Anyone that thinks all they have to do is buy an acid or a polishing compound or even a glass restoration system and they are just good to go;...has absolutely no idea how much of a risk they are really facing. For one thing every job is different. The stains can be different, along with the surfaces. Further if you don't have the technique right you can do serious damage that can be invisible except under the right conditions. Also there can very easily be damage hidden beneath the hard water spots. Damage that you of course did not cause but will reveal once the new spots are removed. Such damage could be anything from etched glass, to scratches left by another window cleaner.
Most people don't even consider the type of surface they are working on. They might be working on an almost invisible low e first surface coating. Which was scratched and even etched by the first "restoration guy" that came along. But once the glass was covered again by a new layer of mineral deposits such damage was covered over, and in effect hidden from view until you came along to remove them. My favorite situation is when every window is scratch hazed by a crude polish. The scratches can only be seen in the direct sunlight. But just barely. Once the stains reform on top of these very light scratches another "restoration guy" is called in. But he tells the owner he can take them off at a fantastic savings by using an acid based professional restoration product. So he does. But when the sun comes out the next day the scratches are now VERY noticeable! The acid accented every scratch by fifty times over. There is nothing the acid guy can say that will convince the owner that he did NOT leave any scratches. Of course the window cleaner has no clue what happened. Sometimes this happens a little different. Someone might come through a do a test patch with a crude polish. Then a day or two later someone else will come through with an acid. The acid will accent the scratches that were there but were not very visible making them an unsightly defect. When this happens on a first surface low e coating the damage can be very difficult to see from the outside but is very easy to see from the inside looking out.
Another problem can happen from the use of acids. That is the acid can create a type of clear "orange peal" effect. Or what I have termed "banding". Both of these are examples of a stage two dynamic etch. Usually it is hydrofluoric acid that causes this problem. Only 1 percent HF is needed to do this type of harm. Also dark glass is much more easily effected. It can be more easily seen from the inside looking out at distant objects. When you move your eyes from left to right the outline of treee trunks will move. But when the surface is covered again with mineral deposits the effect becomes rather difficult to observe. When the spots are removed with a quality polishing compound the effect of the etch is revealed.
There are actually many problems like this which can be so easily revealed. Once they are the window cleaner is usually blamed. Unfortunately many times that window cleaner only revealed the damage. It is very unfortunate that he did not have the experience necessary to do the testing which would have exposed any problems before he priced and did the job. This is what I would like to off you. The chance to work with me on each restoration job even from afar. I can help guide you through the initial stages so you will better know exactly what you are getting into. And hopefully save yourself from a lawsuit. There are no guarantees. But knowledge is a safeguard.
Written by Henry Grover Jr
henrygroverjr@gmail.com
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