More industry events!

You already know about the HUGE convention and what a tremendous opportunity it is to network, learn and grow your business. If you haven't heard about it click here to get in the know. It will be filled with the industry's best classes and seminars as well as a killer tradeshow.

There are a few other industry events in the area you may want to check out. Check out a general synopsis here or read about the most anticipated events below:

1. Jack Kramers Famous Pressure Washing Class

Whether you are new to the pressure washing or roof cleaning industry, want help with cleaning more efficiently, or have employees in need of training, Jack Kramer’s pressure washing class is essential. The class will be on August 11 in National Harbor, Maryland, right before the convention. 

Participants will learn:

• What equipment will best fit your needs – including pressure washers (both hot and cold), GPM, PSI, unloaders, guns, hoses, nozzles, chemical applicators, tanks, and much more

• How to work safely and efficiently

• How to price your job for profit

• Proven methods for washing houses, roofing, and commercial properties– and more! 

Learn more or sign up here.

2. Jeff Scotts High Rise and Safety Class

Jeff Scott of Safety Green Training will offer a High Rise Rope Access / RDS Training class on August 10 through 11 in National Harbor, Maryland, right before the kickoff of the Huge Convention. It will include two full days of training starting at 8 a.m. 

Day one is in the classroom training and will cover the following:

• Management of Safety Equipment in Industry.

• Defining differences and needs for Qualified, Competent, and Authorized Persons.

• Equipment familiarization and inspection for Harnesses, Helmets, Descenders, Fall Arrest Rope Grabs, lanyards and Energy Absorbers, Carabiners, Ropes.

• Fall Factors.

• Personal Fall Protection to include Fall Restraint, Fall Arrest, Work Positioning, Rope Access.

• Knots to include: Figure of 8 on a bight, Figure of 8 Follow Through, Figure of 9 on a bight, Alpine Butterfly, Double Figure of 8 on a bight, Double Fisherman, and Barrel Knot.

• When to use each and how much each weakens the rope.

• Legislation

• Job Hazard Analysis & Work Plans.

• Rigging & Rigging Theory.

Day two provides hands-on training and will cover the following:

• Properly donning your equipment.

• Rigging.

• Mitigating Pinch points and how to properly access your Seat Board.

• Standard Work Procedure and Motion.

• Self Rescue.

• Pick off Rescue of an incapacitated worker.

 Learn more or sign up here.

Please note that a general admission convention ticket does not include these separate off-site events. But these events do come highly recommended as reputable and worth while.

Exceed Uni-Valve

The Uni-Valve from Exceed is the latest water fed pole in line on/off valve from RHG Products.  It's non-intrusive and no permanent modifications to your pole are necessary.  It's also very easy to operate and install, a great add on for those concerned with water conservation on the job. Click below to check out the Uni-Valve Water Fed Pole Installation Video!

How does it work?

While it will only work with water fed poles that have internal tubing, it's super easy to use! Simply, tug on the tubing at the bottom of the pole to start the flow of water.  Tug on the tubing at the bottom of the pole to stop the flow of water.

Watch this demo showing how easy it is to use the Uni-Valve!



Check out the Uni-valve fitted and in action!

Blog Finished?

Chris Lambrinides taking over the window cleaning blog for a while... what have I done!!

Blog Finished? Nah... just taking some time off for moving house for a little while. Being in Spain has it's difficulties, one of them being arranging internet connection & since I'm moving slightly off grid, it's going to take me a while to organise a company capable of getting connected to the big wide web! I expect to resume blogging sometime around the middle of September, after Mark Munro's show.

Meanwhile, I'll leave you in the capable hands of Chris Lambrinides (pictured) & his team from Window Cleaning Resource. Chris is currently preparing for the biggest window cleaning show in North America - the "Huge Convention", so I'm sure he will keep you posted on what's coming up & fill you in with all of the window cleaning based news. Some UK users will recognise that some of the information is USA based, but don't worry, I'm sure the information will be very useful. Thanks window cleaning blog readers... take it easy!

