Why Drone Cleaning Companies Fail
- Drone Wash
- Nov 10
- 6 min read
Starting a drone cleaning company sounds exciting. You see the videos online of drones blasting water on buildings and think, “I can do that.” According to our research from manufacturer interviews, used drone listings, and social media polls, nearly 30% of new drone cleaning startups fail within two years and about 65% fail within five.
Across the drone industry as a whole, three out of four small drone businesses are losing money or barely staying afloat, which raises an important question: why do so many drone cleaning companies fail?
This study highlights the core reasons why drone cleaning companies fail, helping new pilots and startups avoid the most common pitfalls.
1) Lack of Experience
The large majority of people buying the two most commonly available cleaning drones, a Lucid Drone or Apellix Cleaning Drone, are “drone entrepreneurs.” They’ve had success doing small drone jobs with off-the-shelf drones such as photographers, FPV pilots, or telecom inspectors.
They do not have experience with pressure washing, window cleaning, or soft washing. They see the videos and think the drone is doing all the work, when in reality experience is the most important part of running a cleaning business — not the drone.
The greatest tech in the world won’t help if you don’t know how to gain proficiency in exterior surface cleaning and restoration. Without a solid understanding of pressure washing, soft washing, window cleaning, or power washing, you’re going to struggle.
The Problem
This type of person buys a drone, gets sold on the capabilities, then gets in way over their head with real-world commercial cleaning. They end up making buildings look worse, get customer complaints, or overpromise and damage their reputation. They hurt the industry as a whole and eventually burn out. This group makes up a large part of that first 30 % who shut their doors within two years.
The Solution
Partner with an experienced cleaning company that offers training, structured operator certification and post-implementation support, as well as transparency about the drone cleaning industry. Our team at DRONEWASH+ does exactly that. We share facts from real pilots and entrepreneurs who are building successful drone cleaning businesses across the country. We’re not here to sell you a drone — just to give you real, practical advice.
2) They Think It’s Like Flying a DJI
Many new operators come from the world of DJI or other high-end drones with industry-leading obstacle avoidance, flight intelligence, and stability.
This type of entrepreneur fails because they assume all drones are created equal, but they’re not. Comparing a cleaning drone to a DJI is unrealistic.
Cleaning drones are built to do three things: maintain position, spray liquid at moderate pressure, and carry weight up to fifty-five pounds. Everything else is removed to reduce weight and cost, and most frames are 3D printed or custom cut in-house instead of molded like consumer drones.
Everything else is stripped away to reduce weight and cost. The frame housing is often 3D-printed or custom-cut in-house. They’re not hard-shell drones like DJI and have far less protection during a crash.
The Problem
Many of these individuals crash or make bad decisions. They’re overconfident and under-trained. Cleaning drones are simple, dangerous, and unforgiving.
They take too many chances, get frustrated with the manual flight process, and just want to “fly drones.” Then come the arguments with the manufacturers. They just want the drone to behave like a DJI, and it doesn’t. On the other side of the coin, most drone cleaning manufacturers exaggerate what their drones can do to make them more marketable which is understandable. They want to sell drones. However, the lack of transparency is mainly a problem in the United States and is causing a lot of safety issues.
The Solution
This type of person can succeed over time by being patient, practicing regularly in different environments, and never pushing the drone beyond its capabilities.
Even the best pilots face another challenge once they master operations; marketing their services. Many drone cleaning companies fail not because of flight errors, but because they don’t know how to market their business effectively.
3) They Don’t Know How to Market It
This problem affects both small operators and large cleaning companies trying to tap into the growing drone cleaning market.
Understanding how to market drone cleaning is a huge challenge, especially for companies already doing high-rise cleaning. They already have proven systems and clients who pay reliably, but now they have to explain to those same clients why drone cleaning is better, different, or worth trying at all.
When their sales team asks, “Why would I sell drone cleaning when I can make the same or better money with existing methods?”, they don’t have a clear answer.
The Problem for Large Cleaning Companies
They get stuck asking, “Is drone cleaning better than [insert existing method]?” The answer is no. It’s not. It’s a completely different type of service. Without understanding the true benefits and use cases for drone cleaning, they’ll never know how to market it.
At the end of the day, it’s easier for most high-rise cleaning companies to keep doing what they already know. So the drone sits on the ground, and they say,
“See, I told you — this thing doesn’t work.”
The Problem for Individuals
Many of these entrepreneurs have little or no marketing experience. How can one person, or even two or three co-founders, build a brand overnight while learning content creation, branding, customer profiling, advertising, AI, targeting, social media, pricing, sales, CRMs, hiring, and lead generation?
Should they target residential, commercial, or solar panel cleaning? Should they try to sell drones as well? It becomes overwhelming fast and usually leads to burnout before they even find their first client.
They really need to focus on the basics: cleaning, flying, and sales. Many hire a marketing agency for $5,000 a month or more for a website, ads, content, and social media. Maybe the agency takes ownership of their domain and charges a cancellation fee when things don’t work out.
The result? The drone sits unused. They spend too much for too little return and burn through cash before they ever get traction.
The Solution
If they already have trained people and working processes, starting from scratch is too slow. It takes time to perfect techniques and train sales teams — plus finding skilled drone cleaning operators.
They should acquire a drone cleaning company with proven sales tactics, marketing systems, and existing clients — or stick to what they know.
The real solution to the marketing problem is demos and sales. Nothing beats showing results. But to get out of the red quickly, ditch the modern “wait for leads” mindset and start knocking on doors. But even if you find customers, the financial trap is waiting. Many new operators invest heavily before proving the business model, and that’s where things start to unravel.
4) They Invested Too Much Money Too Fast
This one happens all the time. Some manufacturers have massive ad budgets and sales teams selling $50,000-plus drone systems. Add another $20,000 for supporting gear and you’re deep in debt before landing a single job.
They were sold the idea that if they started a company now, success would follow. The truth is that you must be able to handle thousands of dollars in monthly costs while paying yourself little or nothing just to stay in business long enough to see results.
They are convinced they could easily sell $10,000 commercial jobs to eager clients, yet in reality those same buildings often already have established high-rise cleaning vendors willing to undercut pricing if necessary.
That “$10K” job might only actually be worth $5K.
Maybe they didn’t realize how little the customer cared about the look of their building, or that the they are content to wait until next year. They never researched how to cut costs early and stay lean.
The Problem
They run out of funds or go into debt. They end up owning a drone no one wants to buy, sell it for half its value, and still owe on loans. The few jobs they did get paid poorly.
The Solution
Don’t buy, rent. Companies like Sunbelt now offers drone rentals. Start small with a cleaning rig, or partner with a company like DRONEWASH+ to learn how to develop pricing models or cost estimates and close high paying jobs.
Learn the craft first so you don’t give the technology a bad name.
The Real Formula for Success
The secret to a successful drone cleaning business is simple: time, capital, and data. If you do not take the time to perfect new technology and ideas, they will never replace the status quo, and if you spend too much up front, you will drown in debt before you ever have a chance to grow.
Consider renting a drone before buying. Or partner with DRONEWASH+ to fast-track your learning and become an expert.
Most importantly, don’t rush. Spend six months seriously evaluating whether you should start a cleaning business. If the idea still sounds good after that, it might be worth it.
Final Thoughts
Drone cleaning isn’t easy. It’s not a shortcut or a quick way to make money. It’s a trade that takes skill, patience, and real effort to do right.
If you want honest and transparent information about the industry before you make the leap, contact us. We’re always happy to talk and help you make a smart decision.
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