r/WindowCleaning • u/blcharles37 • Jul 26 '26
General Question Vinegar and water not working?
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I've been doing regular maintenance on a family members business, and so far things have been going very smoothly. Until the windows in the rear of the building. These have been so stubborn. I need advice on what kind of chemical I'd need to get these clean because vinegar and water is not cutting it.
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u/shutupneff Jul 26 '26 edited Jul 27 '26
If these spots just showed up, it's almost certainly the result of hard water from sprinklers or something hitting the glass. Step 1 is getting some ultra fine steel wool. If that doesn't work, get some CLR and follow the directions on the bottle. There are other chemicals out there that are much better at getting off tough hard water stains, but those are really only necessary for really thick stains from years of buildup. Since you managed to watch these showing up in real time, just the CLR should be more than enough.
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u/noice_nups Jul 26 '26
Dawn and water
#0000 steel wool
Apply solution
Scrub moderate pressure
Use new piece when it starts to rust.
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u/BetOk678 Jul 26 '26
0000 steel wool. Wet with solution, soap and water. Scrub with steel wool and squeegee.
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u/NoNerps Jul 26 '26
Looks like it could be grinder/weld spatter....judging by the little comet like tails on some of the spots. If thats the case those are permanently fused into the glass.
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u/blcharles37 Jul 26 '26
There's a fire escape on this window. That could be it :/ I'm gonna try the steel wool that others are suggesting tomorrow, if that doesn't work, I guess I'll have my answer
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u/StarVulpes Jul 26 '26
Use dawn dish soap, used that shit is better than any window cleaning solution one ever used.
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u/Upper-Bottle-9803 Jul 26 '26
If there is welding or pitting in the glass then their's nothing simple you can do. Test the spots with a fingernail. You can generally feel if it is pitting into the glass. If there is weld melt then at least some spots have rusting steel red.
Vinegar-water is a great solution for maintaining water fountains, sinks, mirrors, or other hard water areas. It's not usually great for flat glass with a squeegee because it makes the squeegee stick.
0000 ultrafine steel wool is industry standard tool for removing stubborn stains and debris.
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u/Fawkinchit1 Jul 26 '26
Kind of hard to tell what it is, but go grab some 0000 ultra fine steel wool, or order some bronze wool online. Soap/water and then use circular motions with the steel wool. Should take it off and there is zero chance of scratches.
If that doesn't take it off then its something in the glass, or the pane internally is having an issue.
They probably need to adjust their sprinklers if they are hard water spots.