[jo5hm4n]

So i'm moving over to WFP from all of my Trad work, now that i have a van mount setup.  So today i did my first day of cleaning bungalows WFP instead of trad and i had some problems, which i have had before but i'm wondering if you guys can either give me some tips or explain to me the reasons behind why this happens.

So on some customers houses, cleaned the windows and frames thoroughly, rinsed and they dried perfect, literally 100%.  The house next door, or on the next road though, i cleaned exactly the same yet saw such different results.  Some windows had bad spotting, or white streaks running down, or some windows even just had mild spotting randomly here and there....

So i always thought that the reason for streaks/spotting was due to a buildup of dirt on the top window frames, and then if there is any slight dirt left after rinsing it could mix with a water droplet, run down the window and then streak/spot.  This problem would only then happen on first cleans only usually.

I'm also aware that aluminium frames can have oxidisation which causes white streaks?  What about wooden frames, today i cleaned a set of wooden windows on a porch twice and still streaks and spotting, is this to do with the paint or something else?

Bottom line is i want to know is there any way of avoiding this problem, or is it because these were all first cleans on WFP and it's bound to happen on some windows on first cleans with WFP?

Do some windows/frames always give you problems, or is there a way to make sure you can clean every type of frame and window perfect with WFP?

These probably seem like really noobie questions, but i've never asked them before, and usually i dont have problems but today i did atleast 3 or 4 bungalows that had bad spotting/streaking, and it really frustrated me and i want to be able to be confident and honest with my customers so that if they notice some spotting/streaking, then i can give them a logical explanation to it(other than just dirt buildup on top frames)........

[Nick Day]

How high was you water flow and do you rinse on or off the glass? We always use high water flow and rinse on the glass .

[Shrek]

I usually spend upto an hour on first cleans , it's not something to be rushed

[jo5hm4n]

I use a PureFreedom system and the flow controller was set to 20.  Always rinse off the glass but very close when cleaning ground floor windows.  The flow was not the problem.  I was extremely thorough with my rinsing and actually spent an hour or 2 more today because these are customers i have had for years, so i took my time and rinsed way more than usual to try and prevent any chance of spotting/streaking, but on some windows it seemed like it was inevitable and unavoidable.....

[Mick Kent]

agreed, spend quality time on the first clean and all other regular 4 weekly cleans will be a doddle.

[jo5hm4n]

Quality time was spent on every single house, i actually only ended up doing 60% of a normal full days work because of how much longer i spent cleaning them.  Yet i still had spotting/streaking, so my point still stands.  Is there a reason other than just doing a good job and rinsing correctly that can cause problems like this, such as leaking rubber seals, or flaky wooden frames etc...  This is more what i want to know really...

[KS Cleaning]

Some wooden window frames can be a pain especially if they are poorly maintained, If I have any problematic ones I don't clean the top frame, I am then careful not to push the water up inside the top frame when brushing, then  I rinse half an inch below the top frame.

[duncan h]

Some frames are a pain. Had a wooden house that took some doing. Some will never be good. At my own home, the kitchen window ALWAYS spots. I have tried everything. Same company made all the house windows

[Nick Day]

We had the same problem a few years ago. We recently returned to window cleaning. this time with a very high flow rate and rinsing on the glass, the results have been outstanding.
I have a theory, which will no doubt be shot down in flames, when you use a high flow the water floods the window, seems to drag the water down very quickly and seems to leave less drops anyway.
Also I think rinsing off the glass the water picks up dust as it flows between the jets and the glass.
This may also explain why some people have reported poor results on windy days.
I live in an apartment block, the guy always has a very slow rate, rinses off the glass and his results are awful.
You will be surprised how much less water you use with a high flow rate.

[chez]

So i'm moving over to WFP from all of my Trad work, now that i have a van mount setup.  So today i did my first day of cleaning bungalows WFP instead of trad and i had some problems, which i have had before but i'm wondering if you guys can either give me some tips or explain to me the reasons behind why this happens.

