Which liquid should we be using?

« **on:** June 26, 2005, 11:47:45 pm »

Ive been w/c-ning for couple of mounths and am still wondering which liquid to use : fairy liquid,vinegar,brite? whats good for best results?

« **Reply #1 on:** June 26, 2005, 11:51:13 pm »

Quote from: chrisc on June 26, 2005, 11:47:45 pm

Ive been w/c-ning for couple of mounths and am still wondering which liquid to use : fairy liquid,vinegar,brite? whats good for best results?

I'm sure that you will get a variety of answers to this. My personal preference is Fairy liquid.

« **Reply #2 on:** June 27, 2005, 08:17:20 am »

I swop and change about. When its really hot I prefer GG4 with a very little bit of fairy for extra slip. GG4 dosnt give suds and sometimes the customer likes to see suds and so do I. It all depends on how I feel. Mind you GG4 dosnt half shine the windows.

Steveyboy

« **Reply #3 on:** June 27, 2005, 01:25:27 pm »

if you can get the knack of using any of the specialist liquids, ie; Unger Liquid, GG3/4 and so on, then it will do a better job than using a household detergent such as Fairy.
The household detergents leave more residue behind on the glass, you can't see it or feel it, but dust will stick to it.
The detergents that are designed for us window cleaners leave next to no residue behind (providing you follow correct dilution rates of course!) and therefore the glass tends to stay cleaner for longer

They take some getting used to though $:-\$

Regards,

Ian

« **Reply #4 on:** June 27, 2005, 01:45:36 pm »

Whats GG4?

« **Reply #5 on:** June 27, 2005, 08:13:38 pm »

http://cleantech.co.uk/catalogue/index.php?cPath=26_44

« **Reply #6 on:** June 27, 2005, 08:45:45 pm »

I find that a cheap washing up liquid plus an equal amount of dishwasher rinse aid is the best I have tried. If you use fairy then only use half as much rinse aid. 1 ltr of rinse aid lasts me a month. It desolves bird muck much easier than just fairy, It gives the slip without all the suds, and the glass really shines. But rinse aid from aldi's when it is on offer for under a quid a ltr. Dai

« **Reply #7 on:** June 27, 2005, 08:58:29 pm »

I make up my own solution of fairy or persil,a cap of household ammonia and a little bit of finnish dishwasher powder.
Windows come up lovely!

« **Reply #8 on:** June 28, 2005, 08:30:45 am »

Chrisc,

I'd suggest if you've just started window cleaning to only use Fairy liquid; at least for a good couple of months. It's not rocket science I know; but once you see how that reacts in the manner you use it; then try something else.

You've then got a base-line to compare any other product with.

I've tried alsorts, but always end up comming back to the good old green stuff.

« **Reply #9 on:** June 28, 2005, 12:00:04 pm »

CHRISC
I WOULD HAVE TO AGREE WITH WINDOWS-CHEPSTOW, I HAVE TRIED MOST PRODUCTS AND KEEP COMING BACK TO GOOD OLD FAIRY LIQUID ... YOU KNOW WHAT THEY SAY ON THE ADVERT- HANDS THAT DO WINDOWS CAN BE AS MILD AS YOUR FACE WITH MILD GREEN FAIRY LIQUID

. PERSONAL PREFERENCE

BRETT

« **Reply #10 on:** June 28, 2005, 03:41:59 pm »

Quote from: brett walker window cleaning on June 28, 2005, 12:00:04 pm

I WOULD HAVE TO AGREE WITH WINDOWS-CHEPSTOW,

Blimey! Someone agreeing with me! That's a first!

Thanks (Fiver in the post).

« **Reply #11 on:** June 28, 2005, 05:59:29 pm »

Hi Tosh

I agree with you also. I'll email you my address.

GG4, Fairy, etc are all fine but also you need to use water otherwise it works out very expensive.

Seriously, I've found most things like GG4 and so on do a good job. At the moment we use a very cheap washing up liquid and rinse aid and it works fine.

Cheers

« **Reply #12 on:** June 28, 2005, 07:00:16 pm »

Ross,

Stop it, just 'cos you're after a fiver too! Bloody skirt-wearing people north of the border!

« **Reply #13 on:** June 28, 2005, 07:51:47 pm »

Definately Fairy or similar for me.

I had a go at the Unger liquid the other day, but with no suds it's tough.

Nothing glides like suds and if you're having to press slightly harder all day it's more knackering in the end.

< that's sweat on the smiley not tears!

As soon as something turns up that's smooth I'll give it a go, but it sure won't be as cheap as Fairy!

Roger.

« **Reply #14 on:** June 28, 2005, 08:48:21 pm »

Well, lots of fairies out there! Personnally I like Syr Glimmerclean, it leaves less soap residue and works out just as cheap as Fairy as well.

Recently been sent a sample of Ettore Squeegee off and the lads seem to like that as well, lot more expensive though.

Also tried Unger Gel, bloody horrible stuff, couldn't get it to dissolve in the bucket

« **Reply #15 on:** June 28, 2005, 09:30:51 pm »

Ha Ha!

I was doing that until I realised it's not supposed to go in the bucket.

