At the End of a Perfect Spring.

Well, here we are in what should be the middle of the Summer doldrums and we are still humming along nicely. I am taking advantage of a fairly rare rain day to look back on what was a fairly spectacular Spring. I had expanded my workforce slightly with some trepidation in May but it worked out very well, allowing me to serve more residential clients without sacrificing the time needed to properly serve our year round commercial base.


We worked for Captains of industry, political leaders (at least one...), stay at home moms, and television personalities just this year so far. We did two homes in preparation for television shows being taped. We’ve done churches and bars. Bungalows and 6 storey condo buildings. We have helped prepare for the birth of babies in homes and grieved over the loss of loved ones, prepared homes for wedding festivities and sale due to marriage break up. I sometimes feel like I am part window cleaner, part counsellor and house stager all in one.

When I get home at night and the kids ask what I have done during the day, I have a hard time answering such a simple question.

This has been pretty rambling, but my main thought right now is to say thanks to everyone that has allowed us to serve them so far and to those that choose to trust us with their window cleaning needs in the future (whatever the reason for needing them).

John Riley, July 2010.

We're not big, but we're small.

This is a phrase used by a Toronto writer / humourist, Stuart McLean. It describes a vinyl record shop where many of his stories take place. The idea is that being (or using) a big company is not the only goal, as there are advantages to being small as well. To the business owner, being small means less overhead and sometimes fewer headaches. To the client, hiring a small business means that you often get the owner or one of very few employees. Sure there are disadvantages. I finally carved out some time in my schedule to supply a couple of quotes for some rather large projects today. Clients may have to wait a bit for service, but they might also be squeezed in if their story touches the owner (who answers every phone call and email) in just the right way :-).
I do everything I can to be of service to everyone that needs me. I just hope that those that are waiting can wait long enough...

Window Cleaning and the sale of your home.

"Should I clean my windows before selling my home?"
I have heard this questions many times and my answer is always yes.
You know how having your windows cleaned makes you feel about your home. It feels bigger. It feels brighter. It feels and looks cleaner. These are exactly the same feelings that you are trying to get out of your potential buyer, except that they will say your house is Big, Bright and Clean. The fact that you just made it that way for the sale is just between us.
We have many real estate agents that we have worked with over the years and consider many of them my personal friends. They know what they are doing. Listen to them, follow their instructions and things will turn out well.
Good luck with the sale. Breathe. It will be over soon.

We're now on Twitter!

As if there weren't enough ways to be in touch, we are now on Twitter as well.
Find us at twitter.com/rileyswc

We're now on facebook!

In our ongoing attempt to be everywhere... We are also on Facebook now.
You can find us at facebook.com/rileyswindowcleaning. Friend us up!

Merry Christmas

As I sat in the pizza place, watching my daughter eat her lunch I was looking past her, thinking about doing the same thing with MY dad. This is Christmas Eve and I needed to get a few things completed at work. She asked if she could come with me and I was glad for the company - as a dad of 4, I don't get as much one on one time with them as I would like. It cost me lunch and she insisted on listening to the Disney channel on Satellite radio all morning.
Its funny what brings back memories, isn't it? As her toes thawed out, I was smiling because I remember having the same complaints almost 40 years ago.
Anyway, that's all. No big announcement from the company. No boasting about an acheivement. Just sharing a little Christmas present I got today from my daughter Hannah.
Merry Christmas to all.

Reaching new heights

I had some fun this week. I was asked to help a friend in the industry solve a problem. You see, he works for a large, predominantly high rise company and was on a fairly big project that came up late in the season. His high rise guys were doing this seven storey condominium complex but, due to poor installation of the roof anchors, they couldn't access some areas of the building.
I went in, planning to clean what I could for him, but not knowing what we could get at. I called my supplier (Waterfed Canada) and they dropped off a couple of extra sections for my Gardiner Super Lite water fed pole. I set it up, and kept adding sections. Eventually, we made it all the way up to the full 7 storeys!
As well as reaching the height we did, we used our back pack delivery system, essentially a mini resevoir and pump, to gain access about 500' from the accessible hose bib.
Here's where I hope you'll allow me to gloat. There was NO other way to get these windows cleaned. Lifts couldn't get to the back of the building and the roof anchors were unsafe. It felt pretty good getting this done for my friend. It also felt really good pushing the limits of my equipment.