Sunday, August 31, 2014

Store Front Assist Tools

Over the years I have thought it would be fun and practical to develop different tools to make store front work easier. Such as a tool to safely hold neon signs back so we can clean. Or better sign holders. Especially sign holders that would allow changing high signs with a pole. Maybe special tools to help move displays away from the window so it can be cleaned. Or a device that would allow cleaning the insides where large displays that weigh a ton are put a foot away from the glass. Such tools would definitely give us the advantage.



Henry





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considering soft washing

ok guys



im really liking the idea of starting up a softwashing with my window washing. Since i dont know much about softwashing... was wondering what you guys can tell me about it;;;



- should i go gas or electric power washer

- I know I got to go with a 4gpm macvhine but how about the PSI

- Is it a hard ART to learn the softwashing;



anything else would be helpful.... thx





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extermination

hey guys



a friend of mine told me that some of his wealthy friends have a window washer who also does extermination prior to cleaning... he does the spider treatment.....



was wondering what you guys think of that; anyone doing that;





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Saturday, August 30, 2014

I'm a believer

Just starting playing around with the 14 wagtail slimline a couple months ago. Mainly use it for transoms on commercial, but did a house yesterday with an eyelid window. Of course this was in the master bedroom and of course there was a bed with a 4 post rail around the top. Wagtail up on my pole, scrub and done. Beautiful and very very quick.



Then right after that another house with a really tall window above the door with eyelid, badda bing badda boom done. I had to use a ladder (little giant of course) the last time.



The wagtail just rocks those curved windows.





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Tax questions!!

So I'm re-writing my business plan and want to include my projected taxes for my projected income. This is my first year running my own business so I have no idea. On my business plan I'm projecting my income to be 25-30k after expenses but before taxes. I'm wondering if anyone knows what tax bracket that would put me in, and how much I would expect to pay. This is only for my business plan, so I'm only looking for a rough idea. I've been setting just shy of 25% aside in hopes that should more than cover my taxes when the time comes.





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Free Street Bidder Cards

So who has signed up for the new Street Bidder? I see they are still running the sign up for $5 and get 75 free post card deal.. Thats a no brainer for sure.. thats like 6 and a half cents to send out a post card..



Who's signed up? How are the results?





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nLite® Ultra HiMod Carbon 50th Anniversary

So who is going to have to have one of these ?



Unger nLite® Ultra HiMod Carbon - nLite® Waterfed Poles - Waterfed Pole Cleaning & Filter - Products



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Just for the 50th Anniversary logo,limited edition or because of stat's.



Or maybe it's just all about the bragging rights. I got the baddest pole out there!! ;)





Well since i have been looking @ the nLite for certain reasons.. I already had decided to start putting away some cash.

From the next few bigger jobs coming this next month. For a new pole and pressure washer..



Since i ran into this, doing a little more research today. Will make for some interesting choices.

Depending when this thing hits available to purchase..





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ANSI/IWCA I-14 Window Cleaning Safety Standard

Is this available for online purchase and PDF download anywhere?





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Branding

What are you doing to differentiate yourself to your customers?



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American window cleaners, you're doing it all wrong !

Apparently, we all need to way less inventive. It's making the less intelligent window cleaners uncomfortable.



Did you hear that @JaredAI .... cut it out and go back to cleaning windows.



window-cleaning-forum.png



Seriously, though, I'm glad there is an intelligent place on the internet for window cleaners: WCR !


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How do we remove tds

Friday, August 29, 2014

lawn signs

hey guys



was wondering if anyone uses lawn signs while working residential... any success....





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Employees losing and breaking equipment

I was wondering what you guys do when employees lose or break equipment. It has got kind of bad. One guy has broke 2 waterfed poles and lost a drill. Today he bent a gutter by leaning a ladder against it. Do you have a policy about things like this?





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Ask not for whom the bell tolls...It tolls for thee

I put up a thread last week about the ease and safetyof WFP work attracting a lot of new people to the trade, and how we are kind of in a golden age right now when only window cleaners are familiar with the new technology. I think that the increased competition will put downward pressure on prices.

Well it happened three times this week. The meter reader guy, the moving man, and a carpenters helper all saw me working and all said almost the same thing. (sic) "man that looks easy, I bet theres money in that!!".... When I see guys working now I go work the other side if possible. Albeit I m working with $3,000 worth of equipment but It could be done almost as well for 600.

So maybe Im Davey Downer but I see a real free for all in a couple off years. To be succesfull in buisness you ve got to be able to connect with people, and have the inner ethic to do the best by your customer at all times,

I d did a house today that 5 years ago, would have been a giant dangerous 5 hour nightmare. It was 2 hours of chocolate cake with creme filling and strawberrys on top. Workmen used to see me on the ladders reaching way over yonder for the upper corners and think " I aint doin that" now they see me rinsing withh cool water on a summer day and go "I could do that, what am I working for this butthead for??"

Happy labor day enjoy





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F9 $25 a gallon






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Question What to charge, what to charge...

I have a customer who is building a guest house on their property. They builder asked me to give him a quote. Both sides of the window have protective film that needs to be peeled off. None of the windows open and there are only two sides of glass. They are Pellas, but don't need to be taken apart.

Here are some pictures. Any help on what to charge would be appreciated.



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Here we go!

Ok Guys good Friday morning!

So I just got a call to Pw this building and the flat work (side walks and dumpsters areas 4)



lake pointe plaza moses lake.jpg



How would you bid this?

Since it's new to me bidding Commercial PW work.

Any advice would be great.Thanks Guys!



I also posted it over on Pwra!


