[Craig 72]

Morning all.I’ve been asked to price up for a school within the area that I work in NW Kent.They only want it done once a year inside and out,windows ranging from ground floor to about 50 ft up.I went round and totalled up the area of glass to be cleaned works out to be roughly 550m2.Obviously double that for inside as well.My only other commercial work is a fraction of the size of this so I don’t have anything to compare it with.Any tips/opinions on how to price this one up would be greatly appreciated.Cheers,Craig.

[John Mart]

Morning all.I’ve been asked to price up for a school within the area that I work in NW Kent.They only want it done once a year inside and out,windows ranging from ground floor to about 50 ft up.I went round and totalled up the area of glass to be cleaned works out to be roughly 550m2.Obviously double that for inside as well.My only other commercial work is a fraction of the size of this so I don’t have anything to compare it with.Any tips/opinions on how to price this one up would be greatly appreciated.Cheers,Craig.

How many pupils in the school? Just because it makes the scale easier to understand than square metres.

[Craig 72]

Hi,I’ve got no idea how many kids go there but it’s a grammar school so would assume 1000+

[The Jester of Wibbly]

As you say you already do smaller commercials this is the perfect starting block for the larger job.

Break down the school into small parts and quote seperatly as if they are your smaller jobs.   Just stand back looking at the section and do price as you normally would.  Then add all the sections up.   I then add PAT (Paul added tax) to the total.  This would cover any bits I may have missed or problems I failed to spot.  Don't be afraid to price on the higher side as it takes much longer to do as they tend to be minging.

As for the insides make it clear in writting that windows must be clear of tape, stickers and posters or they will be omitted from the clean.

Dont forget to ask what compliance is required.  After they accept a quote it's always subject to compliance.  By this time you have not factored the extra work in your quote. So ask at the start.  They will probably ask for proof of insurance and they will most likely want £5 million.  They may also ask for a risk assessment, method statement and even sometimes references.

[Craig 72]

Thanks for that Paul,that’s helpful advice 👍
It looks to me like it’s reasonably new,in fact the windows looked not too bad at all.Quite a lot of high internal work which could be annoying though.I reckon realistically I’ll be looking in the region of between 2-3 days.

[Smudger]

Just follow wibbles advice as it’s spot on - just break it down into class rooms then add it all up if your thinking 2 to 3 days then price for 3

At the end of the day we don’t risk much in pricing up window cleaning if your underpriced you lose a good rate but unlike trades you haven’t paid out for materials

Schools can be hard work but they are a nice lump to bring in

Darran

[John Mart]

Hi,I’ve got no idea how many kids go there but it’s a grammar school so would assume 1000+

A school of 1,700 took us 5 man days to do the outside only. Be careful is what I'd sasy.,

[Go]

How dirty are the windows? I’d probably go in at £1.50 a sqm and add some on for good luck.

[John Mart]

How dirty are the windows? I’d probably go in at £1.50 a sqm and add some on for good luck.

In and out? Seriously?

[PHILIP HARDY]

And be prepared to waste your time, I have priced five up this year and not got one, I pass all of them and none of them have had the windows cleaned since I quoted, the schools these days all have business managers, who are tasked with cost controlling and most simply do not have the cash to pay out for window cleaning at a reasnoble price, they think about having them done and when they get the quote fall over in shock and decide to spend the money on books,etc and leave the windows untill the budget is bigger.

[windowswashed]

Most schools around my way want them cleaned cheap as chips, don't bother quoting anymore. Work out how long it will take and add on for the fact it's cleaned annually. Good point mentioned about tape, blue tac , etc on internal glass to be removed and allow for having to move things in front of the glass,  as people forget. If you have enough regular work put in a crazy quote and if you get it then it's a bonus.

[nathankaye]

Same as above.
I clean the windows of many teachers, who always recommend me to the schools to clean the windows. But they never like the quotes and always ask what's the lowest I can go, which is still no where close to the figures they have in mind.

[Craig 72]

Really appreciate the advice from everybody.Some good points that I will bear in mind.I’m in a position where I have a lot of domestic work and a few smaller commercials so it’s not the end of the world if I don’t get it.Obviously it would be a nice bonus though.As suggested above I think I will be more likely to price up on the high side to cover the eventuality of it being a pain.

