[Liam M Askew]

From what i have read in the law books you can use a ladder up to any height aslong as it isn't in a fixed position for more than half an hour then cherrie pickers and scaffolding come in, this is to prevent builders and roofers etc from working dangerously at heights on ladders and juggling all there equipment and materials ontop of a ladder, but as for us window cleaners it doesn't affect us as our ladder is constantly on the move (unless you are impossibly slow).
So technically you could do the hotel if you wanted, but i personally wouldn't because i dont feel its worth the risk when there is stuff out there designed to help make jobs like this safer.

[mike roberts]

if they were working for me
then they wud be highly qualified to carry out
window cleaning in all its variants ie ladders wfp
cradle bosuns chair cherry picker whatever
in the unlikely event of some one being fatally
injured working for me , then id deal with it
BUT I CAN ASSURE YOU ID BE WORKING THE NXT DAY
REGARDLESS , my bills dont stop , or neither will my children
stop eating , im sorry if anyone finds this out of order but life goes on  
did ocs go out of business when an employee was killed
after a fall fr heights working on a hsbc bank
the answer is no

I think you need to check the law my friend, If someone was very seriously injured let alone fatally commercially there would be a hs investigation - you would not be working next day your company operation would be shut.
On finding there was / is a safer method of cleaning and you ignored it , you would be fined heavily. If you could pay huge fine, you could then continue but with safer methods wfp.

Do you not agree regs state use 'safest method possible' 

[dazmond]

you havent got the equipment for the job bobby.you would need at least a 40ft pole to reach 4 floors.dont be daft mate and pass the job on.

risking it at that height is just madness IMO for a few quid.

[bobby p]

looks like nobody here does hotels like this size ? if you do premier inn style of stuff can you gimme a ball park figure ? is £500 way too high? way too low?? is it normally cleaned outside annually or "as and when" ?

 although its 4 floors high, to my mind its not a big boy job, i consider a big boy job to be bigger than this , such as tower block size.  

[Alistair@AWC]

is £500 way too high? way too low??

We did some prem inns before they went national and id say £500 is way off the mark! Your probably looking at £100-£150.

If you have a mate whose gonna get you the job I dont think it'd make you look like a novice to ask to see the rival quotes, if you have a contact use it to the full!

[colley614]

I've had a lot of experience working on hotels. Holiday inn, Crowne Plaza, malmasion, abode, best western, novotel and camponile to name a few but I've never priced one of these for myself. Thing to remember is that most of the companies quoting on hotels will have offices full of people and their wages will be taken in to consideration with quotes so I think it gives you a bit of room to be competative.

I would also say that although I've never quoted on a big hotel I would be very happy to and cofident in my skilling at pricing one up. I've quoted on office blocks this size and been the successful bidder and made a good profit on them so I'd be happy to quote a hotel.

I would quote it the same a you would for any other building. Don't estimate an hourly rate as you could be miles out. I would go with the price per window, for example.

The hotel has 100 rooms, say for arguements sake 25 rooms on each floor with one window per room. 25 on the first, 25 on the second, etc. The fed say charge a pound for a first floor window, £1.50 for a second floor and goes up by 50 pence per floor. so with this you would look at £25 the first, £37.50 the second, £50 the third and £62.5 which equals £175 and any bars, restaurants and entrance areas on the ground floor.

Remember this is a guide. Once you have worked out the price I'd stand back and have a think. Maybe you feel the window are big ones and you may want to price a little more per window.

[CLEANCARE WC]

THIS IS WHERE YOU BRING IN A FRIEND WITH WFP UP TO 60FT    LET ME KNOW IF YOU WANT A HAND BOBBY.

cheers fella, might bring you and yer pole in on the 4th floor

No problem Bobby let me know if you get it and want a hand. Dan

[wightsurf]

I clean hotels and price for how long it's going to take and how much i would like for my time.There are a few things to take into consideration.Guest get in the way,so we use that red white tape to shut of areas.coaches turn up again guest get in the way.The hotelsdont normaly let us arrive before 10 am

On the ladder issue debate on my issurance there is a clause stating a certain hieght for ladder work.As we use wfp also i'm not sure what the height is though.Anyone else looked on there PL to see if there is a clause ?

