The quickest method for cleaning windows with streak-free, crystal-clear results.
Basic Window Cleaning Tools
Keep in mind that the same professional-grade window cleaning equipment is easily accessible online, in home centers, and at full-service hardware shops while cleaning windows. This is what you need:
- Squeegee, 10 or 12 inches
- a sponge or scrubber
- a bucket (a 5-gallon plastic bucket will work)
- Hand soap
- lint-free towels or small towels
- a ladder and a stabilizer for ladders (if needed)
Keep a fresh, razor-sharp rubber blade attached to your squeegee. Buy a few extra rubber blades so you have some on hand. Blades that aren’t nicked or damaged can be given a little additional use by simply flipping them over to reveal a new edge. Make sure nothing touches the blade when storing the squeegee.
Homemade Window Cleaning Solution
Simply mix the two gallons of water with around a teaspoon of dishwashing liquid in your bucket to make the best DIY window cleaning solution. Some people also choose to clean windows using vinegar and water.
Using cold water will extend your working hours a bit in hot conditions. Add windshield cleaning solution until the water doesn’t freeze on the glass if you’ve put off window washing for so long that you’re doing it in below-freezing temperatures.
Cleaning the Glass
Scrubbing the glass at all angles to clean the edges is the first step in cleaning external windows. Make certain to cover the whole surface area of the glass. You may achieve fantastic results right away with this strategy. Although we’re squeegeeing the glass horizontally, vertical strokes also work. If you’re working vertically, squeegee the extra water toward the area that needs to be cleaned.
Make A Starting Strip Clean
Make sure that just the corner of the squeegee touches the glass. Clean a short section of glass from top to bottom on one side, beginning at the top corner of the glass. The horizontal strokes are simpler to begin because of this neat strip.
Squeegee Across the Top
Pull the squeegee blade slowly across the window while pressing it firmly against the upper corner of the glass. Maintain contact between the top of the squeegee and the window’s top edge by paying close attention to this.
Clean the Squeegee.
To remove debris and extra water from the blade, swipe it over the scrubber with the clean towel in your front pocket.
Work Down the Window
Start all over, overlapping the last stroke by about 2 inches with the top of the squeegee. To guide excess moisture downward, pull the squeegee over the glass at an angle. Repeat the process of cleaning.
Get Rid of Excess Water
Using the rag in your pocket, wipe up any extra water at the bottom border of the glass as the following step in washing exterior windows. To get rid of any last suds, run your finger along a dry patch on a different lint-free cloth and go around the window’s edge. Using a fresh section of the lint-free rag, remove any stains. When you can’t discover any new, clean areas, switch clothes.
Squeegees Are Also Useful Inside The Home!
Professional cleaners frequently utilize squeegees indoors, even in homes with stained and lacquered woodwork. The secret to preventing excessive leaking and running when using a squeegee to clean inside windows is to squeeze the majority of the soapy water out of the scrubber.
After each window, rest the scrubber on the edge of the bucket rather than submerging it in the water. You might be able to wash five or ten windows, depending on how dirty your windows are, before washing the scrubber.
To rapidly mop up soapy water that drips onto the woodwork, keep a towel in your pocket to wipe the squeegee. The glass’s edge should be cleaned with a different, clean rag. Cleaning windows is another fantastic use for microfiber cloths.
TIPS FOR HARD-TO-CLEAN WINDOWS
Use a razor blade that is placed in a holder to erase labels and paint smudges. To stop the glass from becoming scratched, always use a fresh blade. Prior to pushing the blade across once, wet the window. To prevent trapping dirt beneath the blade that might damage the glass, rinse the blade and repeat on the following piece. On tempered glass, avoid using a razor blade.
- With a delicate (white) nylon scrub pad, eliminate tree pitch or insect droppings. In order to prevent scratching, wet the glass first and rub in a confined area.
- Use light home abrasives and a regular power drill to remove stubborn glass stains and accumulated mineral deposits from shower doors and other glass surfaces.
- For stubborn stains, use this glass cleaning solution: For a homemade window cleaner, add 1/2 cup of ammonia per gallon of water to help remove greasy dirt.
- By immersing it in a specialized solution like Goof Off, you may remove sticky residue left over by labels or tape. Goof Off may be found in the paint section of hardware and home improvement stores. Then use a razor blade to scrape the residue away.
Washing windows, especially in hot weather is tedious. Luckly, it is one of the things the professionals at HomeSmiles can do at your home during an 18 point thorough inspection and maintenance at your home. To book an appointment at a time that is convenient for you, contact us today.
