The work went pretty well! The glass doesn’t get very dirty but it was able to remove smears from the last cleaning that had been done and all safely from the ground. I can see how the stingray would be great not to have to bring back the pad to spray it again. That would be big time savings. I think I spent an 1.5 hrs going very slow and talking to everyone who was amazed it was getting cleaned like that, haha. It was a volunteer project so it was perfect to try out.
I used a 50/50 mix and found the fluffy pad did a great job and left only a few marks after. The cleaning pad gripped like crazy though unless it was sprayed so Im going to have to read up on how everyone who uses it regularly does it. Fluffy 1st then luster? only luster? Overall I would not have cleaned it otherwise.
So it worked great although since I don’t use a pole often I tweaked my back a little with the ackward angles trying not to fall into the pool haha. Just needed a longer pole than a 12’ but most of my equipment is in OK so had to use a friend’s. Next time…
I just need to figure out how to make it glide better. It seems it needs to be wet which makes sense but everything I read said “light mist”…any experienced help would be appreciated.
After using the old pad system for a while, you have to constantly watch and monitor your results, as they’ll tell you whats going on. Here are some tips from what I’ve learned using the old pad system:
Distilled/DI water only (I haven’t tried glass cleaners, -20f washer fluid, alcohol, etc…)
*Fluffy pad: to extend the on-site work-life of the pad, you can use it dry to dust, take it down and beat it with your hand, then moisten it and get to cleaning.
Fluffy pad: you can often just use the fluffy pad. You want it damp enough to evenly smear water on the glass, or even less so. This will ensure the fibers are moist enough to pick up & remove smudges/dirt/etc… and not leave it on the glass. If the water starts to bead, or bead & smear, it’s too much and you’ll need to go back over it.
Fluffy pad: if you start to see a haze on the glass after it’s dried, your pad is too dirty. take it down and beat/dust it out with your hand to ruff up the fibers and break out the loose dust; the pad is still good to go, just moisten back up a little (should be damp/moist already cuz you’re using it) and carry on.
Polish pad: like what’s been stated before, you want the pad to glide on the glass and not drag. While with it dragging will still clean and polish, it’s more cumbersome and will leave you to slam it into the frames when you try adjusting the pressure on the window. Get it damp enough to evenly smear and let the fibers work for you, otherwise you’re fighting your equipment and working too hard/improperly.
I haven’t really found a way to extend the work-life of the polishing pads when they get dirty (like hand dusting) so I’ve just replaced them. I got 4 fluffy 4 polish but I’ve only used 3 of either at most, and that was during my learning process; also I’m pretty good with the wagtail & pole so I always have that to fall back on.
The strengths of the pad system (old or stingray) are mainly these below, I’ve found any other circumstance to be faster (for me) using traditional means and/or wagtail & pole:
You don’t have detail work or soapy water to drain down & wipe up afterwards, or risk draining inside a frame.
No drips on anything (computers, printers, food, etc…).
Can clean awkward access windows where using a squeegee at the right angle/continuously is impossible (i.e. behind a stack of products/displays, behind a support beam, narrow vertical panes, etc…).
The stingray might be limited in some circumstances because of the solution/sprayer behind the head, needing more clearance to access a window (some places I do would prohibit using the stingray).
Thought I’d add all this to the topic for anyone still looking for help on the matter.
Awesome info…yes i did most of it with the fluffy pad and liked the results. On Friday i was about to do the interior on a quarterly job when i happened to see my pads and thought i would try them because i had used them for a french pane entrance that worked very good a few days before…There were 18 large panes, 11 smaller, & 24 french (could have been faster with fluffy 1st but the one i had was dirty so just used 2 regular microfibers & 1 luster pad on a holder to finish, but im getting 2 more fluffy ones Tuesday) I think it only took me a little over an hr or so for $130…i am sold on times where they are more beneficial, especially int french. I used 50/50 mix and it worked perfectly. Thanks John and everyone who posted that’s uses it, for the encouragement to try it out!
Chesebro… I have noticed the same thing with the Unger Speed Clean polish pads. I think the polish pads drag / not glide because the cleaning solution is drying out. I tried using a wetter fluffy pad or maybe less window cleaner in the mix altho right now I’m using 8 ML window cleaning solution per quart of distilled water. I use 2 poles, one for the traditional window sleeve and the other has the polish pads. I noticed on door glass using the Unger Speed clean, even if there is some visible foam from using the polish pads there doesn’t seem to be any streaking or spotting from residual solution.
Brad BD Janitorial
