me that the people at American Caddy Vac know the Air Duct Cleaning [...]
Simple Access Just Makes Work Better
Performing maintenance on your equipment is challenging enough without adding the additional prospect of removing a series of obstacles before you can even start. That's why American Caddy Vac builds their trucks with maintenance and access in mind. There's a history behind that principle. American Caddy Vacs are designed and built by the Mattoon family. This family also owns and operates B & F Power Vac in Lewiston, Idaho. They use a fleet of Caddy Vacs every day. When they first started in the duct cleaning business, they were using another cleaner brand. Donna Mattoon says, "When we first started, we ran the truck all day and then did maintenance on it all night! We didn't have any life outside of work." Eventually they figured out the way to keep two crews working was to have three trucks... one truck could be in maintenance while the other two were working. That just didn't seem right! So, when they had the opportunity to go into business making American Caddy Vacs, they knew they had to make a unit that would require less maintenance, and that would be easy to maintain. That's why every American Caddy Vac is designed with easy access to [...]
We Build Them, We Use Them, We Know Them
The Benefit of Hands on Expertise
If you build any product but do not use it every day, there is no way to know if it is truly ready for the market. At American Caddy Vac we test all new features, equipment, and tools in the field extensively before we determine that it is ready for our customers. The same family that owns American Caddy Vac also owns B & F Power Vac, a company that has been in business for over 45 years! With several American Caddy Vacs in their fleet and a business that spans residential, commercial, and industrial facilities, B & F Power Vac is the ideal testing grounds for every new option, feature, or tool. This experience and working knowledge means that when you call American Caddy Vac to ask any questions, you won't be shuffled into a voicemail box of uncertainty! The folks that answer the phone at American Caddy Vac are experienced techs who know the business and know the trucks. The vast majority of the time, you will get the answer you need from the person who answers your call. MJ Palazzolo, Safety King Air Ducts Our customers love the fact that when [...]
The Critical Importance of Storage
Picture this scenario: Your crew is finishing up a residential duct cleaning job. The cusomer is happy with the work, but at the last minute asks, "Can you guys clean out my dryer vent?" Unfortunately, your duct cleaning truck has very limited storage space and the tools you need to clean a dryer vent are back at the shop. What do you do? You can say "No". Or you can say, "Yes, but we won't be able to do it today". Or you can say, "Yes, we will run back to the shop to get the tools we need and we will be back in a little while to do that." Wouldn't it be so much better if you could just say "Yes, we'll take care of that while we are here!" Then you just grab the tools you need from your American Caddy Vac because it has enough storage space to keep all the tools you may need right there in the truck! Having lots of storage, and a well-organized truck, can save your crews a lot of time. And that will save you a lot of money. One of the praises for American [...]
Your Truck Your Way
Every duct cleaning business is a little different. Some companies emphasize residential, others commercial. Some companies have fleets of trucks and cover massive industrial jobs. Others are owner operators that go from one home to another making the air better for families in their community. With this kind of diversity in the business, it makes a huge difference if you can buy a cleaning unit that is perfectly suited to your needs. That's exactly what American Caddy Vac offers. We run our own duct cleaning business, tackling every kind of cleaning job, from cleaning the dryer vent in the smallest home to enormous industrial jobs requiring multiple units and large crews. We do it all, and at American Caddy Vac we build trucks to suit every purpose. Air duct cleaning is a business where one size does not fit all! You may need basically unlimited air, and that's a simple upgrade to the Quincy 370 compressor. Your business may require a lot of road work, so extra tool storage space may be the solution for you. If you live in an area with lots of moisture and rough weather, a stainless steel body may suit [...]
