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GSS Window Cleaning

Active member
Messages
307
Location
Birmingham
Hi guys I've just made the move of employing someone, a 17 year old lad who's looking for some work who will start in about 2 weeks. I was gonna buy him a water genie back back to use with the idea of ill clean the fronts using the van system and get him to clean the backs or visa versa. I'll be paying him £40 a day till he gets the hang of things. I just wanted to know what would you guys do? Use a back pack or will he spend most the time refilling etc? Or just buy another hose and set that up to the van setup? Hoping taking someone on will really make my buisness boom as currently have 400 houses. What do you guys think? Feel really nervous taking someone on.

 
Get a bilge pump and drop it in the van tank

Fill a backpack in seconds

Send him round the back with it

I can do around 2 whole houses with a 22l backpack full so backs should be no issue

 
Good for you if the lads OK should be good thought about it me sen but can't do with the hassle I like been on me own do what a want I have trust issues though lol..had a few helpers in past all no good.

Hope it works out for you

Back pack should be good mate

 
Brilliant that's what I needed to hear. So lasts at least 2 houses roughly. Won't need a bilge pump as I only use a di vessel ill use a 2 way hoselock connector from the underports one will go to the hose and one will have a tap so he can full the backpack up. Only problem is I have a lot of climbing gates which I will need to address this year so he don't need to climb over.

 
I've worked on my own now for 6 years and I see all the window cleaners around me who make lots of money all have employees so makes sense you should be doing twice the amount of work with 2 men once he's up to scratch. Suppose he's only gotta make £40 then the rest of the days money's mine. I'm just nervous as I worry alot anyway lol just hope I make the right decision.

 
It will take a while to fill a backpack from normal pump

May be easier to make a few 25l drums up at night when you have the time to keep him going

Filling one from the van while working with backpack

I can do 2 average houses on 1 backpack so just backs should be double i would think

When i do just tops wfp i do around 4 houses with 25l

All changes next month with a new van and i have the system ready to drop in apart from tank which i think i have sorted one out

 
I pay £85 a day once trained start them on traditional for a few hours then pole the rest of day trolley and van find the better rate they r on you draw a line of respect but in with that any complaints and they do hem on a Saturday in there own time lol

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I have recently done the same. Took someone on and use the backpack.

Works great. I use the backpack at the moment and he's using the tank as he will naturally use more water than me.

I leave backpack in van and clean closest sides of the house to the van and he goes furthest point. We are still working out best way around things but I suppose it all takes time

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I've worked on my own now for 6 years and I see all the window cleaners around me who make lots of money all have employees so makes sense you should be doing twice the amount of work with 2 men once he's up to scratch. Suppose he's only gotta make £40 then the rest of the days money's mine. I'm just nervous as I worry alot anyway lol just hope I make the right decision.
1 thing i know from experience is 2 people don't work twice as fast unless in seperate vans doing their own work

Not sure why..maybe to do with setting up and packing away etc but it is definitely not double speed

Maybe if you earn 30 quid an hour on your own it would be about 50 quid as a double act

Still a lot more eaned in a day though

 
I have recently done the same. Took someone on and use the backpack.Works great. I use the backpack at the moment and he's using the tank as he will naturally use more water than me.

I leave backpack in van and clean closest sides of the house to the van and he goes furthest point. We are still working out best way around things but I suppose it all takes time

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When working with people i always do it the same way

Do tops

Then to furthest point and do bottoms whether fronts or backs i do the same

Then whoever finishes first can walk to the other side of the house and start nearest to them and you meet in the middle all finished

No hoses tangling or crossing each other

 
Cheers for that didn't think about the time taken to fill a back pack. Yeah think I'll fill the back pack up before work then have it filling up a 25l drum while he works. Just hope it all works out. Paying out wages is gonna feel strange but in theory he should be making me loads more money.

 
Cheers for that didn't think about the time taken to fill a back pack. Yeah think I'll fill the back pack up before work then have it filling up a 25l drum while he works. Just hope it all works out. Paying out wages is gonna feel strange but in theory he should be making me loads more money.
If you've got the room in the van take 3 or 4 25L drums of pure and backpack full when you set off to work. Then once all gone stop and fill whatever you feel you will need for rest of the day.

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What would you do regarding the back pack how much hose would you leave for him to comfortably work? I'm thinking even if he had to climb he could leave the back pack at the gate and just climb over with the pole saves carrying a back pack full of water over.

 
1 thing i know from experience is 2 people don't work twice as fast unless in seperate vans doing their own workNot sure why..maybe to do with setting up and packing away etc but it is definitely not double speed

Maybe if you earn 30 quid an hour on your own it would be about 50 quid as a double act

Still a lot more eaned in a day though
With me an my father in law, it works out that its only around 60% faster over running solo.

 
20m of hose should reach most jobs on a backpack

When i used backpacks i had about 20m hose and dumped it by side gates and did the whole house most times

With a univalve it is a good combo and saves water

 
Yeah was thinking about a univalve myself. I use small taps on my van setup the ones from gardiner but haven't worked out where I would put it on a back pack. Don't think it would be any good.

 
one does the back while 1 does the front, keeps hose from tangling, you have to gel when working duo, if hes never wfp before it will be awkward, but if hes getting cash at 17 that will make him like it more. you will have to be patient, learn him more on a sat / sun for a couple of hours. a uni valve will be a great help. learning him how to use all the equip.

 
It's a lot faster if you are on separate houses . We are only on the same house if it's the last one before we finish that street or area . Much easier to say " right you get 2 , 4 and 6 , . I will start on 1, 3 , 5 . . Your not in each other's way and your not chatting .

 
Firstly I don't employ , But IMHO a good starting point would be just letting him do the downstairs windows and as Johnny Bravo said do some training days or half days . If you have a spare pole already just use the first section or 2 for him with a small amount of hose from backpack this way you can double check his work and ensure he is cleaning all the frames and sills thoroughly .

If you start cleaning the upstairs windows just ahead of him then he starts downstairs windows 2-3 minutes behind you this would avoid hose tangling etc and you are close by to monitor him in this job more so with wfp a mastered technique is everything otherwise if he is left to his own devices from the off or to soon into training the complaints could potentially come thick and fast .

 
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