To avoid drips and evaporation, spray Windex® Glass Cleaner on large windows in sections, wiping away the cleaning solution before moving on to the next portion.
This has to do with the evaporation rate—if your cleaning solution evaporates before you have time to wipe it off, it will leave a mark. Alcohol- and ammonia-based cleaners evaporate more quickly than vinegar, but any window cleaner can leave streaks if it isn't removed fast enough.
For best results, avoid using Windex® Original Glass Cleaner on very hot or cold surfaces. The product may evaporate before wiping and cause streaking. Choosing the right towel can also help achieve a streak-free shine.
The most common is a water-fed pole cleaner mounted on an extendable pole for easy access to exterior windows. This setup requires significant investment into tools and training but makes cleaning high windows simple. The next most common option is a pair of squeegee and scrubber tools mounted on poles.
If you have smeared windows when you're finished cleaning, you've left cleaning solution, soap, or minerals behind. Whether you have white residue on windows or another blemish, the solution is the same. Clean faster, use cleaner water, and wipe away all your solution, so nothing is left behind.
Mix one part distilled vinegar to 10 parts warm water in a spray bottle. Wipe down the window with a a soft, clean, lint-free microfiber cloth or paper towel to remove dust before you spray your solution, then spray the entire surface.
If you notice streaks on your window, it's likely because of leftover residue from commercial products. To get rid of streaks, make a solution of two cups of water, ¼ cup of white vinegar, and ½ teaspoon of dish detergent and follow our “best way to clean your windows” process.
Don't leave the streak-free shine behind when you reach for a multi-surface cleaner that kills 99.9% of germs‡, viruses^, and bacteria† on hard, non-porous surfaces. Windex® Disinfectant Cleaner Multi-Surface leaves behind a fresh citrus scent without any dull residue.
Make sure to use a commercial glass cleaner or try a combination of distilled water and white vinegar. Once you have the product ready, use a microfiber cloth, t-shirt, or newspaper instead of paper towels. Spray the product on your cloth instead of on the mirror in order to avoid drips that you'll need to wipe up.
Best Overall: Stoner Invisible Glass Glass Cleaner
Invisible Glass Glass Cleaner quickly and easily removes fingerprints, smudges, grease and grime without leaving behind residue for a streak-free shine without soaps, scents or dyes. In fact, Invisible Glass guarantees a streak-free finish or your money back.
A big problem is the evaporation rate. If you're cleaning your windows on a warm sunny day, the liquid part of the solution evaporates quickly and leaves behind a residue that appears as streaks. On the other hand, if you don't entirely remove the liquid you can also be left with a streaky window.
Paper towels are typically treated for absorbency, which makes them ideal for spills, but awful for glass cleaning. Instead, substitute your paper towels for something more practical, like actual cloth. Lint-free cotton cloths, like microfiber cloths are great options for glass cleaners.
Microfiber cloths are absorbent cloths that can be washed and reused to clean windows, leaving them clear, shiny and streak-free. These are best used to apply cleaning solutions to windows, scrub them clean and wipe them dry. Best of all, they are soft and pose no risk to your windows.
The best way to clean glass windows or tabletops is by using either a coffee filter or a microfiber cloth. In the end, using microfiber cloths or coffee filters is a bit easier and yields more or less the same streak-free shine a properly wielded squeegee would.
Distilled vinegar and hot water
A true tried and tested method, distilled vinegar and hot water has proven to be one of the most successful methods to clean your windows. Since vinegar has an acidic composition, it's quick in breaking down the thin film of grime that collects on the glass' surface.
Windex cleans by helping to dislodge dust, debris and grease off the surface of the window. Once that material is disrupted, however, you still have to remove it. This is where Windex falls short. Most of the time that debris just ends up getting moved around on the glass.
Spray the glass with cleaner.
Spray a stronger mix of 1:1 water and vinegar (or Windex, or glass cleaner) at your window, so that the solution covers most of the glass. (I found Windex to work better, but if you have pets—or kids—who frequently lick outdoor windows, vinegar may be the best route for you.)
Simply add a 50-50 mix of white distilled vinegar and tap water to a spray bottle. Some professional window cleaners add a little dish washing detergent to the mixture.
Tip #1: Use Cheap Washing Liquid
All you need to achieve brilliantly clean windows is a bit of washing up liquid and warm water. There's no need to buy expensive washing up liquid as the cheap stuff will do the job just as well as long as you use just a little bit.
The high absorbency of the newsprint is likely what makes it so effective at cleaning windows. It actually absorbs the liquid instead of just pushing it around. And glass is a slick, non-porous surface, so the ink doesn't adhere to it like it does wood molding.
The best thing about paper towels is that they can absorb water very fast. That makes them great for cleaning, since you will not have to worry about spreading the dust, dirt or grime around. You keep everything in a single place, and that can eliminate many of the challenges that can sometimes arise.
They are absorbent and can be used to wipe up spills or clean surfaces. However, paper towels are not specifically designed to kill germs and bacteria, so they may not be as effective at preventing the spread of illness. Another downside of using paper towels is that they are not as convenient as sanitary wipes.
Here's how I use cloth and when even I reach for a paper towel. I use a rag for wiping off the kitchen counters and the table. That's all this rag gets used for (it has its own special color) and it gets rinsed between each use and changed every day. Less waste, still clean, and sturdier for cleanup than a paper towel.