[Londoner]

Im so worried i cant sleep at night, i think this time next year im gonna be on the dole or even worst sweeping the roads

I thought you still were on the dole - just keeping it quiet. Most of the people knocking on doors probably are. But then, how/why did you and I get into window cleaning? Did any of us actually expect to?

[cozy]

Im glad its not just me thats noticed it then so whats the plan now guys to protect our work ?

Stop helping them out on here!

Give them proper advice on how to run a business rather than the pie in the sky some spout on here.

Make sure your customers love you.

You over estimate this forum mate. Do you honestly think these newbies sit at home on the net and look for window cleaning forums instead of porn sites? Do you think there are only 22000 windies in the UK? And out of these 22000, only about 100 bother posting on here.

So these 5 quid guys look at a forum before rushing out and knocking doors to steel work from us lot? The fact that they are ready to knock on doors makes me respect them. Most on here drop leaflets and wait for years for the custies to come to them!

If you are getting over-run with new starters, what's new? It's every bloody year! Even we get them here, guys leaving the Army think it's an easy option. Had a couple already this year. They didn't read this forum mate. It's people who are desperate for money who are looking for a way to earn it.

You will always get lots of newbie window cleaners trying to get started at low prices. Nothing to do with people spouting cr@p about earnings on CIU. It's an easy low cost start up business which none of us has exclusive rights to. Any plonker can have a go and you don't have to be over clever to make it work.

Same every year, no change.

[cozy]

Sorry, that's 22000 members on CIU, which started as a carpet cleaners forum, so that's only about 10000 window cleaners on this forum. That's not counting the general cleaners and oven cleaners. So every window cleaner in Britain would need to be on here all the time and any potential window cleaners too. Then the newbies need to trawl through over 200,000 posts on the window cleaning section to find what we can earn, then pick out the dross and bragging and reach the conclusion that window cleaning is a high earn business.

Yeah, OK 

[Steve CM]

i have bought work off of 3 window cleaners in the last 2 years. all couldn't handle the business (bored, hate the work, can't employ etc)

If you want it, its all out there. Get off your arse and go find it. Most people fall by the wayside and can't make it work

[Steve Rothwell]

but when you are quiet you go on about doing carpet cleaning to tide you over.....................

by undercutting the carpet cleaners....

Welcome to the real world....

[Steve CM]

you talking to me?

[cozy]

you talking to me?

You spilled my pint!! 

[Steve CM]

you talking to me?

You spilled my pint!! 

did i?

[Rob_Mac]

Steve CM

Did you change the post.

£6000.00 per month plus your own work. Well over the VAT threshold.

How do you find applying VAT to your pricing on domestic.

Do you give them a price and then take the 20% off?? Is it a nightmare calculating all those 20%'s

Rob

[Steve CM]

Rob i removed it as i thought it looked like i was gloating. I wern't just stating a fact.

Yep i'm well over the vat threshold and have been for a few years.

so far no drama

Steve

[Rob_Mac]

Fair play

I was there with the VAT on domestic and just didn't want the aggravation. Nothing wrong with being proud of achievements Steve. Only a fool would presume that it was all profit. Well done!

Rob

[Steve CM]

cheers Rob

[SunShineCleaning]

Im glad its not just me thats noticed it then so whats the plan now guys to protect our work ?

Stop helping them out on here!

Give them proper advice on how to run a business rather than the pie in the sky some spout on here.

Make sure your customers love you.

You over estimate this forum mate. Do you honestly think these newbies sit at home on the net and look for window cleaning forums instead of porn sites? Do you think there are only 22000 windies in the UK? And out of these 22000, only about 100 bother posting on here.

So these 5 quid guys look at a forum before rushing out and knocking doors to steel work from us lot? The fact that they are ready to knock on doors makes me respect them. Most on here drop leaflets and wait for years for the custies to come to them!

If you are getting over-run with new starters, what's new? It's every bloody year! Even we get them here, guys leaving the Army think it's an easy option. Had a couple already this year. They didn't read this forum mate. It's people who are desperate for money who are looking for a way to earn it.

You will always get lots of newbie window cleaners trying to get started at low prices. Nothing to do with people spouting cr@p about earnings on CIU. It's an easy low cost start up business which none of us has exclusive rights to. Any plonker can have a go and you don't have to be over clever to make it work.

Same every year, no change.

Alright Cozy, just making a comment.

I was thinking more about the BAD business advice that is on here not particularly earnings. Most newbies wont make it past the first winter, the rest will struggle but may survive.
Very few will turn a profit.

[Steve Rothwell]

you talking to me?

no... ...............  why ?

does the cap fit ?? 

[dave.e]

it;s going to get worse much worse

what do you mean it;s going to get worse

think about it more and more window cleaners start up will bring the prices down because they mite have been on the dole and charging £5 an house 10 houses a day will bring them more money than on the dole  its an easy game to start up and with forums like this one where all the info they could wish for just makes it more appealing and they can not loose

[cozy]

Dave, so did you start window ploishing because you found a forum? Or did you start at crap prices and find a forum? Or did you find a forum and start posting THEN started window cleaning? 

[Steve CM]

you talking to me?

no... ...............  why ?

does the cap fit ??  

sounded like you was, my apologies  

[DavidWright76]

One reason why there are so many window cleaners now is that the authorities are clamping down on rubbish removal men who don't have a waste licence and harrassing the ones that have by snooping on their loads with CCTV and sending them forms to fill out on what they carry for every job they do and conning more money out of them in fines and taxes. (The guys that drive old vehicles are not safe either.) Therefore these guys give up on the rubbish game and go for another trade - such as window cleaning.

I know this may sound a bit off-topic but it is also a warning that the government may make it compulsory for window cleaners nationwide to have a licence so they can snoop on us, introduce more red tape by getting us to fill out a form for every house cleaned and sponge more money out of us in taxes. (My ol' man's a rubbishman.)

[Ian101]

If you want it, its all out there. Get off your arse and go find it. Most people fall by the wayside and can't make it work

my sentiments entirely 

the harder I work the luckier I become is so so true in this business

[dave.e]

Dave, so did you start window ploishing because you found a forum? Or did you start at crap prices and find a forum? Or did you find a forum and start posting THEN started window cleaning?
[/quote





when i started window cleaning years ago it was not as bad as it is now and i found this forum after i started 4years if i can remember it right.
Any one starting up now this site is a little gold mind but that is a good thing for them and a bad thing for us especially the one;s that keep bragging how much they earn per day so all the newbies know what to charge and the tax man knows aswell. when i started i had to learn the hard way and i think i done well out of it.