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safer, better, faster...... gutter cleaning

gutter-connect-1.jpg gutter-connect-2.jpg

gutter-connect-3.jpg gutter-connect-4.jpg



Just completed a little project to make cleaning gutter faster, safer and just more convenient in general.



I use a Ladder Max standoff.... pictured is just my ladder against a tree in my yard.







To make this time saving safety device simply pre-drill your dowel on both sides, screw in a couple of eyebolts and you're done kid. Steel ring added to belt = additional cool factor.



Get yourself an S-Biner and you won't impale yourself with the pail hooks as I have done a few times.



s-biner.jpg


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Need advice on first awning cleaning

Working on doing my first fabric awning cleanings.



They all have noticeable mold growth on them (like most of the pictures here). I cleaned them all with a 25% SH, and soap (Tried Elemonator house wash soap, EBC, and Tide) mix. All soaps were seperate, I had 3 different batches I tried on different awnings.



All mold turned white, but nothing removed it from the awning. All mixes were brushed on with a thick bristle carwash style brush with a couple applications then rinsed with my PW soap tip from a distance.



What am I doing incorrectly?



Thanks.





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Window Cleaner Donates - No Bucket Of Water Required






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Aqua-Dapter WFPS up to 50% off






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Highly personalized marketing





Do you guys use landing pages? If not, then why?





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New Invention: Sill tool

Okay, one of the reasons that I don't use sponges is because on commercial I use my pole a lot. I guess I could get a fixi-clamp to hold it, but I'm just not a fan of the sponge. Especially since @Sophia just reminded me that they used to be alive and that's sort of gross (I'm just kidding, but will get years of fun out of that)



I don't ladder store fronts because when it comes to commercial, speed is king.



However, it has been observed that the videos coming out of the UK demonstrate that they spend more time on sills that most of us in the States do. And it's apparent that @woodland is tearing it up on commercial accounts by really detailing everything.



I've been thinking about a sill tool for about a year now. I've just created myself a prototype and have been trying it out the past week and so far so good. But I've got some kinks to work out of it.



Key features:



1. able to attach to a pole

2. quickly wipe and/or detail commercial sills

3. able to scrub top sills with a scrubby pad if needed

4. replaceable pads/mops for the really stupid dirty sills of the southwest



One issue I'm having is how to build the things. There's an injection molding company near me that can probably get the main tool built pretty easy, but the handle is what will really bump the price. For my prototype I just used a wagtail handle that was laying around and that works good so maybe I can work a deal out with them.



The pads I'd probably have to get custom made and china can do those easy but you have to buy a bajillion of them at a time.



So my questions are (before I spend a ton of money to get the injection molds made and start talking with china about pads)



1. How many of you would have an interest in this tool?



2. What additional features would you be looking for in a sill tool?



3. How dirty are your sills? Can you write your name in the dust or is it just water spotty?



4. Would you be interested in using a microfiber mop pad or just a white scrubby? Pads I'd have to get made, a scrubby would just stick to some velcro.



5. How do you clean sills now?



6. What would you use the tool for? (Getting dirt off the sills, wiping soap bubbles left by your mop, etc)



7. Would you use the tool before or after you cleaned the window? Dry or wet




Observations from the prototype:



This tool is not going to suck up all the water on the bottom sill. The microfiber mops get soaked pretty easy which makes for good wiping, but it can't suck up a ton of water. The mop can be removed and squeezed, but I'm finding it works better lightly damp. Maybe part of the mold would be to add a channel for squeegee rubber that can be used to squeegee off the water before wiping.



The tool can be used dry to dust off sills, or wet to scrub the top sill and get water spots off. You could probably add a chemical to clean the sills, but I have no idea what sort of chemical would be used for sills.



It can probably be used to get the dirt out of the upper corners once I get it built right. The prototype is just something I glued together in the garage.



It does add time to each job since I'm now wiping all the sills and not just the bottom one. However, since it's a new tool, I imagine that with a little more practice I'll be able to get faster with it but there will always be a little time hit.



The tool wouldn't give the same results as nose to sill detailing. I'm personally not interested in doing that sort of detail, I just want my commercial to look better than the guy next to me.





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GUTTER SEASON is on it's way! Get your gutter tool on clearance today!

Be proactive and pick up some discounted gutter tools! Gotta be prepared for that fall influx of gutter calls! ;)



Gutter Tool scoop cleaner








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Thursday, August 28, 2014

Xtra Zone on the skylights?

Has anyone heard of or cleaned an exterior film product called Xtra Zone on the skylights? Will it hold up to a WFP cleaning? I would think that it would not, but I just thought I would ask.





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Using Glass Renu Inside

@Cody I've been talking to Cole today and I'm about to order the system for use on some windows a guy screwed up. The scratches are interior mostly. I know the dust issue is not a big one, once safety is taken care of (No offense, but please stay out of this Whatapane....I don't want a debate here).



My question is: How big of an area do I need to cover from overspray, etc when using the polishing compound. This is a multi million dollar house, full of artwork, etc and they are already unhappy. I don't want to get any compound, etc on any if their walls, ceilings, furniture, etc.





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Video: Tool Talk with Mark the Window Cleaner #92 Ninja Scraper



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Video: Talk with Mark the Window Cleaner #91 Reach iT Apex tool



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Video: Tool Talk with Mark the Window Cleaner #93 Pro Posal






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Fictitious Name or Personal Name?

I was wondering if you think it's better to use a fictitious name for your business versus a business name with your own personal name in it? Such as a last name in it. For example: "Smith's window cleaning", or a fictitious name such as "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious Window Washing"

You get the point. Thanks.





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ambidextrous!!!!!

hey guys anyone out there got super powers..... who is ambidextrous;.... and if anyone is , what tool do you use......



ive tried with the wagtail it was ok..... thx





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