Doing it wrong….

[steve garwood]

These things have helped me drastically over the last few years....

Decent sign written van with diesel hot water system,electric reel and xtreme poles

Cleaner planner for organising work effectively

Price rises across the whole round...

Your in a very fortunate position in that you have a large,well established round. All you need to do is go fully WFP and put all your prices up....

You should be able to earn more than you earn now(working 6 days a week)in 4 short days per week after 6 months of fully WFP.

Less work,more money,better work/life balance

What's not to like?

You also won't get too fed up with window cleaning when you have a 3 day weekend to look forward too EVERY weekend!

Did this last year after selling some of my round off. Should of done it sooner

 

[dazmond]

That's the thing though, he's grossing £200, not making it, and as you point out after other benefits of being employed he's not actually earning much more than a shelf stacker.when you also deduct his operating costs.

It's laughable to think that a window cleaner earning £200 a day is not much better off than a shelf stacker in Tescos! Its absolute nonsense!

The self employed window cleaner (even after
all expenses,income tax and NI) should be at least £10k- £15k a year better off than a shelf stacker and that's only working around 20-25 hours per week for 46 weeks of the year.

 

[dazmond]

Seems to have spiralled a bit from what the thread was started about. Everyone's work and work rate will probably differ quite wildly. I couldn't do 20 houses a day because I'd be too knackered, but I do know someone that does around 18 (I think) a couple of days of his week and seems be ok. Compact and well organised. For the supermarkets I think it's because they don't really offer full time contracts any more, so you end up with a 5 hour shift, so £60 would be right in that instance. 5 hours is great if you only want 5 hours a day, but also messes you up if you wanted longer hours, or worse if you have a second job to juggle with it just makes the day really long winded just to make a full time wage (have done that before). I'd take 9-3 or whatever hours you do on windows over that any day.

I clean 20-25 houses in 5 or 6 hour days on some parts of my round because they are all virtually next door to each other and I've been cleaning them for many years. I'm 53 years of age too.some have awkward conservatories/extensions and skylights....

I am a splasher and dasher though....I don't care anymore! As long as it's an adequate job I'm happy(and so are my customers)

 

[Part Timer]

It's laughable to think that a window cleaner earning £200 a day is not much better off than a shelf stacker in Tescos! Its absolute nonsense!

The self employed window cleaner (even after
all expenses,income tax and NI) should be at least £10k- £15k a year better off than a shelf stacker and that's only working around 20-25 hours per week for 46 weeks of the year.

What about holiday pay, sick pay, pension contributions and benefits. Does a self employed person get these for free as well.
The guy I was relying to was talking about all day so your 5 or 6 hours doesn't apply to my quote

 

[dazmond]

Hi Everyone,

Thank you so much for all the responses. Really helpful advice and different perspectives. It is time I take the plunge and switch to wfp even just for all the tops on all my work.its just not worth it and I need to make the business work for me. Not me work for it which is what its become. I’m gonna take a red pen to my customer base this weekend. Slash all the customers off which are more hassle than they are worth and come up with a more manageable, structured weekly routine which benefits me on a four weekly and then compare it to running my current workload on a six weekly. Compare the current figures and what will work best with my life.

I’m worn out all the time and this isn’t how should be.

I will let you know how I get on.

Much appreciated

How old are you mate?

Remember there is a way out of your current predicament...

Go fully WFP with a new van and van mount,electric reel and at least a 500L tank...

Every window cleaner I've ever known always say they'll just clean the tops with WFP but then eventually just clean the lot because it's faster,easier and allows you to make more money in less time....

Do you use round software like Cleaner Planner or Squeegee,Aworka, etc?It's an absolute game changer(at least it was for me) for organising work,debt lists and general book keeping...

The great situation you find yourself in is you have a well established large,underpriced round that you struggle to keep up with so I would implement price rises across the whole round,dump any ladder jobs and slap at least a fiver on any jobs your happy to lose. This will cut some work and make your current work more profitable.

Let us all know how you get on

BTW I've been window cleaning for 31 years(17 years trad,14 years WFP)

 

[Windowman72]

I clean 20-25 houses in 5 or 6 hour days on some parts of my round because they are all virtually next door to each other and I've been cleaning them for many years. I'm 53 years of age too.some have awkward conservatories/extensions and skylights....

