Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: Steven Saunders on January 22, 2007, 11:45:34 am
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???
Hi
bit new to the game only been cleaning a few windows for friends and going it alone in the next few weeks have been canvassing new clients which is going well.
this may be a silly question but I have never cleaned windows with leads or georgian style cananyone explain how I should go about this?
cheers
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Hi,the way i do them is :1st use your applicator to soap them up.
secondly squeegy most of the water off.
thirdly,use your scrim to buff them up to a nice shine. ;D
hope this helps steve.
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I don't do leads or georgians (ongiong RSI problem) but my bro-in-law dunks his scrim in his bucket, wrings it out til its barely damp, then a bit of wax on/ wax off motion. For georgians you can buy smaller squeegies and applicators but it's not probably not worth it with all the extra detailing you have to do - unless you charge a lot extra for it.
Chris
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yeah like chris said,it may not be worth buying a small squeegy for georgian windows,because you still have to detail.
I find using a dry scrim on these works well,but they are a right pain in the arse,and take longer to clean >:(.
so charge more for these.
steve ;)
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cheers guys will use your thoughtsand try not to pick up to many more of these jobs until i've mastered the wax on wax off method!
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actually has anyone an idea on how much longer it takes for these or how much extra to charge
cheese
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some people just cloth them.
I agree with Steve 5000,they come up better if you mop and squeegee them off.However,sometimes you will come across some where the lead is not really flat,in which case,clean with a slightly damp scrim,then buff off with a dry one
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Actually once you're good at it and have done that house a couple of times, you'll find that it's quicker than a trad house. I don't know about pricing as I've never quoted a house and I don't know what the prices are like in your area. Work out how much it would be if it was trad, then maybe add £5? Could well be trial and error
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actually has anyone an idea on how much longer it takes for these or how much extra to charge
cheese
Well i do a house that would,if it wasnt leaded,i would of charged £8-£10.But because its leaded,i charged £15.But hes a fussy bloke,and on one occasion he actually timed me >:(
Once you get used to them,you will set your prices accordingly.
Anyway,whens this bloody rain gonna stop?
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for a good result use wfp
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Well i do a house that would,if it wasnt leaded,i would of charged £8-£10.But because its leaded,i charged £15.But hes a fussy bloke,and on one occasion he actually timed me >:(
Fast 1.... was he timing you to make sure you weren't going too quick? Or too slow? With some customers you can't win can you! :-\
Hi Steven,
If you use a squeegee to do your leads and polish them, I'd keep a spare squeegee rubber 'cuz I've tried doing them that way, and it knackers your rubber!
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I agree with sheepmeister,i keep a spare squeege in my bucket purely for leaded windows, as it does tend to knacker your squeegy rubbers.
Then i polish them with scrim ;D
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wfp all my lead & georgian 8)
good luck
brett
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make up a solution in a spray bottle. Spray window scrim then buff with mirco fibre cloth ;D works a treat go easy on water only a mist :)
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Thats true.
For regular windows, scrim is better than micro-fibre. But when it comes to lead and georgian, micro-fibre is king.
Well actually- wfp is- but thats another story!
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Spray & buff for georgian and leaded, and definitely use a microfibre!
Thats true.
For regular windows, scrim is better than micro-fibre. But when it comes to lead and georgian, micro-fibre is king.
Well actually- wfp is- but thats another story!
I actually disagree here, I think Micro is better all round and I've used scrim for 23 years, the good quality microfibre are first rate and not much more expensive now that scrim...
WFP is of course the best way of dealing with either georgian or leaded windows, I do agree with that!
I would recommend all newbies to get a sprayer, and I'd also say to get a propietary solution such as Tesco's own brand window cleaning spray, its just about the cheapest out there and is also a first rate solution.
You can of course mix up a very weak solution using whatever detergent you use for your window cleaning, but the sprayers don't last long, and at only about 70p or so you might as well buy sprayer and solution in one package.
And as Krayzee says, on leaded windows, using spray & buff is as quick as using a squeegee on an unleaded house with the same windows (but much harder work!)
Ian
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Yup. I agree with what Ian and Shining Example says.
Except what I do is spray the glass, go over it with a scrim quickly, and then buff with a microfibre. The scrim gets the dirt off ands the microfibre buffs the glass.
Doing that maybe a bit slower for the first few windows but after a number of windows, the microfibre is still dry whereas the scrim gets damper and damper and it does not matter.
Also, wfp may be quicker, which it is, but if you do not have a wfp setup then it is pointless giving the advise to use wfp. Sorry but steve5000's question was not wfp related.
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Also, wfp may be quicker, which it is, but if you do not have a wfp setup then it is pointless giving the advise to use wfp. Sorry but steve5000's question was not wfp related.
Glad you pointed that out Ross.
I was thinking that, but didn't want to be the first one to say anything.
Typical it would be Jay Grafters who went off course... ::)
Does he not remember how to clean windows?
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I carry 2 micros with me, one wet and one dry - i don't use scrim at all. For me, (and it seems to be a personal preference thing) Microfibre beats scrim hands down.
I've got a few big houses with leaded windows and it doesn't bother me one bit, i use the applicator to go over the window if it's pretty dirty, the i use my wet micro to get the excess off (i won't use a rubber, it will completely destry it in no time), then just buff with the dry microfibre. Using this method, i've actually had a few comments as to how much they shine.
I remember using a scrim on leaded years ago - never again once you go Micro !
P.S. I carry about 10 dry Microfibres in the back of the car, i just wash them all together at the start of the week and use them as i go along - none of this wringing the scrim out business. Just wash and GO !
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well guys again thanks very much thereslots of tips for me to try out over the next few weeks ill let you know whos top dog on the leads!
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Everybody no matter how good they are can learn something off someone else, this is such a good forum for picking up tips.
;D
Where is the best place to buy microfibre?,thinking of giving that a go myself,cheers in advance
steve ;)
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I buy mine off ebay bud. They're the cheapest i've found.
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Thanx for that mate i will take a look ;)
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Amazingly I use an almost identical method to C Senor.
As I work my buffing micro fibre gets too damp to buff and becomes my drying micro fibre and I get a new one out for buffing.
Did one as my first clean just like this today, she was amazed with the results when she got home. A very happy customer.
I actually charge em 40% more for leaded, not sure if this works out in my favour or theirs, but I do tell them that "I can not squeegie them so it takes longer as I have to buff them by hand but it does give a very nice finish"
I think C Senor feels thinks the same as me, doing leaded can look amazing, and it feels very satisfying even when the insides are dirty. I quite like em. (but will always charge extra for em)
I do not like scrim, but that is due to my inexperience I think.