Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: Gringo on November 12, 2018, 05:36:10 pm
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Hi Gomo, I saw on recent post how your doing an extra £50 per day doing same hours and effort, just wondering how your managing that, is it better priced work, more compact, always looking to go speed things up myself
Cheers Ste
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Hi Gomo, I saw on recent post how your doing an extra £50 per day doing same hours and effort, just wondering how your managing that, is it better priced work, more compact, always looking to go speed things up myself
Cheers Ste
Skipping the frames I expect ;D ;)
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Yeh skipping frames, missing windows, usual stuff ;)
A combination of things I think, number 1 is having my work in the best order it can be.
number 2. i tend not to knock on doors when i turn up just crack on.
3. I've stopped writing prices on slips just have a pocket full and post as I'm finishing.
4. Slowly picking up work all the time, dropping any jobs that take too long/awkward parking/access etc.
5. Rinsing less, I worked with a lad for a few month who was much more slap dash than me, but to my surprise the windows still turned out fine...so now i rinse less.
6. Technique, for example sills get one swipe instead of 3, frosted glass doesn't need a rinse, don't clean something that ls already clean for example if a door is really clean just spray some water on it lol, top frames don't need cleaning every time..
Can't think of owt else at the minute, I think my works becoming more compact as I keep adding work and dropping the work that is further away or lower priced or just a pita..I think that's the main one, don't rest on your laurels just because you are full...refine, refine, refine.
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your learning adam....ive been doing that for years! ;D
also always take a packed lunch and flask(and get a hot water system) ;D ;D ;D
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Yeh skipping frames, missing windows, usual stuff ;)
A combination of things I think, number 1 is having my work in the best order it can be.
number 2. i tend not to knock on doors when i turn up just crack on.
3. I've stopped writing prices on slips just have a pocket full and post as I'm finishing.
4. Slowly picking up work all the time, dropping any jobs that take too long/awkward parking/access etc.
5. Rinsing less, I worked with a lad for a few month who was much more slap dash than me, but to my surprise the windows still turned out fine...so now i rinse less.
6. Technique, for example sills get one swipe instead of 3, frosted glass doesn't need a rinse, don't clean something that ls already clean for example if a door is really clean just spray some water on it lol, top frames don't need cleaning every time..
Can't think of owt else at the minute, I think my works becoming more compact as I keep adding work and dropping the work that is further away or lower priced or just a pita..I think that's the main one, don't rest on your laurels just because you are full...refine, refine, refine.
Top post Gomo - excellent reminder, thanks.
If you and swolf are happy I might change the thread title tomorrow to "Gomo - how are you speeding up your work?" or similar.
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having a high flow makes a big difference for speed cleaning...even better if its hot pure water........
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having a high flow makes a big difference for speed cleaning...even better if its hot pure water........
Yep pump on full chat, to think when I first started I had the controller on 38 😂
I think gomo runs his pumps on full speed without a controller...
I average probably only 4-5 hours a day, but it took years to get to that, price is king, I found the nearer I could get to £20 houses as an average the easier the day is.
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Just perfect the technique, especially on the top frame and seal (the main area that will cause any problems). I normally cut across it, (once the top frame is cleaned) like you would a Squeegee and go across width ways for the top 5 inches a couple of times. This sorts any dirty runs and then it's a quick up n down for the rest of the window. This prevents any water being pushed under the top seal and prevent any seal problems.
As Adam says, a good heavy flow of water cascading down the window certainly helps as whilst your scrubbing, it's rinsing at the same time.
How many times do you put your pole up n down on one house as well? This makes a big difference. Don't do a side at a time, ie upstairs front, pole down for downstairs. Then pole back up for the side n upstairs rear windows and pole down again for the bottoms. Walk round doing all the upstairs and on return, clean all the downstairs.
Might be frowned upon, but a DIY or factory bought electric reel does make a difference if your driving between many jobs.
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Cheers for post Gomo, a few things to have a go at I prob over rinse, have controller on 66, so might try upping that
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I used to have no controllers, only last few months I acquired some as they came with a tank I bought.
I don't know why I have them as they are permanently on full whack. I don't know how anyone works with anything lower. If anything it's still too low on some houses, mainly phobic glass. Wouldn't mind trying a 7 - 10 lpm one with some 3 mm jets.