Survey For 1-14 Standard IWCA

A short survey for US based window cleaners.

I-14 Standard: Why It's Important - The I-14 Committee scope is identifying accepted safe practices for window cleaning and the purpose of the standard is to provide safety to window cleaners and to others such as a passerby, where window cleaning operations are in progress, by specifying equipment with practical and adequate safety factors and features and requiring the safe use, design and maintenance of such equipment. Click here to go to survey.

IWCA I-14 Standard Survey: Please note, this survey is being sent to window cleaning professionals within the IWCA database of all affiliations. Please submit feedback regarding the International Window Cleaning Association's I-14.1-2001 Window Cleaning Safety Standard (I-14 Standard).

The IWCA 1-14.1 Window Cleaning Safety Standard is divided into two parts, which are intended to serve as a guide for window cleaners, regulatory agencies, manufacturers, architects, consultants, designers and building owners. Part A focuses on safety guidelines for the use of window cleaning access equipment. Part B is geared toward those who manufacture, distribute, design, install or maintain the equipment. $50

Lucky Escapes For Amateurs

PRECARIOUS: Serangoon residents were shocked to see a maid balancing on a window sill to do cleaning.

Maid's safety in the balance for 15 minutes: Residents of an HDB estate in Serangoon were shocked to see a domestic worker balancing precariously on a ledge to clean windows on Saturday. The incident occurred at about 2.30pm at an eighth-floor unit of Block 539 in Serangoon North Avenue 4, Chinese newspaper Shin Min Daily News reported yesterday.

Ms He, a 40-year-old housewife who lives at a block opposite, told Shin Min that she saw a maid climbing outside to clean the windows. "To see that maid standing on the window sill, grabbing on to the window to clean it without any safety measures on the eighth floor, it really frightened me," she added. She said she had wanted to go over to stop the maid but changed her mind when she saw that there seemed to be other people in the unit.

Another resident, Mr Chen, a 45-year-old construction worker, had also witnessed the maid's actions. "I wanted to shout at her to ask her not to do that, but I was worried that if I did, disaster may follow if she got frightened so I could only watch." Mr Chen added that the maid had spent about 15 minutes wiping the windows, most of the time squatting on the sill.

Madam He said this was the first time that she had seen the domestic worker carry out such a dangerous act. "Luckily, she climbed down safely in the end, much to my relief," she added.

Shin Min approached the maid's employer, who said that the woman had worked at his home for about five months. He said the maid was hard-working although they had some difficulty communicating.

After he saw the picture of the maid cleaning the window, the employer was shocked and said that he did not know she had done such a thing. He was normally away from home during the day, with only his mother and children around. He added that he would advise the maid to be more careful and that he had instructed her not to clean the windows' exterior since it would rain anyway.

Another lucky escape for those DIY amateurs. See below for video.

Lucky Escape For Man Stuck in Compost Bin: This guy stood on top of a compost bin so he could clean his gutters. However, the bin couldn't handle his weight, so he fell through and got stuck. He called for his family to help him, but all they did was laugh at his misery. This homeowner got away lightly & shows another case of how hiring a professional to do the job over DIY can pay for itself many times over.

This could have turned out very badly, luckily the man fell in such a way that he didn't harm himself. But in a lot of cases were knee flex is restricted when landing can cause serious damage. Extended knee landing results in serious deformation of the meniscus and cartilage and increases the risk of bone-to-bone contact and serious knee injury when the load exceeds the threshold safety height. This risk is considerably greater than the risk of injury associated with walking downhill or flexion landing activities.

Fantasy & Freeman

Window cleaner Will KuyKhoven hangs out as Spider-Man from The Advertiser building in Waymouth St., Australia.

Window Cleaner Lives Out Fantasy: Was that Spider-Man scaling the outside of The Advertiser building on Waymouth St this week. In reality it was window cleaner Will KuyKhoven, who finally lived out his fantasy of incorporating his day job with his love of super heroes. “I’ve been doing this job for 12 years now and friends are always asking ‘do you feel like Spider-Man?’ or ‘do they let you dress up?’,” he says.