It's applied directly to your washer to supplement your bucket of fairy!

Why bother? Can't see what difference it makes.

Roger.

« **Reply #16 on:** June 28, 2005, 11:37:12 pm »

Ive been using Squeegee Off recently and have been impressed. It`s like Fairy,in that you get suds, but not oily and as messy. Wiping sills is a lot easier too.
I lost patience with gg3. I found it great one day and a pain the next. That`s probably down to me but I was fed up with trying different things to make it work.
Squeegee Off is not a bad price at £12.50+vat for 5litres and you can get 500ml bottles at B+Q. So you can get a sample locally.

Gerry.

« **Reply #17 on:** June 29, 2005, 05:49:48 am »

I used "fairy" for a long time and just switched over to GG4. It is definitely harder to work with, but there are ways around that. The results are what I'm after. There are immediate improvements that I like. I am still waiting to see if the windows I clean are resisting dust for a longer period of time. That would definitely be a plus!

As a new WC, you would find the fairy to be a lot easier to use because your squeegie will glide much better, even after overlapping a few times. However, you will be developing habits that you can't use if you switch to a professional cleaning product. So, you might want to start with that now.

« **Reply #18 on:** June 29, 2005, 08:36:21 am »

Quote from: rosskesava on June 28, 2005, 05:59:29 pm

GG4, Fairy, etc are all fine but also you need to use water otherwise it works out very expensive.

Hi Ross
Ha, Ha I couldnt imagine using GG4 or Fairy without the water.

Steveyboy

« **Reply #19 on:** June 29, 2005, 07:12:43 pm »

i know a window cleaner who chopped up the unger gel into tiny little peices hoping it would dissolve,i now ....he now uses fairy with a touch of unger liquid just so i can tell my customers its really really expensive

« **Reply #20 on:** June 29, 2005, 08:09:04 pm »

I use fairy liquid but have just started putting some unger gel on the applicator as well it works well

« **Reply #21 on:** June 29, 2005, 08:13:51 pm »

Surely that's just adding time to the job?

Apparently Unger also do a thinner liquid that does go in your bucket.

Anyone tried it? Any good?

Roger.

« **Reply #22 on:** June 29, 2005, 09:42:17 pm »

I`ve used Unger Liquid and it`s ok but you need your applicator fairly wet for effective use.
This is not always practical for me. As Marc mentioned,years of using Fairy has led me into bad habits :

.

Gerry.

« **Reply #23 on:** July 03, 2005, 05:02:27 pm »

Quote

Surely that's just adding time to the job?

Not sure if you meant my comment about putting unger gel on applicator, but if so, I only do once or twice through the day, not every time I go to the bucket, I had another window cleaner help me the other day and he tried it, it makes the squeegee glide much better.

« **Reply #24 on:** July 03, 2005, 07:20:34 pm »

Unger liquid I've found is fine, I like it because there is less to edge and detail, I rather imagine that GG3/4 is similar.
These liquids take some getting used to, if you have been used to washing up liquid they take some adapting to.
I've used the Unger Gel too, I think it has its uses, wouldn't want to use it to the exclusion of all else though.
But I doubt I'll ever go back to using washing up liquid.

Regards,

Ian

« **Reply #25 on:** July 03, 2005, 09:04:56 pm »

Quote from: Ian_Giles on July 03, 2005, 07:20:34 pm

Unger liquid I've found is fine, I like it because there is less to edge and detail, I rather imagine that GG3/4 is similar.
These liquids take some getting used to, if you have been used to washing up liquid they take some adapting to.
I've used the Unger Gel too, I think it has its uses, wouldn't want to use it to the exclusion of all else though.
But I doubt I'll ever go back to using washing up liquid.

Regards,

Ian

Hi Ian
I've got the unger liquid, but not sure how much to put in a bucket. How much do you reckon?

Steveyboy

« **Reply #26 on:** July 03, 2005, 09:33:24 pm »

SQUEEGIE OFF IS THE SEST I HAVE USED. I tried to use gg4 for a bit and I counld not use it although prior to th days I used Squeegie off I thought GG4 was great.

B&Q sell SO but it does not seem as good of quality to buying 5 Litres from the suppliers. I know it is the same stuff but the B&Q bottles I have bought to put me on have been less economical for me as I have had to put more in.

STRANGE REALLY I KNOW

BUT Squeegie Off is far from great

Hope this helps

Wrighty

« **Reply #27 on:** July 04, 2005, 07:17:27 am »

Hi
That squeegie off liquid. Try washing your car with it. Comes up great.

Steveyboy

« **Reply #28 on:** July 04, 2005, 10:45:34 pm »

Steveyboy,
Dilution rate for Unger liquid is 100:1
Put too much in and it isn't as good! Does also depend on how hard your water is too.
I'm not sure if it Ross who has incredibly hard water, but those that do have real problems getting a decent solution.
If you have an R/O, then at least you can use pure water, thus eliminating hard water problems.
Heck, I reckon if I was a traditional cleaner in one of these areas I would by a cheap R/O unit and use that to produce the water I put in my bucket.
The outlay would be more than balanced by the benefits of having good water to clean with.

Regards,

Ian