So on some customers houses, cleaned the windows and frames thoroughly, rinsed and they dried perfect, literally 100%.  The house next door, or on the next road though, i cleaned exactly the same yet saw such different results.  Some windows had bad spotting, or white streaks running down, or some windows even just had mild spotting randomly here and there....

So i always thought that the reason for streaks/spotting was due to a buildup of dirt on the top window frames, and then if there is any slight dirt left after rinsing it could mix with a water droplet, run down the window and then streak/spot.  This problem would only then happen on first cleans only usually.

I'm also aware that aluminium frames can have oxidisation which causes white streaks?  What about wooden frames, today i cleaned a set of wooden windows on a porch twice and still streaks and spotting, is this to do with the paint or something else?

Bottom line is i want to know is there any way of avoiding this problem, or is it because these were all first cleans on WFP and it's bound to happen on some windows on first cleans with WFP?

Do some windows/frames always give you problems, or is there a way to make sure you can clean every type of frame and window perfect with WFP?

These probably seem like really noobie questions, but i've never asked them before, and usually i dont have problems but today i did atleast 3 or 4 bungalows that had bad spotting/streaking, and it really frustrated me and i want to be able to be confident and honest with my customers so that if they notice some spotting/streaking, then i can give them a logical explanation to it(other than just dirt buildup on top frames)........

Hey.
When I swapped over 6 years ago, like the others have suggested I take a long time in the first clean and rinse really well. But I have a lot of custies that have old oxidising powder coated frames so if I do the frames every time I have the same old problem of spotting.
So once I have the first few cleans done I then only wash the glass and the middle bar. I'm really careful NOT to touch the frames. The frames are cleaned  from then on, on a needs only basis.
Don't get any problems. You are also quicker too 😉😉🤗🤗
Hope it helps
Chez

[the king]

I use a PureFreedom system and the flow controller was set to 20.  Always rinse off the glass but very close when cleaning ground floor windows.  The flow was not the problem.  I was extremely thorough with my rinsing and actually spent an hour or 2 more today because these are customers i have had for years, so i took my time and rinsed way more than usual to try and prevent any chance of spotting/streaking, but on some windows it seemed like it was inevitable and unavoidable.....

up your flow m8 50 i have mine set at 60

[Shrek]

I use a PureFreedom system and the flow controller was set to 20.  Always rinse off the glass but very close when cleaning ground floor windows.  The flow was not the problem.  I was extremely thorough with my rinsing and actually spent an hour or 2 more today because these are customers i have had for years, so i took my time and rinsed way more than usual to try and prevent any chance of spotting/streaking, but on some windows it seemed like it was inevitable and unavoidable.....

Flow on 20 is slow though , especially for a first clean , you need to blast the dirt off the windows and frames on a first clean

[duncan h]

Always have mine on full with fan jets. rinse on glass

[SeanK]

Some of the issues with wfp.
Openers that fill with water which gets contaminated with dirt and leaks out onto the glass below.
Degraded rubber seals where any water left will on or under will leak out and cause spotting.
Degraded painted windows that will always spot including those sealed with putty.
Hard to see stains which are easily missed and show up more after the window has been cleaned.
Certain types of vents.
Some of these issues get better the more you clean them and some can be cleaned with a bit of faffing about, cleaning the openers  first and going back to do the glass below is one example.
I have never cleaned a window yet where I haven't been able to achieve acceptable results but some took that much faffing about
and where that time consuming that it was better to trad them.

[chris turner]

Even on some upvc windows you get spotting caused by dodgy rubber seals along the top of the glass. No amount of rinsing stops spotting on these, even after years you still get runs coming down.
Follow this technique and you should be fine, I do this on most windows..

https://youtu.be/eUdwLSnmPDs

Running the brush along the top will pull away the water, try to do it with the brush at a slight angle so you have half the bristles touching the top frame, the other half on the glass.
Then when you rinse, rinse just below the top of the glass. With practice you'll be able to rinse right up close to the top frame without actually touching it, so you get no runs coming down.

