Pimp Your Ettore Contour-Pro Squeegee to Clip-less

Ettore Contour-Pro lovers may find this a useful modification to their beloved squeegee handle. Why Ettore didn't make it so it could hold clip-less channels the first time round makes me wonder? Ettore never got back to me as promised either! You may remember a previous blog where Mark Strange from Toronto, Canada talked about the benefits of this unique tool.

First of all to DIY or pimp your "Contour-Pro" you will need a Ettore Master Stainless steel squeegee, usually one of the cheapest on the market (4 quid/$6) - & it comes complete with handle & channel. What you are going to do is swap the holding plate over with the Contour-Pro one.

Just remember to take the nuts off slowly & don't loose the springs & note the pins that go in to the nuts as shown in the first picture. Click the pictures to enlarge the photo & read the writing.

Window Cleaner Cleans Up for Childrens Charity

A window cleaner has cleaned up for a children’s charity collecting a £700 donation from the Federation of Window Cleaners. Jim Savage (pictured above with Beryl Murray of the FWC), from Bredbury, won a competition for having the most published newsletter articles in two years and decided to donate his winnings to children’s charity, MedEquip4Kids.
MedEquip4Kids raises money to provide medical equipment for children’s wards and neo-natal units at hospitals across the North West and recently presented Stepping Hill Hospital with a fetal monitor used to keep check on a unborn baby’s heartbeat during high-risk pregnancies. Jim has been a supporter of MedEquip4Kids for several years and has already raised hundreds of pounds by raffling fretwork clocks he makes himself. Jim – who keeps the windows of Poynton sparkling – developed a love for clock-making four years ago and now spends around 30 hours a week creating the intricate pieces.
MedEquip4Kids’ community fundraiser, Sarah Bennett, said: “The attention to detail Jim gives to his clocks is incredible and the income he makes from raffling them is much appreciated by us so, to have the £700 donation from the Federation of Window Cleaners, is an added bonus and we are very grateful to Jim and the federation for their generosity.”

More Reasons for Professional Window Cleaners

Potters Bar (Hertfordshire, UK) pensioner dies cleaning window: A pensioner died after she accidentally fell while cleaning her kitchen window, a coroner confirmed. Mother-of-four, Anna Casali, of The Drive, Potters Bar, fell 4ft as she leant out of her bungalow window on October 28 last year and suffered “catastrophic” injuries to her head, Hornsey Coroner's Court heard. In a statement read out by the coroner Andrew Walker at the inquest on Thursday, neighbour Tamsin Aston described seeing Mrs Casali, 68, leaning “quite a way” out of the window. “It looked as if she was reaching for something,” the statement continued. “She tumbled out sideways very fast and suddenly. I waited for a short time to see if she got up; she didn’t.” Ms Aston called 999 and paramedics attending the scene, reported seeing large amounts of blood from an injury on the side of Mrs Casali’s head as she lay unconscious. Mrs Casali, a former waitress, was taken to Barnet Hospital where her condition deteriorated and she died in the early hours of October 29.
Neurosurgeons who analysed brain scans noted Mrs Casali had suffered a major brain injury. There was extensive haemorrhaging but no fracture to her skull, although surgeons recorded it as a “catastrophic injury”, the inquest heard. Two of Mrs Casali's sons and a daughter were in court to hear Mr Walker record a verdict of accidental death. “There is nothing I can say to make this any easier for you to bare,” he told them. “Mrs Casali died from a head injury. I am satisfied that it was the result of an accident.”

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Mr.Squeegee & the 10 Foot Snowman

Mr Squeegee (aka Tony Evans) of New View Window Cleaning in Wellman, Iowa gives us a taste of the weather & cleaning windows in cold weather: this week "scheduling."

