That’s a great starting point, Garry, and I always liked that graphic. But I just want to point at that there’s been about 18% inflation since 2013. Bringing the rates up to around $3/pane/side.
And I personally think actual costs of living for most people has increased much more than just 18% in the last 8 years (Consumer Price Index (CPI) excludes a host of more volatile staples like bread and fuel, last I heard). Maybe closer to 25-30% in some cases.
I’m currently at $8/pn in and out, or $5/pn one side only. I wash screens for free, though.
HAHA…Yes, it is an old graphic I had and do feel today’s pricing reflects proper changes for me.
Lets not forget, my friend, we are talking about charging “$40 per hour”, even with 2013 prices that graphic should give him a raise?
It’s sort of a USP for me. It’s obviously not “free”; it’s built into my pricing. At $16/dh, I can afford an extra minute or two per window to pull the screens, soft wash them, tap them out, and reinstall once dry. And if they don’t have screens in some or all of the windows, then score for me.
Im going to go along with Garry, here (and mind you, Im dismissive/overlooked the time for screen cleaning) WHY!?!
-I’M full of shit, I admit, but my 2022 resolution is to start charging people up the ass, for screen cleaning.
it takes so much longer than the “while we are there” minute or two, honestly? it may be double time.
I have a shitty mindset, that I dont like to charge for things that I dont put 100% confidence in the result (gutter repair, free screen cleaning, free track cleans, etc…)
I’m DONE with doing shit for nothing, thru my own fault, I admit.
I used to not charge for tracks and screens, but tracks and screens get pretty dirty. When I did start charging for tracks and screens I did it as an add on price for window cleaning and was only a few bucks each, but again, they get pretty dirty and often take more time to clean than the actual window. Plus I didn’t want to charge for something that I didn’t get as clean as I could within reason that wasn’t a deep clean - there’s a charge for that. I use my screen cleaner which does take time to setup and take down, does take time to clean the screens and stand them on their corners to dry while I am cleaning the windows, then towel dry the remainder before putting a now clean screen back on the windows. So for me - no free screens and $4 is a deal.
I include a complimentary dry brush of the screens within my price.
The deep clean screen cleaning starts at $150. This is included on every quote as an option for the prospect to select. Then it’s worth the extra time to pull screens, clean screens with screen cleaner, reinstall screens.
Since I soft wash them with my power washer, I do get out of it for around 2 minutes average per screen. Granted, cleaning a window itself might be 4 minutes per unit, inside & out on average. So screens are still a significant percentage of the work.
Again, it’s not so much that I’m doing them for “free”, but that I’ve built it into the standard pricing. I feel the screens are just as much a part of the window system as cleaning the glass itself; the idea of not cleaning screens if present feels lazy, imo.
Different strokes, though. No wrong way to do it, as long as you and your customers are happy.
I have kind of the same outlook as you about not charging for things outside my usual scope of services. I’ve taken to telling customers, “Changing floodlights/smoke alarm batteries/etc. is outside my usual wheelhouse, and I don’t have set pricing for those tasks, but I’ll do them as a favor for nice customers like yourself. I would prefer to keep it off the invoice and just do it on a gratuity basis. So whatever you feel that task would be worth to you, just add it as a tip at the end of the job. It’ll only take me x minutes to do, so please don’t feel pressured to tip a lot ”
It’s unorthodox, but it has gotten a good reaction so far. And it allows me to keep items off the invoice that I might not actually be covered by my insurance for (though that’s a very minor concern in my mind). People also tend to tip more for changing a lightbulb than I would ever think to charge for something so simple.
Do you figure that time starting when the actual cleaning of the screen begins, or from time to access and remove screen, clean it, and reinstall? I would imagine that chews up more than 2 minutes. Labor is money. Climb a ladder for several screens or go inside and pull them from the interior and take them outside to clean is going to eat up 2 minutes in a flash.
hard for me to believe that people are still using paper when all that and so much more can be done online , i don’t care it doesn’t affect me.
re “free” screen cleaning, my inside prices always include screen wipe. i allow for that in my pricing but because it’s not listed seperately i don’t reduce the price if there are no screens or they are very clean already. i always want the screens clean because dirty screens look bad and i want a good first impression. i don’t want someone cheaping out because it costs a few bucks extra. tracks are a different story, i always seperate the cost for tracks because they are time consuming, often gross and they do not affect the view.
There ‘s some economy of scale involved in my math here. A house with 30 screens takes on average an hour longer than if I do the same house and don’t have to touch a single screen.
As I’m collecting screens throughout the house, I’m stacking them in a way that I can usually carry them all out to be washed in one or two trips.
When I wash, I lean them all against a garage door or wherever and spray 3 or 4 at a time, flipping them to get the back sides. Let sit for a couple minutes to let the soap work, then rinse one at a time, both sides. But it goes extremely quickly. Actual wash time averages around 20 seconds per screen with the soft washing.
Thirty window house: roughly 3 hours inside and out, from the time I pull in the driveway till the time I’m leaving.
Thirty window house with screens: roughly 4 hours for inside and out, wash & reinstall screens. From the time I pull in the driveway until I’m leaving.
^^ Just as an example.
And unless the first home owners specifically ask for a discount due to their lack of screens, or they appear to be on a tight budget, I don’t discount from the $16/window rate. If I do, I never give more than a $2/screen discount.
Im pretty good about wiping tracks, but I HAVE learned the difference between my normal process, and when a cust asks “does that include tracks?” or “What about the tracks?”
(honestly, those customer, I could pretty much throw mud on the glass, and they wouldnt care, THIS question/trigger means that they want full "whitening, and their shit if filthy, and full of their nastiness.) lol
sorry if I sound confusing, but I agree with you… I have a normal wipedown, and a separate “track cleaning” price.
(I just need to pursue a similar situation with screens.)
I dont have that option (except for a couple months per year, which is why I havent bought an Aztek cleaner from Jared)
My screen cleaning typically takes place along side of the window clean. (Separate smaller mops, slap/whip water off, and dry/wipe frames.) All on the spot.
Im doing it wrong, I admit. But gathering all screens and watering them down outside isnt a typical option.
This is red flag for me also , if the windows are 10 years or older I tell them tracks are not included because of the age . If they’re newer windows , I tell them it includes a basic cleaning . Do you want to pay extra for a deep cleaning ? All say no
I do the same as you , wash screens are I go along . But I think Alex does mostly casement windows , where he goes inside the home first and takes out all the screens . @Infinity right ?
I agree. If it is a maintenance clean (quarterly) I can often clean them right there on the spot with my scrubber, towel dry; if a first or yearly clean they get pretty dirty and they go outside to the screen washer and get cleaned and set out to dry while I then whip through the task of cleaning the windows. Even if windows are old, I tell the customer that I will clean up the loose dirt but nothing I can do about the staining in the tracks
I charge $3 for screens, will go to $4 in the new year. Solar screens used to be $5, price form the guy that taught me. Now $5-15 and will go to $8-20 in the new year. Those take 4x+ as long as windows. I wash them then use a solution like screen magic on all regular screens and black solar screens. They look much better but they are time hogs.
I made business cards with all my prices on them. Makes it easy.
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