FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

​1. What do professional window cleaners use to clean windows?
Professional window cleaners have a few basic staples that they use to clean windows with. I will list a basic window cleaning tool kit that you can use to efficiently and quickly DIY clean your own windows, or use to get a start as a professional.

• A bucket. You’ll need a bucket to carry your window cleaning solution and they are handy for carrying some tools window to window.
• Dishwashing Detergent. This is the magic ingredient for a window washing solution, just add water ;-).
• Squeegee. A professional window cleaners best friend. Most window cleaners will start out cleaning windows with the traditional squeegee. Check out some YouTube videos on how to use them.
• Applicator Mop. Basically, your “applicator” is what you use to apply water to the glass and scrub with.
• Cloth. Towels for the floor and wiping up. Microfiber or scrim for detailing any drips and edges on the window.

There you have it, a basic kit for cleaning windows.

2. How can a professional window cleaner make glass doors and windows so clean and fast when I have a difficult time with Windex and newspapers?
I worked as a professional window cleaner for a summer, and was trained by someone who is better than anyone I have seen before or since.
We used warm water with Sunlight dish detergent. Soap the window with something like a microfiber pad with a handle. Use a single fluid motion to cover the entire surface area (this I could demonstrate in a video, but it’s hard to describe in words).
Then take a squeegee and use the same single fluid motion (it’s like upside-down “U” arcs) to wipe down the window from top to bottom. Then take a rag and wipe along the top of the window to eliminate drips. Depending on the height of the window, you may be doing some of these steps with your pad and squeegee on a pole. But either way, wiping along the top of the window to eliminate drips is essential.
If there is anything stuck to the window (gum, bugs, debris) you may need to use a scraper to remove it after soaping it down but before the squeegee stage.
Using these techniques a single person could clean all of the windows (inside and outside) of a typical-sized fast food restaurant (think McDonalds or a coffee shop) in a half-hour or less. That includes mopping up any drips on the floor inside.
If you wanted to improve your window-washing results without learning squeegee techniques, just try subbing Sunlight dish detergent for traditional window cleaner. My boss swore by it, and it never left spots or streaks.
3. What’s an effective homemade window cleaning mix?
Windows are one of the most likely places to get neglected cleaning-wise. It seems like a larger job than most other cleaning tasks, and so many companies try and sell specialist cleaning solutions, or expensive sprays. But, cleaning your windows can actually be a very quick task, and use stuff that you already have in your cupboards at home. You don’t even need one of those squeegees that professionals use.
What you’ll need:

• Warm water - not super hot, and not cold.
• Washing up liquid / dish detergent
• Cloth / towel for getting wet
• Towel for drying (a microfibre cloth is ideal, but a regular bath towel or dish towel has worked great for me in the past.)

What to do:

• Mix a generous amount of washing up liquid into a bowl or sink of warm water.
• Dunk one of the cloths into the mixture and rub the liquid in circles onto your window until it covers it completely. It’ll drip a bit so you might want to put something on the floor underneath to protect it - or to stop you slipping over!
• Quickly, grab the dry towel and buff dry in circular motions. You want to start buffing before the window has begun to dry. This will help stop water streaks forming.

Note: Cleaning windows on a really warm day can make it difficult to get the results you want, because the water will start to dry before you have the chance to properly buff them dry with the towel. This means they’ll end up a bit streaky. It’s better to attempt to clean windows on a cloudy/warm-ish day if possible.

4. What is the best way to clean a window that will avoid spots, smears and streaking? What are the best products to use to accomplish this?
Many people concentrate on which product is the best when discussing how to best clean windows and avoid streaking at the same time. The truth is, you don’t need to buy special tools, all you need to know is how to use the tools you already have.
Here is how spots and smears form on your windows:

• Cleaning windows on a sunny day: While you might think this is a good idea, because the weather is nice, it actually is one of the don’ts of window cleaning. The main reason is that sunlight dries window washing detergent rather quickly. By the time you scrub and wipe the dirt from the glass, some of the cleaning liquid will have evaporated, leaving white spots.

Pro tip: If you have no other choice than to clean windows on a sunny day, start by washing the windows, which are not under direct sunlight.

• Not washing your cleaning tools: Washing anything with dirty equipment is bound to leave streaks and smear more dirt on whatever is being cleaned. That’s why you must wash all of you tools prior to cleaning your windows. In addition, use an old lint-free cloth to soak the dirt and excess water from the squeegee every time you wipe the window glass.
• Cleaning with newspaper: Many swear by newspaper as the most efficient way to polish windows. However, depending on the type of paper and ink, you might leave inky residue on the glass, as well as colour the frames and your hands. It’s better to use a squeegee for the panes and a lint-free cloth for the frames.

Pro tip: If you want your washing cloths to remain lint-free, don’t wash them with a fabric conditioner.

• Change the washing liquid: If you need to wash many windows and decide to use the mop and bucket technique, make sure to change the cleaning solution in the bucket on a frequent basis. Otherwise, you will spread dirt from the first windows you washed to those which remain to be cleaned.
• Not cleaning the frames before washing the window glass: Another very common window cleaning mistake. This is due to a mix of dirt and cleaning liquid streaking from the frames down the already-washed glass. To avoid it, reverse the process: clean and wipe the excess water from the frames with a clean towel, then proceed with washing the panes.

I hope this helps!

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