Western Daily Press (Saturday)
Luke not jobless for long after wheelie great idea cleans up
ONE man from the Cotswolds has taken it upon himself to find a new trade after work dried up in his old job.
Luke Moloney, 32, now earns a living by cleaning people’s wheeliebins.
Luke noticed there was a gap in the market when he saw all the dirty wheelie bins around his home in Upper Rissington, near Bourton-onthe-Water.
The father of two, who used to work as a dog walker, said: “I had a look around to see what we were missing in our area, and we’ve got nothing like this round here.”
He said the business, which he named Cotswold Wheelie Clean, has been “going really well”.
In the space of a week, he’s cleaned over 100 wheelie bins for all types of customers, in communities like Bourton-on-the-Water, Moreton-in-Marsh and Cirencester.
Luke said that the community had really got behind him.
He said: “There’s quite a few people sharing the business on social media and messaging me saying it’s really entrepreneurial – that’s the word they use. I haven’t had any bad feedback; it’s all good at the minute.”
He said that most people he’s dealt with have signed up for a monthly service.
Luke jet washes the bins with water from a tank in a special trailer, which he has connected to his Nissan pick-up truck. The bins are lifted up on a pull-up device, similar to what is found on the back of bin lorries, providing easy access for Luke to clean them.
He bought the trailer from a man in Milton Keynes. The trailer filters and recycles all the water, plus he also uses an eco and pet-friendly disinfectant.
After the jet wash is done, Luke then wipes the bins down and puts them back in front of people’s houses.
The food carriers are the messiest to deal with, he said.
Luke added the most challenging aspect of the job was the fact his customer base was so “spread out”.
He said: “Once I’ve got a lot more customers in one area, it will be a lot quicker than getting these first cleans done. Some people’s bins have never been done so you can imagine there’s some absolutely disgusting ones that take a lot more time, water and effort.”
On Luke’s monthly plan, he charges £4 per bin, with add-on of £1.50 per black box and £1 per food caddy. For one-offs, he charges £7 per bin, with the add-ons remaining the same price.