Just curious to know what you guys keep on hand to deal w/ stains? I’ve heard good things about Safe Restore. Who’s using it? I have some A-1 and HDS-100 (From Detroit Sponge). What else should I be carrying?
I have just about everything under the sun:D my 2 favorites are Sorbo H.W. remover & Safe-Restore.
Just to set the record straight now! Safe-Restore will NOT cook,or be detrimental to the tin side or un-coated glass,thats a big misconception many people make.
Just want to clairify that before some of the brainiac’s think different!!
Safe Restore works well on stage 1 glass corrosion. When glass is repeatedly bombarded by irrigation systems, etc., it is sometimes necessary to use acids, but be careful, many of the muriatic and phosphoric acid based products out there will fog glass as quickly as it will clear them. Additionally, you may want to “test” many different chemicals in obscure places before actually doing the work, and, as sparkle said, frames and sills should be considered too. The work is very tricky and should not be attempted by novice window cleaners. It takes years of working with this stuff to know what to use, and how to use it safely, so be careful!
I’ll second what Craig said. I do stain removal pretty much every day. Sorbo Hard Water Remover is usually our first choice - it removes most mild to moderate stains in our area and is great on maintenance/touch up stain removal + it’s safe and easy to use/apply - we usually use a white or blue Scoth-Brite non-scratch pad. If it doesn’t work or it’s a more major stain, we usually try Safe-Restore. If it doesn’t work we may try some of the other chemicals in our arsenal. The last thing we try is CC-550 (with a waiver and proper safety gear).
I’ve tried and have pretty much every other product available from most of our wc suppliers, but for our area, the above products usually work the best.
If you come across many stains in your area, what I suggest is to buy quite a few(if not all) of the smallest sized bottles of each of the different stain removers and try them out. What works on one stain, may not work on another in a different area (even with-in your own town). Find out which remover works best and use it as your “go-to” product. Then when it doesn’t work, the “experimenting” begins. Unfortunately it is a lot of trial and error, so get as educated as you can about stain removal before you dive in.
A couple other products that can work well and are safe to use (mostly on more mild stains) that I don’t see at any of our major suppliers are: Zud, Amaze (available at Ace Hardware), and Spot-X (usually available at Home Depot).
How’s it going Jason? Good to see you. I had thought about grabbing a can of Zud to have on hand. Thanks for the input. Hey Phil Craig said Brainiac’s!!;)
One thing i would like to point out is…there’s a BIG MISCONCEPTION about glass corrosion & hard water spots. Glass corrosion is what takes place in the IG unit not on the glass surface itself. All hard water stains are in relief on the glass.
Thanks for the reminder Craig I always get those confused. 
SafeRestore can, if not used properly, cause issues with the surface of glass. Tin etch haze is not the only issue faced.
Please elaborate! If used correctly what issue’s are there?
Care to expand on that?
Please read the wording of my above reply again carefully.
I only use Safe Restore if it’s really bad it’s a great product. I use Bi-Clean and A-1 is oHW is good to just, make sure to get it all off if applying any protection. Safe Restore do not leave on the glass to long. are you will buffing I rub it on with a white pad to get it even. One thing I’ve learned the hard way NEVER USE STEEL WOOL Too PUT UNGER RUB OUT ON are hard water remover on. You can buff it a a little before putting it on then apply hard water remover.
Now I know there are some differences about Safe Restore. Not really sure what it is but when I spray it on I get a different looking glass than if I rub it on with a pad. I’m still not convinced it doesn’t hurt the seals. So when I naturalize it I soap my seal and clean them really really good.
What problem did you run into?
I’ve heard the same about applying baby talcum with steel wool as the applicator to remove silicone.
I’ve never tried that; I always squeeze the powder onto the glass, then use the steel wool to “agitate.”
I don’t understand what the problem is. Maybe I’m not seeing something that was posted.
My helper put rub out on hard water that was on the glass. Rubbed it in circles with 0000 steel wool and it will put fine scratches in the glass. I spend all day buffing it out with cerium oxide.
Does the Unger stuff have a grit in it that caused the scratching?
Man i’m def. a newbie in this area.
Has anyone used Glasstech??
Tony not sure whats in it unger rub out to cause the scratches from the 0000 steel wool. Unger rub works ok with a when applied with a rag. It doesn’t have a grit base.
Could it be possible you dislodged some fabricating debris with the method? After all…glass fines can be dislodged with the use of steel wool in some cases!
Leave it to Craig. I hadn’t thought about that. Good possibility!
