Updated
Upstairs Windows You Cannot Reach
The bedroom and landing windows have not been cleaned in years because there is no safe way to get at them.
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What's happening?
This is the most common real reason UK homes have dirty windows: the upper floor is out of reach and the ground under it is grass, a flower bed, a conservatory roof or a sloping drive. A ladder needs firm, level footing and a solid surface to lean on, and a domestic gable end over a lawn provides neither. Falls from height remain among the leading causes of serious and fatal workplace injury in Britain, and the Work at Height Regulations 2005 put avoiding work at height first — do it from the ground where you can. That is exactly what a pure water pole system does: filtered water pumped up a telescopic pole with a brush head, reaching three storeys from a standing position on the path.
What usually causes it?
- No level, firm ground at the base of the wall — lawn, borders, gravel or a sloping drive
- A conservatory, porch, bay roof or extension in the way of any ladder position
- Dormer, gable and stairwell windows with nothing safe to lean a ladder against
- Flats and maisonettes where the only access is over a communal area or a neighbour's land
- Windows that do not open inward, so they cannot be cleaned from inside
- Restrictor stays fitted for child safety that prevent reaching the outer face
- Overhead cables, meter boxes or downpipes occupying the only ladder line
Is it dangerous?
Yes. This is the genuinely dangerous item in domestic window cleaning, and the injuries are not minor — a fall from a first-floor window height onto a hard surface causes life-changing injury. Sitting on a windowsill, leaning out of an open casement while holding the frame, standing on a flat roof without edge protection, or footing a ladder on soft ground are all commonplace and all how people are hurt. There is no version of this that is worth improvising.
Can I fix it myself?
Clean the inside of upstairs windows from inside the room, standing on the floor. That is the safe half of the job. For the outside, a domestic water-fed pole kit exists and can work at low level, but the pole is heavy and awkward at full extension and a hard pull at height is how people lose balance — even from the ground. Do not sit on or lean out of a window, do not work off a stepladder outdoors on uneven ground, and do not go onto a flat roof or a conservatory to reach a dormer.
When should you call a window cleaner?
Call a window cleaner for any external glass you cannot reach with both feet on the ground. This is the whole reason the trade uses pole systems: filtered water and a telescopic pole clean upper floors from the path, with no ladder, no roof and nobody at height. Ask specifically about dormers, stairwell glass and anything over a conservatory when you book, so the right kit turns up.
What will the window cleaner actually do?
- Clean upper-floor glass from the ground with a water-fed telescopic pole, avoiding work at height entirely
- Reach dormers, gables and stairwell windows without leaning a ladder on the roof or the conservatory
- Detail the frames, sills and top drip beads at height, which is where the dirt that streaks the glass sits
- Rinse with deionised water so panes dry clear without being dried off by hand
- Use ladders only where the Work at Height hierarchy allows it, with firm footing and a solid bearing surface
- Tell you which windows cannot be reached even with a pole, and what access would be needed instead
Frequently asked questions
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