I’ve encountered a problem for which I can’t find an answer.
After cleaning, there are small scratches on the window, but these are only really noticeable in direct sunlight in the evening. The scratches are almost impossible to see on a cloudy sky. You have to be a few centimeters in front of them to see them on a cloudy sky. When there is direct sunlight, especially in the evening, they are easy to see, but only in one particular spot. If you then move, scratches can also be seen in another place.
{I would like to upload a video of the scratches, but as a new user this is not possible.}
So far the scratches are only on my own windows as I initially used these for “practice”.
My windows are a few years old and have rarely been cleaned. Is it possible that the scratches were already on the glass and only became apparent after cleaning. (I don’t really believe that, since they became more with each cleaning.)
I use:
Unger Ninja Squeege 35cm
Unger Ninja Stripwasher 35 cm
Fairy Dish soap (dawn)
Rasko steel wool 0000
I also used 0000 steel wool a few days ago. At this point there were already some scratches on the glass. However, after using the 0000 steel wool, the scratches became even more severe. In addition, the new scratches are arranged almost exactly in the movement in which I had used the steel wool.
I really don’t know what to do now. I’ve got everything ready, so I could start now, but I don’t want to do a bad job that will end up annoying the customer.
Do you perhaps know what could be causing this?
You’ve answered your own question.
Most people say steel wool will not scratch glass. Are you working on glass or Some type of acrylic/plastic?
Was it nice fresh clean steel wool or rusty?
I used steel wool on almost half of the windows and they also have the most scratches. However, the other half of the windows also have a lot of scratches, although I didn’t use the steel wool there
I find it weird that all glass has scratches but steel wool was not used on all glass.
have you ever had clean windows since you’ve moved in? It could be fabrication debris that has come loose while cleaning. Although you didn’t use a scrapper, it might have come loose with a squeegee
Thank you, I think this is the cause of the scratches. I checked again and the scratches are only on the outside of the window. Although there is no stamp in the window, the flame of my lighter is reflected twice in the pane, although it is only “one” pane of glass, and a knock sounds lighter on one side and darker on the other. (I read that this indicates tempered glass?)
steel wool, just like a razor, could dislodge FD (remember its just glass bits backed onto the glass surface.). Personally I’ve scratched glass with just a rubber squeegee. In theory anything could cause the particles to break from the glass and scratch.
If you use steel wool right it shouldn’t scratch a normal, non tinted window (or a tempered one if the glass is quality and doesn’t have FD).
The question about storefronts is a hard one and I don’t know the answer (stopped doing storefront a while ago). I would assume that storefront windows probably are (for safety reasons).
When in doubt always test a small obscure part of the glass. We also have a clause on our estimates that protects us from liability when cleaning tempered glass. FD doesn’t belong on glass. Get educated on this so that you know how to defend yourself.
thank you very much for your comprehensive answer. I was actually convinced that I would deregister my company because I couldn’t find the cause of the scratches and of course I didn’t want to scratch any customer windows
Don’t. There’s a TON of info on here. Look up what people in the past have posted on here.
In the absolutely worst case if you scratch a window, there are ways to fix it (though it still comes at a price). It’s not the worst case scenario.
also, glass comes in different quality…builders are cheap and get scratched glass. That glass may have been already scratched but wasn’t noticeable until you cleaned it. That’s another thing.
In that case, I believe there is a good chance it wasn’t your steel wool that made the scratches. Nor was it your mop or squeegee. Did you use steel wool wet or dry? Best to use wet.
Maybe the scratches were already there. I stopped using steel wool on residential, I just didn’t like the rusting and orange water. It also leaves little rust fibers.