[cgh window cleaning]

The best way to price schools is to go in at your cheapest possible price.
Unless they're private ,schools are not fussed about window cleaning and have very little to no money so always go with the cheapest quote and tend to put them out each year.I've priced loads looked at one just last week.I was the fifth quote as they just wanted to get it done as cheap as possible.

[Splash & dash]

The best way to price schools is to go in at your cheapest possible price.
Unless they're private ,schools are not fussed about window cleaning and have very little to no money so always go with the cheapest quote and tend to put them out each year.I've priced loads looked at one just last week.I was the fifth quote as they just wanted to get it done as cheap as possible.

Why would you go in with a cheap price ? It’s a commercial job and probebly only going to be done once a year it has to be charged at a premium price or there is no point  doing it just stick to the easier 4 weekly houses far more profitable, we have priced up several schools never got one don’t evan bother quoting theses days just say sorry far to busy

[dazmond]

It's ridiculous to suggest the school  remove tape/glue etc from the inside windows first before you start.

THATS WHAT THEIR PAYING YOU FOR!!!!!

I personally wouldn't take the job on and I'd pass their details on to another WC......simply because I wouldn't want a large job like that on my books anyway and certainly not once a year....the windows will be filthy and insides a nightmare....no thanks...

[cgh window cleaning]

The best way to price schools is to go in at your cheapest possible price.
Unless they're private ,schools are not fussed about window cleaning and have very little to no money so always go with the cheapest quote and tend to put them out each year.I've priced loads looked at one just last week.I was the fifth quote as they just wanted to get it done as cheap as possible.

Why would you go in with a cheap price ? It’s a commercial job and probebly only going to be done once a year it has to be charged at a premium price or there is no point  doing it just stick to the easier 4 weekly houses far more profitable, we have priced up several schools never got one don’t evan bother quoting theses days just say sorry far to busy

Exactly I'm fully commercial and I to believe they should attract a premium.But he asked how to price it and my point was doesn't matter how you price them if you want the job go in cheap as that's all they want.I clean ones and it pays well as it's a private school but cleaning a school once a year that resembles a builders clean doesn't interest me or most window cleaners that are full.

[robbo333]

Make sure you know EVERYTHING that's required.
I priced a school and they wanted the outside (and the inside of exterior windows only). Any windows which separated the classroom from the corridor, were not needed!
It was too big for me, so I gave it to a mate who specialises in this. It was minging!
He did it by plugging into the outside tap and having another windie follow him round with pure.

[Johnny B]

I did a school for a mate of mine a few years ago.

It clearly hadn't been done for years but it had to be done for a school presentation s few days later. My mate reckoned it was a day and a half's work.

I had to do inside and out, and bearing in mind that I am trad and that the windows were minging, the job was a nightmare.

It took me 3 days and nights, 35 hours in all, working almost round the clock bar taking short breaks and a nap here and there.

I was so knackered afterwards that I needed a couple of days off to recover. Glad I never got to do it again!

John

[Pete Thompson]

I've done a few schools before, and my advice is as follows:

Break it down into bitesize chunks for quoting purposes (as has been said).

Get the janitor to show you around.  Not a teacher, nor an administrator or anyone else.  A good way to do this is to tell them you'll need to know where the water access points are.  The only person who will know this is the janitor, so (in my experience) he will be asked to show you around.

The janitor is the one who knows what needs doing and what doesn't.  He is also the person who will be your champion to the finance bods when they are ready to keel over at your price.  Get him on your side, and you've pretty much got the job.  Be polite to him, NEVER swear in his company (remember he is around children all day, so has trained himself to curb swearing.  He will notice if you swear and it will play against you.)

There's no need to go in cheap, that is totally self-defeating.  A high price will be accepted if it is framed correctly, and championed by the janitor.

I would be against making demands like removing tape etc from the insides, as they will be very unlikely to be able to comply with it.  (Who will do that?  The teachers? Ha no.  The janitor himself? too busy!).  Instead, give them a choice.  Either you can miss those windows, or for an additional 5% you can remove the tape yourself.  (I would never remove posters or artwork from the windows, that's a class's work and they probably want it there).

Some schools will ask if you have a CRB check (or whatever it's called these days).  If you do, great.  If not, say not at present, but you have no objection to having one done if the cost of doing so is met by the school.  This tells them that you've nothing to hide and most will simply drop it there.  If they're willing to pay for it, all well and good.  (If you have criminal convictions that will show up on a CRB check, don't even bother replying to a school asking for a quote).

Schools can be very profitable, easy work if you get them right.

Good luck!