When using traditional methods does it matter if you use hard water with your soap?
It can. I use distilled water to avoid any chance of hard water spotting.
Since you are squeegeeing off any water, I suppose ideally it shouldn’t matter. I don’t take chances.
I use Glass Gleam 4 because I understand it is formulated for use with hard water.
Depends a lot on HOW hard the water is and what kind of solids are dissolved. Calcium deposits make the worst stains because they are white and make the window look like a dirty shower door. Mixing vinegar or Glass Gleam 4 will counteract the minerals enough to get you good results.
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Hardness has no factor in spotting glass as long as you never leave it on the glass to dry, but who does that? lol
Traditional methods cleaning glass have proven true for centuries with same results of non spotting. There is no need to use distilled water, RO/DI if you clean the window properly by just a strip washer and squeegee.
Calcium is the least of my worries for buildup on glass. It only buffs of in seconds compared to silica taking an upwards to an hour per pane.
Silica is the worst form of deposit in water that I know of that you do not want to mess with when not using RO/DI with your WFP. Glass is made up of Silica and once bonded to glass itself from sprinklers it will have to be buffed off and replaced with same compound it was removed with.
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I stand corrected. That DOES sound like a bear.
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Indeed! Something we should educate our customers about. That being they should never allow their windows to become spotted by water that has a high silica content.
I know this thread is about cleaning windows with a squeegee using soapy hard water. The questions are whether the hard water will leave a mineral deposit on the glass when squeegeed, and whether the hard water will affect the performance of the cleaner/soap. My guess is probably “no deposit” on the first question. And yes on the second. Of the five synthetic detergent families out there some are definitely affected by hard water and non nuetral pH. Something the chemist must consider when employed by the manufacturer to come up with a good formula to sell to the professional window cleaner.
Henry
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