Clean It Up

UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: glen parva on December 15, 2009, 08:51:42 pm

Title: trad or wfp
Post by: glen parva on December 15, 2009, 08:51:42 pm
i still use trad have no plans to go to wfp
but i still pick up large contracts ie bluiders cleans  schools pubs

one off my custys spoke to me about it  he would never have wfp
on school proptery the school goveners do not like it  ???
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: Window Washers on December 15, 2009, 08:54:00 pm
i still use trad have no plans to go to wfp
but i still pick up large contracts ie bluiders cleans  schools pubs

one off my custys spoke to me about it  he would never have wfp
on school proptery the school goveners do not like it  ???
They want to hope there isnt an accident or they will be up a creek without a paddle as would you be.

We do both.
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: 1wayno on December 15, 2009, 08:57:06 pm
im trad atm,but gunna get wfp next year so i'll be doin abit of both,i cant see myself givin up trad all together,but who knows wat the future holds for little old me lol cant wait to get one tho :D
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: dazmond on December 15, 2009, 11:56:43 pm
glen youll prob change ur tune over time!esp if ur doin schools etc.WFP would be next to useless on builders cleans according to some guys.but big jobs u could clean them in half the time and safer.why wouldnt u?trad will slowly die out..................well maybe not!but limited to insides and 1st cleans! ;D ;D
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: Ian_Giles on December 16, 2009, 06:24:44 am
Both for me as you cannot really NOT do trad, there are times when it is the only option - as in builders cleans or internal work -

I think it is potentially tougher to come into window cleaning via the WFP route without any trad experience as it is a skill all window cleaners need.


When I used to employ people (in the distant past!) it would take them a good 3 months on average to get the hang of trad window cleaning skills, especially the squeegee, and even when they did manage to clean a window without getting half a dozen scrims (no microfibre cloths back in the day  ;)) soaking wet, they were sooooo slow!

To begin with, on an average semi (say 12 windows) I would get 10 of them done by the time they had finished 2 downstairs windows...and even then I'd have to go back over them picking up their mistakes!!

WFP will certainly become the main method of cleaning windows for standard repeat cleans as time passes.

Ladders may not be illegal as such, but in the event of accidents at height, insurances companies will wriggle out of payouts by quoting health & safety regulations, and lets face it, if an accident DOES happen then it probably is because safe practice HASN'T been followed... :-\ And then the poor window cleaner will be in all sorts of do-do  :'( If it's on a commercial property so will the owner of the company for allowing the work to be carried out off ladders in the first place!....everyone's a loser...except the insurance companies...they LOVE health & safety  ;D


You wait, next thing you know someone will take a WFP user to court for a bit of compo because they got splashed with pure water and will claim for chemical burns because they've heard that the process of making pure water turns it into carbonic acid!!!! :o

Sigh....

Ian
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: Window Washers on December 16, 2009, 06:47:56 am
Think we will be trad cleaning today for a while as wfp is frozon solid ::)
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: jonnyald on December 16, 2009, 07:25:59 am
im sticking with trad .keep  it simple , keep me fit
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: glen parva on December 16, 2009, 08:13:13 am
im sticking with trad .keep it simple , keep me fit

fair play
i have looked in to it and very expensive to set up and the running costs
and you dont need to do them as often so you lose work
imo and another wfp from myway says the same  :)
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: Window Washers on December 16, 2009, 08:14:25 am
im sticking with trad .keep it simple , keep me fit

fair play
i have looked in to it and very expensive to set up and the running costs
and you dont need to do them as often so you lose work
imo and another wfp from myway says the same  :)
You are both right  ;D stick with trad.

Can I ask is the wfp guy new by any chance
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: dazmond on December 16, 2009, 08:27:50 am
im sticking with trad for now.but i have got plans to ADD WFP!it would be easy for me to stay as i am as im a good trad cleaner and use extension poles everyday.low overheads etc.but as ive been in this game 15 yrs now i do think WFP will be faster and easier on some of my work and itll be safer and im concerned about my knees as time goes on climbing ladders day in/day out!also i think i would canvass some of the bigger awkward properties near my other work that would be too dangerous off ladders hence put in a good price for 2 monthly!im 38 and ive still got time to hone my round and i think it would be foolish and narrow minded of me to ignore WFP!when i add wfp ill be a complete modern day window cleaner!! ;D ;D ;D
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: wizard on December 16, 2009, 08:31:16 am
To Glen ITs not expensive to go W F P its cost me less than 500 quid and i can up to 40 foot. It cost me more to go trad.With ladders etc and so on. But do think trad skills are good to have under your belt.
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: glen parva on December 16, 2009, 08:31:52 am
im sticking with trad .keep it simple , keep me fit

fair play
i have looked in to it and very expensive to set up and the running costs
and you dont need to do them as often so you lose work
imo and another wfp from myway says the same  :)
You are both right ;D stick with trad.

