[Mike George]

Here are a few of the mistakes I've made in my frist two weeks...

1. using too much water, not using enough water

2. using too much detergent, not using enough detergent

3. putting too much pressure on the sqeegee at the start of the stroke, not keeping enough pressure on at the end of the stroke

4. climbing the ladder to a first floor window, cleaning the pane in front of me, then the ones to the sides, then having to clean the first one again because of all the spashes and elbow-marks

5. on a cold and frosty morning when the customer brings me out a whole cafetiere of coffee, drinking three mugfuls, then an hour later having to dash round to Asda to use the toilet

And those are just the ones I know about (and that I'm willing to admit to).

[Londoner]

That doesn't sound too bad to me. When you are starting out especially, its very much learn as you go. Think of it as a challenge. Mind you - its a very cold time to be starting.

[Ian_Giles]

Climbing 35ft to the top of the ladder, washing the window and then going all the way back down again to fetch the squeegee you left in your bucket

Driving several miles to work and then going back home again to fetch the ladder you left behind

Starting a big Initial clean, only to break the 4inch Unger razor scaper and find it is the last one you have
Then having to waste time finding a hardware store and buying a little Stanley Scraper and knifing off hundreds of panes of glass with that all day long

Having an employee break a pane of glass and having to lose an afternoons work replacing it...then losing the customer anyway (thats nice innit Roger )

Or getting half way through your last job of the day and getting a 'nick' in your rubber that leaves lines with every pass, and the only replacements you have are at home
So you either detail every line left on every pane or use that little cut down 6inch squeegee you use for some georgian work....except in this case there are loads patio size windows to do

Or managing to knock over your bucket of water just at the point where there isn't any left in your BOAB and your applicator is almost bone dry
And it's winter time, the customer isn't in and the water supply to their outside tap has been turned off

Or, pulling off to go to the next house and as you turn the first corner all your ladders fly off the roof rack

Or, you forget that your ladders are tied on in such a way that you MUST undo the straps holding the front end of the ladders first.....failing to do so sees your ladders tip ever so gracefully onto the bonnet of your car and then slide down it before you can stop it

How about leaving your big ladder up against the side of the house as you knock on the door to collect the money.
Only for a huge gust of wind to take it just as the customer is handing you the money.
Then you all watch open mouthed as your ladder then crashes onto the bonnet of their nice new car

Or walking up a sloping roof 20ft above ground, only for a gust of wind to blow your ladder down.
The customer of course is never in to put the ladder back up for you

I could go on

Ian

[petski2]

Unfortunately that all sounds too familiar especially the parts about forgetting things.

[brett walker]

Hi Mike George

weve all been there, read the book got the t-shirt,  we all make mistakes even after 15yrs i still make them now : thats why i come on this forum to learn from others, if i can help others. I will

If and when you start with wfp thats when the real nightmare begins but everything takes time 

best of luck

Brett

[rosskesava]

Don't forget the classic 'wrong house' which you only find out after you've done the windows. 

[Morph]

Don't forget the classic 'wrong house' which you only find out after you've done the windows.

Yep, even done that too!
And I think I can tick all the other boxes so far

[AuRavelling79]

Don't forget the classic 'wrong house' which you only find out after you've done the windows. 

I only did half the "wrong house" - but climbed over the gate and went round to start the back to find the naturist owner "tackle out" pruning his roses! Aaaargh!

[gaza]

My biggest mistake was yesterday,took a phone call Thursday can you come and do my windows,20 panes the windows swing so you can do  them from the inside
YEAH I can passs that way on to some other work was my reply 20/25 squid,easy no so I thought nice start to a frezzing morning.turned up bang on time,nice enough bloke  then IT HIT ME,THIS BLOKE HAD LIED THROUGH HIS TEETH.
1ST he wanted me to put some batons on a window sill while the other end rested on top of a wall with a 15ft drop under neath. He must ave thought I looked like a clown.
2nd Iasked him were the swivel windows were so we went into his must be £500,000 house, he showed me them,about 12ft high with two outward swinging windows at the bottom [is this guy for real refused to do them leaning out of window with a 45ft drop under neath no thanks.
3rd told him Iwould do inside ,well they were so  dirty on the outside couldnt see how bad they were on the inside,tried to do upper part with the aid of a step ladder,and muck went everywhere over the frames below[and I mean black]never seen muck that colour cleaning outside,even though I had sheeted down 1st still got 3 spots on his light coloured carpet.

