Hey everybody, I’m just trying to make the decision between buying the 18inch or the 12 inch Boar Hair Tucker Alpha Brush?
I am leaning towards the 18 as I will be using it for mainly commercial and high access (usually large sheet glass) residential.
I don’t really ever use WFP at ground level unless it is set up for 2 storey+ and I have a big stack of dusty reclean french panes.
Two questions…
Is the 18’ Boar Hair heavy or awkward to manoeuvre?
Has anybody compared it to the constructor brush by reach-it?
I have not used the tucker boars hair …but I do have a 18 & a 12 Unger boars hair. They have a lot of drag on the glass which can be a little much. At least compared to nylon.
I have never used an reach it products so I dont know how they compare to them.
Thanks @Luke. That was my concern with the 18 Boar Hair, is it going to create more labour than it’s worth…
It sure is interesting, WFP is great for reclean stuff or dangerous high access but for initial cleans it seems hard to generate the required pressure on the end of a pole to agitate the glass as effectively as a mop and squeegee nose to glass. It’s the equivalent of trying to scrub bee poo off with your mop instead of using a white scrubby pad or steel wool when u think about it or expecting traditional pole work to be perfect the first pass on a 3 year+ clean.
I was leaning towards the hybrid as the nylon edges help it glide a glide smoother and supposed get in to the corners better
By splaying outward. My only concern was that I would have to push a fair bit harder with it to make contact with the Boar Hair? Can the hybrid still be effective in those really dirty situations?
Many thanks @Luke, @Chris and @Johnlee . I have become really hesitant with WFP purchases after poor customer service from Ionics and average performance on initial cleans. But I am ready to evolve!
For some of my residential clients it’s quicker for me to do them by hand than by wfp. Others, wfp works a treat. Work out as you go which is best and note it down for future reference.
As you mention, if its spring/summertime and there’s more bee/fly poo on the windows then doing the windows by hand can be quicked than by wfp.
Wfp is great for homes that have a ton of 2nd level work , tough landscaping , cut ups, maintenance cleans ect.
We only used our wfp on 1 out of 4 houses today for example. The first was a 2nd story with a walk out basement initial clean. Large picture windows. We used the wfp at this one and was perfect. The others were ranch style homes with only 3 maybe 4 windows that were on the second story. 2 of those were maintenance.
One of the most Important things about wfp is to know when to use it and when to just go trad. Whatever delivers the fastest, safest and best results.
Thanks @Giles, that’s exactly how I have been currently using my WFP. I was just hoping that with the newer brushes with rinse bar etc that I would be able to cover a few more of my 2 storey homes that I was never quite happy with initial WFP cleans and would get up and trad them after to make sure they were perfect. I predominantly use WFP on commercial high access windows and just want a better scrub for initial passes I think I am just torn between the hybrid and the 100% Boar.
I worry that the 100% Boar will be too labour intensive or that the hybrid won’t have the power to cut thru initial cleans!
Why do I worry so much, It’s all trial and error anyway?!
Buy one, test it and observe!
Definitely found out the hard way that it is quicker to trad a few of my bigger homes that I really wanted the WFP to work on.
We get a lot of UV damage to frames and a lot of frame wash out/oxidisation and also get a lot of hard water making most ground level windows hydrophobic.
I know I can beat a WFP at ground level but it would also be handy to be able to have a new employee be able to keep up using a WFP and then sharpen up any windows as required, as long as it was just a few frame bleeds and not every window needing
How satisfying is it when it works straight out of the box first pass and makes you look professional.
Then there are the other times…
You do start to eventually learn which frames to stay away from though!
But why does the one window you really need it for always have to be the one with oxidised frames or heavy staining… oh yeah coz no one else could get to it before you!!!
The design of the wfp brush will be enough pressure on the glass to clean the windows proper. The only part of a nylon bristle that cleans is the tip so pushing harder is counter productive. The hybrid brush does require some force to get the shorter boars hair to touch. But the higher up you go the more force is on the brush due to the pole weight. You can also use a longer gooseneck when working higher than 40 feet to get better force on the brush and also use a 18 inch brush for more stability.
Due to giving up ladders many years ago we have learned to use the wfp on all windows. Their are a few tricks to effectively clean any window with a wfp that we have learned over the years of trail and error. The pure water industry keeps getting better every year. I am not avocating that you do it this way but it does work for us.
@Johnlee could you tell me if the Tucker alpha brush will fit straight on to a Ionics Grafter Pole? I know it won’t fit the Swift but was wondering if it will still fit the Grafter or do I need an adapter ? Many thanks
I am just torn between the hybrid and the 100% Boar.
? Many thanks