Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: Cookie on October 20, 2017, 04:32:11 pm
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We had Ophelia earlier on this week (which made a right mess of my customers windows) and now Brian is arriving.
I had planned a light window cleaning day today but decided to sack it off due to the arrival of Brian from 18:00 this evening. It just didn't seem right to be cleaning customers windows when within 24 hours they would just be messed up again.
What do you do in this situation?
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I cleaned as normal.
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We had Ophelia earlier on this week (which made a right mess of my customers windows) and now Brian is arriving.
I had planned a light window cleaning day today but decided to sack it off due to the arrival of Brian from 18:00 this evening. It just didn't seem right to be cleaning customers windows when within 24 hours they would just be messed up again.
What do you do in this situation?
mate will Brian pay your rent, van insurance
perhaps you had a call from your mortgage saying "dear window cleaner we understand brain is arriving Thus we are deducting todays payment pro rater from your normal monthly payment"
just clean mate ;D
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Clean as normal , any problems then go back and re clean if asked
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We had Ophelia earlier on this week (which made a right mess of my customers windows) and now Brian is arriving.
I had planned a light window cleaning day today but decided to sack it off due to the arrival of Brian from 18:00 this evening. It just didn't seem right to be cleaning customers windows when within 24 hours they would just be messed up again.
What do you do in this situation?
mate will Brian pay your rent, van insurance
perhaps you had a call from your mortgage saying "dear window cleaner we understand brain is arriving Thus we are deducting todays payment pro rater from your normal monthly payment"
just clean mate ;D
Or because you'll die one day and when that time arrives you won't have any need for your teeth as your dentist we won't be charging you for your next check-up.
Just clean.
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We had Ophelia earlier on this week (which made a right mess of my customers windows) and now Brian is arriving.
I had planned a light window cleaning day today but decided to sack it off due to the arrival of Brian from 18:00 this evening. It just didn't seem right to be cleaning customers windows when within 24 hours they would just be messed up again.
What do you do in this situation?
really? ::)roll
i worked in torrential rain yesterday afternoon and guess what?customers didnt bat an eyelid!one guy even came home to unlock his gate and left £20 out for me in the back garden while i was having a brew(he forgot the night before)and it was bouncing down,really heavy rain.
i just crack on as normal.all work completed now this week so i can have a relaxing weekend.mind you i have a gig tonight so not very relaxing til tomorrow.its my birthday too!(46 today!) 8)
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We had Ophelia earlier on this week (which made a right mess of my customers windows) and now Brian is arriving.
I had planned a light window cleaning day today but decided to sack it off due to the arrival of Brian from 18:00 this evening. It just didn't seem right to be cleaning customers windows when within 24 hours they would just be messed up again.
What do you do in this situation?
mate will Brian pay your rent, van insurance
perhaps you had a call from your mortgage saying "dear window cleaner we understand brain is arriving Thus we are deducting todays payment pro rater from your normal monthly payment"
just clean mate ;D
Or because you'll die one day and when that time arrives you won't have any need for your teeth as your dentist we won't be charging you for your next check-up.
Just clean.
Lol that's even funnier then mine I'm actually almost in tears ;D
And happy birthday daz
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If it was due that day and the wind was picking up then I would say no, but as the forecast is unpredictable I would argue that it might never happen the next day so would continue working and as above reclean if any complaints.
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Same as yourself Cookie, for me doing a decent job gives me as much satisfaction as getting paid, nothing more soul destroying
than cleaning windows which are going to be dirty again in a few hours.
If I have to do a 6 hour day instead of a 5 hour day next week to make up for the lost work its no big deal.
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Or because you'll die one day and when that time arrives you won't have any need for your teeth as your dentist we won't be charging you for your next check-up.
lol - NHS dentists are as scarce as hen's teeth round my way as well!
OK I take your point - maybe I'm becoming a bit soft in my old age.
Same as yourself Cookie, for me doing a decent job gives me as much satisfaction as getting paid, nothing more soul destroying
than cleaning windows which are going to be dirty again in a few hours.
If I have to do a 6 hour day instead of a 5 hour day next week to make up for the lost work its no big deal.
Yes that's my plan to work a few additional hours next week ....
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So how bad has the wind been so far??
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I clean for someone who lives next to a site that’s being developed. They’ve got huge mounds of sands etc on the building site, after iv done them , they get filthy again but the owners don’t want them filthy all the time and there is no good day to do them anytime of the year because of the amount of building work going on. They said to me just keep on top of them for us and do the sfg twice a year too. It’s the time of year when it’s $hite weather nearly everyday, so you might as well just crack on and IF there’s any problems, then go back and do it again
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We had Ophelia earlier on this week (which made a right mess of my customers windows) and now Brian is arriving.
