Strugal — Window Cleaning Guide

Quick Facts

Brand at a Glance

Product Range

Why This System

Step 1 of 2: Manufacturer Recommendations

Official Care Guidance

Glass

• ✓Clean south and west-facing Spanish glass in the morning or late afternoon - solution evaporates too fast in midday direct sun to achieve a clean result.
• ✓pH-neutral glass cleaner in warm water. Microfibre T-bar and professional squeegee.
• ✓On outward casements, confirm the friction stay holds the sash open before accessing from outside.
• ✓Edge wipe in rebate. On outward casements the rebate is accessible from the sash face when open.

Frames

• ✓Powder-coated aluminium: pH-neutral cleaner, soft cloth, immediate rinse, dry.
• ✓Anodised sections: pH-neutral only, immediate rinse. Never allow alkaline products to dwell.
• ✓Coastal installations: rinse frames with fresh water monthly in addition to the main clean schedule.
• ✓Clear persiana guide rail-to-frame junctions at every clean.

Hardware

• ✓Use PTFE-based lubricant rather than oil on hardware in high-temperature Spanish locations. Better thermal stability.
• ✓Lubricate lift-and-slide running gear every 6 months - spring and autumn. High summer temperatures thin oil lubricants.
• ✓Check friction stay condition on all outward casements at every clean. A failing stay on an upper floor is a safety issue.

Step 2 of 2: The Orloffs Protocol

The Orloffs Protocol

Pro Tools

My daily tool list. This is what I carry to every job.

Follow these steps in order. Each one builds on the last. This is the same sequence I use on every Strugal installation.

1. 1

   Preparation -- before any water touches the glass

   Fill the bucket with at least 10 litres of water. Add soap for cleaning power -- enough to cut through environmental deposits, not so much you are fighting foam.

   Before touching the glass, brush down the surface to remove loose dust, spiderwebs, and debris. Any grit left on the glass during the wash phase risks scratching during agitation.

   Check the aluminium frame condition before you start. Confirm which cleaning product is safe for that surface before opening any bottle.

   Cover anything below the windows that cannot be moved.

2. 2

   Agitation -- apply and work the solution

   Dip the microfiber T-bar completely into the soap water, both sides. Remove excess water with your hand so it does not drip. Apply the solution across the entire glass surface with overlapping passes.

   The goal is to fully dissolve and release every deposit from the glass surface. Anything not released during agitation gets transported across the glass by the squeegee as a smear.

   For stubborn spots -- insect marks, salt residue, environmental deposits -- re-apply soap water and allow it to soak for a full minute before agitating again. Use more soap water, not more pressure.

   For panels above arm reach: attach the T-bar to an extension pole. Work in sections -- top first, then middle, then bottom -- keeping each section wet until you squeegee it.

   Rinse the T-bar cover regularly during the job. A dirty applicator causes microscopic scratches that accumulate over time.

3. 3

   Detail the frame edge before squeegeeing

   Use your 100% cotton towelling rag, finger pressed into the fabric, to work into every junction and remove pooled soap water before the squeegee pass.

   This prevents drips running down onto already-cleaned areas during squeegeeing and keeps soap water out of drainage channels.

   On Strugal aluminium frames, pay particular attention to the bottom edge where glass meets the frame sill -- water pooled here runs into drainage openings and leaves residue over time.

4. 4

   The squeegee

   Tilt the squeegee at a slight angle so soap water spills from one side of the channel only -- not both. If the rubber is jumping or squeaking, either the rubber is not lubricated enough or the glass surface has warmed.

   Cutting in: start with the rubber blade making first contact on a dry edge of the glass.

   Side to side: horizontal passes across the panel. Works well on wide sections. Top to bottom: vertical passes down the panel. Works well on tall narrow sections.

   The J tune: one smooth unbroken motion top to bottom, wrist rotating at each end to reverse without lifting the rubber. The most efficient method on larger panels -- but it requires training before applying it to premium glass.