Mr KuyKhoven, 34, also shares his passion for caped crusaders with his sons Jacob, 14, and Byron, 5, but unlike the Marvel comic books, the reality of abseiling down large buildings is vastly different to the adventures of Spider-Man.

“There are obviously many checks and balances involved,” says Mr KuyKhoven. “We use two ropes, a main one that we work off and a safety line, and where we’re connected at the roof needs to be very secure. “All our equipment is checked and double-checked every time we do a job.”

We’re also not sure if Spider-Man ever had to do the week-long abseiling training in Melbourne that Mr KuyKhoven needed before he began work.

Kevin Smith (top right) became a "Freeman" of Lancaster.

Window cleaner becomes freeman of Lancaster: A window cleaner is among 11 people who have been named Freemen of the City of Lancaster. Kevin Smith from Morecambe will now have the right to pasture a limited number of beasts on the Marsh and enter Lancaster city free from the payment of tolls.

Nowadays the role carries few rights, but remains popular amongst those who are proud of their heritage. Those eligible to apply to become a Freeman include sons or daughters of a Freeman or Freewoman, those who have served an apprenticeship to a Freeman or Freewoman of the city for seven years, anyone born within the old city boundaries or who has lived within the old city boundaries for a period of seven consecutive years. You also have to be 16 or over.

The new Freemen could, in time, also be eligible for their share of an annual payment known as ‘Marsh Grass’. This stems from 1900 when the Lancaster Corporation secured Parliamentary powers under which the Freemen’s rights in the Marsh were extinguished subject to the payment by the Corporation of £13 per annum. Each year the 80 senior Freemen (or their widows) resident within the old city boundaries are entitled to claim the payment.

A Window Washer 3x Quicker - Makes Debut In NZ

Jimmy Haugen, JT Property Wash's business partner, was very happy with how the demo of a robotic window washer went.

Lower Hutt company demonstrates robotic window washer in Wellington: A Lower Hutt company's robotic window washer has been demonstrated in Wellington. The idea by JT Property Wash was to create a machine that could clean the entire facade of appropriate buildings including mullions, seals, facade and windows about three times quicker than traditional abseilers.

The SkyPro Building Wash machine with its automated cleaning technology meant the machines could be remotely controlled and operated safely from the roof and the ground. The machine's brush and spray system did not need chemicals and used water which had been stripped of ions, leaving windows streak free. 

Business partner Jimmy Haugen said that to go up and down a 22-storey building would take 18 minutes. "The main advantages we know this SkyPro machine will deliver are a total building clean done in less time, with more privacy and less intrusion for tenants, giving a much better overall result with increased ease, efficiency, and most importantly safety by reducing the need for abseiling."

The robot, which was imported from America, was weather dependent.  A planned earlier demonstration had to be cancelled because of high winds. The company, which worked all around the country, would use the robot around Wellington.

JT Property Wash account manager Robin Kennedy-Moffat said giving a figure on how much the machine cost was commercially sensitive. "It is a long term investment and partnership with VIU Global that we are very confident will provide many benefits to our customers and our business," Kennedy-Moffat said. 

The machine was very portable and setting up and running the machine could be completed by a team of two people. "We set up a suitable rigging system on the top of the building and at the bottom, if required for added stability, utilising existing features on the building." The rigging system is generally portable unless a building owner invests in a rig that can then stay on the roof of that building. 

Set up time could vary depending on the features present on the roof and the variables we need to work with. "As a general rule the whole rigging system and getting the machine ready to start washing takes less than half a day to set up. If we have the appropriate rigging infrastructure on the roof it can take less than an hour to set up."

JT Property Wash started in 1985 as a division of J.Tomlinson & Co. Ltd, which was a painting company. The washing company had ten gangs as they had had to take on more workers to operate the robot.