Clean It Up

UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: LWC on September 19, 2008, 06:48:08 am

Title: fan jets
Post by: LWC on September 19, 2008, 06:48:08 am
i seem to remember the general inmpression on here that people dis liked fan jets, i know its all personal preference, but i tried some yesterday, and i really really liked em!

it doesnt spray everywhere like i remember people saying, and i think it gives a better rinse if im honest.

i did a little window that was covered in muck and all above frame and i did it much quicker than i would have with the pencils and it came up spotless, i thought it was gonna be one of those windows that has runs down, you know the ones i mean?

anyone else get on well with them? i havent done a full day with them yet so time will tell, but first impressions were good!
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: Rob_Mac on September 19, 2008, 07:01:20 am
In the four years we have cleaned windows using wfp we have converted all brushes to fans.

They offer a much better rinse

Rob ;D
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: Londoner on September 19, 2008, 07:04:12 am
I think the early problems were around the fact that they tended to use more water. Initially everyone had fans but went to small pencils. Fashions come and go.
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: LWC on September 19, 2008, 07:14:38 am
I think the early problems were around the fact that they tended to use more water. Initially everyone had fans but went to small pencils. Fashions come and go.

yeh i thought that, but i had it on the same number on varistream as i would have with pencils and gave a spray i was happy with, and if your that little bit quicker doing the window your either gonna use same or even less

"in theory"
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: Oakley Windows on September 19, 2008, 07:15:44 am
I love 'em myself LWC. Swear by them, I wouldnt have it any other way.

Theyre excellent for hydrophobic glass rinsing, excellent.
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: Londoner on September 19, 2008, 07:34:44 am
I still think the jets on most brushes are too big anyway. I buy the 1.5 mm jets from Cleantech but most people supply 2mm as the smallest.
What we want are very small fan jets.
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: Alex Gardiner on September 19, 2008, 10:05:36 am
I still think the jets on most brushes are too big anyway. I buy the 1.5 mm jets from Cleantech but most people supply 2mm as the smallest.
What we want are very small fan jets.

What a lot of suppliers call 2mm jets are actually slightly bigger nearer 2.5-3mm which makes quite a difference in consumption.
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: LWC on September 19, 2008, 10:11:36 am
just done my first house with them this morn and well impressed, it was a  new clean and was so good at getting all crap out

the noise they make aswell! customer was well impressed with it

matt and m clean you reakon you use much more water?
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: Oakley Windows on September 19, 2008, 10:19:01 am
I dont use more water IMO. Main reason for that though is I have a trigger on the pole, and I use it all the time. Also, Im going to be trying for a more prolonged period of time some LARGER jets Alex has managed to source for me, so that'll be more water.

The reason for larger jets was to minimse the risk of spray drift in slightly windy conditions.
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: LWC on September 19, 2008, 10:47:06 am
my local supplier just got the trigger in, looks pretty good, how do you get on with it, does the loop get caught much? thats all i was thinking against it
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: Oakley Windows on September 19, 2008, 12:18:06 pm
The triger is as unnoticeable as you could hope for. Its there on the end of the pole, doesnt get in the way but easily pressed on or released off. I also have cable ties fixed strategically for when I want the trigger held on but without having to hold it in the 'on' position, they just flick into place, no stopping, no need to interrupt work, you do it automatically without thinking, like changing gear in a car.
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: LWC on September 19, 2008, 12:23:00 pm
like changing gear in a car.

huh, i always put it into number 1 and leave it, i just thought the engine was a bit rough?
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: Tim82 on September 19, 2008, 04:30:17 pm
 We only use fan jets too. uses more water but does the job quicker, rather than the pencils less water  and slower job. which one would you choose?! :)
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: dmlservices on September 19, 2008, 04:42:09 pm
i started wfp with a unger telepole , vikan brush fitted with cleantech fans. i moved on to 2mm pencil jets , and have used these for the last 18 mths. the last couple of days i have had to use the unger and vikan with fans, was fearing i would not get a good job done , but they were much better , rinsed very well , the only thing i can see a problem with -for me, is the odd job here and there ,where i only do glass and rinse brush of , pencils in this case are better -more accurate. am thinking of going back to fans as they rinse a lot quicker, and use the pencil on tricky jobs. what make fans did you try ?



