[Rich Wilts]

I was asked to clean the inside windows of a regular customer one day. A fairly well to do but very friendly elderly lady and her husband lived there.

Halfway round she said she had to go out, so left me to it, finishing the last few windows. I was to leave my invoice in the kitchen and she'd put a cheque in the post. Fine.

There was this window, overlooking the rear of the property, ground floor. Big window. Had a set of vertical hanging blinds in it.  So to be able to get to all the glass once I'd pulled the blinds back with the cord that hangs in the corner I had to just pull them that little bit further back with my left hand to be able to get to all the glass when they just broke. All the hangers just fell off the holders. Collapsed. In a heap on the window-sill.

I was reasonably new at this game but also pretty stupid - So I panicked.

I grabbed hold of the blinds, rolled them up, stuffed them as best I could down my trousers and legged it. Hoping the lady of the house wouldn't spot her blinds were missing.

So, the next day, I got a phone call. It was her. She wanted to know where her blinds were. She was very calm, but curious. My reply to her question was 'what blinds?' 

'The ones overlooking the rear lawn, in the office. They were there when I left and gone when I got back'.

I insisted I didn't have a clue what she was talking about but agreed to go over and have a chat with her about them.

Anyway, something dawned on me when I put the phone down - the game was up, it was bloody obvious. so I phoned her back and explained what had happened. She said something then which has stayed with me ever since and has been a watershed moment in my life, for one reason or another. In a very calm, kind and curious way she said 'Matt, why didn't you tell me the truth, we're not Ogres you know'.

I've got a funny feeling I screwed up on that one.

[AuRavelling79]

Ah blinds ...

A commercial I had and still do since 1999 had a change of management (I joke I'm the longest serving member of staff and where's me pension?) and this gruff South African moves into one of the offices and moves his desk nearer the window so I have to stretch to pull the blind cord.

Crash! Down they come onto the window cill. He tells me I'm going to have to fix that and I accept but say I can't do it right then. Anyway next month they are still there and he says it's still my responsibility and  so I go and get a drill and wall plugs and fit the thing back up. Took me about three hours of driving home , moving his pigging desk breaking drillbits.

I learned to say "I can't reach that, sorry." Never cleaned that window again until he got re-shuffled out so over about 5 years I might have made up the time!

[sunshine windows]

When I started 10 years ago I was cleaning this house for £12 I think. She wanted the whole conservatory cleaning on the outside with the windows. I charged her £20 for the lot. Lean too type roof which I spread my extended ladders across the top to walk across it. Never in a million years would I attemp that again. It was quite close to Xmas and she tipped me £80 she was that happy with the job. I still clean for her today, but in a different house. By far the best tip I've ever had to date.

[Ian101]

some how Ive never managed to clean the wrong house but did clean a regulars house that had basically been burnt out / smoke damaged throughout entire house due to dishwasher going on fire thru damaged wiring (vibration over the years)

the neighbour stopped me on the last window and said what had happened  ... then customer pulls and offers to pay me as they hadn't called to cancel me .... I didn't take the money.

[Walter Mitty]

I did manage a variation on "wrong house" once.  I was using ladders back then.   I quoted for the job and got it.  I went back the next day to clean it and they were out.  So, I cleaned it.
The next day I got a mystified phone call wondering why I had put the bill through her neighbour's letter box.
It turned out that the job was the upper floor of a maisonette and I quoted for both floors thinking that it was a house.  You had to look carefully to notice that the "back" door was actually another "front" door .
That made me realise that my prices were too low as well because I got the job without a problem even though I added on the whole ground floor in error.
I ended up cleaning both floors for a while - but charging the right people this time

[lozsing]

Walking about on sloped tiles hanging on with finger tips lol

[M & C Window Cleaning]

Walking about on sloped tiles hanging on with finger tips lol

That brings back memories. I had a number of places like that some years back. Cleaning windows with one hand whilst hanging on with fingertips of the other. If it weren't for those finger holds I would not have stayed on those roofs. Thank goodness for wfp.

[robbo333]

I've driven off with my rear van doors open.
Went to a commercial job and reversed into a skip; dented my van.  Went back the next day to finish the job, hit exactly the same skip again, in exactly the same place; even bigger dent in the van.
Should have gone to Specsavers!
And don't even ask me about pricing houses too cheaply and picking the worst jobs possible! 

