Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: M & C Window Cleaning on December 17, 2007, 05:46:47 pm
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I've come across some really stubborn bird muck lately and have had to use a sraper attached to an ext'n pole to clear it b4 I could get the remainder off with WFP otherwise I'd have been there ages. As it was I wasted quite a bit of time with it.
Then the other day I was clearing some ice off the car with an ice scraper and found myself scraping bird muck off with it. An idea formed and this was the result. The screws are countersunk to avoid contact with the glass. Has anyone tried this b4 and if so, how well did it work?
(http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y167/milkman2912/scraper.jpg)
(http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y167/milkman2912/brush-scraper.jpg)
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very good idead!! It looks good on there too! Luke
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I wouldn`t want to risk scraping without seeing what i`m doing at height,you`d be better off sticking a bit of scouring pad on the side of your brush,to be honest since going WFP the birds seem to have stopped s****** on them as much.
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NWH, Its a plastic sraper so it won't scratch the glass. A scourer is a good idea too. I wouldnt want to use a metal scarper though if I couldnt see the window, Luke
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I'm suprised in a way that the WFP brush manufacturers haven't as yet tried this. Unless of course they have and it doesn't work. Can't see why it wouldn't though. I shall find out tomorrow.
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Omnipole have it:
(http://www.omnipole.com/72-scraper.jpg)
Luke
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Must admit, if it works I'll probably change the screws for nylon ones to reduce the scratching risk. But I have countersunk them. That coupled with the angle that the brush is to the pole should make screw contact with the glass extremely unlikely.
The only thing I've come across that will scratch glass that we're likely to use is aluminium, a rusty scraper or grit embedded in our tools.
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I normally just flip my Bentley (or Addis) brush over and scrape the glass with the plastic edge of the brush stock then flip it back over and carry on as usual.
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I do that with the brush edge also,it`s never normally that bad but the edge of the brush seems to do the trick.
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::)No way would i even think about it could be costly when sctraching someones glass. Good thinking though
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I tried the brush stock once. Trouble was it had grit on it. Didn't notice till I put it to the glass and felt it start to scratch even at the end of the pole. Fortunately for me the window was a manky one in the first place.
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No way would i even think about it could be costly when sctraching someones glass.
I don't mean any offence P&R, but it is impossible for plastic to scratch non tempered glass, Luke
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The Bentley brush has quite a sharp edge on it, i think a Vikan rubber edge might hold the grit more easily?
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My vikan hasn't got the rubber but the edge is flattened off, so that was probably what allowed the grit to get under it. Hence the idea with the plastic scraper. Very hard sharp edge.
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Be careful using the edge of addis brush,I thought it would be good for bird poo,but ended up scatching the glass,so I won't be doing that again.
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another plus side to having a pole with the unger end on it, unger do a nice scraper ;)
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Jeff Brimble did a similar thing a few months ago,... I wonder how he's getting on with it,....................... Jeff????
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Nice idea but how do you scrape a bird dirt at the edges of the window ???
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Good point Steve,
Probably would've discovered that tomorrow. Will deffo have probs at edges near brickwork. My idea was to have a scraper on the end of the same tool to save time. May need some fine tuning even scrapping if it doesn't work.
That's why I posted this thread. Bounce ideas off others. Often the obvious thing you don't see or others have been there, done that and either scrapped the idea or already improved it.
Thanks
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Look forward to seeing how you get on. I had a few crusted on nastys today. Amazing how long the take to get off with just cold water.
Simon.
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Hi Simon,
I find, strangely enough that when I've taken on a job that's not been cleaned in a long while that often very old bird muck will wash off with little effort. (not always)
However, often fairly fresh muck (a week or two) will stick like super glue. I've even wet it, give it a little scrub and let it soak for ten mnutes and it's still solidly stuck. and I want to move on to the next job but I can't till i've got out my other pole and scraper and done it the long way.
Hence the experiment!
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That's why I posted this thread. Bounce ideas off others. Often the obvious thing you don't see or others have been there, done that and either scrapped the idea or already improved it.
I had a simlair thought a couple of years back. I tried to think of a way fo fixing a cone to the back of the brush then you could put any tool up there.
I was shouted down pretty quick though.
Cleanitup was a not a happy place for WFP users back then ::)
Where are all those trad cleaning hippies now? Yep, they are all water-fed.
1-0 8)
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Would you believe, Window cleaners paradise today. No bird muck to speak of to try it on.
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That's why I posted this thread. Bounce ideas off others. Often the obvious thing you don't see or others have been there, done that and either scrapped the idea or already improved it.
Cleanitup was a not a happy place for WFP users back then ::)
Where are all those trad cleaning hippies now? Yep, they are all water-fed.
1-0 8)
lol ;) love it
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Nice idea but how do you scrape a bird dirt at the edges of the window ???
you could screw a block of wood to the back of the brush first, then screw the scraper to that - it would be like a sort of "stand off". Then the scraper would be in contact with the edge of the glass but the brush would pass over the edge.
Cheers,
Ian
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Just glue a scouring pad to the back of the brush at the edge:)
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Not a bad idea wayne. You could just glue a strip of it at the ends of the brush. Has to be a certain type though doesn't it. I think if it's white then it's ok. Not sure though ???
Scraper would be quicker.
Must say that hot water does help a lot. Even so, you still need to scrub for a while with some bird dirt.
Think it depends what kind of bird it was and what it's been eating?
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The birds round my way are like little vandals. You find one way of dealing with their muck and they find another way of making it difficult to get off. I'd swear sometimes they mix it with super glue. I actually broke a scraper blade a while back on one bit of muck.
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Not a bad idea wayne. You could just glue a strip of it at the ends of the brush. Has to be a certain type though doesn't it. I think if it's white then it's ok. Not sure though ???
Scraper would be quicker.
Must say that hot water does help a lot. Even so, you still need to scrub for a while with some bird dirt.
Think it depends what kind of bird it was and what it's been eating?
white is right ;)
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Tried my scraper idea a few times today and it wasn't too bad.
Works best dry. If muck is wetted first it seems to slip over the muck instead of getting under it. It doesn't create too much of a problem with the frames as the scraper holds the back of the brush clear of most frames. It deffo saved some time.
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I find wetting/soaking the birds mess and tapping the glass a couple of times helps a lot to remove it. I picked that tip up off of someone else on this forum. I think it was Dai. Whoever it was, it works, cheers :)
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I had to fit a scraper onto my pole to get rid of some egg sitting at 45ft. But I had to lower the pole, take the brush off, replace with swap top and scraper, then scrape it off, lower and put brush back on, then finally scrub the residue off. Got it done but what a hassle!
PS WOuld have maybe got rid of it with the Hot water but I was out of diesel and no time to leave the site to get some. Got the job done on time 8)
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Just cut the end bit off of a applicator cover and stick that on your brush.
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I had to fit a scraper onto my pole to get rid of some egg sitting at 45ft. But I had to lower the pole, take the brush off, replace with swap top and scraper, then scrape it off, lower and put brush back on, then finally scrub the residue off. Got it done but what a hassle!
PS WOuld have maybe got rid of it with the Hot water but I was out of diesel and no time to leave the site to get some. Got the job done on time 8)
Steve:
I bought a pair of nice size microfibre cloths, from Halfords, (one side is microfibre and the other side has a mesh on it ideal for soaking with TFR, then wrapping around your brush head, held in place with a couple of elastic bands), to remove egg at 45ft. Anything to make life easier. :)