daz
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: michael papworth on September 19, 2008, 07:52:14 pm
I've posted this one before, but some might not have seen it, so I'll post it again!

www.wally-the-window-washer.co.uk/pencilsvsfans_0001.wmv


Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: NWH on September 19, 2008, 08:22:40 pm
They might look like they rinse quicker and better but they don`t always,the weight of water from a fan jet is less than that from a pencil.In a lot of cases pencil jets produce a better finish IMO,i`ve used fans for quiet a while and always end up going back to pencils.
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: michael papworth on September 19, 2008, 08:33:42 pm
They might look like they rinse quicker and better but they don`t always,the weight of water from a fan jet is less than that from a pencil.In a lot of cases pencil jets produce a better finish IMO,i`ve used fans for quiet a while and always end up going back to pencils.

You're absolutely right. It's not using fan jets that's gets the job done. It's using fan jets properly. And that means using the right water flow and moving the brush at the right speed to get the right amount of water to do a good job of rinsing.

As with everything, it's the guy operating the equipment that gets the results.

If you get better results doing things your way with your gear, then that's the best for you.


Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: NWH on September 19, 2008, 08:37:49 pm
I`ve come to the conclusion that there to messy and only work on certain windows,pencil jets however work on all windows.
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: Wayne Thomas on September 20, 2008, 05:42:08 pm
They might look like they rinse quicker and better but they don`t always,the weight of water from a fan jet is less than that from a pencil.In a lot of cases pencil jets produce a better finish IMO,i`ve used fans for quiet a while and always end up going back to pencils.

Totally agree with your comments about pencil being better than fan jets. Fan jets are too messy to guarantee a good result on windy days and for leaving waterflow on whilst jumping from one window to the next.
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: Oakley Windows on September 20, 2008, 05:55:24 pm
I`ve come to the conclusion that there to messy and only work on certain windows,pencil jets however work on all windows.

Id say its the other way round. Pencils struggle on hydrophobic glass, why does the topic crop up as often as it does? Because most people use pencils and struggle with them on hydrophobic glass? 95% of the reason I started using fans was because they solve the hydrophobic glass rinsing issue, the other 5% was curiosity.
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: NWH on September 20, 2008, 06:08:30 pm
I have no problems with hydrophobic glass with pencils,all you need to do is use a bit more water.
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: Oakley Windows on September 20, 2008, 06:10:35 pm
Didnt think you would  ;)
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: Wayne Thomas on September 20, 2008, 09:38:20 pm
Hydrophobic glass with pencils I leave the brush on glass, no problems.

With fan jets it looks like you're covering the glass nicely when rinsing, but if you don't use enough water it dries terrible. Also because fan jets spray the water, it goes everywhere including where it's not intended, especially if it's windy.

I've tried both types of jets several times.

Personally, I like to leave the brush on the glass whilst rinsing so there is no benefit to using fan jets for me and rinsing with the brush off the glass.

People say if you can't use fan jets you must be a lousy wfp user. A bad workman blames their tools ;D

There is a knack to making the water sheet easier with the brush off the glass whilst rinsing on hydrophic glass, if you haven't figured it out yet then there's something else to keep you intrigued. ;D
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: Oakley Windows on September 20, 2008, 10:21:01 pm


There is a knack to making the water sheet easier with the brush off the glass whilst rinsing on hydrophic glass, if you haven't figured it out yet then there's something else to keep you intrigued. ;D

Flip the brush-head round
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: Wayne Thomas on September 21, 2008, 02:09:24 pm
That's one way, but there is an easier way ;D
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: michael papworth on September 22, 2008, 08:24:42 am
I`ve come to the conclusion that there to messy and only work on certain windows,pencil jets however work on all windows.