As for pole up and down Nathan it depends on the house, if you've got lots of clutter, wheelie bins, gates etc then you would spend more time freeing the hose as you go back and forth. But where it's doable it would be quicker
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I must be fortunate, as I don't have a lot of houses like that. However, if it's been bin day for instance and I have many houses together or even if it's the odd one I'm doing. If I can see the bin out in a position to cause a problem, I will spend just a couple of mins before hand, moving them out the way first, saving any snags later which could potentially take more time sorting.
Also I have a handful of customers that even if I've text the night before, I know there's no certainty that the side gate is open. I will also check before I unload, so I k ow not to waste my time trying to get round the side with my hose etc. It's just a couple of little things of pre thought that could save substantial time collectively over the day.
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having a high flow makes a big difference for speed cleaning...even better if its hot pure water........
Won't make any difference hot or cold from experience ;)
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I use the pump as is. No flow controllers, complete con and waste of money, for solving a problem that never existed. Just control with tap on hose, and let the pump cut off at the pressure its set to.
No need to rinse. If water is top quality just get on and wash.
I was accused of 'slap dash' work earlier on in the year. Just becouse i dont stand there making a big deal of washing one window and wasting 10 litres of water on one window pane, 'holding it off the glass' rinsing.
Get on do the job move to the next. Keep your water at 000 and bash through thr work. Thats how you make money.
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having a high flow makes a big difference for speed cleaning...even better if its hot pure water........
Won't make any difference hot or cold from experience ;)
Thats my experience as well.
High flow is the key to quick cleaning.
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having a high flow makes a big difference for speed cleaning...even better if its hot pure water........
Yep pump on full chat, to think when I first started I had the controller on 38 😂
I think gomo runs his pumps on full speed without a controller...
I average probably only 4-5 hours a day, but it took years to get to that, price is king, I found the nearer I could get to £20 houses as an average the easier the day is.
i have my controller on 40 and its gushing out at that setting,no need for any higher! :)
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I use the pump as is. No flow controllers, complete con and waste of money, for solving a problem that never existed. Just control with tap on hose, and let the pump cut off at the pressure its set to.
No need to rinse. If water is top quality just get on and wash.
I was accused of 'slap dash' work earlier on in the year. Just becouse i dont stand there making a big deal of washing one window and wasting 10 litres of water on one window pane, 'holding it off the glass' rinsing.
Get on do the job move to the next. Keep your water at 000 and bash through thr work. Thats how you make money.
I worked without a controller for years - there was an element of flow control as a return to tank pipe with tap was fitted.
These days I do have a controller, but only because I bought the system as is - so I might as well use it that way.
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Gomo said "I use the pump as is. No flow controllers, complete con and waste of money, for solving a problem that never existed. Just control with tap on hose, and let the pump cut off at the pressure its set to."
Me too.
Edited - Sorry - Marc, not Gomo! :-[
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Gomo said "I use the pump as is. No flow controllers, complete con and waste of money, for solving a problem that never existed. Just control with tap on hose, and let the pump cut off at the pressure its set to."
Me too.
Does this work with the univalve?
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I didnt actually say that, marc did :D [Mod note: Oops! sorry - original edited.]
but i agree with him, since ive had these controllers all theyve done is add grief
Both of them shut down as battery was too low, well thanks for protecting my batt but since ive got work to do id rather you didnt...
when ive run out of water (flatish tank) and its airlocked the controller wont let the pump run and just shows dead end. I had to put the pump to 12v to get it going again then re connect.
Mind you im thinking about getting a 10lpm pump so ill keep them for that experiment, probably wont need full whack then apart from certain houses with phobic glass...
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Gomo said "I use the pump as is. No flow controllers, complete con and waste of money, for solving a problem that never existed. Just control with tap on hose, and let the pump cut off at the pressure its set to."
Me too.
Does this work with the univalve?
univalve just shuts water on and off, yes it will work
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Ever since I bought my last PF trolley with a digital controller on it I felt they were nothing but a pain. Within a couple of weeks I'd removed it and replaced it with my original PWM version. Simple to operate, 11 years old and it hasn't missed a beat. Mind you I run it flat out most of the time now for reasons already mentioned on this thread, so I may as well take it off.
Things that have sped up my work like other posts include:
Learning how to work effectively with a high flow whilst rinsing on the glass when I can.
Using a Univalve instead of a tap strapped to bottom of the pole.
Using the lightest most rigid pole I could afford combined with a light brush on a swivel.
The last step in speed came when I switched to a 35cm brush.