I had planned a light window cleaning day today but decided to sack it off due to the arrival of Brian from 18:00 this evening. It just didn't seem right to be cleaning customers windows when within 24 hours they would just be messed up again.
What do you do in this situation?
Ridiculous ::)roll
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Clean as normal , any problems then go back and re clean if asked
So if you cleaned the windows to a satisfactory standard then the next day there was a storm which left the windows dirty you would go back and re clean ???
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If it's being reported as the worst in thirty years then the custy has a valid argument. On the other hand if your cleaning a street of four in a block types and the majority are in for one reason or another then revisiting would be a bad idea as they would all be out wanting them recleaned.
They've over hyped the weather since 2010 when folk lost there jobs or got a slap due to not informing on the severity of the snow which caused gridlock with women and children being stranded in cars. (which would be my response to complaints)
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Clean as normal , any problems then go back and re clean if asked
So if you cleaned the windows to a satisfactory standard then the next day there was a storm which left the windows dirty you would go back and re clean ???
We offer a 24 hours guarantee that if this happens we will come back and clean the dirty windows. They need to call us. I won't go back and check any windows myself just in case.
It will be unusual for all the windows to be dirty so you might just have to clean one side of the house.
I think in 12 years wfp we have been called back twice. In the last case it was the lounge windows that are sea facing. When she phoned she complained that I hadn't cleaned them properly. It was a strange oily stuff on the windows which needed me to use a little soap to clean it off.
They are an old grumpy couple who sit in the lounge all day watching tv and looking out of the window. I walked back up the road checking the houses that we had cleaned and they were all the same. So it was something the rain brought in from the coast that evening. (Our cleaning area overlooks a bay which ships anchor in before an unloading berth becomes available at Teesport docks. I've never seen this residue before so can only think that it was some industrial population or something from the ship at anchor.)
I waited for further calls of complaint but didn't receive any.
We didn't get any moans when we cleaned the next time.
Unlike some, I detest cleaning in the rain so won't do it. On a couple of occasions I have continued to work through a downpour to finish a job off. Each time I have gone back later to check that job the windows have dried off perfectly.
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If it's being reported as the worst in thirty years then the custy has a valid argument. On the other hand if your cleaning a street of four in a block types and the majority are in for one reason or another then revisiting would be a bad idea as they would all be out wanting them recleaned. ;D
They've over hyped the weather since 2010 when folk lost there jobs or got a slap due to not informing on the severity of the snow which caused gridlock with women and children being stranded in cars. (which would be my response to complaints)
Agree.
Over the years I have lost count of the number of times severe weather warnings have not happened. I've also lost count of the number of times the weather forecast (Metoffice) showed a sunny day with a low percentage chance of rain and it turned out totally the opposite.
These days its more nowcasting than forecasting. You look at the skies as you work, see what happens and work/react accordingly.
We live on the east side of the country. If you are a window cleaner on the west side then you do need a different approach as it either rains or gales according to the weather reports we see.
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So how bad has the wind been so far??
Bad enough , for me living in a coastal town.
I can normally gauge from the state of my trucks windscreen once its been parked up for an hour as to whether I am wasting my time cleaning windows. By end of yesterday afternoon it was pointless.
I would fully understand my customers frustration in that situation if their windows were only going to be transparent for a matter of hours and opaque for the next few weeks yet I expected to be paid for that privilege. I tend to adopt a common sense approach .
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The 24 hour complaint guarantee is nonsense as most people wont complain even if they aren't happy but at the end of the day we all have to make a living therefore its about getting the right balance between giving a decent service and earning a worthwhile amount to keep you in the game.
When my customers pick up my windows cleaned card I like them to be able to see a cleaned window if cleaned on a Friday then I want them to see the same when they get up on a Saturday morning therefore I wont work in conditions that I believe will prevent this from being the case, do I need to be this fussy ? who knows, all I can say it make for me it makes for a happier work life.
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Yes.
And the day after. Luck of the draw.
Some get lucky and get them done the day after and everything's great.
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Same as yourself Cookie, for me doing a decent job gives me as much satisfaction as getting paid, nothing more soul destroying
than cleaning windows which are going to be dirty again in a few hours.
If I have to do a 6 hour day instead of a 5 hour day next week to make up for the lost work its no big deal.
