Window Washing Guide
§ THE BIBLIOGRAPHY

What we read when we wrote this.

Standards, manufacturer documents, trade press, peer-reviewed literature, and the open-data sources our tools rely on. Individual articles cite the specific items they draw on; this page is the aggregated view.

25 REFERENCES5 CATEGORIESUPDATED MAY 2026
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§ STANDARDS & CODES

Standards & codes

The published standards we cite when discussing tempered, laminated, and safety glazing, plus the rope-access framework for high-rise work.

ANSI Z97.1

AMERICAN NATIONAL STANDARDS INSTITUTE

Performance specifications and test methods for safety glazing materials used in buildings. Cited in our pieces on tempered glass and the tempered stamp.

CPSC 16 CFR 1201

U.S. CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION

Federal standard for architectural glazing materials. The legal underpinning for why your shower door is tempered.

ASTM C1036 / C1048

ASTM INTERNATIONAL

Specifications for flat glass and heat-treated flat glass. Referenced when we discuss annealed vs. tempered manufacturing.

IRATA International Code of Practice

INDUSTRIAL ROPE ACCESS TRADE ASSOCIATION

The rope-access framework that governs high-rise window cleaning operations including the Burj Khalifa work covered in our Field Notes.

IWCA Safety Standards

INTERNATIONAL WINDOW CLEANING ASSOCIATION

Trade-side safety guidance on ladder, pole, and lift work. Cited throughout the Pro Track pillar.

OSHA 29 CFR 1910.27

U.S. OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION

Federal rules on fixed ladders and rope-descent systems. The legal floor under high-rise cleaning work in the United States.

§ MANUFACTURER DOCUMENTS

Manufacturer documents

Safety Data Sheets and product literature from the cleaning-chemistry manufacturers whose products appear in our coverage. We cite SDS PDFs by version and date.

Procter & Gamble — Dawn Original SDS

PROCTER & GAMBLE

Surfactant package and pH characterization for the dish soap that anchors the House Standard solution.

Jelmar — CLR Calcium Lime Rust SDS

JELMAR, LLC

Acid composition (lactic, gluconic, sulfamic) and substrate compatibility limits for the consumer hard-water cleaner.

S.C. Johnson — Windex Original SDS

S.C. JOHNSON & SON

Ammonia concentration and surfactant load. The basis for our standing warning against use on tinted, low-E, and laminated glass.

Sprayway, Inc. — Sprayway Glass Cleaner #50 SDS

SPRAYWAY, INC.

Composition and performance specifications for the foaming cleaner most widely used by working route cleaners.

Magic American — Bar Keepers Friend SDS

MAGIC AMERICAN PRODUCTS

Oxalic acid plus feldspar abrasive. The reason BKF should not be used on coated, tinted, or self-cleaning glass.

WD-40 Company — WD-40 Multi-Use Product SDS

WD-40 COMPANY

Petroleum distillate composition. Cited in our solvent ladder work and warnings against use near gaskets.

§ TRADE PUBLICATIONS

Trade publications

Working trade journals we read regularly and cite when their reporting bears on a piece. We are skeptical of trade press funded primarily by manufacturer advertising.

Pro Window Cleaner Magazine

INDEPENDENT QUARTERLY

The closest thing the trade has to a publication of record. Equipment reviews, trade-business profiles, and the occasional regulatory update.

The Window Cleaner

INTERNATIONAL WINDOW CLEANING ASSOCIATION

The IWCA's member publication. Useful for safety reporting and trade-organization news.

Glass Magazine

NATIONAL GLASS ASSOCIATION

Glazier-side trade press. Useful for coverage of new glazing products and IGU manufacturing trends.

Building Service Contractors Association International — Cleaning & Maintenance Management

BSCAI

Contractor-side reporting on commercial-cleaning operations, including the specific labor and pricing data we cite in pricing pieces.

§ ACADEMIC & TECHNICAL LITERATURE

Academic & technical literature

Peer-reviewed materials chemistry and surface-science papers cited primarily in Easton's pieces on glass damage and coating failure. Full citations appear in the relevant articles.

Surface chemistry of soft-coat low-emissivity films

JOURNAL OF VACUUM SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Foundational work on the metal-oxide stack chemistry that makes ammonia attack on low-E coatings a permanent-damage risk.

Hydrolytic alteration of soda-lime-silica glass surfaces

JOURNAL OF NON-CRYSTALLINE SOLIDS

The mechanism by which prolonged contact with water and dissolved minerals etches glass surfaces. The science behind permanent fog.

Polyvinyl butyral interlayer degradation in laminated safety glass

POLYMER DEGRADATION AND STABILITY

Solvent-induced delamination pathways. The technical basis for our warnings about acetone, MEK, and lacquer thinner near laminated edges.

Nickel sulfide inclusions and spontaneous fracture in tempered glass

GLASS TECHNOLOGY

Why tempered panels occasionally explode without warning, and why heat-soak testing matters on safety-critical installations.

Surfactant adsorption on soda-lime glass surfaces and its persistence

LANGMUIR

The mechanism behind surfactant hysteresis — the streaks-overnight phenomenon that Mara writes about.

Mineral deposit morphology in residential window soiling

BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENT

Field characterization of the particulates and hard-water deposits that accumulate on residential glazing in different climates.

§ GOVERNMENT & MUNICIPAL DATA

Government & municipal data

Open-data sources for the regional information our tools rely on, including the water-hardness data that powers the Hard Water Severity Scorer.

USGS Water Quality Data

UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

Source data for the water-hardness mapping that backs our scorer tool. Updated regularly from the National Water Information System.

EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

Public-water-system reporting we use to validate and cross-check the regional hardness data.

NOAA Climate Data Online

NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION

Pollen, humidity, and seasonal data referenced in our seasonal-cleaning pieces.

A NOTE ON CITATION

Individual articles cite the specific items they draw on inline by footnote. If a piece's claim depends on a particular document, that document is named in the article. This page exists for readers who want to see the body of work as a whole.