i give up

[headwrench]

ok heres the deal, one of my jobs around the house is to clean windows. how in the hell do you get them clean? when im done they look worse, all cloudy & smeary. what is the secret? im not fond of doing the task but i would @ least like them to be clear. lol what am i missing? thanks

 

[Ric in Richmond]

Go to a glass shop and buy their spray cleaner. We buy this stuff from binswanger glass that is superb.

 

[sharkytm]

Use invisible glass, made by stoner. It doesn't leave any residue. Also, skip paper towels and use old newspaper. Another tip, use a different direction for each side: vertical strokes on the outside, and horizontal on the inside. Then, if there's a streak, you know where it is.

 

[fflintstone]

professional window cleaners use soapy water and a squeege.

 

[jimindm]

Find a dealer for Wurth products. Their glass cleaner is the best I have used. Soap and squeegee work good also.

 

[Average_Joe]

If they won't come clean and it is double pane glass, the seals could be blown.

 

[Automatic Slim]

I, too, use invisible glass, but wipe clean w/ newspaper. The paper (b&w) does not leave streaks and leaves squeaky clean. Great for mirror detail, and windshield.

An old trick from friend's granny, and works like a charm. squeak, squeak.......

 

[NUTTSGT]

Don't do it when the Sun is beating down on the glass.

 

[porschedude996TT]

professional window cleaners use soapy water and a squeege.

Best Success with this comment.

 

[mayday0017]

Vinagar, water, newspaper...

 

[acer66]

I just use a vinegar/water mixture and newspaper as a towel.

 

[-Brent-]

Sprayway and newspaper is what I use. It works well and smells great. The bigger windows get the soapy water and squeegee.

 

[Ryf]

ok heres the deal, one of my jobs around the house is to clean windows. how in the hell do you get them clean? when im done they look worse, all cloudy & smeary. what is the secret? im not fond of doing the task but i would @ least like them to be clear. lol what am i missing? thanks

try a different brand of paper towel if thats what your using. I use the blue shop towels just for glass cleaning, but some brands of paper towels leave milky haze behind. if I have to wipe windows with cheap towels I just use water as it doesn't break up the towels as much. hope that helps

 

[TONE]

A trick my mom taught me was to take a bucket, and fill it about half way with water. Then add just a tiny squirt of Dawn dishwashing soap (no other soap, it must be Dawn). Then fill the rest fo the bucket up with water.

Then use a microfiber towel by dipping it in the water and washing the window. Then wipe off with another micro towel.

Sounds strange, but i'm telling ya, it works!

 

[signcrafter]

professional window cleaners use soapy water and a squeege.

This. Go buy a squeegee and use some soapy water and it will be easier and cleaner!

 

[cgv69]

First you have to get them clean. The best product I have found for that is Bon Ami (http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1277302&cp=2568443.2568448.2626059.12140572.2627318). When I say Bon Ami, I specifically mean Bon Ami and not some other similar product because Bon Ami is the only one that is aggressive enough to cut through just about any type of grease or grime but will not scratch the glass. Comet and others will scratch.

Get the glass wet, sprinkle on some Bon Ami and then start gentle scrubbing with a damp cloth. The Bon Ami will develop into a paste. If the windows are really bad it might need a second pass but usually one through cleaning will do it. After that's done you can use Invisible Glass (with a microfiber towel) to make those windows sparkle better then new.

BTW - Professional cleaners use soapy water and a squeege because it's fast and good enough for windows that have been cleaned on a regular basis, not because its the best way.

 

[headwrench]

thanks guys. sounds as tho im not the only one that deals with this task. i will give it another go using these ideas. thanks again. the power of GJ strikes again

 

[Todd.Brock]

The Can of Pilkington glass cleaner left in my car after the windshield was replaced. It is no streak. I use micro fiber clothes from SAMs club. Works great.

 

[AZ Pete]

A trick my mom taught me was to take a bucket, and fill it about half way with water. Then add just a tiny squirt of Dawn dishwashing soap (no other soap, it must be Dawn). Then fill the rest fo the bucket up with water.

Then use a microfiber towel by dipping it in the water and washing the window. Then wipe off with another micro towel.

Sounds strange, but i'm telling ya, it works!

Add about a 1/4 cup of denatured alcohol and it works even better. I use this with car wash brush, then squeegee. Spot clean with a micro fiber cloth. Don't forget to wash your screens too.

 

[OctoMan]

invisible glass X2 and a lint free cloth.

 

[mmack66]

Vinagar, water, newspaper...

Yep.

 

[Kevin54]

My mom always used vinegar and water and a dishtowel to wash them, then a squeege, to wipe them down, then a clean towel to completely dry them and they were always spotless.

