Any advice on cleaning French door glass?

[merci_me]

For the last 23 years, I've struggled with these damn doors and I can't take it anymore. Here's the ugly picture.......the family room has French doors to the dining room on one wall and two sets of French doors on another wall (a set on either side of the fireplace) to the living room. On top of that, another wall is 3 9ft, floor to ceiling windows facing south. Thankfully, my husband takes care of the big windows. However, there is never a time during daylight, that the light isn't streaming in and shining on those French doors, so trying to ignore them (and I do) doesn't work.


These 3 sets of French doors also have side panels. That makes 10 panes per panel and 15 panes per door, or 50 panes per set of doors, times 3 sets (150 panes), times both sides for a total of 300 (*^$)&$#(& damn panes.


My last go round, I used Sparkle window cleaner and those blue lint-free towels, which do an ok job, but I'm looking for a quick fix. I keep hearing "squeegee", which is what my husband uses on the big windows, but where to you find a squeegee for those little panes/pains? I need to get busy on theses since I'm going to be doing Christmas decorating and all those twinkling lights means I don't even get the break of night, with no sun shining on all those panes.

[NMDemDist2]

1. cleaning them is a chore no matter what you do

many pick one of these and cover some of those panes/pains???

http://www.windowfilmworld.com/window_film.htm

[Lars39]

2. They do make small squeegees,or you can cut a large one down.

I'd consider sheers,too.

[mopinko]

3. white vinegar, one drop of dish liquid, and a squeegee.

look at the car parts store for a small one.

[Stinky The Clown]

4. I have four sgueegees I got from the local Ace Hardware

3", 6", 12" and 18"

They also had a 9" one and a 24" one. I bought them maybe 15 or 20 years ago and they still do their job just fine. I recall the sizes I didn't buy because I recall so clearly walking to the checkout with all of them and then my son asking me what I needed all the sizes for.

I put two of them back.

My son, now, has four automotive pinch/pry bars. Three have never been used.

Some fruit falls very near the tree what begat it. :)

[merci_me]

8. You two better get shopping,

the economy needs shoppers like you (and me). I'm heading to Ace tomorrow, too. I hope they still carry the 6" one and what the heck, the 3", too.

If not, there's always the housewares department. I love the Nordic cake pans and all the bowls and utensils I have to guess what they are.

Shhhhh, don't tell my husband, but they should have their porcelain Christmas houses available now. And maybe, even a 6" squeegee.

[eleny]

5. Perfect Glass Cleaner Wipes

You might need to two canisters of this product but it's very easy to use. No fuss or muss. I found it at Bed Bath & Beyond. We just used it today to clean our reading glasses so then I used it up cleaning the large center window here in my bay window. It cleans streak free with no lint like it advertises.

I was in a splurge mood when I bought this product and am glad did. I hope they make bigger canisters, too.

[Stinky The Clown]

6. Eleny, are these like wet wipes for hands?

That is, pre-moistened ..... just pull one out and use it? Or are they simply dry, lint-free wipes that need Windex?

[eleny]

9. They're pre-moistened

Yes, pull one out and use it. It doesn't smell like Windex or Glass Plus, though. It says that it's ammonia free. there are 60 in a canister.

One goes a long way because we cleaned several pair of glasses and then I cleaned the large stationary window in my bay here in the office.

[merci_me]

7. I'm going to look tomorrow

I went to BB&B's website and they have Perfect Granite wipes, but they don't show the wipes for glass. They may have it in the store. The wipes they show are expensive, 30 for $5.99. I'm wondering how far it would go on 300 panes, I'm guessing maybe 3 panes per wipe. Well, that would mean I'd only need, oh heck, it's late and I can't even figure it out, lol, but whatever, it would be worth it.

HOWEVER, they do have Perfect Glass in a spray bottle for $5.99. So I'm thinking, if they have the wipes too, I'll get both and try just spraying more solution as the wipes start to lose their moisture. At least they'd still be lint free, assuming they don't start shredding.

I'll let you know what I find out. This could be my salvation!!

[eleny]

10. Hi

I just checked the canister and it's called Hope's Perfect Glass. And they also carry trigger spray and aerosol.

I went pretty hard at this window last night and the wipe didn't shred. I had some little mystery bits stuck here and there, so I scrunched up the wipe and went at those spots with no shredding.

Estimating 3 windows per wipe should be enough.

What happened to me is that I went over to look at the ironing boards and noticed a large display cabinet with all sorts of cleaning wipes and sprays. I bought the glass wipes and also a canister of e-tronic wipes by Weiman. They clean tv flat screens and computer monitors including the plasmas. Those are also a winner.

I hope you have a stack of those 20% off coupons from BB&B. I save them since they never really expire.

[Warpy]

11. Look in a bed & bath store

It's where I found a small squeegee I use on window panes and hooked inside the shower stall so I can clean the glass doors immediately after a shower (hard water, ugh).

The one you can find at an auto store for cleaning windshields might also be small enough, but it's clumsier to use.

I've found that Windex, sprayed on, scrubbed around and squeegeed off, does a great job with little effort.

You can follow up by polishing the glass with newsprint, but I haven't found it necessary and think the ink residue traps dirt for next time.

[sandnsea]

12. rubbing alcohol

best thing there is for cleaning glass. Mix it half and half with water, add a splash of lemon for scent. I hope you find a squeegee and bless your heart for cleaning 300 glass squares all these years without one. :hug:

[merci_me]

13. Feedback............

I found the Perfect Glass, both the towelettes and the spray at Bed Bath and Beyond, and Sunday, I finally tracked down a 6 inch squeegee.

The towelettes aren't too efficient, for a big time cleaning, but with the spray and squeegee for heavy cleaning, I think the towelettes will work great for spot cleaning. They are streak free and non-lint. My big problem is ME, avoiding cleaning the glass. Now, I think it will be easy to keep a handle on it.

However, right now, except for a couple of test panes, I haven't done them yet. Because right now, I have another kind of pain.......sciatica. So, with major baking and cooking going on and LOTS of Motrin, I decided not to spend anymore time on my feet than I have to, this week. LOL, sciatica.....I'll go to any links to avoid those damn windows.

Thanks everybody!!!

[eleny]

16. Too bad about the sciatica

It's not worth aggravating that condition! Hope you had a nice holiday season. :D

[troubleinwinter]

14. I have four multi-pane French doors & four multi-pane side lites

UGH.

I found these in husband's part of the garage, and I stole them.



They are FANTASTIC!!

Glass Wipes
Crystal Clear, Streak-Free Shine

Your car's delicate surfaces are too important to trust to a household cleaner. Some household glass cleaners contain ammonia, which may damage automotive surfaces. Armor All® Glass Wipes are specially formulated for the toughest automotive jobs, where clean windows matter most, to deliver spotless,
sparkling glass with amazing clarity and shine!

Incredible clarity & shine
Easily removes filmy residue, road grime, bugs, fingerprints & more
Residue-free — no streaking or hazing
Ammonia-free! Safe on auto glass!

[eleny]

15. We've used ArmorAll for other stuff for decades and it's a great product

I'll have to look for these for the windows. Thanks!