Clean It Up

UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: Dean Taberner on July 29, 2013, 07:54:04 pm

Title: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Dean Taberner on July 29, 2013, 07:54:04 pm
Hello,

We are on the road again this week, and I was wondering if anybody else works away from home like we do.

We are based in Stoke on Trent which is in between Birmingham and Manchester,

Last week we were working in Poole, Dawlish, Torquay and Dorchester, and this week we're lodging out in Clevedon which is near to weston super mare.

I don't think that there's any area apart from scotland and N.Ireland that we haven't spent a night in through window cleaning.

Does anybody else do anything as stupid as this or is it just us?

Dean.
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Ian.M on July 29, 2013, 08:09:36 pm
Would love to be on the road like that Dean! how do you go about filling your vans up when you're away from base for a few days at a time?is it mostly your own work or sub-contracted?how do you go about obtaining this kind of work?

Regards

Ian
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Mist A Bit on July 29, 2013, 08:25:32 pm
I work away from home alot in summer months cleaning windows
On tempauary buildings at lots of national events, such as grand
Prix, ascot , air show. . I do 20 venues a year and gone as far
As gemany.

Steve (eco clean)
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: deeege on July 29, 2013, 08:35:29 pm
I don't envy you Dean. I worked away a lot in my previous business, sometimes weeks at a time, all over Europe. Many boring nights spent in soul-less hotels.

I wouldn't fancy doing it these days, now I have a young family.
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Joe Shanahan on July 29, 2013, 08:57:24 pm
Would love to be on the road like that Dean! how do you go about filling your vans up when you're away from base for a few days at a time?is it mostly your own work or sub-contracted?how do you go about obtaining this kind of work?

Regards

Ian

Echo this
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: C o z y on July 29, 2013, 09:17:59 pm
I work away from home alot in summer months cleaning windows
On tempauary buildings at lots of national events, such as grand
Prix, ascot , air show. . I do 20 venues a year and gone as far
As gemany.

Steve (eco clean)

What were you cleaning over here in Guurmany mate?
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Dean Taberner on July 29, 2013, 09:21:57 pm
We are staying in a motel called warrens holiday village at the moment and we can full the van from our room, it isn't all that its cracked up to be I must admit but we do have a good laugh the business makes decent money from it.
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: DaveG on July 29, 2013, 09:27:22 pm
Hi Dean,

What were you cleaning in Poole, did you find a window cleaning supplier?
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Dean Taberner on July 29, 2013, 09:47:12 pm
Hi Dean,

What were you cleaning in Poole, did you find a window cleaning supplier?

Hi Dave, yes we did, cheers mate. We were cleaning Hamworthy industrial estate that's just outside of poole opposite the tesco.

Do you know it?
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: DaveG on July 29, 2013, 09:53:52 pm
Yes, know it very well, I live about half a mile away.

Haven't they just had a refurb/new cladding etc? I've seen loads of work going on over there..

That used to be the site of one of the biggest employers in the area (Hamworthy Engineering), but has been split into smaller units..
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: roundbuilder on July 29, 2013, 09:57:20 pm
I thought you was a policeman dean?? And did windows part time or am i thinking of someone else?.
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: DaveG on July 29, 2013, 10:01:42 pm
He just likes to dress up at weekends  ;)
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Dean Taberner on July 29, 2013, 10:07:37 pm
Yes, know it very well, I live about half a mile away.

Haven't they just had a refurb/new cladding etc? I've seen loads of work going on over there..

That used to be the site of one of the biggest employers in the area (Hamworthy Engineering), but has been split into smaller units..

That's interesting to know mate,

Was it called Hamworthy combustion? 

Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Dean Taberner on July 29, 2013, 10:08:25 pm
I thought you was a policeman dean?? And did windows part time or am i thinking of someone else?.

That's me. :)
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Susan Dean (1stclean) on July 29, 2013, 10:09:50 pm
our window cleaning work is over 300 miles away , so hubby down there stops over and comes back on weekends could dream of cleaning windows round here we get our farm house done for 18 pounds every 4 weeks if we did it at south prices I would charge 50 pounds so we travel to make the £££
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: roundbuilder on July 29, 2013, 10:11:56 pm
our window cleaning work is over 300 miles away , so hubby down there stops over and comes back on weekends could dream of cleaning windows round here we get our farm house done for 18 pounds every 4 weeks if we did it at south prices I would charge 50 pounds so we travel to make the £££

Respect.
Thats pure dedication to your work! Anything over 20 miles i get the hump lol.
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: GB Window Cleaning on July 29, 2013, 10:59:44 pm
how do you fill up from you hotel room?  ???
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Dean Taberner on July 29, 2013, 11:05:05 pm
how do you fill up from you hotel room?  ???