....and thats the difference between me and you sean.if you want to consistently earn better money i wouldnt even consider it.
its all about the money for me.sod what the windows are gonna be like tomorrow as long as i can clean a month/2 months worth of dirt off today.what do you do?go and check them the next day to see if their dirty again? ::)roll
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I always look at it from my customers' viewpoint.
I don't work in heavy rain or windy weather because I see it as a waste of effort and my customers' money. They appreciate that and have spread my name and reputation all over the town, so I am never short of work and as I love the job, they are happy and I am happy.
We all have our own ways of working, and so long as our ways work for us and our customers, then none of them are wrong.
John.
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The 24 hour complaint guarantee is nonsense as most people wont complain even if they aren't happy but at the end of the day we all have to make a living therefore its about getting the right balance between giving a decent service and earning a worthwhile amount to keep you in the game.
When my customers pick up my windows cleaned card I like them to be able to see a cleaned window if cleaned on a Friday then I want them to see the same when they get up on a Saturday morning therefore I wont work in conditions that I believe will prevent this from being the case, do I need to be this fussy ? who knows, all I can say it make for me it makes for a happier work life.
you dont work in the rain either do you sean?my work schedule would be all over the place and id lose thousands a year if i had your attitude.thankfully i dont as its all about earning the money (come rain or shine.)
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So how bad has the wind been so far??
Bad enough , for me living in a coastal town.
I can normally gauge from the state of my trucks windscreen once its been parked up for an hour as to whether I am wasting my time cleaning windows. By end of yesterday afternoon it was pointless.
I would fully understand my customers frustration in that situation if their windows were only going to be transparent for a matter of hours and opaque for the next few weeks yet I expected to be paid for that privilege. I tend to adopt a common sense approach .
Same here. It depends where you live. Living in a coastal town is not the same as living inland. When we get storms they come from the SW which means there will be salt in the air which can sometimes go a few miles inland.
Last Thurs I had five jobs in one road right next to the sea front. Had I cleaned them they would by today be plastered in salt so I'll be doing them on Monday instead.
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So how bad has the wind been so far??
Bad enough , for me living in a coastal town.
I can normally gauge from the state of my trucks windscreen once its been parked up for an hour as to whether I am wasting my time cleaning windows. By end of yesterday afternoon it was pointless.
I would fully understand my customers frustration in that situation if their windows were only going to be transparent for a matter of hours and opaque for the next few weeks yet I expected to be paid for that privilege. I tend to adopt a common sense approach .
Same here. It depends where you live. Living in a coastal town is not the same as living inland. When we get storms they come from the SW which means there will be salt in the air which can sometimes go a few miles inland.
Last Thurs I had five jobs in one road right next to the sea front. Had I cleaned them they would by today be plastered in salt so I'll be doing them on Monday instead.
Common sense in action
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So how bad has the wind been so far??
Bad enough , for me living in a coastal town.
I can normally gauge from the state of my trucks windscreen once its been parked up for an hour as to whether I am wasting my time cleaning windows. By end of yesterday afternoon it was pointless.
I would fully understand my customers frustration in that situation if their windows were only going to be transparent for a matter of hours and opaque for the next few weeks yet I expected to be paid for that privilege. I tend to adopt a common sense approach .
Same here. It depends where you live. Living in a coastal town is not the same as living inland. When we get storms they come from the SW which means there will be salt in the air which can sometimes go a few miles inland.
Last Thurs I had five jobs in one road right next to the sea front. Had I cleaned them they would by today be plastered in salt so I'll be doing them on Monday instead.
Common sense in action
Don’t encourage him.
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The 24 hour complaint guarantee is nonsense as most people wont complain even if they aren't happy but at the end of the day we all have to make a living therefore its about getting the right balance between giving a decent service and earning a worthwhile amount to keep you in the game.
When my customers pick up my windows cleaned card I like them to be able to see a cleaned window if cleaned on a Friday then I want them to see the same when they get up on a Saturday morning therefore I wont work in conditions that I believe will prevent this from being the case, do I need to be this fussy ? who knows, all I can say it make for me it makes for a happier work life.
you dont work in the rain either do you sean?my work schedule would be all over the place and id lose thousands a year if i had your attitude.thankfully i dont as its all about earning the money (come rain or shine.)
I don't work in heavy rain there's a difference, I need to make a living just like everybody else on here if you need to work in
all weathers to make a living that's fair enough I can do the same without having to clean in torrential rain and stormy weather,
the joke is next week you'll be posting on the importance of quality.