And I've come to precisely the opposite opinion.

I've found that pencil jets work fine on hydrophilic glass but not so well on hydrophobic glass.

I would contend that it's fan jets that work with all windows.

That's not to say that you CAN'T rinse well using pencil jets. I'm simply saying that it's trickier and slower.

And here's a video to back up my opinion:

www.wally-the-window-washer.co.uk/glasses.wmv

But having said all that, I guess that it's still up to the operator to know and use his tools

Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: Peter Fogwill on September 22, 2008, 10:45:02 am
To back up what Wally is saying.  Have a look at the very start of the third clip, and watch how the water is coming out the brush and hitting the glass.  See how the water is not getting to the edges of the glass.  Now if you want to take longer, and work harder, by taking the brush off the glass to do a final rinse, then it may not make much difference what jets you have.  Now take a look at the start of the forth clip and see how the water is covering the whole length of the brush, which means you don't have to lift the brush to angle the water into the edges.

So if you rinse with the brush on the glass then fans have to be better.

Peter Fogwill
www.window-tools.com
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: LWC on September 22, 2008, 06:02:02 pm
what setting do you have your fans on wally?
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: michael papworth on September 22, 2008, 10:58:37 pm
what setting do you have your fans on wally?

It's a 100psi shurflo  with 30m of 6mm reinforced hose and a varistream digital set on either 1 or 2 depending on how fast I want to work.

If I'm feeling leisurely, it's set on 1. If I want to get the jobs done faster, I set it on 2 and the water fairly blasts out.

Setting 1 is about 1.1 litres per min. Setting 2 is, I'm guessing here,  about 2.0 litres per min.

I think the flow rate depends on various factors.
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: LWC on September 22, 2008, 11:08:35 pm
i had mne going on 6 today  ;D

shoulda seen it lol
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: Wayne Thomas on September 22, 2008, 11:19:18 pm
To back up what Wally is saying.  Have a look at the very start of the third clip, and watch how the water is coming out the brush and hitting the glass.  See how the water is not getting to the edges of the glass.  Now if you want to take longer, and work harder, by taking the brush off the glass to do a final rinse, then it may not make much difference what jets you have.  Now take a look at the start of the forth clip and see how the water is covering the whole length of the brush, which means you don't have to lift the brush to angle the water into the edges.

So if you rinse with the brush on the glass then fans have to be better.

Peter Fogwill
www.window-tools.com

Nice vids Wally.
On Wallie's clips he lifts his brush off to rinse on all his clips (including the 4th one).
I rinse with brush on so having fan jets fitted isn't going to make a blind bit of difference unless I lift my brush off. Why on earth would I want to lift my brush off to rinse, especially at height unless in the long term I want to put my back out or unless I have a flocked brush head fitted to my pole. I nearly always use Tuckers mono filament brushes which don't trap any dirt whatsoever in comparison to any other brush on the market.
If you start off with the right tools and use the right method of brush on you won't have any comeback from your customers and you won't be going to see a doctor for back problems which have been self inflicted when you get older through wfp use wear and tear on the body.
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: seandyer2003 on September 23, 2008, 07:46:32 am
How do you rinse "brush on" ??
Title: Re: fan jets
Post by: Wayne Thomas on September 23, 2008, 09:53:45 pm
How do you rinse "brush on" ??

Easy, just leave the brush on the glass the whole time from start to finish.
I don't recommend it with a flocked brush though as they trap the dirt on the end of the bristles and leave bits of grit, etc on the glass.
With a mono filament brush the dirt doesn't get trapped on the end of the bristles and just gets washed down with the water. No need to clean a mono filament brush off by hand unless it's absolutely covered in cobwebs as all the dirt frees itself.