Google Warrens holiday village :)
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: G Griffin on July 29, 2013, 11:09:01 pm
how do you fill up from you hotel room?  ???

Mini bar.
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: GB Window Cleaning on July 29, 2013, 11:11:07 pm
how do you fill up from you hotel room?  ???

Google Warrens holiday village :)

Ohhh... I see now!  ;) So you get our own little lodge cabin and i'm guessing you just attach a hose to the wash basin in the toilet somehow, then feed the hose out the window to the van mounted ro?

Or are you really spoiled and have an outside tap and a pumped van mounted r.o and feed a power cable out through the letterbox?  ;D

Please tell me its the second option! :P
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Dean Taberner on July 29, 2013, 11:19:29 pm
how do you fill up from you hotel room?  ???

Google Warrens holiday village :)

Ohhh... I see now!  ;) So you get our own little lodge cabin and i'm guessing you just attach a hose to the wash basin in the toilet somehow, then feed the hose out the window to the van mounted ro?

Or are you really spoiled and have an outside tap and a pumped van mounted r.o and feed a power cable out through the letterbox?  ;D

Please tell me its the second option! :P

We have an outside tape outside of our lodge and we fill our van from there. It only takes around 2.5hrs to fill so it is full now.
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: GB Window Cleaning on July 29, 2013, 11:25:46 pm
how do you fill up from you hotel room?  ???

Google Warrens holiday village :)

Ohhh... I see now!  ;) So you get our own little lodge cabin and i'm guessing you just attach a hose to the wash basin in the toilet somehow, then feed the hose out the window to the van mounted ro?

Or are you really spoiled and have an outside tap and a pumped van mounted r.o and feed a power cable out through the letterbox?  ;D

Please tell me its the second option! :P

We have an outside tape outside of our lodge and we fill our van from there. It only takes around 2.5hrs to fill so it is full now.

So when you work away from home do you specificity look for lodgings with outside taps? And do you have a 40/40 R.o or are you D.I only?  :P I'm intrigued by all this for some reason  ;D
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Dean Taberner on July 29, 2013, 11:44:12 pm
It is sheer coincidence that this place has got water filling facilities mate, we usually fill up on site or if we're in a soft water area just fill up direct with tap water and run through the DI.

Fun isn't it. Lol. :D
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: GB Window Cleaning on July 29, 2013, 11:52:22 pm
It is sheer coincidence that this place has got water filling facilities mate, we usually fill up on site or if we're in a soft water area just fill up direct with tap water and run through the DI.

Fun isn't it. Lol. :D

Oh right i see! So i presume also that the jobs you do while working away are big jobs to enable you to fill up on site?
Yeah, i find this sort of thing genuinely interesting

Cheers mate
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: CleanClear on July 30, 2013, 01:10:21 am
Hello,

We are on the road again this week, and I was wondering if anybody else works away from home like we do.

We are based in Stoke on Trent which is in between Birmingham and Manchester,

Last week we were working in Poole, Dawlish, Torquay and Dorchester, and this week we're lodging out in Clevedon which is near to weston super mare.

I don't think that there's any area apart from scotland and N.Ireland that we haven't spent a night in through window cleaning.

Does anybody else do anything as stupid as this or is it just us?

Dean.

Dean, no its not normal. Gloria Huniford doesnt get around as much as you and juzz !!  ;D ;D

I'd love to do it though !!!
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Frankybadboy on July 30, 2013, 07:31:26 am
done 16years in transport where time was spent on the road away from home.

missed the kids grow up missed family life everything,and you cant reply the kids growing up


I look back now and think what a sad life it was.

glad iam home every night now and even have a great life


never again,one of the biggest regrets in life
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: R.W.C.S on July 30, 2013, 08:25:55 am
I know of a guy who lives in Lithuania, who comes back via a budget airline and does four days solid, then hops back on a plane.
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Crystal-clear on July 30, 2013, 10:35:21 am
our window cleaning work is over 300 miles away , so hubby down there stops over and comes back on weekends could dream of cleaning windows round here we get our farm house done for 18 pounds every 4 weeks if we did it at south prices I would charge 50 pounds so we travel to make the £££