I am a splasher and dasher though....I don't care anymore! As long as it's an adequate job I'm happy(and so are my customers)

Yes my lad. My way also

 

[Windowman72]

The local window cleaning company where I live have a quota of 43 houses per day. All ladder work though. On some runs people have done the 43 for half 11 or 12. Then they can either go home or work on bonus, where they get half the value of anymore work that they do that day. Depending on which part of the run it is, I've seen people do 86 houses by thereself in a day.

Listen bruv some of these guys on here absolute All depends on windows,house accessibility no conservatory etc. You do you and if it works for you great

 

[dazmond]

That’s 5.5 minutes per house constantly for an 8 hour day including travel etc
Complete boll0x
Too much bull sheite on here now and a bunch of muppets giving advice
I used to like this forum but now am too busy to give this any of my time
Happy to just get on and work now and leave this behind me @Gavin take me off being a mod mate I can’t dedicate my time anymore as I’m too busy
It’s all gone downhill and that is why most of us long time members don’t bother anymore
No hard feelings but I’m done now

Obviously no one can clean 86 houses in a day!

It's totally laughable and says more about the person posting it than anything...

Some window cleaners in general seem to be prone to exaggerating occasionally. I've heard all sorts of BS over the years!

The trick is to keep posting Dave B and don't let the lunatics take over the asylum!

 

[Dave B]

Haha the best you can come back with you little ***** ? Not surprised there's been no pm from you either, there's alot of keyboard warriors like yourself who will say plenty behind the saftey of the Internet who wouldn't dream of saying it to there face as they know what would happen.

I haven’t responded to your offer as unlike you I am a grown up
Also getting banged up for assault doesn’t really appeal to me
Maybe act your age ?

 

[Yogi1872]

Obviously no one can clean 86 houses in a day!

It's totally laughable and says more about the person posting it than anything...

Some window cleaners in general seem to be prone to exaggerating occasionally. I've heard all sorts of BS over the years!

The trick is to keep posting Dave B and don't let the lunatics take over the asylum!

I'm not claiming I can do it because I can't, there's people who can though. Il honestly bet with anyone who thinks this can't be done on certain parts of runs. I'm only talking about glass only too btw. Are you honestly trying to say up and down a ladder twice to clean 3 windows and 3 bottom windows would take anywhere near 5.5 mins doing only glass ?.

 

[Yogi1872]

Obviously no one can clean 86 houses in a day!

It's totally laughable and says more about the person posting it than anything...

Some window cleaners in general seem to be prone to exaggerating occasionally. I've heard all sorts of BS over the years!

The trick is to keep posting Dave B and don't let the lunatics take over the asylum!

Here is houses from one of the runs you can do it. That's the fronts of 2 BTW not one. There's 4 windows at the back between the 2 of them too.

 

[Yogi1872]

Obviously no one can clean 86 houses in a day!

It's totally laughable and says more about the person posting it than anything...

Some window cleaners in general seem to be prone to exaggerating occasionally. I've heard all sorts of BS over the years!

The trick is to keep posting Dave B and don't let the lunatics take over the asylum!

The next street agter the forst picture takes you into this street. 1 window at the front for 4 of them and they only have 2 windows at the back.

 

[Yogi1872]

Obviously no one can clean 86 houses in a day!

It's totally laughable and says more about the person posting it than anything...

Some window cleaners in general seem to be prone to exaggerating occasionally. I've heard all sorts of BS over the years!

The trick is to keep posting Dave B and don't let the lunatics take over the asylum!

These houses are from another part of the run where people have done it.

This is 2 bottom flats amd 2 top flats. They have 2 windows each at the back.

How much of these do you think is possible in an hour. ?

The people who can do it work for a company who do 14k cleans a month btw, so you can imagine how compact the houses are.

 

[Yogi1872]

People have finished 43 houses by just after 11 on the ones in the third pic. I've never done it but it had been done.

if you have been cleaning windows for years, I genuinely don't understand how you can't squeegee just the glass in under a minute. It takes around 15 seconds

 

[Pjj]

People have finished 43 houses by just after 11 on the ones in the third pic. I've never done it but it had been done.

if you have been cleaning windows for years, I genuinely don't understand how you can't squeegee just the glass in under a minute. It takes around 15 seconds

But the main question is how much money are they earning per day not the number of houses if it’s a pound a window they aren’t doing much

 

[Yogi1872]

But the main question is how much money are they earning per day not the number of houses if it’s a pound a window they aren’t doing much

Think there on £12 an hour now. Your meant to get bonus after you do 43. Sometimes hel just say the quotes 58 houses when it's at they parts of the run and for no extra money. People moan yet still do it. He charges £6. All coincil houses on his run are the same price aswell. Some are alot bigger than others and are still £6.