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we all better get used to this weather lads.we have a lot more wet weather and named storms in the winter months than we did 20 years ago thats for sure.
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I always look at it from my customers' viewpoint.
I don't work in heavy rain or windy weather because I see it as a waste of effort and my customers' money. They appreciate that and have spread my name and reputation all over the town, so I am never short of work and as I love the job, they are happy and I am happy.
We all have our own ways of working, and so long as our ways work for us and our customers, then none of them are wrong.
John.
But would they be OK with all paying x% extra to cover your lost time throughout the year (x could be any number between 5 and 25 depending on how easily some will stop work due to weather).
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It isn't the customers job to worry about your lost time, the bills you have to pay how much your gear cost etc they just want their windows cleaned.
Priced correctly there should be no reason to have to work in torrential rain muck spreading.
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Anyone who won't clean a window because of what may or may not happen in the next few days is simply playing at running a business.
It's all about the dough, I am paid to clean a month's worth of dirt of the windows and that's what I do.
Won't clean in rain, won't clean if it's going to rain, when do you clean ? This is the UK it's always about to rain. Just crack on until it's totally unworkable and who doesn't like it gets dumped.
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Some interesting responses - I guess it's ultimately up to the individual how he/she runs their business.
Looking at the latest BBC reports however it seems to be the West that was hit hardest & I can tell you it's been pretty wild out there today! I'm near the coast, close to Fishguard, roughly between Porthcawl & Aberystwyth, both featured in the BBC report, so I think I made the right decision yesterday in putting off the work. I'll put in a few extra hours this coming week to catch up.
The number of times I've had to do this in the past year I can count on one hand so it's not really a problem for me.
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I always look at it from my customers' viewpoint.
I don't work in heavy rain or windy weather because I see it as a waste of effort and my customers' money. They appreciate that and have spread my name and reputation all over the town, so I am never short of work and as I love the job, they are happy and I am happy.
We all have our own ways of working, and so long as our ways work for us and our customers, then none of them are wrong.
John.
But would they be OK with all paying x% extra to cover your lost time throughout the year (x could be any number between 5 and 25 depending on how easily some will stop work due to weather).
Yes its why guys like Johnny don't need to work in horrendous weather, there's only two reasons to work in a storm need or
greed.
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I also work in rain and the first time i did, i was quite hesitant. I upgraded to wfp because of the ability to work in the rain. I got fed up of being off work for weeks at a time and not earning.
I educated all of my customers by way of a letter or a link to my website and any new customers simply get told that I work in the rain as it doesnt effect the quality of the clean it just depends how wet n cold i want to get!
So the first time i did i was hesitant like i said and waited next day for complaints ad i told them all I offer a 24hr quarantee! I got no complaints when working and no complaints came in. Infact a little old lady stopped her car on the street i was working just to tell me I was righy and how clean her windows were!! Well that made my day because if anyone would complain its the old dears. I've never looked back or been hesitant again since that day.
I have a routine that allows me to get my work done and done with satisfactory results on time. This is because I work in the rain, however if it means being off work for one day because of torrential rain, then I will do. Not because of the quality of results (as ive not had a complaint due to working in rain yet!) but because i dont want to get soaked and possibly become ill and have to take even longer off work
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I also work in rain and the first time i did, i was quite hesitant. I upgraded to wfp because of the ability to work in the rain. I got fed up of being off work for weeks at a time and not earning.
I educated all of my customers by way of a letter or a link to my website and any new customers simply get told that I work in the rain as it doesnt effect the quality of the clean it just depends how wet n cold i want to get!
So the first time i did i was hesitant like i said and waited next day for complaints ad i told them all I offer a 24hr quarantee! I got no complaints when working and no complaints came in. Infact a little old lady stopped her car on the street i was working just to tell me I was righy and how clean her windows were!! Well that made my day because if anyone would complain its the old dears. I've never looked back or been hesitant again since that day.
I have a routine that allows me to get my work done and done with satisfactory results on time. This is because I work in the rain, however if it means being off work for one day because of torrential rain, then I will do. Not because of the quality of results (as ive not had a complaint due to working in rain yet!) but because i dont want to get soaked and possibly become ill and have to take even longer off work
I don't mean to sound patronising but did you read the post title before embarking on your essay ? :D
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I also work in rain and the first time i did, i was quite hesitant. I upgraded to wfp because of the ability to work in the rain. I got fed up of being off work for weeks at a time and not earning.