Thumbs up for 10ft Giant Snowman on the hills: It was a glorious sunny day on Saturday (7th February 09) with inches of snow covering the ground, rather than sitting at home doing nothing all day. AboutMyArea site editors Karen and Jamie gathered the family round for a trip up to the hills towards Honiton and made a giant snowman to the amusement of passing motorists. As the snowman was slowly building its way up, amazed motorists were hooting, giving the thumbs up and even stop to take a picture with their camera and mobile phones. A passing police van stopped by to admire the snowman much to the amusement of the officers inside but unfortunately were not able to give us a helping hand. Several motorists have returned to see how we were progressing.
Jamie Wadham (left on photo), local window cleaner (Crystal Windows) brought his ladder to create the head and add a finishing touch to the snowman's face. Steph who is the tallest 5'6 with the giant snowman stands happily at just over 10 ft high. This had taken over 3 hours and they've thoroughly enjoyed the day and brought a smile for the motorists on their travels.

In the same area: Police warn of window-cleaning con (North Somerset): Police are warning householders in North Somerset to be on their guard after reports of homeowners being conned out of cash by a man offering a window-cleaning service. Officers are investigating more than 30 such incidents in which a man has cold-called, cleaned the windows, then taken payment up front for a year's work and not been seen again. Clevedon Neighbourhood PC Nick Butler said: "Our advice to anyone who needs work done on their home is always to get three quotes from reputable firms – ideally with a personal recommendation from someone you know. "Trading Standards does have a website of approved traders available online.

See more "snow" window cleaners here from a previous blog.

Don the Window Cleaner Visits the Guru

Don the window cleaner of pod-cast fame, also featured in other blogs on this channel has re-hashed his website called "Don the window cleaner" & will now be giving out information & advice besides carrying on his pod-casts. His forum is still active & feel free to sign up

Don is a website designer, blogger, photographer, local political analyst, and also has over 60,000 hours in the WINDOW CLEANING BUSINESS since 1981! He started out absolutley broke, on food stamps, unable to pay the rent, and wrote a bad check for a squeegee to start his business in Gainesville in Florida during a recession! If you Join now, then go to the downloads page and get the 12-page White Paper on getting started with route sales. This will get you started in the business, and you can start laying the foundation for your business tomorrow! Or today, if you are reading this early enough in the morning!

After that, stay up to date with advertising methods, downloadable templates for sales letters, fax proposals, software tutorials, personal videos from Don, and responses from the latest email and voicemails. This site is your web magazine that carries materials specifically made for the self-employed window cleaner. Click on Don's picture to take you to his new website. This pod-cast, Don tells us how he visited Knoxville, Tennessee for a little advice.

Here is Don working away on a bitterly cold morning...

Poor Man Window Cleaning

If you're feeling sorry for yourself because you're a victim of hard times, you might want to consider Brian Hoyt's story. Hoyt washes windows for a living. But he wasn't always a window washer. He used to be a computer network administrator. He wore expensive clothes, drove a BMW, lived the so-called good life. That changed in 2001, when he was riding his motorcycle and a hit-and-run driver left him unconscious by the side of the road. He had to have three back surgeries, his boss fired him for missing too much work, and he spent three and a half years in physical rehabilitation. Poor for the first time in his life, he was denied benefits "because I was a single white male. I'd lost my job and couldn't work at all. I went in to apply in a wheelchair with my arm in a sling and a morphine drip, and they said they couldn't help me."
A hard-luck story, right? Not really. Instead of thinking of himself as a victim, Hoyt made the most of what he had. "I had a roll of paper towels and some Windex. So I went up and down Fairview and Milwaukee and said, 'Hi, I'm Brian, I'm poor, and I need to wash your windows so I can eat tonight." It was a hard sell at first. But once he got past what he calls "the gatekeepers" to business managers or owners, "people were really nice." His first clients were the Paper Cottage and Rent-A-Center. And he made a deal with Papa John's to pay him in pizzas, so he didn't have to worry about going hungry any more.A friend gave him money for a squeegee, a squirt bottle and more paper towels, and a small business was born - Poor Man Window Cleaning.
Only a small fraction of the businesses he approached hired him. One of those that didn't was Schlotzsky's Deli, where he met cashier Beth Straker. "He didn't get the windows, but he got me," she said. They were married five months later. Over time, the business grew enough that Hoyt was able to buy an old truck and better equipment. He says he's "come a long way from Windex and paper towels." He now has a pressure washer and reverse-osmosis purification system that reduces labor time. And he's expanded from washing only businesses' windows to doing residential windows and cleaning sidewalks, awnings, signs and building exteriors. Things were going pretty well until last year.
Sound familiar? "In June, my phone almost didn't stop ringing with customers calling to discontinue because of hard times. I lost half of my business in 2008." This year hasn't been any better. From working 23 days a month, he's down to nine. In November, someone backed into his truck and knocked his 18-foot ladder through one of his truck's windows. The culprit left a one-word note, "sorry," but no contact or insurance information.
"It's not a good time of year to be driving around without a window," he said. Three days after Christmas, an ember in an ash bucket beside their fireplace ignited and caught Hoyts' house on fire. It had been five days since they'd had a fire in the fireplace and the ashes were cold, but one ember at the bottom of the bucket was all it took. The damage was covered by their insurance, but they had to move out for a month while it was repaired. Hoyt still goes to therapy for his injuries. He has migraine headaches, and he says the accident destroyed his photographic memory. "I used to remember everything. Now I have to write everything down." He's not complaining, though. Not even a little bit.
"I'm a happier person than I was before the accident," he said. "I'm nowhere near as motivated by money. I used to be really into clothes and the look and the way I presented. What I've learned is that every day is what you should live for. Without that first breath of oxygen in the morning, it doesn't matter what else you have." I asked him if he ever felt like the writers of the classic blues lyric, "If it wasn't for bad luck, I wouldn't have no luck at all." "There's a lot of Irish in me," he said, laughing. "Luck o' the Irish, potato famine. But I'll tell you another thing I learned. "Then he said something we'd all do well to remember. Words to live by in hard times.
"You can cry in your beer or do something about bad luck. It's only as bad as you let it get."