Can I ask is the wfp guy new by any chance



no hes not he has 6 vans on the road beem going years
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: d.ward on December 16, 2009, 08:34:46 am
i think we should move with the times and make full use of technology so im wfp later next year too. just getting xmas out of the way then im off on my merry way. like you said daz there are properties like 3 storeys round mine i wouldnt dream of cleaning off a ladder. I can charge more for them and i dont think they wil take much longer than a 2 storey to clean. happy days
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: dazmond on December 16, 2009, 08:42:13 am
i also think im limited in regards to work.if i pick up a few good larger properties at a good price that would pay for running costs.also maybe on some weeks id finish my work in 4-5 days instead of having to work saturday/or if weather bad u get behind when u could of done the work in 4 days the week before!
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: Window Washers on December 16, 2009, 09:18:04 am
im sticking with trad .keep it simple , keep me fit

fair play
i have looked in to it and very expensive to set up and the running costs
and you dont need to do them as often so you lose work
imo and another wfp from myway says the same  :)
You are both right ;D stick with trad.

Can I ask is the wfp guy new by any chance



no hes not he has 6 vans on the road beem going years
and hes got 6 wfp vans ?
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: 1wayno on December 16, 2009, 06:52:39 pm
wfp are really good and doin 3 story work it obviously is a bonus to have one,and pickin up contracts,but i dont think i'll ever give up trad all together,sumtimes u got no choice to use trad,doin both ull do for me :)
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: ian1972 on December 16, 2009, 06:59:34 pm
wfp only for me never touchin trad again if i quote a job and they want trad i walk away from it,i didnt invest in all the gear and addvertising to go backwards in the business,but each to there own
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: 1wayno on December 16, 2009, 07:06:42 pm
works work tho init,i dint come into this buisness to turn down work,nowt wrong with a bit of graft on a ladder,money in ur pocket at the end of the day,and it builds ur buisness up,if u do both,then ur open to more people = more buisness,coz no matter how gud the wfp is,some people will still want they houses doin the trad way,i jus cudnt turn down work for that reason,but like u say each to there own :D
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: Slash on December 16, 2009, 07:21:14 pm
Yeah,I laugh to myself on here sometimes,people bragg about WFP especially newbies how  WFP is so much better than trad,they just jump into WFP cleaning and when there asked to do an inside job they don't know how ??? ??? ??? ???
I am WFP and I do alot of trad too as I find WFP is not ideal on certain windows,like someone said it is good to do both,I even seen a WFP cleaner doing a shop front once,the window was about 6 x 4 feet,by the time he got his reel out and faffed about he would have done the window trad quicker but maybe he does'nt know how to do trad,like I say I use both and always will ;)
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: sgibsoncleaning on December 16, 2009, 07:24:52 pm
wfp only for me never touchin trad again if i quote a job and they want trad i walk away from it,i didnt invest in all the gear and addvertising to go backwards in the business,but each to there own
so if a job came up with inside work as well you would walk away. rather than go backwards. 
trad tools is not a step backward it is another tool we have available to us.

Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: Window Washers on December 16, 2009, 07:25:18 pm
Yeah,I laugh to myself on here sometimes,people bragg about WFP especially newbies how  WFP is so much better than trad,they just jump into WFP cleaning and when there asked to do an inside job they don't know how ??? ??? ??? ???
I am WFP and I do alot of trad too as I find WFP is not ideal on certain windows,like someone said it is good to do both,I even seen a WFP cleaner doing a shop front once,the window was about 6 x 4 feet,by the time he got his reel out and faffed about he would have done the window trad quicker but maybe he does'nt know how to do trad,like I say I use both and always will ;)
agree on that 100%
Title: Re: trad or wfp
Post by: Scrimble on December 16, 2009, 08:27:20 pm
i'm planning on dropping/selling work which i have which needs ladders, i.e over garage to access rear,

i would trad insides and shop fronts but everything else is done with pole, its faster, does a better job and its safer.

when i converted my round i got positive feedback from my customers, some didnt batter an eye lid, some i got the old oh yeah you got a new water thingy heres your money, others didnt say anything a few have made comments on how much safer it is and how i'm "going up in the world"

biggest mistake i made is not buying a wfp set up sooner, i had to turn down loads of work commercial and residentual because i just could not do it with ladders,

I did trad for 3 years but i dont want to use ladders, i dont really want to have them on my van.

wfp is SAFER FASTER BETTER