Some of them run up and down the ladders too. One guy who used to be frightening quick knee is basically completely goosed, another one who was quick I've noticed.started wearing a knee brace to his work a couple of years ago. They will need a wheel chair by the time they get near retirement age

 

[Scrubsy]

I visited my Dad in Scotland last week and his window cleaner arrived one morning. All traditional and glass only and they were very fast. It's a well established round (30+ years). It's the main guy and his son in tandem. My Dad's is a very large bungalow and they cleaned it a lot quicker than I could - but like I say, no frames. It's also done either every two or three weeks so they are quite a bit easier clean. If they go at the rate they were then between them I think they must knock out quite a large number. Made me wonder that how much more he earns sticking to glass only, rather than charging more and including frames, as I'm sure that's what my Nan's window cleaner did down here in the south of England a few years ago aswell.

 

[Pjj]

Think there on £12 an hour now. Your meant to get bonus after you do 43. Sometimes hel just say the quotes 58 houses when it's at they parts of the run and for no extra money. People moan yet still do it. He charges £6. All coincil houses on his run are the same price aswell. Some are alot bigger than others and are still £6.

Some of them run up and down the ladders too. One guy who used to be frightening quick knee is basically completely goosed, another one who was quick I've noticed.started wearing a knee brace to his work a couple of years ago. They will need a wheel chair by the time they get near retirement age

Think there on £12 an hour now. Your meant to get bonus after you do 43. Sometimes hel just say the quotes 58 houses when it's at they parts of the run and for no extra money. People moan yet still do it. He charges £6. All coincil houses on his run are the same price aswell. Some are alot bigger than others and are still £6.

Some of them run up and down the ladders too. One guy who used to be frightening quick knee is basically completely goosed, another one who was quick I've noticed.started wearing a knee brace to his work a couple of years ago. They will need a wheel chair by the time they get near retirement age

So guessing they are paid minimum wage or cash in hand with no pension or sick pay ? They would be better off shelf stacking in Tesco surely ?

 

[Yogi1872]

So guessing they are paid minimum wage or cash in hand with no pension or sick pay ? They would be better off shelf stacking in Tesco surely ?

Some are through the books, they don't get much for sick pay though. Most go through for 16 hours so 5 days holiday pay gets split by 16 into 5 so there not worth much.

Guy who owns it started when he was 15 himself, he's 60 now, he's had a very good life from the window cleaning. He hasn't been on the tools in about 30 years l, although he is busy tbh with all the rest of the stuff that comes with it his phone goes every 5 mins.

He has to be close to calling it a day you would think. Not sure what will happen when thay happens. He'd need to break it all up and sell it in parts. Problem is the prices are terrible for any potential buyer though.

 

[dazmond]

I'm not claiming I can do it because I can't, there's people who can though. Il honestly bet with anyone who thinks this can't be done on certain parts of runs. I'm only talking about glass only too btw. Are you honestly trying to say up and down a ladder twice to clean 3 windows and 3 bottom windows would take anywhere near 5.5 mins doing only glass ?.

I don't care what you have to say on this matter mate...its clearly BS...I've been window cleaning for 31 years(17 on ladders).

The only way a window cleaner could clean 86 houses in a day would be if they worked 10 hours that day and just posted a slip through half of them without touching the windows!

 

[Dave B]

I don't care what you have to say on this matter mate...its clearly BS...I've been window cleaning for 31 years(17 on ladders).

The only way a window cleaner could clean 86 houses in a day would be if they worked 10 hours that day and just posted a slip through half of them without touching the windows!

It may be doable but doing bare minimum glass only and missing frosted windows is not window cleaning whatever anyone days
Plus accident waiting to happen running up and down ladders at that speed
Obviously no hse being used and probably using cheap diy ladders and not inspecting them before use or doing regular full checks
When someone does get properly injured due to negligence and not even working on the books legally then that’s game over

Anyway I am stopping being a mod so I can say what I think and not have to be diplomatic anymore
Too many idiots with and sometimes even dangerous advice on here now and I can’t say what I think
Plus no appreciation for what we do

I’m still being offered in private to go meet someone for a row