Bloody hell! , but up north prices may be lower but much more loyalty down south that £50 farm house would most likely be 2-3 months or more chance to be an as and when .where as yours is strictly 4 weekly, I found it that when you take into consideration frequencys and customer mentality you might not be that much better off . up north people just love window cleaners , rentals. Home owners everyone just wants it , window cleaning used to be fun for me up north down here the advantage is that you need less customers to make same day rate , but also on gaurd for one offs some one comes out asking to use me in the old days I'd get excited now I go on the back foot, quizz em as so many people here love one offs , and when you compare it with the up north relaxed customers some times a pay cut for an easier life is a good trade, also it don't need to be a pay cut, loyal customers means easy expansion , start employing/subbing; 300 miles is a painful trip on the van too its like a thousand miles a week with driving back n all driving around .if you havnt you should target some nice areas round your way and work out what a weeks work profit is compared to a weeks down here, take into account hubby will work from home, wear n tear on van, and happy go lucky paying customers oh I do miss cleaning windows up north it was so easy ! Am busy down here now but Always wondered what I learnt down here if I ever went back how it would be "there's your money see you next month son" priceless ;)
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Dean Taberner on July 30, 2013, 06:07:36 pm
done 16years in transport where time was spent on the road away from home.

missed the kids grow up missed family life everything,and you cant reply the kids growing up


I look back now and think what a sad life it was.

glad iam home every night now and even have a great life


never again,one of the biggest regrets in life

I get what you're saying Rich,

Its few and far in between that we stop out, I am actually at home now. We got back from Bristol in 1hr 40mins today which is a record time for us.

We do get about abit though as we go where the work is. Tomorrow we are back down south in Gloucester, Thursday we are in Nottingham and Friday we're in Kidderminster.

Being based in Stoke we can get to most places that we need to be within 90 mins. That is why we came home tonight for a bit of family time knowing that when we leave at 6am tomorrow we will be set-up and ready to start in Gloucester by 8am.

I'm also taking the kids to watch Port Vale on saturday with their new season tickets. So quality family time. Haha.
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Susan Dean (1stclean) on July 30, 2013, 11:04:33 pm
our window cleaning work is over 300 miles away , so hubby down there stops over and comes back on weekends could dream of cleaning windows round here we get our farm house done for 18 pounds every 4 weeks if we did it at south prices I would charge 50 pounds so we travel to make the £££

Bloody hell! , but up north prices may be lower but much more loyalty down south that £50 farm house would most likely be 2-3 months or more chance to be an as and when .where as yours is strictly 4 weekly, I found it that when you take into consideration frequencys and customer mentality you might not be that much better off . up north people just love window cleaners , rentals. Home owners everyone just wants it , window cleaning used to be fun for me up north down here the advantage is that you need less customers to make same day rate , but also on gaurd for one offs some one comes out asking to use me in the old days I'd get excited now I go on the back foot, quizz em as so many people here love one offs , and when you compare it with the up north relaxed customers some times a pay cut for an easier life is a good trade, also it don't need to be a pay cut, loyal customers means easy expansion , start employing/subbing; 300 miles is a painful trip on the van too its like a thousand miles a week with driving back n all driving around .if you havnt you should target some nice areas round your way and work out what a weeks work profit is compared to a weeks down here, take into account hubby will work from home, wear n tear on van, and happy go lucky paying customers oh I do miss cleaning windows up north it was so easy ! Am busy down here now but Always wondered what I learnt down here if I ever went back how it would be "there's your money see you next month son" priceless ;)

we earn much more down south as he took one of my truckmounted carpet cleaners then after 9 months he came up and got anthor one ! work as dead in the north now theres just no cash around , no we do well in the rental market with our 14 houses , from people on the dole

it works for us at the minute
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: robertphil on July 31, 2013, 06:26:57 am
our window cleaning work is over 300 miles away , so hubby down there stops over and comes back on weekends could dream of cleaning windows round here we get our farm house done for 18 pounds every 4 weeks if we did it at south prices I would charge 50 pounds so we travel to make the £££

Bloody hell! , but up north prices may be lower but much more loyalty down south that £50 farm house would most likely be 2-3 months or more chance to be an as and when .where as yours is strictly 4 weekly, I found it that when you take into consideration frequencys and customer mentality you might not be that much better off . up north people just love window cleaners , rentals. Home owners everyone just wants it , window cleaning used to be fun for me up north down here the advantage is that you need less customers to make same day rate , but also on gaurd for one offs some one comes out asking to use me in the old days I'd get excited now I go on the back foot, quizz em as so many people here love one offs , and when you compare it with the up north relaxed customers some times a pay cut for an easier life is a good trade, also it don't need to be a pay cut, loyal customers means easy expansion , start employing/subbing; 300 miles is a painful trip on the van too its like a thousand miles a week with driving back n all driving around .if you havnt you should target some nice areas round your way and work out what a weeks work profit is compared to a weeks down here, take into account hubby will work from home, wear n tear on van, and happy go lucky paying customers oh I do miss cleaning windows up north it was so easy ! Am busy down here now but Always wondered what I learnt down here if I ever went back how it would be "there's your money see you next month son" priceless ;)

