Exterior Only or Inside and Out? Window Cleaning in Kirkland

For most Kirkland houses, an exterior-only clean handles the dirt you actually notice: road film, pollen, sprinkler spots and the grey haze that builds up on the outside of the glass. Adding interior glass makes sense when you have kids, pets, a wood stove, heavy cooking or a house you are about to list. And since the inside can be done any month of the year, many homeowners book the exterior before the season closes in November and leave the interior for winter.

Below is how each option works with Altara, what the difference looks like on a typical West Island house, and a simple way to decide.

What an exterior visit includes

The flat rate covers the outside of the house. You count your windows, choose the matching tier on the pricing page, and the visit takes care of:

• the outside face of every window,
• frames and sills,
• screens rinsed in place during the same pass.

The crew works from the ground with a water-fed pole and pure deionized water. Because that water has no dissolved minerals, it dries without spots, and there is no soap left on the glass to catch dust. The soft brush also scrubs the frames and sills, where most of the visible grime sits on a suburban house.

The pole reaches up to three storeys from the ground. That covers the two-storey split-levels and cottages common in Kirkland, including the tall foyer windows above many front doors. A house with a steep walkout at the back or an unusually tall facade gets a site visit first.

What adding the interior changes

Interior glass is an optional paid add-on, done by hand with a squeegee and cloths. It cleans the inside face of each pane, which is a different kind of dirt altogether:

• fingerprints and nose prints at child and dog height,
• a greasy film near the kitchen, especially over the sink,
• a light haze from a fireplace, wood stove or candles,
• condensation marks along the bottom edge of the glass in winter.

Two related add-ons often get booked with it. Screen removal and washing takes the screens out and cleans them properly instead of a rinse in place. Track cleaning vacuums and wipes the sliding tracks, which matters on patio doors that collect sand, grass clippings and dead insects. Both are optional and priced separately from the flat rate.

Side by side

A quick way to compare the two choices on a typical Kirkland home:

• Season. Exterior work runs from about March to November. Interior cleaning runs year-round.
• Who needs to be home. For exterior-only, nobody has to be there if the side gates are unlocked. Interior glass needs someone to let the crew in.
• Prep. Exterior prep is moving planters and the barbecue away from the walls. Interior prep is clearing sills and opening blinds.
• What you see afterward. The exterior clean removes the outdoor haze that softens the view. The interior clean removes the smudges you notice when the low winter sun hits the glass.
• Price. Exterior is the flat rate by window count. Interior is added on top, only if you choose it.

When exterior only is enough

Plenty of Kirkland households can skip the inside most of the time. Exterior-only usually works if:

• the house has no young children or dogs pressing against the glass,
• you don't mind wiping the inside of a few patio doors yourself,
• the windows are tilt-in models, which make the inside easy to reach,
• you mainly want the outside cleared of pollen and road film from Autoroute 40 or boulevard Saint-Charles before winter.

In those homes, the outside is where nearly all of the dirt builds up. A clean outer face changes how bright the rooms look far more than a clean inner face.

When the inside is worth adding

The interior pays off in a few common cases:

• Families with small kids or pets. Hand and paw prints on the patio door and lower windows come back fast, and they show clearly once the outside is clean.
• Homes with a wood stove or fireplace. Smoke leaves a thin film on interior glass that dulls the light all winter.
• Tall or fixed windows. Foyer windows, transoms and picture windows above a staircase are awkward and unsafe to reach from a step ladder.
• Before selling. Listing photos and showings pick up every smudge. Clean glass on both sides is one of the cheapest ways to make rooms look brighter.
• Older homes near the lake. Houses closer to Lac Saint-Louis tend to see more condensation in cold months, which leaves water marks along the inner glass.

Splitting the two across the year

Doing everything in one visit is convenient, but it isn't required. Because exterior work ends with the cold and interior work continues all year, a split schedule is common on the West Island:

• Late October or early November: exterior clean, with screens rinsed in place, so the glass goes into winter clear.
• January or February: interior glass, when condensation marks and holiday fingerprints are at their worst and the low sun makes them obvious.
• Spring: a second exterior visit to remove winter salt and sand, with screens removed and washed before they go back into use for the summer.

If you want more than two exterior visits a year, recurring service is discounted: 10% for quarterly, 15% for every two months and 20% for monthly. Bi-annual and annual programs carry no discount but include automated reminders, so the spring and fall visits get booked without you tracking dates.

What sits outside either option

Some work is quoted separately whatever you choose: skylights, solariums, heavy mineral stains that have etched the glass, and post-construction cleanup such as paint, caulk or stucco left on the panes after a renovation. Mention any of these when you book.

Altara does not repair screens. If the crew sees a tear or a bent frame during either visit, they'll point it out so you can have it fixed.

Whichever option you choose, the streak-free guarantee applies. Report a streak within 24 hours and the crew comes back to fix it at no charge. Local details are on the Kirkland service page.

Frequently asked questions

Is interior window cleaning included in the flat rate?

No. The flat rate covers the exterior: glass, frames, sills and screens rinsed in place. Interior glass is an optional paid add-on that you can select when booking or schedule for a later date.

Can interior windows be cleaned in winter?

Yes. Interior cleaning runs year-round, so it fits well in January or February after the exterior season has closed. Many homeowners prefer it then, since condensation marks and smudges are easiest to spot in low winter light.

Does someone need to be home for an exterior-only window cleaning?

Usually not. If the gates are unlocked and the crew can walk around the house, the exterior can be done while you are out. If you add interior glass, someone needs to be home to let the crew in.

Should screens be removed when only the outside is cleaned?

Screens are rinsed in place during the exterior visit, which handles light dust and pollen. For screens that are clogged or stained after a full summer, removal and washing is an optional add-on worth considering in spring.

Book the visit that fits your house

Pick your window-count tier on the pricing page for the exterior, then add interior glass, screens or tracks if they make sense for you. For a solarium, skylights or renovation residue on the glass, send us a message and we'll plan it with you.