How to clean windows yourself – tips from a professional window cleaner

In this short article I will explain some steps on how to clean windows yourself – Tips from a pro window cleaner. Have you ever wondered how to clean windows yourself? Im a professional window cleaner and I’m going to give you tips on how to clean a window.

Many people ask me: how do I clean windows myself-without professional gear?

Step 1. Buy the right gear to clean windows yourself

When cleaning their windows, some feel that they need the best gear. Others think that just by spraying down their windows with tap water, their windows will be amazingly clean! Well, i’ll tell you that you can clean your windows professionally, even with relatively basic gear. Ill also tell you, tap water is probably the worst way to clean a window! So how can you clean windows yourself? In this list you will learn how to clean windows yourself and hopefully pickup some tips from a pro window cleaner.

What do I need?

Here is a short list

1. Microfibre cloths   
2. Plastic squeegee
3. Detergent
4. Magic eraser
5. Scraper

Many of these you can find at Bunnings or amazon/eBay so if you want them, you can find the link above.

Step 2. Prepare to clean the window

What you need to understand about cleaning windows yourself is that there are different parts of the window.

It is generally best to wipe down the frames AFTER you’ve cleaned the window pane. This is because the water will drip onto the frame. If your tracks are really dirty you can either use the water that you’ve taken off the pane or wipe the dust out before. It really depends on what and how much is in the track itself.

1. Grab one of your microfibre cloths and dip it fully in water and apply some detergent. When using a cloth to wet the window only use a little bit of detergent as it goes a long way. The most important thing you want when applying the detergent is: cover the whole window withs suds. If you have any hard bits on your window you may need to scrub a little bit. Make sure that its quite sudsy.
2. Get your squeegee ready; the detergent dries pretty quick.

Step 3. Squeegee the window clean

You may be thinking, “but I don’t know the proper window cleaning technique” and thats ok.  Remember you’ve got some pretty basic window cleaning equipment so its not going to be complicated.

There are many ways you can use the squeegee but honestly, the easiest way to clean it would be the “straight pull.”

Even many professional window cleaners still use the straight pull.

How to do it:

Start in a top corner to for clean windows 

Put the squeegee on the window pane right at the top. If you pull straight down with the squeegee you will still have some water at the top of the window. So, before you pull you will need to “scrape the water off the top” of the window pane with your squeegee before you start the pull, just a little bit. You’re just trying to clean remove the suds at the top of the pane next to the frame so that when you pull down there is no water left there. You can alternatively wipe the top of the pane next to the frame with a microfibre and just start your pull lower

Pull straight down to clean windows.

Imagine your just pulling a string to lift up your curtains. Its pretty much the same motion. Remember when you hit the bottom you can either “flick” the squeegee away from the window to remove to water (if you’re outside this is ok but inside its not advised) or wipe the bottom with another dry cloth.

Example of a small window. A larger window you will need to clean in sections.

Work your way across to clean the windows

You’ve just cleaned a small section, so work your way across and clean the rest of the window continuing the straight pull. Sometimes you may need to use the squeegee a few times depending on the size on the window. Pro tip: angle the squeegee when pulling down so the water runs up the channel and doesn’t leave a streak mark.

Essentially, there is nothing wrong with the “straight pull when cleaning your windows. Imagine that your pulling on the string that lifts a curtain up. Thats it!

4. Use your microfibre, scraper or magic eraser to finish the clean window

At this point your window probably looks pretty clean. But wait a minute, you see a sneaky streak mark. What do you do?

1. Grab your microfibre and looks for any streaks. Make sure your microfibre is really dry and slowly wipe the streak in one direction.
2. If you see anything heavy still on your window grab your magic eraser and slowly rub the mark off.
3. If you have stickers or tape on your window you will need a scraper. Pro tip: be very careful when using a scraper; do not etch it hard into the window as you may scratch it.
4. Pro tip: Take a step back around 1.5 metres if you can and just look at the window. Sometimes it can be hard to see all the dirt or streak marks up close. When you take a step back you can often see things you’ve missed.

If you are struggling to clean your windows or you just have too many or some too high please give us a call. Our website is www.wishywashywindows.com.au.