[DMC Window Cleaners Ltd]

bobby

gav is right about regs ie common sense.

everyone is forgetting here do you really think a big chain hotal company will allow you to use ladders too 4 stories.
they certainly would accept a quote from a more expensive company that uses WFP.

If you cant get a mate, or buy a cheap WFP set mate just walk away to live another day there is no point take silly risks for a couple hundred pound.

[WinTech]

Check your insurance. Some comps only do 15ft some 25ft.
Dont know any that do 30+ feet but their must be a few.

If you put an employee up and he fell you would not have a leg to stand on.
You would have the book thrown at you.

[DMC Window Cleaners Ltd]

my insurance hasnt got a height limit for ladders just a height limit that we are insured to in gen.

as to having the book thrown at you thats not true.

If you had a risk ass, method ass, equitpment all checked, operative trained and you have done everything your are meant to put your operative was breaking these then its tough luck the operative wasnt follow the correct working requirements.

At the end of the day the hotel WILL not allow you to work at 4 stories on a ladder

[H S and Son]

Are we in the 21st century or not?

Im having our chimney swept next week in readiness for the winter. I was thinking it would be viewed as far better H&S if I employed an orphan to leg it up there, there is no alternative after all. 

[colin purewater]

ladders can only be used up to 9 meters!!

this is what mr willis told me on the qcf course!!

please correct me if im wrong david

get a wfp fella in to do the top floor then do the rest your self or subby the lot out and make a few bob whilst on the couch or doing own work.... simples

[Tom White]

Why anyone would want to work 30 - 35 feet up a ladder is beyond me.  My triples (well Ian_Giles's really  ) are a nightmare to lug about; and they only get used when the money is right, and not for window cleaning.

There's easier ways to make money than heaving massively heavy ladders about and dragging your fat body up 'em; never mind what 'elf 'n' safety says.

[andyatkinson]

I knew a guy that fell whilst cleaning a 4 storey hotel off a ladder. he broke many, many bones :

[matthewprice]

i have used ladders that big 4 floors now wfp i do seem to remember reading that a hight of 27 feet was an industery recomended limit

[james51174]

quite often windows at this height open inwards for cleaning...but this is only good for vacant rooms of course

i am 25 years experienced with ladders and would never top 30ft or so

using a ladder for 40ft takes a tremendous amount of effort moving it around....extended it would be too unsafe...so it would need to be put up and down for every climb....not to mention the inconvenience of either a footer, or some stabilising device

the area would really need to be sectioned of....warning signs at least

then there is the bother of cars parked, or bushes/trees in the way

windy/wet days would be out the question....

plus the fact already mentioned about the hotel actually allowing ladders to be used at this height

i use ladders 75% of the time....but for this job it would be WFP for sure

it can be done cheap with a couple of vessels and a well place outside tap to hook up to

the only expensive part is a carbon pole, as at that height ally, or fibre glass are tough to work with

[LHill]

http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2005/e05110.htm

[james51174]

ladders can only be used up to 9 meters!!

this is what mr willis told me on the qcf course!!

please correct me if im wrong david

get a wfp fella in to do the top floor then do the rest your self or subby the lot out and make a few bob whilst on the couch or doing own work.... simples

no your correct

but there are ways to go higher as stated below, from this..  http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2005/735/schedule/6/made

9.  Where a ladder or run of ladders rises a vertical distance of 9 metres or more above its base, there shall, where reasonably practicable, be provided at suitable intervals sufficient safe landing areas or rest platforms.

[james51174]

also a point to consider..

taken from here...  http://www.hse.gov.uk/falls/ladders.htm#rightforthejob

-When can ladders be used?
 
Ladders can be used if after assessing the risks the use of more suitable work equipment is not justified because of the low risk and short duration


so its up to you to honestly think about if 40ft is low risk???

i say no....but as always, hse guides are never back and white....there are a thousand shades of grey!!!