Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: davetherave on August 22, 2010, 06:16:07 pm
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I sometimes find on customers white uPVC window frames that petals from certain types of flower or plant leafs, will leave a stain on the white upvc that i can't get off.
I use jif/cif to get most stains off upvc, but it doesn't seem to work on these plant stains.
I was wondering if anybody could recommend something that will get these stains off?
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know where your coming from and have the same question though havent jiffed or ciffed the upvc because ive thought at some point of offering a colour restore service (anybody done this?).
My question back at you and others though is we clean windows but kinda how far do we go before you start charging for the extra work of scrapping paint of windows and cement and plants etc etc - sometimes i think im there to clean the windows but where is the line between cleaning windows and maintenance - does this make sense and any thoughts guys re whats an acceptable standard and just how far do we go with the clean (ie had house the other day and 4 of the windows had huge dried on hard silicone which i removed with scraper but hell added a fair bit of time getting it off).
to summarise - HOW FAR DO WE GO? (somebod is bound to say ALL THE WAY) LOL
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I basically clean whatever is on the glass, frames, sills and doors, whether it be cement, paint, or just ordinary dirt.
It is a serious pain though when you have to bust the glass scraper out for every other window.
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I use a upvc solvent cleaner, seems to shift it, only problem is it shows up the rest of the cill and I end up going over that too
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thanks john, where did you get solvent cleaner, whats its brand name???
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know where your coming from and have the same question though havent jiffed or ciffed the upvc because ive thought at some point of offering a colour restore service (anybody done this?).
My question back at you and others though is we clean windows but kinda how far do we go before you start charging for the extra work of scrapping paint of windows and cement and plants etc etc - sometimes i think im there to clean the windows but where is the line between cleaning windows and maintenance - does this make sense and any thoughts guys re whats an acceptable standard and just how far do we go with the clean (ie had house the other day and 4 of the windows had huge dried on hard silicone which i removed with scraper but hell added a fair bit of time getting it off).
to summarise - HOW FAR DO WE GO? (somebod is bound to say ALL THE WAY) LOL
I only wash them Mark. If there's cement, paint,silicone etc i point it out to them (or leave a note if they aint in) and state i can do it for them if they want, i will need to bring extra stuff to do it and i will speak to them over it. If you don't speak to them and make it worse or damage anything they'll be right onto you. By getting on to them about it first you've aknowledged you've seen the problem and are not willing to do it as a regular clean i.e want more for removing debris from the window.
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thanks john, where did you get solvent cleaner, whats its brand name???
Dave, I get it from a local upvc supplier, cant recall the name now, 1 ltr bottle for about £4
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good point mikecam
the grit in the cement might scratch the glass and imagine some people could be totally awkward.
like the way you handle that and relieved that someone else considers that not a standard clean.
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i dont usually bother with stubborn stains.i give most custies windows a quick wash and move on!but if they expect me to clean these difficult stains off then they get charged extra.cif usually works on most stains on upvc.
if they ve had work done on the house and the builders have been in i also charge extra(usually double)
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hi dazmond
do you have to agree price with them for the extras beofre clean ?
i mean dont think id get away with charging double off the cuff and i suspect most of my custys so far wouldnt wanna pay that much more unless a real eyesore.
thanks for feedback mate
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mark i always agree a price for extra work BEFORE i do it obviously!!if its gonna take me twice as long to clean them then its only fair to charge twice the price at least!!why wouldnt i?if you say this to the custy then most understand.if they dont want to pay then i dont clean them!simple!!
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cheers dazmond
if the custy wasnt on site/at home youd just do standard clean and flag it to them for the next clean i take it?
as im getting more custys on board im coming accross more that arent in and the other thin om coming accross a lot is when ivy and other plants are thick around the window and difficult to clean sometimes without breaking some plant - in this situation how do u handle it dazmond of you dont mind me asking (guess second nature dealing with this when your experienced and wise)
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mark i phone the custy up if their not in and the windows are minging(i always get their mobile numbers now!)and agree a price before i clean.to be honest it rarely happens mate.
as for ivy i just clean as much of the glass as i can and leave the rest.its not your fault that they havent got round to cutting it back.i have on occasion ripped some of it off when i was using ladders but i rarely use them now due to wfp so they get left until they get a gardener to remove them!
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thanks dazmond for reply re ivy and stuff
everytime come accross something not sure thinking what do the pros do and now i know. thinking of posting a topic re contact numbers as thought occured to me about how many of us think to do our own monthly newsletter to customers by email im sure most wouldnt mind and a chance for us to promote stuff.