we earn much more down south as he took one of my truckmounted carpet cleaners then after 9 months he came up and got anthor one ! work as dead in the north now theres just no cash around , no we do well in the rental market with our 14 houses , from people on the dole

it works for us at the minute
did u buy out the big red monkey?  i work in Colchester a fair bit myself ,saw the monkey van a while ago but not recently.
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: G Griffin on July 31, 2013, 07:30:55 am
done 16years in transport where time was spent on the road away from home.

missed the kids grow up missed family life everything,and you cant reply the kids growing up


I look back now and think what a sad life it was.

glad iam home every night now and even have a great life


never again,one of the biggest regrets in life

Good post, Franky.
I've heard a lot of people say that. Luckily it wasn't too late for you to do something about it.
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Susan Dean (1stclean) on August 01, 2013, 10:19:32 pm
our window cleaning work is over 300 miles away , so hubby down there stops over and comes back on weekends could dream of cleaning windows round here we get our farm house done for 18 pounds every 4 weeks if we did it at south prices I would charge 50 pounds so we travel to make the £££

Bloody hell! , but up north prices may be lower but much more loyalty down south that £50 farm house would most likely be 2-3 months or more chance to be an as and when .where as yours is strictly 4 weekly, I found it that when you take into consideration frequencys and customer mentality you might not be that much better off . up north people just love window cleaners , rentals. Home owners everyone just wants it , window cleaning used to be fun for me up north down here the advantage is that you need less customers to make same day rate , but also on gaurd for one offs some one comes out asking to use me in the old days I'd get excited now I go on the back foot, quizz em as so many people here love one offs , and when you compare it with the up north relaxed customers some times a pay cut for an easier life is a good trade, also it don't need to be a pay cut, loyal customers means easy expansion , start employing/subbing; 300 miles is a painful trip on the van too its like a thousand miles a week with driving back n all driving around .if you havnt you should target some nice areas round your way and work out what a weeks work profit is compared to a weeks down here, take into account hubby will work from home, wear n tear on van, and happy go lucky paying customers oh I do miss cleaning windows up north it was so easy ! Am busy down here now but Always wondered what I learnt down here if I ever went back how it would be "there's your money see you next month son" priceless ;)

we earn much more down south as he took one of my truckmounted carpet cleaners then after 9 months he came up and got anthor one ! work as dead in the north now theres just no cash around , no we do well in the rental market with our 14 houses , from people on the dole

it works for us at the minute
did u buy out the big red monkey?  i work in Colchester a fair bit myself ,saw the monkey van a while ago but not recently.
yes that's us running two vans now !
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: MATT BATEMAN (OWC) on August 01, 2013, 10:23:41 pm
no we do well in the rental market with our 14 houses , from people on the dole

You own 14 houses?
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Susan Dean (1stclean) on August 01, 2013, 10:50:17 pm
no we do well in the rental market with our 14 houses , from people on the dole

You own 14 houses?
did have 31 but sold the rest off to pay all the morgages off including our farm  ;)
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: mark dew on August 01, 2013, 11:33:02 pm
no we do well in the rental market with our 14 houses , from people on the dole

You own 14 houses?
did have 31 but sold the rest off to pay all the morgages off including our farm  ;)

Fair play to you.  :)
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: PoleKing on August 01, 2013, 11:39:55 pm
no we do well in the rental market with our 14 houses , from people on the dole

You own 14 houses?
did have 31 but sold the rest off to pay all the morgages off including our farm  ;)

Fair play to you.  :)

Sniffs. Pigs? Sniffs. Horses? Sniffs... No, must be something else
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: Chris Large on August 02, 2013, 03:24:07 pm
The furthest I go is 1 mile into the town centre of Ipswich-on my bike LOL, pole bunged to the cross bar, bucket on the handlebars!! Respect to all those who travel to make a decent living.
Title: Re: Window cleaners who work away from home.
Post by: robertphil on August 02, 2013, 03:37:30 pm
The furthest I go is 1 mile into the town centre of Ipswich-on my bike LOL, pole bunged to the cross bar, bucket on the handlebars!! Respect to all those who travel to make a decent living.
hey i saw you !  the bike lad,good for you !