[dazmond]

a guy i know is 71 and still at it(trad ) part time(4 days a week) works alone.topping up his pension.he s been window cleaning since he was 18!

another guy i used to work for is 68 and works 3 full days a week with 2 lads helping him out(trad).he still does a bit of ladder climbing as well!

i think the oldest guy on here is DAI i think?(early seventies?)

what about you guys?

[steven ainger]

Bob plum is older than that 

[Cookie]

Good for them! I'm sure they've built up many loyal customers over the years and it's perhaps become more of a vocation for them than a job. This was the case with some of the milkmen I worked with when I was employed by Unigate.

With the pension age being raised and the demise of 'gold plated' final salary pension schemes we are going to see  more people working into their late sixties & seventies. If I'm still physically & mentally capable at that age I fully intend to keep on working even if it's for 1 or 2 days a week (I've another 20 or so years to go yet!).

[bobplum]

i am............hang on ..............just confirming with the wife.............yes 53

[sunshine windows]

Been at it 10 years this October, at the ripe old age of 41 now.

I only see around 4 or 5 old school trad guys in Swindon now. Wooden ladders on old cars.

Most new start ups here seem to go straight in with a wfp set up. Only seen a few new trad guys in the past couple of years. It's definitely a dying trade window cleaning off ladders.

[Johnny B]

I am 53, in this game for 18 years and 100%  trad.                                                                                             

I intend to keep going for as long as I am physically able to. As my kids start to fly the nest I may reduce the number of days that I work though, but I can't see myself retiring  altogether.

John


 
 

[M & C Window Cleaning]

I'm coming up to 55 and been shining since I was 15 and 2/3 bed houses fetched about 45/50p.

I badly misjudged a situation at work when I was 39 and broke an ankle. I carried on for 5 years after it healed until I couldn't stand the pain in my ankle anymore . Had surgery to fuse it, which was successful but pretty much left me unable to use ladders anymore so switched to WFP.  Wished I'd done it a lot earlier. I really enjoy cleaning windows this way. I still do a little trad here and there and I don't plan to stop anytime soon.

[dazmond]

I am 53, in this game for 18 years and 100%  trad.                                                                                             

I intend to keep going for as long as I am physically able to. As my kids start to fly the nest I may reduce the number of days that I work though, but I can't see myself retiring  altogether.

John

i know a few guys whos knees are shot after 30 yrs on the ladders too.the guys who are still climbing ladders in their late sixties/early seventies are very thin with no excess weight so less strain on their knees.

ive still got 2 little lumps below my kneecaps from 17 years on the ladders(where my legs used to rest on the rungs).i dont have any problems with my right knee though anymore since going wfp.

[Ian101]

I reckon when I retire I will keep my best 100 customers as a pension top up .... 10 a day and rest of month off 

[dazmond]

how old is ian101?i had a look at his website the other day and i thought he looked like he was in his late 50s.turns out he s only in his 40s!

[Ian101]

how old is ian101?i had a look at his website the other day and i thought he looked like he was in his late 50s.turns out he s only in his 40s!

  .... 47 next month ... don't forget my card .............. had a hard life Daz .... oh and in photo 4 stone over weight don't help ... lost 1 stone over last 6 weeks though so another 3 to go ............... plus 26 years selling cars enough to age anyone

[dazmond]

how old is ian101?i had a look at his website the other day and i thought he looked like he was in his late 50s.turns out he s only in his 40s!

  .... 47 next month ... don't forget my card .............. had a hard life Daz .... oh and in photo 4 stone over weight don't help ... lost 1 stone over last 6 weeks though so another 3 to go ............... plus 26 years selling cars enough to age anyone

love the new logo though mate.much better than the h20!

[Jay Le Huray]

i'm 62 and still going strong, been window cleaning on and off since the 70's

[Ian101]

how old is ian101?i had a look at his website the other day and i thought he looked like he was in his late 50s.turns out he s only in his 40s!

  .... 47 next month ... don't forget my card .............. had a hard life Daz .... oh and in photo 4 stone over weight don't help ... lost 1 stone over last 6 weeks though so another 3 to go ............... plus 26 years selling cars enough to age anyone

love the new logo though mate.much better than the h20!

cheers ..................  five dollars from fiverr.com

[Roy Harding]

I'm antique  window  cleaner 58 yrs old, and have cleaned 5 days a week  for over 30yrs. We're is me gold watch?   

[SeanK]

Been at it 10 years this October, at the ripe old age of 41 now.

I only see around 4 or 5 old school trad guys in Swindon now. Wooden ladders on old cars.

Most new start ups here seem to go straight in with a wfp set up. Only seen a few new trad guys in the past couple of years. It's definitely a dying trade window cleaning off ladders.

It all depends where your working, a lot of the more modern UPVC frames don't take well to WFP and can be a real pain
to get to a reasonable standard.
Other than the odd commercial guy I'm one of the few that has managed to succeed using WFP in my area, cant see ladder
work being replaced here anytime soon.

[Ste M]

My Father in law works for me, he's 72, all afp work, also another fella I have is 68. I always say my van looks like a scene from Cacoon

[M & C Window Cleaning]

 

My Father in law works for me, he's 72, all afp work, also another fella I have is 68. I always say my van looks like a scene from Cacoon

 

My mum's old window cleaner kept going into his eighties. Recon he probably died window cleaning. Never saw him use a blade even. He was a scrim and leather man. Windows were never that clean but he was a cheerful old soul. Always singing or whistling and almost every time his parting line would be, "before I go, have you heard the one about the...." followed by a quick joke.

[Gringo]

Trad owd fella near me 82 and still goin strong on ladders, at it all week hes a fair size fella must have knees of titanium, looks well for age too, even seen him up ladders in snow

[sunshine windows]

Where are you based seank? We have the joy of having ionics in our doorstep in Swindon. So I assume lots of newbies are getting their set ups from there.

As for modern  upvc not taking to wfp, I find these the easiest windows to clean. The newer the better for me.