I also keep my kit as simple as I can so as to minimise problems with it leading to down time.
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Never had a problem with digital controller....never had a problem with low battery either...on charge every night all night.
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having a high flow makes a big difference for speed cleaning...even better if its hot pure water........
Yep pump on full chat, to think when I first started I had the controller on 38 😂
I think gomo runs his pumps on full speed without a controller...
I average probably only 4-5 hours a day, but it took years to get to that, price is king, I found the nearer I could get to £20 houses as an average the easier the day is.
i have my controller on 40 and its gushing out at that setting,no need for any higher! :)
I've told you Daz, upgrade to a 650 ltr tank and you can then up your flow and go even quicker
Full whack, you can't beat it
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I didnt actually say that, marc did :D [Mod note: Oops! sorry - original edited.]
but i agree with him, since ive had these controllers all theyve done is add grief
Both of them shut down as battery was too low, well thanks for protecting my batt but since ive got work to do id rather you didnt...
when ive run out of water (flatish tank) and its airlocked the controller wont let the pump run and just shows dead end. I had to put the pump to 12v to get it going again then re connect.
Mind you im thinking about getting a 10lpm pump so ill keep them for that experiment, probably wont need full whack then apart from certain houses with phobic glass...
Thanks Adam.
There was and still is a lot of unnecessary rubbish to buy in the window cleaning game to make your day supposedly more profitable.
Nothing wrong with having pride in your business, and having good equipment, but dont get suckered into all the marketing hype, that these snake oil products will enhance your profitably.
There is only 1 way you can build profitability. That is lower costs, increase prices, and increase sales turnover. It does not involve buying more crap, more crap and more crap as all you are doing is building the profitably of others and not you.
For a decent WFP system all you need is
A tank
A pump
Di resin
Hose
Pole
Thats it.
There is a friend of mine who has just started up a new side business, offering hyper pure water for those with existing systems, and its supposed to make it quicker and more efficient.
But will it translate to more profits? No it wont. The customer doesn't care what brand flow controller you have, or if you are using ppb systems. They just want a clean window, for a reasonable price, and thats it, they are not constantly thinking about what window cleaner to change to next and who is using the lastest brands and tech..hell some of them don't even notice they have been cleaned, they have more important things to think about like what brand golf bag to buy or something..
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There is only 1 way you can build profitability. That is lower costs, increase prices, and increase sales turnover. It does not involve buying more crap, more crap and more crap as all you are doing is building the profitably of others and not you.
best bit of sense I have read on hear in a long time !
always has been my goal !
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having a high flow makes a big difference for speed cleaning...even better if its hot pure water........
Yep pump on full chat, to think when I first started I had the controller on 38 😂
I think gomo runs his pumps on full speed without a controller...
I average probably only 4-5 hours a day, but it took years to get to that, price is king, I found the nearer I could get to £20 houses as an average the easier the day is.
i have my controller on 40 and its gushing out at that setting,no need for any higher! :)
I've told you Daz, upgrade to a 650 ltr tank and you can then up your flow and go even quicker
Full whack, you can't beat it
seriously i couldnt work any faster than i currently do without running between windows! ;D ;D
maybe its the viscosity of the hot water?as its a very high flow on the glass on 40.....and my 500L tank is big enough as i only work short days.....
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having a high flow makes a big difference for speed cleaning...even better if its hot pure water........
Yep pump on full chat, to think when I first started I had the controller on 38 😂
I think gomo runs his pumps on full speed without a controller...
I average probably only 4-5 hours a day, but it took years to get to that, price is king, I found the nearer I could get to £20 houses as an average the easier the day is.
i have my controller on 40 and its gushing out at that setting,no need for any higher! :)
I've told you Daz, upgrade to a 650 ltr tank and you can then up your flow and go even quicker
Full whack, you can't beat it
seriously i couldnt work any faster than i currently do without running between windows! ;D ;D
maybe its the viscosity of the hot water?as its a very high flow on the glass on 40.....and my 500L tank is big enough as i only work short days.....
When its very cold and I put the immersion I find the water does go quicker, its thiner.
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I love my Spring digi controllers personally.
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I don't worry about thin, thick, hot, cold or if the waters ultra pure , I give the glass a quick scrub followed by a quick rinse with the brush on the glass and then move onto the next window, there's no point in using a high flow if you are not going to go quick as that's its only purpose. in other words if you have upped your flow and are using more water then you are too slow for your flow setting.