So I’ve been canvassing around my area and I have several storefronts that are interested in me cleaning both the inside and outside of their windows.
I’m cool with cleaning the outside, but I’m a little concerned about the inside part.
I mean, how do you ensure that water doesn’t drip all over the place?
Also, what do you do if there’s a bunch of merchandise and/or racks blocking the window? I assume I let the manager know that I’ll have to move the stuff to get at the windows?
This is my first time cleaning inside windows, and I’m a little nervous that I’ll make mistakes.
What in your professional opinion is the best way to go about cleaning inside windows?
You’re going to make mistakes. Especially if you’ve never done insides. Just ask them politely to move anything they wouldn’t want dripped on away from the windows, while you’re doing the outs. You’ll probably still have to move a little yourself, but get them used to the procedure.
customers are responsible for moving their property away from the glass to the point where we can get to the glass. You start moving customer “stuff” around and you will watch your hourly rate plummet. You will understand this better after you pay for something that “tips over” and breaks while you are cleaning.
If you are using a pole in close quarters, keep your pinkie finger under the pole grip. You bang your finger when pulling a pole down will heal. I watched a fellow put a 4" scratch in the fender of a new Cadillac on the showroom floor because he ignored this advice.
Buy cheap cotton bath towels to lay down below the glass. It helps cleanup of the water, but the visual to the customer makes you look like a superstar.
Invest in a set of ledgers and a Super System (or other adjustable handle system) and learn how to pole a window without being directly in front of it.
Thanks for the advice guys. I’ll take it to heart.
I know that professional window cleaning is a learning process and I’ll make mistakes. But it’s always reassuring to post my questions on the forum and tap into the years of experience oozing from this site
i ALLWAYS make it a point to point out ANY defect and flaws found dureing the cleaning.
That goes for paint and specks on the window that i remove that OTHER wc’s seem to allways leave behind.
Most WC’s for whatever reason do not inform the customer these few basic things.
Its Splash-Wipe - Grab the cash and dash.
No Matter How small it is Tell and educate the customer about their windows.
It pays off in the long run.
Pax
I always put large towels down to make any cleanup from the windows a snap. Let any drips hit the towel and what is there to clean up? Having the manager move breakables or obstacles from in the way makes your job easier. If there is a display set up in front of the window that hinders access to clean, find out when he changes it and arrange to clean that area then.
I use wagtails with pads, so less drip. I’ll use a drop cloth to cover everything below the window. I rarely have to move anything unless the drop cloth could break something underneath it i.e paper art or something that would flatten. Scrims will trap in a window when closed, so holding it slightly up with one hand & squeegee with the other makes life simple.
I think one of the main things to remember when doing inside windows is to not have your T-bar dripping wet most of the time doing inside windows i will keep my t bar resting on the top of my bucket and only dipping the tip in to the water then squeeze that water throughout the lambswool only using minimal amount of water more suds than anything, always hold you t-bar in your other hand under where you are using your squeegee to catch all your water that runs off the glass, anything you can reach you should be able to catch all run off. where using a pole same principal unless your in direct sunlight, and its winter here and i am cleaning inside windows in direct morning sun and the glass temp is 75 degree, in summer the glass temp would be over 90 and i manage fine without making a mess.
As others have said if there is crap in the way, 90% of the time you should be able to work around it, explain what access you need, do the job out of hours if a ton of crap needs to be moved, over cover stuff with towels, u normally go to a thrift shop and buy bulk towels for a few dollars for a bag.
