Picture of the Day + Window Cleaning News

Workers from LA Window Cleaning dangle from the top of the Sovereign Bank Building while cleaning the gleaming structure Thursday. Heights. For some people it’s a phobia, for some it’s a thrill, and for others, such as Dan McHugh, it’s just part of the job. McHugh has been washing windows — dangling from high buildings — for more than a decade. Yesterday, he and his co-workers were shining the 24-story, glass-covered Sovereign Bank Building on Main Street. “We had to learn by watching,” Mr. McHugh, 32, said during a break from the job yesterday morning. The crew, from LA Window Cleaning of Stoughton, is using a bosun chair to access the outside of the building. The chair is attached to rope, which is fastened to equipment on the building’s roof. For buildings higher than 300 feet, workers use a swing stage attached to a steel cable, Mr. McHugh said. The project at the Sovereign Bank Building, with its hundreds of windows, began a few days ago and should be completed in five or six days, Mr. McHugh said.
“There are six of us here now, and 12 guys total,” he said. “They’re all great. We’ve all worked together at least three, four, maybe five years.” Window washers are busy this time of year. They take a break in January and February. Unless there is torrential rain or extreme weather, washers will tough it out and finish up the job, he said. Mr. McHugh will most likely stay in the business, but the position will have to change. “I don’t want to do this when I’m 50,” Mr. McHugh said with a chuckle. “There’s always management. This has been in business since about ’92 and every year seems to be getting better and better.”

The Art Gallery of Ontario's fancy new facade could use a bottle of Windex and a little elbow grease. A $276 million renovation of the venerable gallery, on Dundas St. W. between McCaul and Beverley Sts., was completed last fall and hailed by architecture critics as a work of art itself. The exterior is striking, particularly the arc of curved glass panels that are suspended from the roofline and extend along the length of the building on Dundas. The glass panels draw the eye, which may explain why some people have noticed that they have yet to be cleaned since they went up and are getting grimy. An executive assistant to a Toronto city councillor sent us a note about the grubby glass, saying he'd noticed that someone (probably a construction worker, since nobody else would have access to the overhead panels) had traced "wash me" in the dirt on the glass. We checked it out twice and could not find any messages, but confirmed that the panels are caked with a dusty film. The inner side of the panels, particularly the top portions, which hover above the roof, are not easily accessible, which makes cleaning them a difficult job. It got us wondering how much thought was given to keeping the glass clean when the shiny facade was designed.

Altheide has been an ESL teacher for more than 10 years. By day, he operates Hank's Window Cleaning and has been self-employed in that business for 26 years. He got started with the ESL classes when his College of the Desert Spanish teacher invited him to be a classroom helper so he could practice his Spanish. Altheide then started tutoring one-on-one at the Coachella Valley Adult School and at the Indio Public Library. He got his teaching credential last year in adult education so that he could teach in classroom settings. Altheide said he hopes to help his students live a better life. “These people have all come here from Mexico and one from Central America in search of a better life, and I am helping them lay a linguistic foundation that will help them last the rest of their lives,” he said. Student George Solis, 42, said that Altheide is patient and checks in with students when they miss a class.

Window cleaner admits indecency: A window cleaner from the south of Scotland has admitted a charge of having hundreds of indecent images of children stored on his computer. The discovery was made when Peter Broadbent, 57, of Threave Terrace, Castle Douglas, took his computer for repair after it broke down. Kirkcudbright Sheriff Court heard a total of 456 images was found.
Sheriff Kenneth Robb deferred sentence on Broadbent and ordered he be placed on the sex offenders register. Broadbent admitted committing the offence over a three-month period in 2007. Procurator fiscal depute Joe MacPherson told the court that in July of that year the window cleaner had contacted a firm about his computer which was not working. When an engineer had started examining it he was distressed to find a number of images of young girls. On carrying out a further check it was discovered that there were a total of 456 images of young girls in various stages of undress. Mr MacPherson said police carried out a full investigation and obtained a warrant to search his house. Sheriff Robb deferred sentence for four weeks on Broadbent and called for social inquiry and community service reports to be prepared.

Bartering network helps bring in customers, businessman says: A Chandler businessman discovered a way to increase his pool of potential customers by at least hundreds of people in one simple way: joining the Arizona Trade Exchange, a company that promotes bartering. With his wife, Arlene, Fred Gosielewski owns three Fast-Fix Jewelry and Watch Repair shops - in Chandler Fashion Center, Scottsdale Fashion Square and Arrowhead Towne Center in Glendale.
Being a part of the bartering network brings in customers, Gosielewski said. "Everybody has a watch," he said. "Everybody has a piece of jewelry or a ring that doesn't fit." Here's the simple way the exchange works: One credit equals one dollar. An exchange member buys a watch battery from Fast-Fix for $19.95, but instead of cash, the exchange transfers that credit from the watch owner's account to the Fast-Fix account. When Gosielewski needs his floors waxed, or needs a phone or security system, he finds the service in the directory published by the exchange. With credits, he has bought business cards, signs and banners, window cleaning and glass counter tops. Rob Miller (pictured), president and majority owner of the Arizona Trade Exchange, started the network in 1999. He had owned a large sports bar in Tempe and joined a trade exchange. "Things I had been paying cash for on a daily basis, all of a sudden I was trading chicken wings and cheeseburgers for," he recalled. He started his own exchange. He has a staff of nine and is hiring more. The 550-member exchange is growing, getting a boost from the poor economy. "People don't have as much expendable income," Miller said. "One of my trade members said, 'When the economy was good, I felt I could afford to trade. Now that the economy's bad, I feel I have to trade.' "

A 63-year-old chimney sweep and window cleaner found apparently murdered in her home in Shropshire was a well-known character locally, police have said. West Mercia Police confirmed that Margaret Wycherley was found inside the property in Castle Street, Oswestry. A post-mortem examination established that she died of multiple injuries, a spokesman said. Officers have been given an extension until Saturday to question a 44-year-old man who was arrested in Shrewsbury. Det Ch Insp Dave Morgan said Mrs Wycherley was a well-known character in the Oswestry area, who worked as a window cleaner and chimney sweep. "She was also known for her karaoke singing," he said. Officers want to trace anyone who saw Mrs Wycherley or had any form of contact with her on either Sunday or Monday, he added.

