Sooo I was thinking about glass cleaners and rain repellant…I know many companies offer 3 star barrier to help last a clean window when it rains. Rain-x offers a liquid rain repellant but for windshields… I wonder if the same principals can go when cleaning residential homes…like mixing soap with rain-x. Has anyone tried this before or is it a bad idea???
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Wouldn’t you want to clean the windows again? Of course we want the windows looking amazing and clean when we leave but we do want the windows to be dirty again.
When you go to clean the windows again they will be all hydrophobic and harder to clean but you will be getting paid the same.
Of course. I am very aware of that. I read more about products like that and some say avoid vinyl and aluminum around the windows. In my opinion I would just use soap because I know the customer will eventually call again in the future. It was just a thought. Thanks for your opinion!
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Sometimes for commercial jobs I think it’d be fun to just pull of a layer than to clean it it. Like they do with nascar windshields.
Brian_c said it…“When you go to clean the windows again they will be all hydrophobic and harder to clean”
I don’t use anything with wax-like characteristics on screen either for the same reason. I have tried 4 different screen cleaning/conditioning products and they have all transferred to the glass after rain and caused the glass to become hydrophobic. Way harder to clean with WFP.
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Thanks for the head up! Well that’s what I was looking for! Thanks
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Hey that’s an awsome idea. Please video and take pics of how it turns out can’t wait to see how it looks. If u can’t tell I’m being sarcastic it’s going to be a huge mess
I turned down a $10k per year contract last year because the glass had been repeatedly treated with Rain X.
The windows were impossible to clean.
I would have stripped the RainX off and cleaned the glass
There are silane based sealants (not siloxanes in alcohol like Rain-X) that can be carried by water. They do bond to the glass creating a hydrophobic surface. NOT good for WFP work! But good for repeat standard window cleaning. These do NOT keep the window clean longer. It still gets dirty in the same time. BUT. Any organic pollution will come off much easier with a scrub. Charge a little more to scrub window with steel wool or silica in soapy water, and apply silane at the same time. No extra time needed. Now when you come back for a repeat clean it takes a little less time. But you get the same price. Again. More profit. Not much. But enough.
Tell me why glass slides for microscopes are treated with silanes? What of glass test tubes? Simply because the hydrophobic sealant does limit how “sticky” the glass surface is. They clean up much easier. Then why don’t we as window cleaners have the same kind of product? Yes three star is a silane. I played with that old chemistry over twenty years ago. The glass surface absolutely MUST be activated before it will fully bond. Otherwise you are just preaching emperors clothes!
Henry
How do you strip RainX off glass?
Because you haven’t sold us any yet.
Hey Eric,
Believe me I am working on it. Just got a great email in. Totally fascinating. But I’ve learned no one really likes this chemical stuff as much as me so I try to shut up.
And Chris. It ain’t easy. Maybe John has a better way. But I use a silica based compound or just white powder and buff real hard. Of course you could just take some cerium and a wheel to it. Machines are usually stronger than my arm. Test by wetting with water. It should sheet. Not bead.
Henry
