[ftp]

I am a time served printer and only got into this job because there is bugger all else for someone with no other qualifications in this area. Hows that? 

I'd like to say i spotted a gap in the market and wanted to be the first in my area to push this marketing venture forward. Trouble was it wasn't like that, it was a case of finding something easy and quick! the fact that i hated ladders almost ruled out cleaning windows for a living.

[pikeman]

I have started up because of the lack of work about in the building trade, i am a bricklayer. No where near a full round yet but not really pushed it for cusomers as the odd building job does still crop up. Will decide in the new year whether to reall go for it, although i realise it may be hard to get the customers. I have gone wfp with backpack and had a lot of useful advice off this forum especially john tomkins who is local to me, thanks john.

[Chameleon]

I was bored of living my International Play Boy lifestyle, Wine & Women, endless sun, sand & sun-cream... Just got boring!
I want to be cold & wet!
I want to be a small insignificant member of the great unwashed!
There's no place like home. AHhhh Clean it up... Ahhhh I'm home!

[mr D]

How much experience does one actually need to wash a bit of glass? Perhaps with wfp there's a bit of skill but with trad the only skill is to get quicker and safer.

i think tbeing he answer to your question is in the question it self mr knight!
unlike your self i CLEAN bits of glass. i dont just wash them. as for there is some skill involved in wfp but the only skill in trad is to get faster and quicker. lol

what a stupid statement. i, like many other w/c on here and across the inderstry as a whole will take offence to that. imo 90% of the reason there are so many wc popping up all over the place is how easy it is to do using a wfp and not having to master the art of cleaning at hight from a ladder. fundermentles old boy.

playing football involves no skill, just aslong as you play really slowly.

i cant count how many w/c started up with me ''yea i'm a window cleaner, been doing it for years'' most dont last a week. to slow, unsafe and just plain rubish!

i'm not saying wfp is easy by no means. i'm finding it challngeing. mostly coz i keep forgetting i'm filling my tank and over flow in to the van! lol

i dont mean to sound like i'm jumping down your throte and i kinda know what you ment you just put it very wrongly i think.

there is one symple answer to why there are mor w/c's about.

surply on demand.

[NWH]

Don`t agree with all of that some yes maybe,you say anyone can WFP i know for a fact that`s not true there`s some shocking WFPolers out there and there the 1`s that scare off potential customers.

[geefree]

hey Gazza how did you manage to send 3602 replays in two years ant you busy enough so spend to much time replying to posts

i post at night... after work, when i can relax from all the graft. (why do people say things like that , as though it has any relevance )



i like to learn, and the only way to do that is ask.... i have found this forum invaluable,

i have been helped on dozens of occasions.

And one day, i may be able to give new people the same advice as i recieved here..

as i am not one of those people who start up and think they know everything in a month, .!!

 Thanks for replies, ... i thought a few more of the new ones would come on ,,, maybe they will later, as recently there has been a few start up posts.  

[mr D]

sorry i didnt mean any one can wfp i should of said anyone can attempt to wfp.

i agree its harder to master than i 1st thought

[Jonathan Spencer]

Don`t agree with all of that some yes maybe,you say anyone can WFP i know for a fact that`s not true there`s some shocking WFPolers out there and there the 1`s that scare off potential customers.

Their are also so shockingly bad Trad blokes.  No detailing, the sills are covered in dirty soap.

And why I start wcing (part-time) is that I like being looked on as a piece of dirt by custys.

[geefree]

[/
And why I start wcing (part-time) is that I like being looked on as a piece of dirt by custys.
quote]

 

[mr D]

Don`t agree with all of that some yes maybe,you say anyone can WFP i know for a fact that`s not true there`s some shocking WFPolers out there and there the 1`s that scare off potential customers.

Their are also so shockingly bad Trad blokes.  No detailing, the sills are covered in dirty soap.

And why I start wcing (part-time) is that I like being looked on as a piece of dirt by custys.

did i miss something

[Jonathan Spencer]

[/
And why I start wcing (part-time) is that I like being looked on as a piece of dirt by custys.
quote]

 

It was meant to be a joke Gazza.

As I said I only do it part-timebut it is my pocket money so my salary goes to over-paying my mortgage.  I get away from the missus and it is a fall-back if anything did go wrong with my job.  I could do it full-time if I wanted to but I do not get my licence back for 4 weeks so just been doing local.

[mr D]

I still found it strange to here that some window cleaners who use wfp have never or don’t know how to do this job from ladders.

Any new people coming into this line of work in my opinion should be capable to use ladders correctly and have this skill as part of your service.

Combination of ladders and wfp will be better than any window cleaner who only clean using the one method.

Look at all the ridiculous tools people have been making just to clear a typical residential guttering, turning a straight foreword job into a difficult chore. If they knew how to do it with ladders they wouldn’t waste there own time and energy trying to do it from the ground.

 

well put!!

mr spencer. do you pay tax on your w/c round?