[Shrek]

Some frames are a pain. Had a wooden house that took some doing. Some will never be good. At my own home, the kitchen window ALWAYS spots. I have tried everything. Same company made all the house windows

My kitchen window has always spotted..... Until iv recently been experimenting with rinsing on and to my surprise- no spots!!!!

[jo5hm4n]

Thanks for all the replies guys, very helpful and useful information.

Especially chris with your video about brushing excess water from the rubber seals so they dont drip?  That is the purpose of your technique isn't it?

So today guys i had the exact same problem, this time no wooden windows involved at all just UPVC.

So i upped the flow rate, spent even more time cleaning and rinsing and here is an example i want to give you to prove that it could not be anything other than the rubber seals causing the spotting.

I cleaned 2 bungalows next door to eachother.  First bungalow, had what i call recessed rubber seals, they dont really protrude at all or leak or drip, so you can just WFP them really quick and blast the dirt off, rinse thoroughly, and you really never need to worry about spotting.  Today this bungalow i did, the frames were filthy.  I blasted them all over did the frames openers and main windows below all in one go, hoping to expect some spotting.  Nope they were 100% perfect as they always are on these type of seals.

Bungalow next door, totally different results.  The frames were not even dirty, neither was the glass.  These windows had all what i call Flat Edge rubber seals, the ones that protrude and in lots of cases can leak out as they degrade over time.  I cleaned all the top frames then rinsed.  Then cleaned the openers and rinsed inc middle bar.  Waited around 2 mins before i then cleaned window below and rinsed from about 1/2 inch below the rubber seal.  The problem was even on a hot day these seals drip for ages, literally like upto 20 minutes or more....  I cleaned all the windows the same way, and atleast 1/4 of them had spotting and streaks down them.  Same thing happened today on around 5 other bungalows with exactly the same rubber seals.

So my point is here, surely it can't be that my technique is wrong or that i am personally doing something wrong, it must just be that the rubber seals are bad and leak and drip, which is causing all of the spotting.


I can't see any other logical reasoning for it...  I spent 45 minutes cleaning a bungalow which is priced at £10 and i still got spotting on 3 windows....  I mean cmon, i can't get any slower and be more thorough even if i wanted too....


Please see attached photos of the types of rubber seals im talking about.

Let me know your thoughts about this.  I have another full day tomorrow cleaning bungalows and i am not looking forward to having to clean more of these protruding seals.  It literally knocks my confidence, not knowing whether i am walking away from potentially spotted streaked windows....

Thanks guys!

[chris turner]

The windows with the seal that protrudes onto the glass are the problem ones, especially if the seal is old and the glass is hydrophobic, exactly like your picture.
All I can say is try my technique, practice it and you should resolve the problem in no time.

[Spruce]

Some south facing upvc window frames also oxidise.

We have found we get 2 different types of streaks - the first is a water run which leaves behind a dried 'river bed' effect down the glass and the second is a row of white spots which are usually vertical but can curve slightly left and or right.

The first will be dirt draining from behind the window frame - poor seals and the second could be from water droplets leaching out contaminates from the frame and then running down the glass.

We found a good scrub and rinse of frames and windows on the first clean. Then go back and clean the glass only on the second clean once the windows have started to dry. In summer you should be able to start at the back of the house, finish at the front and then go back to the back and clean glass only. In winter you may have to move on and clean another house and come back and redo the first house.

First cleans take extra time and patience. Suffer the pain now, do a good job first time and you will be rewarded next clean.

-

[SeanK]

Are you sure the spotting and runs aren't ingrained marks on the glass, to be honest you shouldn't be getting problems
with that type of window.
If it is your fault you could try a medium mixed brush with stiff outer bristles, they are great for squeezing out any water  that
gets under the seal.
The Xtreme stiff brush is also worth a try.