Squeegeeology & Other News

Sid Graef, a 15 year veteran window cleaner describes his marketing system for the US market. Sid owns "(A full) Spectrum" window cleaning in Missoula, Montana & has just started a blog called Squeegeeology.

Window-washing notices not a scam, ORL says (Boston University): Suspicious window cleaning notices posted in six South Campus apartment-style residences last week, originally thought to be a hoax, were determined to be legitimate, Boston University administrators said. The Office of Residence Life alerted South Campus resident assistants last Tuesday to an alleged window cleaning hoax after flyers appeared on residence doors notifying students of indoor window cleaning to take place that week, ORL Director David Zamojski said in an email. The notices, which lacked a BU logo and contained typographical errors, requested that students either move belongings away from the windowsill or hang a note on their door declining service. ORL verified the flyers over the weekend with the company contracted to clean windows, Zamojski said. RAs were then notified that the notices were real on Monday. Window cleaning took place as scheduled last week, Zamojski said.

PPDG also specialises in supporting unemployed Teessiders to set up their own business. A major success story is Robert Ramsdale, who set up his own window cleaning business. “My coach was great and identified what training I needed in order to set up my own business,” said Robert. “Even months after establishing my business, my coach was still available to help me with any queries I had.” Robert Windows’ client list has grown from seven to more than 270 residential and business clients over the past two years and continues to go from strength to strength. PPDG has helped more than 1,000 employers within the region by supplying job-ready candidates and Mark Harrison, Redcar centre manager, said the organisation prides itself on tailoring its support to each client. “We have a wealth of support packages available and dedicated staff who work tirelessly to support people into sustainable employment, which is very important at this time.

Top safety accreditation for David Morris Window Cleaning: David Morris Window Cleaning is one of the latest companies to join a leading edge scheme, designed to help industry improve its safety record. The Cornwall based firm, which employs four people, recently received accreditation from SAFEcontractor, a program which recognises very high standards of Health & Safety practices amongst UK contractors. The company's application for SAFEcontractor accreditation was driven by wanting to set new standards of safety in the window cleaning industry. Specialising in the commercial sector with a rising client base, the company has doubled its turnover in the last 12 months. Recent clients include Marks & Spencer, The Tate St Ives, The Porthminster Hotel and many other landmark buildings. "We are delighted to have achieved the SAFEcontractor accreditation," enthuses David Morris. "It shows our clients how committed we are about their Health & Safety obligations while we are cleaning on their premises. So many businesses don't understand their obligations when employing window cleaners and we believe this is a step in the right direction to give them a choice of who to consider when employing window cleaning services."

