Sometimes I get a request to clean these types of windows but can’t figure out what they’re called.
Atrium windows? Also can you stand on the window frames to clean them?
Atrium, greenhouse, sunroom, conservatory, 3 season room etc.
Honestly, they’re built to be stood on, but I don’t trust them. You never know what happens structurally over time, and I’ve seen them crack from the pressure of a WFP. All it takes is one small chip from a branch falling etc and you’re in a bad way.
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This job was brutal. The windows had so much baked on dirt & grime, boars hair brush barely phased it.
I’ll have to remember to get the white pad attachment to the wfp for extra scrubbing power or something if I run into another one of these.
Yeah anything horizontal like that and I tell the customer that we’re gonna get them as good as we can
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I call em atrium enclosures. I cleaned 2 big residential ones twice a year for 11 yrs. Here’s what I gleaned:
The glass gets super dirty especially if they have flattish/ low pitch tops. The frames flex. Then the frames leak. Homeowners will claim they are safe to walk on (“oh sure, the installers were climbing all over that thing”)…dont buy it. You’ll be the one they call when it starts dripping in on their card table. WFP is usually not enough unless cleaned very frequently. If there is a roof (asphalt shingles) above it you have to walk on, you’ll be fighting falling shingle gravel all day long. The frames themselves oxidize really quickly…messy. The frames act as little dams that hold water at the bottom. This makes a great breeding ground for hardwater stains that will never go away. Tempered glass too, so watch out for that Fab. Debris. If it’s hot n humid your hard workin, salty white, window cleaner sweat is gonna drip all over that last pane you just cleaned when the wind blows…well that sucks. Compared to conventional vertical windows they get dirty again so fast it’s kinda feels pointless for the effort & time to work through them. Weird thing is the interior clean part is generally pretty cut n dry…barring some awkward neck bending & shoulder contortions. I charge handsomely to clean these when I come across them or even turn them down depending on diff. variables. If I take it on, it’s…Only trad. Only whats accessible. The inaccessible glass gets the WFP (good as it gets treatment). No walking frames. Scratch waiver signed. Charge handsomely for it. In a few days they get covered with falling cosmic debris anyway. Why do people even buy these things?
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you covered it well
reframing it to customer as the horizontal glass will never look at good as the vertical and its more of just the maintenance of removing the build up rather than a clarity thing will set expectations low for customer as well so they aren’t expecting miracles. can even add to drive home the point “if you had monthly maintenance from the start you’d have better results” they don’t want monthly and they already waited too long so it connects in their mind that the horizontal just isnt going to come out that great lol
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Just dont do them alot of easier jobs out there
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I see your point, but totally disagree. This is what everyone does. Don’t be “that guy”. These jobs are the BIG money makers. Think about it…customer doesn’t care about the cost but nobody will bid it. These have always been my biggest jobs (in another industry). Come up with a price you’d do it for…and then double or triple it. Worse case scenario is they say no. It works. I’ve done it many times. I’ve made $3500 in a day for a $1200 job. Be honest with the customer and tell them you’re charging more and they may be able to find it for a better price. You’ll close at least half of these if you’re good.
One thing I won’t do is work for nitpicky customers. Had one of those at the start of this year. He would obsess over every little thing. I’ll gladly give you that $3k job if you move on over here to NJ lol
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Last couple sunrooms I’ve done, I used wfp in tandem with a magic eraser mop/pad and OneRestore. Priced accordingly. Set the expectation that it’d look a lot better but probably won’t be 100%. So far everyone’s been happy.
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Top down from the roof.
If that house is in Lake Hopatcong, I bid it a few years ago but didn’t land it. Looks like the one lol
Ah, good idea.
It’s in West Milford, was thinking like 600 and if I wanna do it lol
She declined my 650 quote. Oh well lol
I would give them a pre wash first
I noticed quite a few years ago as I do both window cleaning and house washing that the results on the windows after a house wash were so much better than just window cleaning.
Since many homes here have screens that cannot be removed it is easier to achieve good results by soft washing the screens, as a result of soft washing the screens the glass and the frames also get a clean.
All homes this year I have soft washed the windows, screens and frames and the results are noticeably better than without.
The mix I use is diluted house wash mix which if it is not a larger home I would use this bottle not the solution:
https://www.bunnings.com.au/30-seconds-2l-window-wonder-outdoor-glass-cleaner_p4460840?srsltid=AfmBOopvOaEwwhkhhoDVqOd3yXLgudoIZtfPQBcL0NWizMWZALd3IaLN
with a mix of 1L of SH 100ml of soap and 100ml of shift it :Kenco Shift-It Heavy Duty Cleaner - 6 Litre | Supercheap Auto
and the rest of the bottle filled with water.
I also run the water thru into my vehicle where I have a 100psi pump increase the cleaning power in applying the soap and rinsing.
For larger homes I have a 150L tank in my vehicle that I batch mix and soft wash that way.
I always prewash anything that is extremely dirty these days. I even leave half screens in and prewash them all . I do the tops , than slide screens up while cleaning insides, and then do bottoms.
Been working out great. Saves time pulling screens out and reinstalling.
