[Danny F]

Have just had my first wfp system fitted,750l 2man set up. Just wondering how long it took you to “get up to speed” when you converted from Trad?

Also any tips and tricks are appreciated.

[nathankaye]

Have just had my first wfp system fitted,750l 2man set up. Just wondering how long it took you to “get up to speed” when you converted from Trad?

Also any tips and tricks are appreciated.

Sadly there is no short cut here.  I helped my mate when he upgraded and so I thought I had it made when I also uograded but sadly not, it still takes a while.
The reason being is because you are doing first cleans on wfp on every trad house you have. Theres no easy way, just practice your technique but rinse well and pay attention to areas which cause drips. As in go around all upstairs windows first and the all downstairs, just whilst you get the hang of it.

My smallest section took me a day n half on trad equipment. It took me about 2 and a half days when i did all the first cleans BUT now im done in under a day. Just stick with it, you will curse it and hate it and think its been a waste of money.  Yet at the end of all the pain, there is joy and you will wonder why you didnt do this sooner. As we all have said

[robbo333]

I reckon you're looking at 6 months before you're up to speed.

As for tips, there are millions, but here are two:
1. Your hose WILL get caught on everything.  Learn how to manage your hose and keep your patience.
2. If you are never sure if a window is properly clean (assuming you have done a half decent job), give the window a FINAL rinse, starting about a half inch from the top of the glass and go right down to the bottom. For this FINAL rinse, keep away from the rubber seal above the glass.

[Lee Pryor]

2 years

[paul alan]

Clean your top frames thoroughly, then when you think you have done too much go over them again. This will pay off on all subsequent cleans.

Be careful and precise on and around the top frames.

Keep your flow rate low whilst learning, if you have it on high whilst your working slowly it'll drain your tank too quickly. I always match my flow to my working speed, if it's high you'll be going quick to match it. On the flip side too low a flow is no good either as you wont get a proper rinse, I reckon around half way should be ok, as you get more experience and are quicker turn it up.

Tell your customers they may experience spotting while your learning, reassure them you'll come back and rectify any problems.

[Splash & dash]

I reckon you're looking at 6 months before you're up to speed.

As for tips, there are millions, but here are two:
1. Your hose WILL get caught on everything.  Learn how to manage your hose and keep your patience.
2. If you are never sure if a window is properly clean (assuming you have done a half decent job), give the window a FINAL rinse, starting about a half inch from the top of the glass and go right down to the bottom. For this FINAL rinse, keep away from the rubber seal above the glass.

Sound advice this
When I started it was a steep learning curve you will be far slower than you are trad but once you have done your whole round once it will be a lot easier the next time , don’t get discouraged when things go wrong and they will go wrong spotting , will probebly be your worst issue take your time with the first clean I cannot stress this enough it will pay dividends for subsequent cleans untill you have some experience you won’t know when it’s clean or when you have rinsed enough , concentrate on the top of the frame make sure this is 100% clean as that’s where the issues will come from : clean it as described above go back and look at the jobs you have done when they are dry , practise on your own home and friends untill you gain a bit of confidence, you will get there but it will take a while 6-12 to be competent , different techniques are needed for different types of windows but as you get experience you will work out for yourself the way to do them good luck with changing to wfp it will be worth it

[britishwill]

Watch some utube vids. Ask any windies that you may have befriended over the years to give you a master class for any hour  or two? Can you pull in any favours if not bribe em to point out any areas of concern. I am still learning but came into the game with no window cleaning experience and taught myself from videos, watching water fed windies from afar or simple stopping in the road and saying hello! Worked for me! 6 months is realistic if you can do it but you never stop learning

[Paul Wisdom]

Best tip and i see it all the time with blokes using crappy trolleys - DO NOT scrimp on water, let it flow 

[Danny F]

Thanks for all the replies. Today was our first day using the new system, So far we seem to be doing ok. Started on too high a flow, soon realised when i seen it at half tank and turned it down. 

We were trying to do top frames first, give them a scrub and flush from above the vent either side and down both side frames. Then  drop to the bottoms and scrub those frames, back to the tops and final clean and flush down the glass from just under the top rubber down.
Then finally finish scrubbing bottom glass and rinse off.

Still had a few drips and spotting but may have to leave the frames longer to dry before going back to clean the glass.

