[sunshine windows]

Right guys, here's my honest opinion about TFR, having used it for the first time yesterday.

It gets the green top layer of algae off conservatory roofs with ease and also aids in the breakdown of lichen growth on polycarbonate roofs (only one I've tried it on so far). These still took quite a bit of scrubbing though, but nowhere near the normal amount with cold water.

It didn't help in removing the lichen from the White upvc struts though, I had to give these a lot of elbow grease still.

After scrubbing all the upvc like normal on the windows, I then applied TFR to the frames and gave them a good scrub without any further water. I noticed a very slight difference, but wasn't impressed as I thought it was supposed to get rid of the ageing effect and get the whites gleaming again. Nowhere near the kind of results you get from applying a cream cleaner.

So, is it worth using? In my opinion, the amount of time spend applying the chemicals and making sure you've thoroughly rinsed all the suds off afterwards, pretty much counterbalances the amount of extra time you'd spend scrubbing if you didn't use it. Maybe marginally quicker with TFR, with only a slightly better finish.

I think the finish I get from dipping my brush in a soap solution and using hot water, would be the same if not better.

I used a mix of approximately 1 part TFR to 4 parts water. Perhaps a stronger mix on the next one, to see if it cleans the upvc better.

The jury is still out on this one!

[Smudger]

Which tfr did you use ?

You can get good and bad stuff, things like truck wash off eBay are already watered down, you need to be applying the tfr first depending on haw bad a roof is no weaker than 3 to 1 and then agitate ( lightly scrub ) with brush dry or minimal water flow ( ideal for aquatap users ) then brush and rinse at full flow,  this way all age related grey just disappears - lichen slightly different, tadgh's ultra concentrate is the only chemical I know that lifts and removes this stuff quickly. On polycarbonate we have made a special scraper that just slides off the tops then the rest is straightforward

Jury is in for us done over 500 in the last couple of years this way and never been disappointed

Note: only thing I've never cleaned back to new are bodged silicone covered joints where the silicone has gone off colour

Darran

[Small but perfectley formed]

we use Evans vanodine TSR 200 can be bought in 5 lt this is very good for the price.

[Plankton]

Its something I can't be bothered with (cony's) folk I've quoted want them done for nowt.
TFR, Snow foam, you really do get what you pay for!

Interestingly I stuck some washing up liquid from Bonnymans into the snow foam bottle to rinse off a drive and it was thicker than the snow foam from them. I've had the impression that the longer the foam sticks the better it'll eat into the dirt.

[kempy]

BladeRight strong TFR And I also put CIF Cream on my brush

[chris turner]

I use merlin extra heavy duty cleaner, really good stuff but difficult to get hold of. I get it from a local supplier.
Also craftex champion is good.

[samson]

We discovered a product to clean upvc, but was only by accident as I had splashed some hypo on window frame turning it yellow.  I panicked and tried every cleaning product we had in the van leaving only the one left that brought the frame back to life !        Can't recommend it though as it is very caustic, but going to try it on a few more jobs, and if all is well will let you know.

[Kevin Miller]

Which tfr did you use ?

You can get good and bad stuff, things like truck wash off eBay are already watered down, you need to be applying the tfr first depending on haw bad a roof is no weaker than 3 to 1 and then agitate ( lightly scrub ) with brush dry or minimal water flow ( ideal for aquatap users ) then brush and rinse at full flow,  this way all age related grey just disappears - lichen slightly different, tadgh's ultra concentrate is the only chemical I know that lifts and removes this stuff quickly. On polycarbonate we have made a special scraper that just slides off the tops then the rest is straightforward

Jury is in for us done over 500 in the last couple of years this way and never been disappointed

Note: only thing I've never cleaned back to new are bodged silicone covered joints where the silicone has gone off colour

Darran

Hi Darren in your opinion is this stuff better than say virology, ubik and g101

[Smudger]

No !

It's strange, tfr cuts through all the algae, dirt, stains etc but not lichen, the ultra is ok for this but you seem to have to give a bit more scrub ( I do have a new batch I've not yet mixed up so maybe different ) but something in it seems to breakup lichen very quickly where tfr does not

Darran

[the king]

ubik2000 is good ill be trying virosol next ive hurd that stuff is very good

[sunshine windows]

The TFR I used was from Lee at Bladeright. Like I say, early days as I've only used it once. Will increase the strength to see if it removes the grey horizontal lines on fascias next.

