Tuesday, 25 October 2011

Window Cleaning Secrets Of The Trade

By Grazina Mazur


A clean sparkly window is something that some people dream of but never manage to truly achieve Even after all their hard work they are sometimes left with streaks and smudges that can be frustrating. But with a few window cleaning secrets of the trade, you too can have windows that your friends and neighbors envy.

Cleaning windows takes a certain amount of care, technique and the right tools. You can use some paper towels and a popular window clearer to do a basic job, but if you want neighbors and friends to marvel at your handy work, you are going to need to do more than that.

You never see a professional cleaning a window without a squeegee in hand, so why should you? A squeegee is an essential part of making sure there are no steaks ruining your work. If you have tall or large windows, a scrubbing wand will allow you to make sure they are cleaned properly, quickly. A couple cleaning towels on hand will be necessary for wiping up edges and cleaning your squeegee while you work. One tip that professionals use when it comes to their towels is to wash them several times before use to remove all lint and fuzz.

A good cleaning solution is absolutely necessary; otherwise no matter how good you are at mastering a squeegee, the job is never quite perfect. You can find a lot of these products on the market but a lot of people now choose to make their own. Mixing the right amount of water and dish soap is the key to success. A little trial and error will be needed here. Hard water can leave a buildup of minerals, so when possible, use soft water for your mix. The advice of most professionals is to stay away from ammonia and vinegar in your solution as they can dry out the rubber sealants around the window and crack them. If you have some hard water mineral buildup on the windows, then vinegar used with water will be a big help in removing that.

When you first start using a squeegee, you'll want to practice as much as you can to get the technique down. Don't try to just jump in swinging it all around to what you think it should be, you want to start with the edges. A back and forth motion, then an up and down rhythm is how you'll get the best results, wiping the edges down at the same time. After that is done, go to the top, with your squeegee angled slightly, moving from one side to the other, working your way down to the bottom.

Working fast and keeping the squeegee dry as you work will prevent streaks and smudges. You also want to try to clean the windows early in the day, before the sun comes out to make it impossible to work. Perfect windows require a lot of water and if the sun is shining on them, they will dry faster than you can work.

After using these window cleaning secrets of the trade, you may find yourself rather looking forward to spring cleaning. As you get better and faster at it, your windows will sparkle and be the talk of the neighborhood, maybe bringing pleas of help from friends and family who are still streaking their windows no matter what they do




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