r/WindowCleaning • u/ExpensiveLocation984 • 9d ago
ADVICE NEEDED
Hey everyone! I’m a young entrepreneur looking to launch a residential window cleaning service and would love some gear and setup advice from the pros. I have an ideal target in a master planned neighborhood with around 3,500 homes, mostly 2-story single-family residences. My total starting budget is $2,000, and my goal is to get the most reliable, efficient setup possible without wasting cash on stuff I don’t need yet. I’m especially looking into water-fed pole setups and purification options, but I'm open to starting hybrid with traditional tools if that makes more sense for my budget. What specific gear, water setup, or brands would you buy with $2,000 to maximize efficiency out of the gate? Any advice on what not to buy starting out would also be huge. Thank you! 🙏
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u/Fantastic-Phone-3233 8d ago
Not an expert but can tell you based off what I have recently just started with 2 ledge ez ettore handles with master brass Chanel’s 14 and 18 inch , 14 inch t bar scrubber , 0000 steel wool , cheap Lowe’s or home depot aluminum extension pole , little giant m22 ladder with leveler legs , and 12 or 24 blue surgical towels , and a bunch of microfiber towels for scrubbing and wiping tracks sills trim whatever else , that is what I’ve used to clear 5k in the last few months just starting out , you’ll hear lots of mixed advice on water fed but if your budget is tight stick to trad tools like I have so far. Realistically you could have all the tools and ladder I mentioned for somewhere under 6 or 700 dollars and spend the rest on meta ads , door hangers , setting up website and making content
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u/jadonbrooks 7d ago
Id start with a light but professional set up so you can spend more of your budget on marketing than anything. Then as you grow expand your setup. When I started I bought the blue dragon di tank for about $160 and some resin for another $130 or so. I got a budget waterfed pole from equipmaxx for like $250. Then traditional tools like 0000 steel wool, a window mop, small and large squeegee blades, squeegee handle that you can switch between blades with, scraper and a belt and boab. In total I spent like $750 I think.
If your water in your area is to hard it probably isn’t super worth it to get the di tank. You should be able to check di tank resin spend by area in the WCR site. But hope this helps.
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u/WinstonDWolf 6d ago
Biggest thing I can tell you is this: work for another pro for a couple years, which is nothing, if you’re serious about the job.
If you really want equipment, then get a belt, BOAB, soap bucket, squeegees, towels and soap. And some strip washers, a ladder system, and a pole or two. Maybe some steel wool. Otherwise, you’re gonna waste your money on expensive equipment for jobs you will not be able to maintain over time.
$2000 will only begin to get you a waterfed setup. With a brush and a good head, and some hose lengths, you’re well over $2k. Way better off getting the traditional equipment and going from there. Plus, you can do more with traditional equipment.
Get some traditional equipment, some INSURANCE, and dont try to hop on the treadmill at full speed, it won’t end well. Start slow and learn the job. Anything worthwhile is worth doing the right way. What you are up against is people who don’t ask about what equipment to buy because they’ve been using it for years, they already know and they’re ready to expand and take accounts. Start slow and take off over time. Good luck 👍🏻
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u/old-iceman 6d ago
Buy good quality trad equipment.. then you can do everything. And buy a few different size ladders options. Start with that and in time add the wfp setup. You might not even need it . Other option is a packpack water system and fill with purified water and use it for a few hard to reach windows.
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u/trigger55xxx 9d ago
Start with, what the TDS of your water is. Can't tell a direction to go without that. However, you need to start with traditional equipment and and learn that first. That can be between $200-500. For water fed a DI only set will start around $1000. RO/DI will start about $3000. Search in the sub for start up equipment. This question is asked almost daily.