I finally went out on my own this year and have been cleaning for about 3 months and I think I’m frustrated with my window cleaning system and want to hear what you all do. Here are some notes:
I don’t offer any options, so my service includes inside/outside glass, screens, frames/sills, and tracks vacuumed cleans. The only “upsell” I do is a deep clean on the tracks if they’re really bad. I’ve just found it’s better to tell them what I do than to try and have them pick. I’ve received great feedback and pleasantly surprised clients when they see me doing the screens and vacuuming the tracks. I’m also around $18-20 per window but in a pretty high COL area. I will do outside only if they request.
I got into the Excelerator squeegee and I think I’m over it. I watched Trad Man youtube videos when I was starting and it does seem like a good squeegee but it’s just too finicky for me in the field. I’m still ending up detailing and I don’t think it’s saving me any time. I do like it on the pole, though!
Here’s my questions/frustrations:
What squeegee do you recommend for mainly residential work that I can replace the excelerator with. I have a bunch of liquidator channels and an 18" super channel that’s a bit too big for residential.
What solution do you use? I went with the Trad Man Youtube style of putting soap directly on the applicator at the beginning of the job and then topping up water and soap as needed. I like this because I don’t have to haul the bucket all around but I the solution for the liquidiator is a bit too soapy.
How do you guys clean the tracks on a first clean?
Do your wrists hurt from fanning? I feel like I am a bit heavy handed but I don’t know what to expect in the pain category.
I think part of my problem is still being new to it all and frustrated that I’m not fast. But anyway, I would love to hear a bit about your systems if you want to share!
What squeegee do you recommend for mainly residential work that I can replace the excelerator with. I have a bunch of liquidator channels and an 18" super channel that’s a bit too big for residential.
-----Use whatever squeegee you are comfortable with using. I use Unger and Ettore. They work for me. I detail edges and corners and go through a handful of blue towels per job. No big deal, I collect a paycheck.
What solution do you use? I went with the Trad Man Youtube style of putting soap directly on the applicator at the beginning of the job and then topping up water and soap as needed. I like this because I don’t have to haul the bucket all around but I the solution for the liquidiator is a bit too soapy.
----- I use Dawn in a bucket with about a gallon or less of water. Yep, I carry the bucket around with me. Sometimes I put solution in a spray bottle if it is more convenient to get around with. Start with a wet soap mop and spray the glass as needed.
How do you guys clean the tracks on a first clean?
-----Brush the tracks with a track brush to get the heavy stuff loose, vacuum, brush with a cheap paintbrush to loosen the remaining, vacuum, wipe with a damp towel, sometimes I need to scrub with a white pad and soapy solution then wipe with a damp towel.
Do your wrists hurt from fanning? I feel like I am a bit heavy handed but I don’t know what to expect in the pain category.
-----Not as much as they used to so I guess you get used to it. It still happens though. Part of the business.
I use a 14" excelerator and a 22" sorbo. Using a standard body channel over 16" will be problematic.
I use a Poweraid bottle 600ml filled with water and a squeeze of soap, this always gives the same consistency of soap/water mix, at times I will have a 5 litre bottle with the soap pre mixed, other time will just have a 5L bottle with clean water( pure water is better, but not really that important, it will just better for soap consistency when dealing with hard water).
My track cleaning procedure is using a back (not red) track brush, I loosen all debris in tracks, and then use a handheld vacuum with crevice attachment simultaneously while brushing debris toward vacuum nozzle, then clean window and wipe track with rag.
No, if your wrist is getting sore, if you don’t have a pre-existing injury then you a likely not doing it right.
wfp for all outsides.
moerman ex2 with liq2 for all insides 10 & 14 with fliq &pole for high inside.
NO DETAIL (better result & faster)
micro fibre for sill
microfibre for track
always offer outs only $
in&out with “free screens” $$
in& out with track wiped $$$
So I had a job yesterday and adjusted the solution to be quite a bit less soapy. I also realized I was being way too heavy handed and lightened up a bit. The wrist was happy about that and it seemed like I left less turn marks.
I dunked the mop, slight wring out and 3 dots of dawn on each side. That worked out really well actually. Then I top it up with water or dawn as needed. What do you use for solution and what ratio?
i have a slpit buckett one side has pure water the other water with gg4 and ggglide. the plain water is to rinse out mop the gg mx is to dunk pre cleaning. i also use plain water at times but feel the gg4 adds cleaning power for types of dirt (bug poo especially) and extra glide never hurts.
wet mop and remove excess. and a bit of dawn to scrubber. exelerator is great but it is pretty fussy.
most guys online are using a wetter solution the this results in the ends of the dragging and leaving trails which is why so many use a standard channel with the exeleratr handle- i do this myself when i have to do the odd outsdie job in winter when cannot use wfp or my usual soap mix.
i also use the handle in swivel mode almost always. i do not use the fliqin hand only on the pole.
i carry a squirt bottle of the wet and a tiny bottle of soap
Thanks! Appreciate your write up. You use the excelerator in swivel mode in your hand? I’ve never tried that, seems like it would be a bit unstable but I’m guessing you get used to it.
