Knock, knock. "Do you need your windows cleaned?"
When Richard Fabry, a window cleaner in California, first started out in
the business, he used to walk around a neighborhood and approach each house.
He would stride up to the front steps and calmly ask if they wanted cleaner
windows.
"That part was actually very easy," he says. "You just have to go to the
right neighborhood and start asking." Fabry says he enjoyed working that way
because he could choose the neighborhood where he wanted to work.
"I had absolute freedom to choose the environment where I wanted to work,"
he says. "I also loved the feeling of working outdoors, and doing a quality
job. It's almost like meditation. You work quietly and, in the end, get something
accomplished."
Working outdoors is a perk for window cleaners. However, cleaners also
have to venture indoors if clients want both sides of a window cleaned. Often,
this is no different than cleaning a pane from the outside, but sometimes
it can be frustrating.
A heavy leather couch is pushed up against the picture window. Beside it
is an antique table loaded with porcelain dolls. How does the owner expect
you to get to the window? "There can be all kinds of knick-knacks along the
window ledge," says Fabry. "It can be really frustrating dealing with that
kind of stuff."
Making sure that you don't track dirt across the floor or leave fingerprints
on the wall can also be difficult. "I've gone into places that have white
carpet everywhere, and I have to make sure that I don't drip or get one spot
on the carpet," adds Fabry.
"It can be pretty physically demanding work," says Cathy Blewett of the
International Window Cleaning Association in Virginia. "You can either do
storefronts where you might just be on the ground or climb up the occasional
ladder."
That type of work is easy enough to handle. "Even still, you have to haul
equipment and work all day," says Blewett. "But the work can be even more
strenuous. Some other window cleaners go up scaffolding and do high-rise buildings.
They have to use safety equipment. That doesn't suit me."
Those in the window-cleaning business don't necessarily have to pick up
a chamois. "If you own your own business, you can become involved in supervising
others," says Blewett.
Now working for the window-cleaning association, Blewett compiles cleaning
information for others, helps members find the right equipment and supplies,
and helps coordinate window-cleaning seminars. "I help get things organized,"
she says.
Cameron Roelofsen is a window cleaner who specializes in cleaning high-rises.
"This is for people who have a passion for working at great heights," he says.
"There's no doubt that it's an adrenaline rush."
Roelofsen says beginning window washers don't start on the 40th floor.
"Most people work for a home service, and get experience cleaning and working
from ladders," he adds. "They need in-house training on how to clean windows
quickly."
Once a window cleaner decides that she wants to hang from rooftops, Roelofsen
recommends taking a suspended access course. Roelofsen himself teaches this
course to window cleaners, painters and other outdoor workers.
"I get a lot of 25-year-olds who have a passion for rock
climbing and want to earn some money while they practice what they love,"
says Roelofsen. "Some people are attracted to this kind of work for the sheer
enjoyment of working at great heights."
Washers need to learn how to hook up at the top of buildings, what safety
lines are needed and what other safety precautions need to be taken.
"Each building is different," says Roelofsen. "You don't want to take a
long time figuring out where the tie-ups are. You have to be fast when you
get to the top and set up." Of course, you want to balance that by making
sure all the safety precautions have been met.
Hanging from the side of a building isn't for everyone, but Roelofsen says
he loves the work. "You get to be outdoors, and you often have a fantastic
view.
"I look out from a building and see the city below, and the ocean and the
mountains," he says. "It's fantastic to be up there."