I educated all of my customers by way of a letter or a link to my website and any new customers simply get told that I work in the rain as it doesnt effect the quality of the clean it just depends how wet n cold i want to get!
So the first time i did i was hesitant like i said and waited next day for complaints ad i told them all I offer a 24hr quarantee! I got no complaints when working and no complaints came in. Infact a little old lady stopped her car on the street i was working just to tell me I was righy and how clean her windows were!! Well that made my day because if anyone would complain its the old dears. I've never looked back or been hesitant again since that day.
I have a routine that allows me to get my work done and done with satisfactory results on time. This is because I work in the rain, however if it means being off work for one day because of torrential rain, then I will do. Not because of the quality of results (as ive not had a complaint due to working in rain yet!) but because i dont want to get soaked and possibly become ill and have to take even longer off work
I don't mean to sound patronising but did you read the post title before embarking on your essay ? :D
Touchè Barry ;D ;D
Give yourself a pat on the back me old man!
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I worked today!!!
Storm on its way and already pee'ing down with large gusts of wind, I got soaked but it didn't kill me.
I sat this morning contemplating whether to do these first cleans another day but I reasoned with myself that its best to do em in the bad weather so the customers know right off the bat that I work in all weathers, what better way to illustrate it?
But... if I would of rang these newbies today and said I cant clean today due to bad weather then that would of set false expectations.
I didn't get a single complaint, not one.
The big "USP" with the pole system for me is "it cleans the frames" so the glass may not be perfect after a bad weather clean but the rain and wind wont blow all the cobwebs and spider poo back on the frames.
So the glass may not be perfect...but what in life is???
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I don't know what's worse, having to work in a storm or work on a Saturday :(
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ha...im working tomorrow!
SAD...??? maybe but I'm achieving something.
Do the things others wont do today so you can have the things others cant have tomorrow, or some BS like that.
Either way I'm going somewhere even if I'm not sure where it is yet?
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Anyone who won't clean a window because of what may or may not happen in the next few days is simply playing at running a business.
It's all about the dough, I am paid to clean a month's worth of dirt of the windows and that's what I do.
Won't clean in rain, won't clean if it's going to rain, when do you clean ? This is the UK it's always about to rain. Just crack on until it's totally unworkable and who doesn't like it gets dumped.
On the flip side you could say that anyone who works from 9 - 2 is 'playing at running a business'. If others choose to work a few more hours per day to afford themselves the luxury of a day off when it's a day of rain it makes perfect sense to me.
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I was going to work today as I had about half a day's work that is due. I decided against it though because it kept throwing it down in heavy bursts and the wind was a bit mental at times. This was my choice though - not a customer's. Because I have been working very hard lately I have a light week next week, so will have plenty of time to get in front if I wish. I do work in rain but didn't see the point of going out today when I'm as good as up to date with my work.
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Anyone who won't clean a window because of what may or may not happen in the next few days is simply playing at running a business.
It's all about the dough, I am paid to clean a month's worth of dirt of the windows and that's what I do.
Won't clean in rain, won't clean if it's going to rain, when do you clean ? This is the UK it's always about to rain. Just crack on until it's totally unworkable and who doesn't like it gets dumped.
On the flip side you could say that anyone who works from 9 - 2 is 'playing at running a business'. If others choose to work a few more hours per day to afford themselves the luxury of a day off when it's a day of rain it makes perfect sense to me.
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What if you don't know there is going to be a hurricane the next day?
I don't always follow the weather forecasts and don't always trust or listen to hearsay (not the group but I don't listen to them anyway......never ever).
Sometimes I just get up and see what it's like but I am a bit of a maverick.
Talk to me, Goose.
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What if you don't know there is going to be a hurricane the next day?
I don't always follow the weather forecasts and don't always trust or listen to hearsay (not the group but I don't listen to them anyway......never ever).
Sometimes I just get up and see what it's like but I am a bit of a maverick.
Talk to me, Goose.
Why worry about TDS, using the right brush, technique, flow and so on ? how much debating is there on here about the right way to get the best results and the importance of quality, then the subject of working conditions comes up and its who cares its all about the money the customer can like it or lump it.
Its not about guaranteeing how long the windows will stay clean it about doing a good job on the day, there are plenty of shortcuts and maximising profit cheats that we all could take and probably get away with if its just about the money.
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I cleaned a property up a side street off the seafront on Thursday not knowing how stormy it was going to be by Friday / Saturday . Needless to say they now look worse than they were before I cleaned them. I've not been paid yet, will chase it this week but guess this will be a test for me. I'm expecting them to say something tbh, I would.