Most of the spray cleaners and / or the paper towels are ****. I use white shoprags that were new, and have only been washed with soap in hot water with NO fabric softener, and the windows turn out good. The wife uses vinegar and water, but I use Glass Plus or the Armor-All window cleaner.

My problem is living in the country. We live in a windy area, and if it starts to rain, it's mud spots on everything.

 

[thebreeze2012]

I was washing my windows a few years ago and they wouldn't clean up well, I then remembered a trick a friend told me in high school to clean the winshields on cars when they are over a few years old, take a razor blade and scrape the surface of glass, being careful not to scratch it. I couldn't believe the **** that had built up on the house windows, I even had to repeat a few times.


Will vinegar take that stuff off? I suppose it could, takes rust off steel.

The newspaper does work great, I also learned that many, many moons ago.

 

[Greatbear]

Clean the frames before cleaning the glass. Often, painted or vinyl clad frames have a chalky residue that transfers to the glass while cleaning, this will leave streaks. CLean the frames and glass with a dishwashing liquid, rinse and wipe dry with towel or squeegee, let dry completely then re-clean the glass with ammonianated or vinegar-based cleaner and b&w newsprint, clean microfiber towels, or paper towels as a last choice. Buff with a clean, dry microfiber towel if necessary.

 

[benchracer]

Dawn dish soap mixed with water, apply with soft brush, use a quality squeegee to wipe. Clean the window frames while your at it. Wipe the squeegee off after every swipe too.
Fast and clean.

 

[mrbreezeet1]

professional window cleaners use soapy water and a squeegee.

used to use a squeegee and a little tide clothes washing detergent in the water bucket years ago at the gas station.
All the customers would ask what I'd use to get the windows so nice.

 

[JakeKohl]

If they won't come clean and it is double pane glass, the seals could be blown.

So a penguin takes his car into the shop to get worked on. While the mechanic is taking a look at it, he decides to head across the street for his favorite vanilla ice cream. When he returns, the mechanic says "welp, looks like you blew a seal". The penguin replies, "nah...I just had some ice cream".

 

[skyking]

So a penguin takes his car into the shop to get worked on. While the mechanic is taking a look at it, he decides to head across the street for his favorite vanilla ice cream. When he returns, the mechanic says "welp, looks like you blew a seal". The penguin replies, "nah...I just had some ice cream".

^^^^^^ That !!

 

[F-117HWK]

Stoner's Invisible glass with newspaper. Just an FYI, its what Stoners recommends (written right on the back of the can/bottle).

 

[hifi_hokie]

What is this "newspaper" thing mentioned...

Only half-joking...

 

[F-117HWK]

What is this "newspaper" thing mentioned...

Only half-joking...

Just in case this was half serious

Spray glass, crumple up old newspaper, clean window. Done.

BTW, did you go to VT? I went to Radford and had quite a few buddies and family members that went there.

 

[hifi_hokie]

I meant more as in the fact that physical newspapers themselves are becoming a rarer item...

Remember hearing a story a year ago or so about an animal shelter in CA having to procure donations of bedding materials for the animals because finding newspapers was getting to be more difficult. Wouldn't surprise me.

And yep, was at Tech from '04 to '09. Was there for the last few years of Quadfest in Radford, before the cops toned it down

 

[F-117HWK]

I meant more as in the fact that physical newspapers themselves are becoming a rarer item...

Remember hearing a story a year ago or so about an animal shelter in CA having to procure donations of bedding materials for the animals because finding newspapers was getting to be more difficult. Wouldn't surprise me.

And yep, was at Tech from '04 to '09. Was there for the last few years of Quadfest in Radford, before the cops toned it down

Well Ill be damned, I was at Radford '05-'09. I came down for the '04 one and they slowly got worse every year. Then JMU's Springfest tried to take over and was shot down after the one crazy year of riot police, tear gas and all that craziness.

 

[pendragon1998]

You guys wash your windows?

 

[Lippyp]

step 1: call the window cleaner
step 2 pay the window cleaner
step 3 head out to the garage

 

[InPrimer]

6 yrs ago, I had a professional glass cleaning service to do my house, it was up for sale and the windows always had a film on them. He tried for several hours to do 8 windows and a bow window. with no luck in fact he refused payment. I have also tried all sorts of products to no avail, so I tried Gel Gloss, it's a fiberglass cleaner, Believe it or not, it cleaned the windows, I now use it to do the 2 glass shower stalls i have, works somewhat like Rain X water just runs off. In another instance I parked our Caddy under a tree in No Cal. whatever that tree sapped out and landed on the roof, hood etc, Tried WD40 to dissolve with some sucess but the Gell Gloss removed all the sticky residue and stains left on the paint(clear coat).I don't sell the stuff or have stock in the company, but I can assure you it saved my *** more than once