I was impressed with the effect it had on the algae

[paulben]

Nuclean from Tadgh does the business for me even using it in trad bucket  ( very  weak mix )

[dazmond]

i find virosol/CIF cream cleaner and stIcky stuff remover( from B&Q) is all i need for add on jobs when cleaning plastics.i bought four 5L tubs of virosol(20L)a few years ago.ive still got 2 full tubs left!a little goes a long way.cost me £26.

[capn sparkle]

Viro-sol   Viro-sol   Viro-sol

I use it down to 50 / 50 mix on really stubborn jobs (don't let it dwell to long).

Lichen will only come off with scrubbing force.

Tadagh will remonstrate with me for the 50-50 dilution but if used properly with extreme care nothing beats it. (apart from a waffle cloth, apparently).

[Tadgh O Shea]

Viro-sol   Viro-sol   Viro-sol

I use it down to 50 / 50 mix on really stubborn jobs (don't let it dwell to long).

Lichen will only come off with scrubbing force.

Tadagh will remonstrate with me for the 50-50 dilution but if used properly with extreme care nothing beats it. (apart from a waffle cloth, apparently).

Hi capn sparkle, first off i will be honest and tell you a little waffle weave microfiber won't do much in removing tough lichen growth, if you use Viro-sol at a 50/50 mix away with you, i started my career in the cleaning industry in 1982 and spent my first 4 years working in a car wash so i know all about TFRs and how harsh and aggressive they are on surfaces, so much so that when i get any vehicles serviced the first thing i tell the service manager is that under no circumstances are they to wash the vehicle, why because they will use TFR when they give your vehicle a wash after the full service, TFRs are derived from sodium metasilicate or sodium hydroxide two of the most corrosive ingredients used by major cleaning chemical manufacturers, i have said it many times before but there are many janitorial suppliers in the UK who promote safe and effective cleaning chemicals which can be used to clean customers surfaces instead of harsh and aggressive cleaning chemicals like TFRs. Also just to share if you look at the sds on any TFR cleaners the manufacturer will give warnings that the corrosive ingredients they use can and will cause burns to your skin if you do not use ppe, just ask yourself capn sparkle if you are using Viro-sol at a 50/50 mix whats going to protect your customers surface, i did notice you said not to let it dwell for long, can you explain why you should not let it dwell for long, hope that this info may be of benefit and taken on board especially for the newbies. Tadgh

[sunshine windows]

So Tadgh, what magic ingredient would you recommend for cleaning stubborn stains on conservatory roofs or gutters and fascias?

Cheers

[Tadgh O Shea]

So Tadgh, what magic ingredient would you recommend for cleaning stubborn stains on conservatory roofs or gutters and fascias?

Cheers

Hi Lance It would depend, if you are removing stubborn stains manually i would use a paste, if you are using cleaning chemicals in a solution i would use safe chemicals that don't contain any caustic or corrosive ingredients, like i said there are many janitorial suppliers in the UK who promote safe and alternative cleaning chemicals, i will also be the first to admit that these safe and effective cleaning chemicals will require a bit more dwell time and extra agitation to give the same results as harsh and aggressive cleaning chemicals, but of course will not cause any detrimental damage to the surfaces they are being used upon. Tadgh

[paulben]

I did one about a month ago thick with litchen  sprayed some Nuclean on  left to soak in then attacked it with stiff wfp brush Woman was over the moon with result .
Just got back from a gutter job had done it back in 2009 . Did it quicker this time with Nuclean than when  there were 2 of us .

[Tadgh O Shea]

I did one about a month ago thick with litchen  sprayed some Nuclean on  left to soak in then attacked it with stiff wfp brush Woman was over the moon with result .
Just got back from a gutter job had done it back in 2009 . Did it quicker this time with Nuclean than when  there were 2 of us .

Hi Paul, Yes Nuclean based on metabolic chemistry is indeed a break through technology, Happy cleaning Tadgh.

[Smurf]

Does nuclean also bring badly discoloured plastics back to white?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDO74orWKL8