Streaks after (over?) cleaning windows

cleaningwindows

I just tried to clean all the windows in my flat. In general, they now look great; should have done it ages ago!

However, maybe half of the windows have very faint streak marks on them. The sort of lines that you might get from running very-slightly-greasy fingers across the glass. It's only visible if the light hits it right, and/or if you look very closely, but it is there. It's not lint, just "lines" in the polish, I think.

I've tried to "buff" it out with further rubbing with a dry, clean sheet of paper towel (which is what I used to do the original cleaning), but no joy.

My instinct is that I used too much window cleaner (the windows were VERY dirty prior to cleaning) and these streaks are excess cleaner/polish?

Is my guess correct? Is that a thing that happens if you use too much cleaner?

Either way, is there an easy way to fix this?

Best Answer

The best way to overcome this is to re-wash the windows with an entirely different technique.

  1. Get yourself some microfiber cleaning cloths and a silicone edge squeegee.
  2. Get a plastic bucket with some warm to hot water.
  3. Add some general purpose cleaning soap. I like to use Fabuloso from Costco as it is cost effective and works well.
  4. Wash down a window pane with the soapy water and a microfiber cloth.
  5. Use the squeegee to remove all remaining water from the window. With each swipe of the squeegee wipe its blade with another dry or wrung out microfiber cloth.
  6. Carefully dry the edges of the frame of the window pane where the squeegee didn't quite fit or lifted off the glass at the end of the stroke.

Some other things:

  1. If the windows are very dirty it can be helpful to use two buckets and two sets of the washing cloths. Get the dirt off with the first bucket and wash. Use the second bucket to come back and rinse the pane before proceeding to the squeegee step.
  2. When cleaning multiple windows that are very dirty do change the bucket of water often.
  3. When cleaning windows on the outside get a kit that includes an extendable pole and a head that consists of a microfiber mop on one side and a squeegee on the other side. When using these a rectangular shaped bucket is handy so the 12 - 13 inch wide mop/squeegee head fits nicely into the bucket.

Once I discovered washing windows this way I have never ever reconsidered the use of commercial window spray cleaners and paper towels -- even for my car windows.

Related Topic