[johns window kleen]

I am  time served in Financial Services, 22 odd years, well paid ,good pension and benefits. Took redundancy, as I wanted to do something for myself, and build up a business from scratch, as I was totally bored with bean counting, auditing and having pointless bloody meetings every 5 minutes, and actually doing nothing meaningfull at all.
Wouldnt say I love W/C, as I find it a bit boring, but potentially it is a good business, and you get to meet some really nice & loyal custies, and on the other side of the coin you meet some real nob ends.
The silly arguments on here about WFP V Trad really p me off as if you are any bloody good you can do both to a high standard. Both have there own strong points.
And as someone said earlier its a shame more Newbies havent come on and given the answers Gazza asked for. All take no give ay!!!!

[mr D]

woow woow woow, i didnt mean to start that old chestnut off again i was just saying there is no need to put down window cleaning trad or wfp.

i love window cleaning (when its walm and dry) but i still live in hope of one day fulfilling my life long dream of making it as a pro porno star!!

[lovewindows]

Started Sept 08 so i must be a newbie !
Reasons behind it , obvious bored with old job , didn't / wasn't going to reach the top, not because of lack of talent etc more to do with politics being more important than the ability to do the job. Plus sick of working all hours god sends because it's expected.
Wanted to do something else but not a spring chicken and could only earn decent money by doing what i've always done.
bil had one of those NEW 3 story houses couldn't get a w/c to do top floor paid £7 a month with no sill cleaning said he'd happly pay £10 for top floor and sills , Thought "as you do " 500 houses on his estate at £10 a month = £5k divided by 20 working days = 25 a day divided by 2 man system = 12.5 a day ,divided by 6 hrs = roughly 1 every 30 mins. doddle  pay 2nd man £1.5k a month [ £9 an hr pay own tax ] leaves £3.5k a month for a 5 day 30hr week . BLISS , Then look for another Estate do the same employ people, sit back  take in £4k a month doing nothing .
Ideal world but thats POTENTIAL and THATS why i came into it , at the moment earning nothing like that , finding i'm ok with wfp struggling with Trad [ can't quite get the knack ] but what keeps me going is i have certain hours that i earn £60 , others £0, finding door knocking very hard but i know i've got to get over that, get annoyed when people knock me back with " ohh i've got a w/c " when windows haven't being touched for 6mths.
Anyway theres a newbie answer.         

[supernova77]

I worked in IT for over 10 years... Just got really bored of working in an office day in day out... Started window cleaning in December 2005 and haven't looked back!

I actually enjoyed all the door knocking I did in the first 18 months - I miss all that... Now all my new customers come from referrals / old leaflets that people find / my website etc...

Andy

[Niall McAllister]

I worked for the post office, thinking great early start, early finish, but last year saw the direction Royal mail is heading and realised I started early and finished late.
I was not spending time with the kids, was not going anywhere with the P.O. and was not spending the hours I wanted on other more important things.
I have friends who clean windows and after speaking with them, thought it was worth a try.
Even allowing for the couple of scull fractures, the broken collar bone, and the two months I am enjoying for recovery, I think it was the right choice.
When not recovering, I spend more time with kids, earn the same as i did in the P.O., and have an extra 50hr each month for a real life.

Niall

Oh and I think wfp is the way to go, but trad still has its place

[craig b]

if i was  spencer i wouldnt pay tax as he already does in his full time job...
its only a bit of extra dosh as he says...

[WCE]

Other than you mention the part about the current Credit crunch your questions could apply to all, we all were/are new to window cleaning at the beginning. 

No i had a choice and still operate a profitable pre existing business, the opportuntiy i saw was partly what simon says, but more that i wanted in on the start of new tech and legislation, a classic opp situation, then i found that the internet had changed the way of doing biz too- no collecting, desktop publishing made my own leaflets easy etc.

It's a bit annoying that i should go to the trouble of figuring all this and some herbert can arrive at the same place just because they are out of work or are unemployable and this is their only option.

The most interesting replies would be the 'i am a time served electrician' and I am now window cleaning because....

Fair play discount I agree with that (bet it scares you - we have common ground!) The thing is though will these "Herberts" have the guts to ride out the bad times? (ewan just does not understand this so go easy on him )

[ps outthere]

I used to clean windows part-time 20 years ago, I was a shift worker with plenty of spare time. I eventually owned a business, and then bought a round (4 full time window cleaners)with my son. He found being an employer very difficult so we sold the round. Years later I sold my business and went to work for the council, in finance.

I had had enough of this after a few years and was looking to leave. A friend of mine had a part-time round and had fallen off his ladders, breaking his leg and wrist, I thought this is my opportunity. I bought the round off him and do part-time window cleaning and part-time handyman. The window cleaning round is building up and so is the handyman business.

The window cleaning prices around here are not very good, I try to earn an average of £15.00 per hour, although my new work prices are higher.

I found WFP has cost me about £2500 to set up, including my 4wD Suzuki.

I am udecided which way to grow my business, Window Cleaning or Handyman, and I am very reluctant to be an employer again, I employed 8 staff previously, even more red tape now.  :

I forgot to mention my friend, who is in his sixties, was happy to retire as this was his sixth fall in 4 years.