It’s a fresh start: Window cleaner Michael Parle, 25, from Llanedeyrn, Cardiff, also said business was picking up. Having launched a leaflet and telephone marketing drive with the help of his mum, the former St Illtyd’s Catholic High School pupil, who started his own business to build a brighter future for his daughters Michaela, two, and Demi Renee, eight months, has got Cymru Cleaning Services off the ground. “I already have a few regulars and, as there aren’t that many window cleaners around, I’m always picking up more. “It’s been a fairly slow start, but I am still glad I started my own business. I’ll just have to see where it takes me now.” With high hopes for expansion in the future – he hopes to move into carpet cleaning, floor maintenance for shops and office and household cleaning – Michael stays upbeat even when business is quiet. “I do have quieter days,” he said. “But even then I will go out delivering leaflets and will spend some time developing my website.”

Sunnyside Window and Pressure Cleaning are one of the many businesses' using Google Search Engine Advertising to grow their Business. In this video Jan, the owner of Sunnyside window cleaning shares how ineedhits Easy Search Advertising Service has helped to grow his business.

High service standards help Greenscape scoop internationally recognised mark: A Black Country-based gardening and cleaning service is celebrating today after being awarded a government backed award for Quality Standards. Greenscape Estate Services, based in Wednesbury, is one of only a handful of UK businesses to be awarded the Quality Management Systems ISO 9001 certification. Phil Greaves, Business Development Manager at Greenscape, said: “We have a great team of staff who strive to ensure that our clients are satisfied with the services we provide, this award is testament to their hard work and commitment. “We have always been proud of the service that we offer to our clients and the way that we conduct our business. Now with the award of this certification, this has been confirmed by outside experts who are use to judging standards on a daily basis in a wide variety of trades and industries.” Greenscape works for its parent company Accord Housing Association, other Housing Associations, the NHS, local residents and private companies in the West Midlands area. The company offers a range of services including, grounds maintenance, tree surgery, landscaping, commercial cleaning and window cleaning.

Window cleaners need to be licenced: Central Scotland Police carried out a joint operation with Falkirk Council to target unlicensed window cleaners. Within two hours of the operation starting, on January 13, three window cleaners were detected working in the Bonnybridge area without a licence. They received a warning letter and then applied for licences which have since been granted. Sergeant Derek Simpson, licensing officer, said: “Checking window cleaners is an important part of our business. These people are permitted access to private property, often unsupervised. It is essential that these individuals are trustworthy and are not going to abuse that privilege. “The licensing system allows us to check the background of window cleaners and prevent anyone who might be dishonest obtaining a licence to clean windows. Over the coming weeks we will continue to carry out checks along-with Falkirk Council staff and we will take enforcement action against anyone found working unlicensed.” Brian Douglas, Falkirk Council’s Licensing Co-ordinator, said “It is a legal requirement for window cleaners to be licensed before they can clean windows in the Falkirk area. This applies to cleaning both residential and commercial premises. We consider it is important that members of the public who allow window cleaners onto their private property should be able to do so safe in the knowledge that they are bona-fide operators who have undergone the relevant vetting and are properly insured.”

Sovereign Windows & Doors (Australia) new range of products incorporate the latest in Venetian technology, which allows high performance in terms of thermal efficiency with “U” values of 0.78 for the whole window. The new windows feature the versatility of Venetian blinds that never need cleaning. The new fibreglass energy efficient windows, with Venetian blinds inside a double glazed unit, are alternative to uPVC, Aluminium or Timber. These fibreglass windows are suitable for awning, casement, fixed and sliding doors. Standard sizes in white are available for early delivery and non standard or colour matched Venetian blinds by special order. Sovereign Windows & Doors specialise in the fabrication of pultruded fibreglass windows and doors. Sovereign Windows & Doors utilise pultruded lineals and some completed product to create an innovative range of fenestration solutions. Sovereign Windows & Doors create high performance products with a wide range of glazing offerings from Heat Mirror Super Glass to a full range of Dual and Tripane glass with low e and Super Spacer.