[rhys11]

hi every one.

I got a big problem i have just lost 2 customers this week.They have said that there upvc window sills have been scratched and have left marks  after i  have cleaned them. I use an water fed pole with a viken brush head and when i clean the windows i always wash the window sills at the same time. I have notice this on anther house as well but she has not noticed it.
What do i do can any one give me some help please??Has this happened to you?? can any one tell me how they clean the sills when the do there window??
Any advice will be very great full

many thanks rhys

[ewanc0]

I can't see how your brush is scratching the cills. These brushes are designed for cleaning delicate surfaces like cars etc. so i can't see how running them along a window cill once a month is going to damage them.
Are you sure it's the brush and your customer's not just using that as an excuse?

[JM123]

is the edge of the brush catching the sill?

[Trevor Knight]

I would look at the angle of your brush head, it seems to me you may not have the brush head flush against the PVC sill and it may be the edge of your brush head that is scratching the sills?

[windows_chepstow]

I reckon it's an excuse because they don't like your new method of window cleaning.  Customers say some funny stuff, don't they.

I took over two properties who had dumped their previous (trad) window cleaner and when I asked what was wrong with him, they both said that he wasn't very good and had also scratched their windows.

I couldn't see any scratch; not one.

Another possibility is that those scratches were there already.  A previous over-zealous window cleaner may have used Scotchbrite to clean the sills, leaving scratches and when you turn up with your pole, the house-holder inspected your work and saw old scratches.

I wouldn't worry if I were you.

[Pj]

wfp won't scratch the sill, it may be the rubber buffer round the edge of the brush.  Sometimes that can leave a few rubber streaks as it gets worn down, but they just rub off easy enough.  If they are scratches, they were already there and your cleaning has simply revealed them.

[s.hughes]

Are your jets flush on the underside of the brush? Some are long and can protrude so if you put any pressure on the brush then it will scratch the sill.

[dai]

As PJ said, it may be the red rubber buffer leaving scratch like marks.
You can just yank that off the brush It does nothing. The brush body itself is only rubber. Mind you that can leave marks too if you rub hard enough. Dai

[Mr. S]

dai u done the same as me the red rubber when i first used vikan started doing same without it its alot better.

[Paul Coleman]

Not wanting to sound cynical but there was a thread just like this a while back saying the same thing about Ionics brushes.
Don't want to sound paranoid but the original poster on this thread is based in Wiltshire.
Hmmm  !!

[rhys11]

hi all thanks for replaying

i don't think im scratching the brush head on the sills but i have noticed a few scratches on other peoples houses.do think i have pushed the brush to hard on the sill and is has scrated   the thing is i don't want them saying i got to replace the sill or them trying to sue me for damage.

ps. im new to this site shiner don't be paranoid lol.


thank you for all the advice
rhys

[Ian_Giles]

AS everyone else has said, don't worry too much, you are highly unlikely to scratch the sills.
On my brush - the Salmon one that Peter Fogwill supplies - the jets are stainless steel and protrude from the bottom of the brush, but were I to put the pressure needed for them to touch and scratch either the glass or the sills I'd probably break the window or damage the pole

Sills over time get grimy, and whether they are wooden painted ones or UPVC ones, there is nothing you can do to stop this.
Well, ok, you could use a non abrasive cream cleaner on them and keep them looking brand new, I've a customer that does that on a couple of her sills because her cat sits on them all the time :

Some weathering you cannot clean too well with WFP, but you will make marks in that weathering, they are not scratches, but merely lines in the grime.

Done trad this layer will stay there in a more even pattern, you wash the glass, you squeegee the glass, a quick wipe with a squeegee to remove excess water from the sill, and a quick wipe over with a damp scrim to finish.

I'll bet a pound to a penny that these sills are not on brand spanking new window frames?

If you see other windows on other houses on your round that look the same and you are worried, while the customer isn't looking, try a small patch with a proprietry cream cleaner (non abrasive!)
The sill will come up like new and you won't see a sign of the apparent scratches.

The next time a customer accuses you of scratching the sills, give them your equipment and ask them to try and scratch them with the brush.
Of course yo uhave to be careful that the scratches are not the result of plasterers getting cement on them and so on, but you can also clean a patch of sill with a cream cleaner and show them it is just weathering.

If they ask you to then clean the sills tell them ok, but it'll cost you £1.50 a sill

Also get out your trad gear and prove that you cannot get the sills any cleaner using that method (you won't, no matter how much elbow grease you put into it)

If there are very REAL scratches on the sills, the sort of scratches you can actually feel on your fingertips - I'm not talking about the odd one here and there - it is next to impossible for it to have been caused by you.

If there are red scuff marks, then those ARE probably yours because of the trim on the vikan brush, but that is just cosmetic and easily dealt with.

Ian

[rhys11]

THANKS IAN  FOR THE REPLY