Construction Quality for Years of Hard Work
Getting a great price on a new cleaning unit is always a nice thing. We all want a great deal! But like many things, the cheapest isn't always the best. At American Caddy Vac we build quality into every weld, every seam, every fastener, every component. Why do we take extra time? Why do we use steel where other companies use something less? Why do we weld where other companies rivet? Why do we use only the most reliable components? It's really very simple. These trucks work hard. These trucks have a lot of moving parts. If we build cheap, your truck won't last. We know what works and what lasts because we have been running our own air duct cleaning business for decades. So we build our units to be durable reliable. It is fair to say that American Caddy Vac is the best built unit available. Our customers agree! Paul Welhouse (Well-House Air Duct Cleaning in Oneida, Wisconsin) has purchased six American Caddy Vacs over the years and he loves them because they work! Paul says, "They are a virtually maintenance-free truck in my opinion. They run and run and run and run. [...]
The Bottom Line? Power!
At American Caddy Vac we are proud of our customers and we're proud of what our customers say about us as a company, and what our customers say about our products. Our most important task is to provide the very best product on the market. And to be the best in the Air Duct Cleaning Systems market, the bottom line has to be power. That's why we make the most powerful unit on the market today. Our vacuum moves more air than any other. That means you can clean more, and clean faster. Power is why Anthony Paterno (Owner, Anthony Paterno Air Duct Cleaning in Fairfield, New Jersey) purchased his first American Caddy Vac: "We were at a NADCA convention and Mac was there (Mac Mattoon, owner of American Caddy Vac). Mac started up their truck and Luigi (Paterno's long time co-worker) and I, we just started laughing. We knew this was the way to go. The strength of the truck, the durability, the service... and these trucks are fun!" "Let me put it this way... the theory of duct cleaning is, "If my vacuum's stronger than your vacuum, I will be better than [...]
Rods for Every Application
If you've been in the air duct cleaning business for any time you know the importance of rods for cleaning those tough to reach areas. Most cleaning businesses are familiar with the white rods, which are semi-flexible and are a good general tool for lots of situations. But at American Caddy Vac, we discovered there were a lot of times when we needed a rod that was more rigid. For example, in a vertical run, you need that extra stiffness to fight gravity as you clean. On the other hand, sometimes the white rods were too rigid for certain applications... for example, when cleaning flex duct or when needing to reach around tight corners. Research and Development Manager Justin Mattoon connecting red and blue rods So we developed and make available to our customers two additional color-coded rods. The red rods are rigid and work great for those vertical shafts and long horizontal runs. The blue rods are flexible for those situations where a stiff rod might do more damage than good. All of these rods come equipped with quick-connect heads so you can make quick changes and adjustments. And [...]
American Caddy Vac: The Tool Pros
American Caddy Vac has been building truck mounted cleaning units for decades. They are the best built and longest lasting units in the industry. Each truck is custom designed for each customer. And we are constantly making improvements. The same can be said of the tools we sell. We sell only the highest quality tools available. And sometimes that means we have to build them ourselves! Working with our sister company, B & F Power Vac in Lewiston, Idaho, American Caddy Vac invents tools, or improves on the design of existing tools to make our selection of duct cleaning tools the very best in the industry. We never sell a tool until it has been used in our own cleaning applications for at least a year. We do the beta testing and work out the bugs before we sell it to our customers! One great example of a tool perfected by American Caddy Vac is the Dyna-Probe System. Sold exclusively by American Caddy Vac, this pneumatic motor driven brush system makes cleaning faster, more efficient, easier, and much better than old rotating brush systems. The Dyna-Probe system is built for flexibility and reliability and will [...]
Who Ya Gonna Call?
Who ya gonna call? American Caddy Vac, of course! Why? Because they actually answer the phone! Not only that, but whoever answers the phone actually knows your Caddy Vac unit inside and out. All of our staff has extensive experience working in the field using the same equipment and tools on the same types of jobs your crew is working. Steve Cox has worked with the Mattoons at B&F Power Vac and American Caddy Vac for nearly 30 years. When he takes your call you can be sure that he has the knowledge to back up any advice he gives. Steve is now the office manager for both companies. Bob Naden is another voice that may greet you when you call. He's been with the company for about 20 years. Not only does he have experience in the field working on every possible duct cleaning job, he also has a thorough knowledge of the tools sold by American Caddy Vac. That's because he has developed many of the prototypes for those tools! Justin Mattoon is a wealth of information, not just because he has been working in the business since [...]