I'll pay it back if I've done wrong (Southend, UK). James Duddridge (pictured) has said he may pay back some of his expenses which he has claimed under the controversial second homes allowance. The Tory MP for Rochford and Southend East agreed to a full interview with the Echo, in the wake of the scandal, which has dominated headlines for the last three weeks. In 2005, Mr Duddridge used £7,000 of public money to refurbish his London flat, before switching claims to help fund a different property in the capital.Window cleaner Marc Waldron, 40, of Poynings Avenue, Southchurch, was in Thorpe Bay Broadway working, and said he understood why MPs took advantage of the system. He said: “Some have bent the rules, but things have been blown out of proportion. I think they should be given an amount of money and not get expenses. “It’s human nature. You see the rules and bend them to see how far you can take it. If I was an MP, I’d play the system. “I think it’s time James spoke to people. That’s all people want, for him to open up.”

An Irish Success For Pilkington Activ™: A brand new mixed use block on Belfast’s Lisburn Road has been enhanced both visually and practically with the inclusion of Pilkington Activ™ Blue self-cleaning glass throughout. The development by PSM Properties, is named Woodlands Manor and stands five storeys high, containing offices and two and three bedroomed luxury apartments. Architects, Coogan and Co have combined a mixture of window styles and types, with PVCu for the residential units and aluminium for the commercial ones to create an interesting contrast of materials. All glazing, however, incorporates Pilkington Activ™ Blue which not only adds colour and character to the development but provides functional solutions by combining dual-action, self-cleaning properties with solar control performance for a cooler internal environment.

The building is adjacent to the busy main M1 motorway and the accumulation of dirt and pollution from the heavy traffic was a significant consideration. The use of Pilkington Activ™ Blue for both the windows and the curtain walling to the offices has reduced the problem significantly. “Cleaning windows on a multi-storey building is always a major headache,” says Victor Bowman, a director of window fabricator Bowman Windows. “Specifying the Pilkington Activ™ Blue self-cleaning glass meant that the design of the overall structure could incorporate larger areas of glazing for high visual effect without having to worry about the hazards and costs of cleaning.”
Pilkington Activ™ self-cleaning glass works through a dual action function. A microscopically thin coating of titanium dioxide creates two reactions by which it continuously cleans the external surface of the glass: first, a benign chemical reaction is caused by ultra violet light, which breaks down organic dirt particles on the surface of the glass; secondly, the coating causes rain to sheet rather than form beads, thus washing the surface of the glass and preventing streaking. The coating breaks down and loosens any dirt that settles on the glass, ensuring that rainwater covers the surface evenly. Woodlands Manor is now completed and provides a visually impacting structure on the road to Lisburn, with the coloured Pilkington Activ™ Blue glass contrasting neatly and sharply with the red and cream of the brick detailing … and for the building owners, occupiers and residents, the knowledge that the task of cleaning such the vast array of glazing is now a thing of the past brings total peace of mind.

Queensland, Australia: Charges laid over highrise death fall: Three companies have been charged over the deaths of two construction workers who fell 26 storeys from a Gold Coast highrise last year. Chris Gear, 36, and Steve Sayer, 52, plunged to their deaths from swing-stage scaffolding - similar to that used by window cleaners - while patching concrete on the Pegasus tower at Broadbeach in June. The company responsible for erecting the scaffolding, which was banned from Queensland work sites immediately after the tragedy due to safety fears, Allscaff Systems Pty Ltd, and its company director Ralph Michael Smith have been charged with breaches of workplace health and safety laws. Two other firms, Karimbla Construction Services Pty Ltd and Pryme Construction Pty Ltd, have also been charged following an investigation by workplace authorities.

Hometemps has announced the launch of its new home service advertising and verification site for home service providers and caregivers. The new web site publishes home service provider classified ads and directory listings. Hometemps also offers advertisers verification services, including customer and character references, employment eligibility, licensing and insurance compliance and screens for criminal and sex offender history. The site is geared toward home service providers such as housekeepers, carpenters, nurses, contractors, cleaners, companions, painters, handymen, electricians, lawn care and others. Unlike home and caregiver service referral companies, hometemps.com charges a low flat annual fee. There are no referral fees.

“We have combined state-of-the-art Internet advertising, technology and background investigation systems to create the only classified advertising site with a fully integrated listing and verification service,” explains Hometemps’ Founder, Kirstan Johnson. Hometemps members can list as self-verified or enroll in one of several different verification and screening programs to earn the Verified by Hometemps designation.
“As the economy stabilizes, boomers age and housing growth flattens, we see good growth in the residential services market, especially for the smallest of small businesses or micro-businesses. Micro-businesses are businesses started by no or low overhead entrepreneurs who work from home or in people’s homes as trainers, pet sitters, cooks, companions, home nurses, window cleaners, handypersons, housekeepers, painters, etc. The types of services micro-businesses need, such as advertising, human resources, customer service and scheduling, must be micro in cost. Our micro-business directory listing plan is a great starting place for these no/low capitalized entrepreneurs,” says Johnson.