Its and exciting step, cant wait to get all the first cleans out of the way though   

[JandS]

I started wfp June 2016 and waited for a very sunny day to try it out on customers.....getting it right on a sunny day boosted my confidence....I did every single house on my round twice...did 3 or 4  then went back and did them again...I hated every minute of it it was so slow......was worth it though the next time I did the round a month later was on a par with tradding it....after that it was miles quicker...also the amount of extra work I pick up, fsg etc is great...the system is so versatile....was full time carpet cleaning, now it's 65%  windows the rest carpets...am thinking of packing in carpets and full time windows..gutters..fsg..conservatories etc.

[Windy Miller]

Learn to use your whole body and not just your arms, it might look easy but after a good solid days work it can be a killer on the shoulders/neck/arms.

So when doing large upstairs windows rock backwards and forwards one foot forward the other back to get the up and down motion.
When cleaning from side to side hold the pole with your arms held close to your sides and use the swing of your upper body to move the pole from side to side.
Don't stand too close to the window but extend the pole further and take a position further back, your neck will thank you for it.
It might sound silly but doing these small simple manoeuvres can really make things so much easier on the body.

Also pull hosing out and start at the furthest point and work your way back as if you do it opposite way around you'll be stressing the hose stretching it and catching on all sorts.

[KS Cleaning]

Have just had my first wfp system fitted,750l 2man set up. Just wondering how long it took you to “get up to speed” when you converted from Trad?

Also any tips and tricks are appreciated.

Probably too late now but, on your last trad clean you should have wiped top frames, vents and seals with a cloth, it would have been time consuming but would have been time well spent as it would have made the switch over a lot easier.

[Danny F]

Have just had my first wfp system fitted,750l 2man set up. Just wondering how long it took you to “get up to speed” when you converted from Trad?

Also any tips and tricks are appreciated.

Probably too late now but, on your last trad clean you should have wiped top frames, vents and seals with a cloth, it would have been time consuming but would have been time well spent as it would have made the switch over a lot easier.

We did frames as standard trad but gave others a good go over as i knew i was changing shortly. No doubt the wind and crap weather has ruined my efforts.

[dazmond]

i reckon 2 years to get up to lightening speed(using the best equipment you can afford) and how to tackle various problem windows quickly and efficiently....its a learning curve....

[NWH]

I agree with Lee 2 years and then after that you are refining the way you work that makes you even quicker,this is why some people can’t grasp how quick you can be. I’ve done already today what would have taken me till 2-3 o’clock by hand easy,on 99% of work it’s 3 times quicker easily.

[Danny F]

Went with ionics in the end so at least i cant blame the equipement lol! Today seemed alot better with less drips and picked up a few new custies! 👍🏻

[mjm]

2 years   residential  3 years  commercial   ground floor to 60 ft    if I had not done the impact 43 course  it would have been longer but iam a bit thick 

[DeLuce]

When I first went wfp I wondered what I had done 
I was sooooo slow getting my round done! I was quicker on the trad.
But after a month, things improved. After three months, another improvement on speed and quality. I was now beginning to think what a bonus it was going wfp. After a year in, it was starting to properly click and improve techniques and refine the way I worked.
I agree with many of the comments above. What helped me :
 Fixed hose reel in van (less hassle)
Reel out to furthest point, work back.
Don't stand to close to the house, extend pole for decent angle. It saves too much neck ache and injury over time. Oh, and wet feet 
Watch out for the double openers over a big window, they have a  tendency to drip and then leave spots down the middle of larger pane underneath. Sometimes a good scrubbing/rinse  in the middle of the double openers  can prevent  this. Otherwise, after finishing house, go back and double check. Rinse big pane, finish.
Good luck mate 👍🏼

[Walter Mitty]

I reckon it took me 3 or 4 times around my round to work consistently at a decent speed - that's 18-24 weeks.  Even after that there was plenty of fine tuning needed to go even faster.  Some of that involved letting go of certain jobs such as the ones where I had previously carried a ladder down long alleyways or those link detached houses where you need to climb over the garage roof and down the other side.  WFP also pushed me into being more rigid about imposing a minimum charge, because the setup time was longer than just whipping a ladder off the roof.
It was quite a learning curve at first as I had to concentrate and think about each move.  Those moves soon became new habits though.