   Wipe the rubber dry after every pass. Overlap each stroke by 2-3 cm.

5. 5

   Final edge detailing

   After squeegeeing, there is always a residual line of water along the bottom edge and at the panel sides. Take a dry cotton rag, fold to a clean corner, and detail these edges in one smooth pass.

   On Strugal frames, the bottom edge where glass meets the sill requires the most careful attention. Water left here runs into drainage and leaves residue that affects the next clean.

   Rotate the rag to a clean section after every pass. If the rag picks up grit at any point, replace it immediately.

6. 6

   Frame wipe and hardware check

   On Strugal powder-coated aluminium frames: use pH-neutral cleaner only, never abrasive pads or steel wool. Dry immediately after wiping.

   Check that all drainage openings are clear and unobstructed. Water must be able to flow freely -- a blocked channel leads to accumulation that affects seal performance over time.

   Operate every opening window through its full range. Stiff handles or resistance at locking points indicate hardware that needs lubrication. Flag it to the owner rather than forcing it.

Pro Tips

• ★ In Spanish coastal locations, the monthly fresh water rinse protocol is more important than the main cleaning technique. Salt accumulation between quarterly cleans, if not rinsed, will reach corrosive concentration levels.
• ★ Outward casement windows on upper floors of Spanish apartment buildings are the most access-challenging windows in any residential portfolio. Never attempt to clean the outer face of an upper-floor outward casement without confirming the stay holds the sash securely first.
• ★ PTFE spray lubricant maintains its viscosity from Spanish winter cold to summer heat much better than standard machine oil. On a Spanish installation that uses standard oil lubricant, the lubrication is effectively gone by July every year. Switch to PTFE.
• ★ Powder coat chalking on south-facing Spanish aluminium is an early sign of coating degradation. It appears as a white powder that comes off on a cloth wiped across the frame. Regular cleaning delays chalking by removing the surface deposits that catalyse it. Once established, chalking needs professional coating treatment.
• ★ Lift-and-slide doors on Spanish villas and apartments are often the primary summer living access point, used dozens of times per day in summer. At this cycle rate, running gear lubrication every 6 months is a minimum, not a conservative estimate.
• ★ Persiana guide rails on Spanish windows are aluminium or PVC depending on specification. Aluminium rails are maintained with the same pH-neutral protocol as the window frame. PVC rails are maintained with pH-neutral PVC protocol. Do not use aluminium cleaner on PVC guide rails.
• ★ Spanish summer heat makes glass surface temperature high enough that cleaning solution in direct sun can crystallise on the glass before squeegeeing. Work fast in direct sun or wait for shade - two minutes between application and squeegee in direct midday Spanish sun is too long.

What NOT To Do

Bundle Kits and Tool Recommendations

Cleaning Frequency

Glass: 3 to 4x per year (Southern Spanish elevations in high UV: quarterly. Coastal locations: monthly for salt rinse plus quarterly main clean.). Frames: Same visit as glass (Coastal salt rinse: monthly with plain water between main cleans.). Hardware lubrication: Twice per year (Spring and autumn. PTFE lubricant recommended over oil for Spanish temperature range.). Persiana rail junction clearance: Every clean (The most common source of frame corrosion on maintained Spanish aluminium windows.)

Frequently Asked Questions

Field Notes

“Strugal installations represent a large proportion of the Spanish premium aluminium residential market. Coastal villa installations in particular require the salt rinse protocol that most window cleaning contracts do not include. The outward casement access requirement on upper-floor Spanish windows is the primary safety consideration in this market. Any window cleaning operative working in Spain needs to have this embedded in their protocol before starting. PTFE lubricant specification for Spanish installations is a practical choice, not a luxury one. The temperature range from Spanish winter to summer exhausts oil lubricants faster than the annual service interval can compensate.”

Justin Orloff