4th got out of there by refusing to carry on,to protect my public liability insurance
he wasnt to happy/nor was I when he told me it was for an 18th birthday due
and he wanted to clean up a bit,user and abuser

LESSON LEARNT :NEVER DO WORK YOUVE NEVER  SEEN
AND MAKE THEM WAIT FOR WHEN IT SUITS YOU

YES I USED TO LIVE IN THE SAME PRIVAT ESTATE WHEN I WAS AFF U LANT
NOW I LIVE LIKE I DO CUS IM EFF U LANT 

GAZA

[Paul Coleman]

Climbing 35ft to the top of the ladder, washing the window and then going all the way back down again to fetch the squeegee you left in your bucket

Driving several miles to work and then going back home again to fetch the ladder you left behind

Starting a big Initial clean, only to break the 4inch Unger razor scaper and find it is the last one you have
Then having to waste time finding a hardware store and buying a little Stanley Scraper and knifing off hundreds of panes of glass with that all day long

Having an employee break a pane of glass and having to lose an afternoons work replacing it...then losing the customer anyway (thats nice innit Roger )

Or getting half way through your last job of the day and getting a 'nick' in your rubber that leaves lines with every pass, and the only replacements you have are at home
So you either detail every line left on every pane or use that little cut down 6inch squeegee you use for some georgian work....except in this case there are loads patio size windows to do

Or managing to knock over your bucket of water just at the point where there isn't any left in your BOAB and your applicator is almost bone dry
And it's winter time, the customer isn't in and the water supply to their outside tap has been turned off

Or, pulling off to go to the next house and as you turn the first corner all your ladders fly off the roof rack

Or, you forget that your ladders are tied on in such a way that you MUST undo the straps holding the front end of the ladders first.....failing to do so sees your ladders tip ever so gracefully onto the bonnet of your car and then slide down it before you can stop it

How about leaving your big ladder up against the side of the house as you knock on the door to collect the money.
Only for a huge gust of wind to take it just as the customer is handing you the money.
Then you all watch open mouthed as your ladder then crashes onto the bonnet of their nice new car

Or walking up a sloping roof 20ft above ground, only for a gust of wind to blow your ladder down.
The customer of course is never in to put the ladder back up for you

I could go on

Ian

I've done a lot of those Ian but not all of them  :-)

[ian m]

I went out to do a round in the sticks one day, when I got to the first house I realised I hadn't brought my applicator, so I had to go to a hardware store in this little village and buy one of those naff little "window cleaning" tools and use the sponge to clean the glass. I still cringe when I think of it, carrying around one of those things in my BOAB.

Another day I got to the first house and realised there wasn't any water in the bucket, they didn't have an outside tap, so I used what moisture was left on my applicator but it soon dried out thankfully there had been a heavy dew that night and I wetted the applicator on the grass!!!

[windows_chepstow]

Or, you forget that your ladders are tied on in such a way that you MUST undo the straps holding the front end of the ladders first.....failing to do so sees your ladders tip ever so gracefully onto the bonnet of your car and then slide down it before you can stop it

Ian

One morning I was cleaning Woolworths and parked my car right outside the place.

Ian_Giles pulls up to say hello, with a big line of traffic behind him.

I'm chatting away to Ian, and open my boot to get something and push my ladders off the roof-rack, with the opening boot and they slide all the way down my bonnet and land on the road with a loud crash.

So not only did Ian see this, so did the line of vehicles behind him.

'I've done that too', Ian says with a smile.

'Flip', I say, acting unflapped.

I've still got the scratches on my bonnet!

[windows_chepstow]

Driving off without attaching my ladders to the roof rack was another favourate of mine.

Even now Wor Lass asks after EVERY job we finish where I've used ladders, 'have you secured the ladders?'

I always tell her that I don't know how I'd cope without her on days that she's off work; which is quite a few!

[brett walker]

Left my brand new bucket in front of the car one day, and drove straight over it

and yes i did have an hole in my bucket,

dearliza


brett

[Mike George]

Driving off without attaching my ladders to the roof rack was another favourate of mine.

The BT vans used to have a foolproof way to avoid this, using a rope to secure the ladder front and back in some plastic gripper blocks at the back. It was practically impossible to leave it unsecured by accident.

[pjulk]

Just finished some shops once.
Drove about 10 miles to start my domestics and found i left my applicator behind at a newsagents i cleaned 30 minutes before.
And i didn't have a spare with me so had to drive back to the shop luckily the shop keeper bought it in.

Also when i first started back up my round was very scattered.
I just clean half a dozen house and drove about 7 miles to the next lot when i got there found i never had my bucket.
I had a plastic box in my car i keep my scrim in so filled that with water and managed to clean the next few house.
I must have had a few strange looks though walking around with a plastic box.


Paul