hello world!
Exterior window cleaning is something that we did as an add-on about three years ago. We're not window cleaners. I don't know all the ins and out about window cleaning, but I do know that this is a great add-on for a power washing business, and we upsell this probably 50% of the time, just by putting it in our package. People tend to go for that middle package.
That being said, window cleaning is pretty good money for what it is. We don't do exterior window cleaning by itself. We only add it to our packages. Because most people that want window cleaning, they actually want inside and out, and we prefer not to go inside customer's homes because of the added liability.
When we add window cleaning on we start around $100 for a small house, and then it goes up from there. For our middle package, added on to our typical house, we would charge an additional $250, for a service that takes less than half an hour to do, from pulling the hose out, washing the windows, everything.
We start with a hose reel coming off of the truck. The hose runs into a standard water tank. From there the water comes out of the water tank through a 12 v pump and into a De-I tank. The De-I tank reduces the Total Dissolved Soilds (TDS) in the water from over 200 to less than 15, then the hose goes through another hose reel with a super-swivel on it, then extends out to a water fed pole on the end that is held by the technician as they work.
The goal is to not only clean the windows, but to clean them spot-free. Leaving spots on windows is one of our top reasons we get callbacks from customers, and every callback not only wastes time, but lowers your customer satisfaction and eats into your profits, so leave those windows spot free!
The hose we prefer is the Flex Gorilla. it's flexible, tough, and works really well. We like the 200 ft length because it can extend all the way around the house, making it easier on our crew.
We recommend you have a swivel on your hose reel. We use the Super Swivel on most of our trucks, but sometimes you'll have a hose reel that comes with its own and that will work for you as well. You want a swivel that allows the hose to roll off & on the reel easily, and doesn't leak.
Getting the Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) in your water to less than 15 is what will keep spots from forming on the window. Normal water is greater than 200, which is why using a DeIonized Water Tank (or De-I Tank) is so important.
As i mentioned earlier, we do not go inside customers' homes, including removing screens. Most screens need to be taken out from the inside of the window, so we inform customers that they will need to remove them prior to their appointment. But why?
If you go into people's houses, you need to be bonded. If you have an employee who goes into a home and accidentally breaks something, or steals something, your company is liable. So, that's the primary reason why we stay outside of homes when we do our outside window cleaning.
I really do believe that exterior window cleaning is an awesome add-on for a pressure washing business, bringing in significant extra revenue for relatively little additional work.
It's also a great example of why I recommend offering your services in packages. The majority of customers will select the middle package, so make sure you have an odd-number to select from, and make sure that middle one is worth your time.
Some examples of things you can add-on to create packages: using warm water instead of cold water, adding exterior window cleaning to a service, adding driveway cleaning to a service, adding house wax on to a house washing service, etc.
