[rosskesava]

Does anyone else who works next to the coast have the same problems we do getting salt off windows.

We've tried wfp and sometimes have used gallons and gallons but streak lines still appear when the glass dries.

If it's done trad, the first few paines are fine but as the salt builds up on the mop and then on the cloths, white smear lines appear a few minutes after doing the windows. Then, the worst thing to do is to try and wipe the marks off as all you end up with is a bigger smear.

Most customers along the coast accept it but I hate leaving smears on the glass.

Anyone got any ideas?

The pictures aren't that great because I used my mobile phone to take them. What's on the glass is seawater and dried salt.

[Majestic]

I live on the coast and have the same problem. I have found that I have to clean them traditional  twice to get them clean , and change my water regular

[[GQC] Tim]

Our holiday bungalow in Devon was cleaned with wfp, and I saw the exact same problem......wonder what people use to get it off properly (topic subscribe)

[Moderator David@stives]

Ross

 wfp the top of the glass then wipe across the top at the frame with a cloth so nothing can drip down  and   so the frame is out of the equation then wfp the rest of the glass with down strokes to accelerate the salt to the bottom of the window.

With a squeegie use top to bottom strokes instead of the usuall s shape.

These are the methods i employ when the salt is bad like on the pictures shown

[Moderator David@stives]

p.s Buy a few  stripwasher s and change them 3 or 4 times during the day as well.
Also make sure your rubbers are in tip top condition maybe a new one each day and turn it over at luch time

[dai]

It's that greasy film more than just the salt. I don't know where it comes from, well the sea obviously. But it does feel oily. Maybe warm soapy water for the odd job.
I just use WFP and they come up ok. They are not as bad as yours to start with though. Single pain windows are not so bad, it's those cross frames that hold the muck though. Dave St Ives solution sounds ok. When trad I used to do them twice and do as little detailing as possible. Dai

[Jeff Brimble]

Anyone tried a hotwash wfp ?

[JohnL]

I am on the coast and part of my patch is effected by salt laden wind but the odd thing is in one road I have 2 houses side by side but only one of them is 'bad' so I wonder if the type of glass contributes to the problem.

I must admit neither of them is as bad as in the Ross' pics tho'.

I think David has the answers - as always!

JohnL

[rosskesava]

Yeah. Dave's answer is worth a go and I'll try that on Wednesday.

The place is a prestigious block of flats and the common ways get done 3 times a week so you'd think the salt wouldn't be a problem but it is a big one. Often during October to April the glass get much worse than the pictures. I don't know why the area from Brighton eastwards for a few miles gets it worse than if you go West for a few miles, but it does.

What you couldn't see in the pictures is the problem that Dai says. Above the glass you can see is a wooden frame with 2 further frames above it although the glass is only 12" high in each frame. Somehow the salt gets in between the wood and the glass and when wfp'd, the salt seems to leech downwards with the water.

Also one of my reasons for asking for help was that round the back of the block, we do 8 times the amount of glass pictured below. The salt problem isn't always so severe as it's around the back of the building but none the less, it is blo*dy hard work during the winter months when the South Westerly storms cover everything with salt near the coast.

And that oily type residue from the salt? Where does that come from? Sea water isn't greasy so how can the residue left by seawater be so slimey?

Anyway, thanks for the replies. I'll be giving Dave's suggestions a go.

Cheers

[Pat Purcell]

Ross we do a lot of work on the ocean and have never had much problems using trad methods , we use ammonia in the water all the time so maybe thats why
Not sure if it would sort your problem but its worth a shot

[rosskesava]

Hi Pat

Do you mean Ammonia as in 'crystals of....'?

Or is it 'salts of....'?

How much do you add, say, per gallon?

I'm not sure what you mean but thanks for replying.

Cheers

[JohnL]

Yes, they use ammonia in Aussie as well but I think its banned over here!

[EasyClean]

One third of my work is on the coast. I use a hot WFP and have no problems unless it's raining quite heavy and the wind is blowing the rain straight onto the glass. I always wash the top of the window frame thoroughly and rinse with plenty of water to overcome the salt problem. If the rain is light and being blown on the glass slightly then I can get away with it as my water dries quickly but in heavy rain on windy days I either work inland or take a day off as it's better then receiving complaints and having to go back and re-do the windows.
When I was cleaning traditionally I would use plenty of water on a microfibre sleeve and using a new rubber, blade straight down in strips and just scrim the top edge of the glass and leave the sides. I didn't have any problems that way, just made sure I had plenty of water on the glass to give it a good scrub. The microfibre strips were very good. Better than the monsoon strips.

[Pat Purcell]

Ross we get our ammonia in liquid form by the gallon in any shop that sells windoline or bleach etc, Add about half a cup to 5 gallons of water along with your soap and work as normal quite strong smelling so dont breathe it in as its like smelling salts,Usually the maker has added lemon or the like to kill the smell, I have been told by other window cleaners over there that its available so shouldnty be banned
Its the base ingredient in most house hold cleaners so would be tough to ban

[chris no 1]

hi i used to clean alot of windows down by the coast on the sea cats when they were running i used fairy liquid and a lot of water i think the answer is to use alot of water

[dai]

My windows were as bad as Ross's today, what a nightmare. These windows are done inside and out every 2 weeks. I could see the salt so gave the frames a really good scrub first, Did the glass and rinsed really well.
They dried with the wavy lines that Ross described. Is the problem worse with wooden frames?
This salt blows into cracks that a brush bristle wouldn't get in to. When you think about it, the TDS of sea water must be off the scale. It takes a hell of a lot of diluting to get the glass to dry mark free.
In order to try Dave St Ives method, I would have to use ladders. May as well do them trad. Dai

[Moderator David@stives]

Dai

welcome to my world, I have to deal with salt everyday

Dave

[dai]

Dave, my entire round is within a mile of the sea. Yesterdays storm was something else. Do you find plastic frames easier than wooden ones when heavily salted. Dai

[Moderator David@stives]

Dai

Yes definately plastics , most of my round is just that.

Where abouts do you live.

All my windows are affected by the constant southwesterlys hitting the coast of Cornwall 52 weeks of the year its very rare for the wind to come from the East though i wish it would

Dave

[dai]

Hi Dave, I work in Llandudno. It's on a thingyular, one beach faces west the other north, so I get it both ways.
 The windows I noticed problems with were wooden framed. These are done every two weeks inside and out. It's easy to see the results. I have to say they are usually nigh on perfect, as you wood expect doing them so often. Yesterday they were awfull, this in spite of taking extra time and care. I haven't noticed the same problems with plastic frames. There again, I don't hang round long enough to see them dry. Whilst not having any complaints, I have had more than the usual amount of cancellations these past 3 months.
One old shiner told me it was his worst spell in over 30 years.
I have been working in some really bad weather. Maybe I should have listened to Ian Giles, he has for more experience than us with WFP. He doesn't work on domestics in stormy conditions. There again I don't have the benefit of his prices to tide me over prolonged spells of extreme weather. Dai