[Johnny B]

The most stupid thing I ever did was getting to a large window above a huge sloping ledge on this big house. The distance between the side of the ledge (which was the nearest point to position the ladders) and the concrete sill of the window in question was about 6 inches out of my reach.

I managed to get onto the ledge to clean said window but my problems began when trying to reach the ladders to get back off. I had to let go of the ledge to reach the ladders, meaning I had a split second where I had no hand contact with the house.

I did of couse manage it eventually, but I was genuinely afraid and a bit shaken afterwards, and so never did it again.

John

[Stoots]

£15 for a conny roof

2 hours ffs

[Nick Day]

I was cleaning the inside windows at M & S, it always drew attention as it was on the first floor (ladies fashions and underwear) dropped off the window sill and stepped straight into my bucket of water............shi*!!

[AuRavelling79]

Stepped back into a fishpond.

[Stoots]

i allowed a womans knickers to brush my face as i walked under the washing line  - milf housewife and silky panties.

[Shane sharples]

i allowed a womans knickers to brush my face as i walked under the washing line  - milf housewife and silky panties.

They were her husbands weekend underwear!!! lmao 

[Stoots]

as long as i believe they were hers it doesnt matter lol - belief is king

[M & C Window Cleaning]

Trod on the hose where it hangs at the back of my trolley (freedom) whilst pushing it. Trolley comes to a dead stop and I've fallen headlong over the top of it. Trolley falls over, barrel falls off, and I stand up and put everything back on trolley like it is the most normal thing in the world and carry on like inspector Clouseau falling down the stairs.

[dazmond]

not a newbie thing(i was about 10 years in!)early thirties.carrying my ladder down a street in the middle of winter(ice on the ground!)and trying to look cool as i smiled at a very attractive young lady walking by........then i slipped on some ice and the ladders ended up on top of me......!

on topic

1.underpricing jobs

2.telling the odd customer to f*** off

3.cleaning the insides of a smokers house

4.working with ladders in dangerous conditions(ice,snow)even climbing on snow covered sloping roofs!

5.having friends working with me then going to the pub at lunchtime.

6."ragging" all windows with scrim(no squeegee)

[Smurf]

It seems we all have taken chances in the past to crack on get a job done.

Generally people learn the hard way by having a near miss or take a fall and walk away but others are not so lucky.

It amazes me to see people still doing stupid things just to get a job done and/or because that is how they have been taught by old school cleaners.  Some will place price over safety first to remain competitive which also seems bonkers to me.
“It will never happen to me” mentality is just tempting fate as one day it might.

What with all the gear, methods and tools available now no one should need to take chances just to earn a few squid.

What they call “common working practice” doesn’t mean it’s a safe way of working either.

I’m no H&S freak either but would prefer to come home in one piece and I’m sure the majority of cleaners would too.

This is a prime examples how stupid some people can be. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySY0kkH5dQo

[Rich Wilts]

2 weeks in having handed in my notice on an 11 year old job, I was up a ladder but couldnt quite reach the whole way across a window to blade it off. So tried boucing the ladder so the window could be finished without having to get down off it and move it in the normal way.

The ladder feet were on concrete which didnt help, it was also spanning a porch. Needless to say the ladder shot out from underneath me and I ended up with a broken leg and ankle. That was not the best start to a promising career.

[Rich Wilts]

A customer once asked me if I could also clean out the lead lined valleys on their roof as they'd already asked me to clear their gutters. This required a roof ladder to do, which was fine, so I thought.

Anyway, I managed to somehow get the roof ladder up to roof height whilst on the ladder that went up to the gutters. Then the knack was to get the roof ladder on to the roof. Okay, wasnt so difficult I guess but I wouldn't want to do it everyday. I then managed somehow to get up on to the roof ladder from the ladder that was on the gorund, without ties, stays or anyone footing it or any part of the ladder extending over gutter height. A circus trick more than a professionally managed and assessed procedure.

So, from there I was able to clear the valleys out. Hooraaah!

The getting down was a lot harder than the getting up. In fact I had to wait until the customer came home and sit on the ridge tiles patiently until they did, to help me get the roof ladder off the roof. I contemplated throwing it off at one point but then realised I'd be stuck on the ridge tiles with no way down to the top of the ladder that was on the ground.

Not long after that I lost that customer.