[twt]

Just a few questions for those who use hot wfp have you cracked any glass? if so what sort of window was it ? ie double glazed etc.... what was the weather like when you cracked it ? what action do you take to avoid cracking other windows?
Thanks Phil.

[Nathanael Jones]

I've never cracked a pane of glass yet.

It does happen occasionally though, but just being careful will avoid the problem.

Thermal shock affects single glazing the most, and wooden framed windows especially. Aluminium & PVC frames normally have space around the edge of the glass allowing for expansion, so are generally fine.

I've always been told to keep the water temp to a max of 60 deg C in summer, 40 Deg C in winter, and 20 Deg C for single glazing or on frosty mornings.

I normally have my water about 40 degree's,.. and even at that low temp it makes a huge difference.

[NWH]

I`ve poored boiling water from the kettle over my van windscreen for years on bitterly cold mornings,never cracked a screen yet.

[Dave Turley]

I usually use mine at about 40 degrees, but it does get hotter sometimes.

i've been using hot for 2 months now and have only cracked one window.

it was double glazed (2 and 1/2 foot by 1 and 1/2 foot, leaded and upvc. it was a first clean, coolish summer morning  (perhaps 12 degrees C) and cloudy.

the weird thing is my water was only at about 25--30 degrees and i'd moved on to the next window for about 20 seconds before it cracked with a BANG.

I think it must have been stressed to the max before I got there

[twt]

Very helpful reply thank you dave, i had a customer who had a new conservatory with leaded top opening windows and serveral of these had to be replaced due to them cracked from the lead expanding and contracting.  Did you pay to replace the glass or did your insurance cover it?

[Wayne Thomas]

I've had a large pane of glass shatter into a thousand tiny pieces.

[Kevin R]

This is helping to put me off hot wfp 

[Sir Squeaky]

Don't tell Tennet Clean for god's sake!

He's just spent £174,000 on one.

[Dave Turley]

my insurance doesn't cover the actual piece of property you are working on.

he hasn't got round to replacing it yet but i've told him i'll pay for it.

whatever it costs it will be minimal compared to the extra money I earn through using hot water.

[Paul Coleman]

Don't tell Tennet Clean for god's sake!

He's just spent £174,000 on one.

Yes, but that does include the van.

[Kevin R]

whatever it costs it will be minimal compared to the extra money I earn through using hot water.

So after taking fuel etc into account, does using hot make you more money than cold?

If so do you mean just on first cleans etc? please explain in a little more detail 

[twt]

Wayne what was the weather like and what type of window was it?

[Nathanael Jones]

whatever it costs it will be minimal compared to the extra money I earn through using hot water.

So after taking fuel etc into account, does using hot make you more money than cold?

If so do you mean just on first cleans etc? please explain in a little more detail 

A gas system will cost less than £1 per day to run. 1 or 2 stubborn bird splatters is all it takes to make up the time that will earn that extra cash.

[scud]

   A cracked pain of glass every 2 months will soon negate any extra earnings.

[Wayne Thomas]

This is helping to put me off hot wfp 

Hi Kev, that's the general idea. Keep my local competitors away from using hot WFP

Wayne what was the weather like and what type of window was it?

Typical grey but warm-ish day in spring. The window was double glazed UPVC.  

I have been cleaning this house using hot WFP for about 4months. Then one day the large pane of glass just shattered into tiny pieces and fell to the floor, (it was a bedroom window). Luckily no one was below it when it shattered.  

Luckily for me, I hadn't cleaned this customer's windows on the day the window shattered. He told me all about it a week later when I was due to clean them. He blamed the window fitter who had installed the  new-ish windows about 6 months previously.

It made me sit up and think......just how much stress hot wfp has on glass owing to thermal shock. Although I wasn't to blame for the glass shattering, it made me wonder if my 60Celsius water had played a part in stressing the glass to the max?

When cleaning some windows, you can hear the glass making a pinging noise on single glazed glass if the water's too hot, if it's freezing outside. I'm very cautious during the winter regarding how hot I'll use my water and on what type of windows or window frames I'll use it.

Luckily for me, I haven't broken any panes of glass yet as I am developing a sixth sense which windows are suitable and which aren't.

[Nathanael Jones]

   A cracked pain of glass every 2 months will soon negate any extra earnings.

I'd be surprised to hear of anyone who breaks glass with hot wfp more often than a trad guy would! It happens, but it's rare.

[Clive McDonald]

Wayne's more on the money than you Nathaneal, but it's an awkward topic to discuss. If it helps put people off hot systems then that does mean less competition,

I did offer to give tenent some guidance, and this is pretty much what i mean't by that.

I've been wondering if seals are an issue too?

[Wayne Thomas]

One thing I have noticed using hot wfp is that some, (only a miniscule minority), of rubber seals discolour & run like mad. The same windows re-cleaned using cold wfp don't discolour and run 1/10th as bad. Has anyone else noticed this?

[Clive McDonald]

Yes mainly first cleans, sqiuds ink, chalky frames too like pump whitener,

I was thinking more of us being blamed, our fault or not, for blown seals.

[Jeff Brimble]

I used to fit dg panels, we used to use small tapered spacers to adjust the glass into the frames. Often the surveyors would make a mistake in the measurements and we had to use more spacers than reccomended. Putting too many in causes the glass to stress and it could break under normal vibration or temprature differences or a gustof wind.

If glass has been incorrectly fitted then anything could pop it.
The hot wfp may not be to blame.