How to Prepare for Window Cleaning: 7 Simple Steps Before Your Appointment

We’ve shown up to plenty of appointments where the blinds are still shut, a dog is barking at the ladder through the glass, and the side gate is padlocked with no key in sight. None of that is a big deal — but it does mean we’re spending the first fifteen minutes of your appointment solving problems instead of cleaning glass. A little prep the night before changes that completely.

Knowing how to prepare for window cleaning isn’t complicated, but it does involve both the inside and the outside of your home, and a few of the details get missed even by homeowners who’ve had the service done before.

How to Prepare for Window Cleaning Inside Your Home

The instinct is to assume window cleaning only happens outside. It doesn’t — every window gets cleaned from both sides, and that means the two feet of space in front of each window, inside your home, needs to be clear enough for someone to work comfortably and safely.

On many of the older Stafford-area colonials we work on, the front-facing sills are lined with something: framed photos, plant pots, holiday decor left over from months earlier. None of it is a problem to move, but if it’s fragile and it stays put, it’s at risk the moment a window has to swing open or a screen has to come out. A few minutes clearing sills and nearby tabletops before we arrive means nothing gets bumped.

Furniture is the other piece. A couch or bookshelf pushed up against a window doesn’t need to leave the room — it just needs enough clearance that a technician isn’t climbing over it to reach the glass. Pulling pieces a foot or two away from the wall is usually enough.

The Blinds Mistake Most Homeowners Make

A lot of homeowners assume closed blinds are the polite, tidy option before a crew arrives — out of the way, nothing to deal with. It’s actually the opposite of what helps. Closed blinds and drawn curtains block access to the interior side of the glass and the window frame, which is exactly where grime, pollen, and condensation residue tend to collect in Virginia’s humidity.

Open blinds fully and raise them if they’re the retractable style, and pull curtains back and secure them with a tieback if you have one. If your window treatments are on a smart-home schedule, it’s worth pausing that for the day so they don’t close mid-appointment.

Outdoor Access: Gates, Ladders, and What’s in the Way

This is the section that causes the most day-of delays, and it has nothing to do with the windows themselves. If a side or backyard gate is locked and nobody’s home to let a crew through, that entire section of the house gets skipped or the appointment has to be rescheduled.

The same goes for landscaping. Overgrown shrubs, low tree branches, or a garden bed positioned directly under a window can make it impossible to get a ladder in safely. OSHA requires ladders to be used on stable surfaces with the area around the base and top kept clear for safe use (OSHA Ladder Safety Standard). On homes in wooded areas like Hartwood or Lake of the Woods, this comes up often enough that we always recommend a quick walk around the exterior the day before — anything within a few feet of a window or ground-floor path should be trimmed back or moved.

Outdoor furniture, grills, and potted plants sitting under windows need the same treatment. It’s not that they’re in the way of the cleaning itself — it’s that they’re directly below where a ladder needs to stand.

Screens: What “Clean Windows” Doesn’t Automatically Include

As part of our process, we use deionized (DI) water on the glass, which removes dissolved minerals that can leave spots behind, helping produce a streak-free finish without soap residue (UNGER Pure Water Cleaning Guide). Screens are a separate question, and it’s one worth asking your crew about directly rather than assuming.

Screens trap pollen, spider webs, and airborne dust — Virginia’s spring pollen season is particularly hard on them — and that buildup doesn’t rinse off the glass on its own. If your screens haven’t been taken down and rinsed in a season or two, mention it before the appointment starts so it can be included, rather than finding out afterward that they were left as-is. Make sure they’re not painted shut or damaged in a way that would make removal difficult; that’s worth flagging too.

Pets and Alarms: The Two Things That Cause Delays

One thing our crew runs into constantly on homes with dogs is a pet that’s genuinely fine with people, but not fine with a ladder appearing outside a window it can see through. It’s rarely aggression — it’s just a startled dog barking nonstop at a stranger’s face showing up at eye level. Keeping pets in a separate room or crated during the appointment keeps everyone calmer, including the dog.

Alarm systems are the other common snag, especially on homes with window or glass-break sensors. If your system isn’t disarmed or put into a mode that won’t trigger from window movement, opening a protected window could trigger the alarm depending on your system’s configuration (ADT Alarm Troubleshooting). A quick check of your alarm settings the morning of, or a call to your provider if you’re not sure how, helps avoid unnecessary interruptions during your appointment.

FAQ

Do I need to take my blinds completely off the windows?

No — just open them fully and raise retractable blinds out of the way. Removing them isn’t necessary unless they’re already scheduled for separate cleaning or repair.

What happens if a gate is locked and no one’s home?

We’ll clean everything we can access and let you know which areas were skipped. If it’s a whole section of the house, it’s usually easier to leave a gate unlocked or arrange a time when someone can let the crew through, so nothing gets missed.

Should I turn off my home security system before you arrive?

If your system has sensors on windows or glass, yes — either disarm it or switch it to a mode that won’t be triggered by window movement for the day. If you’re not sure how, a quick call to your alarm provider beforehand will save you a headache.

Do you clean window screens too?

We can — just mention it when you book or before the appointment starts so it’s included. Screens hold onto pollen and dust that won’t come off the glass on its own, so it’s worth having them rinsed while the windows are being done.

Do I need to be home during window cleaning?

Not necessarily, as long as gates are unlocked, pets are secured, and we have the access we need. If any part of the job requires reaching an interior window, though, someone will need to be home to let us in for that portion.

Now that you know how to prepare for window cleaning, you can help your appointment go more smoothly from start to finish. A lot of homeowners end up pairing window cleaning with a full exterior wash while access is already sorted out — if that’s something you’re considering, our house washing service covers the rest of the exterior in the same visit. And if you want the full rundown on the process itself, including the DI water finish, our window cleaning page walks through what to expect.