Category: News & Updates

Why is there an article about drinking water on a blog for window cleaning you might ask. Apart from the fact that water is the most common tool we use to perform our work, it is also important to drink often to keep ourselves running optimally throughout the day… or so we thought. Most of us grew up thinking we needed to drink eight glasses of water each day. We were told this because our parents were told this. It is a myth, and a study by the University of Pennsylvania shows that hydration isn’t as simple as drinking 64 ounces of water each day. So where does the standard advice come from? “Nobody really knows.” says Dr. Stanley Goldfarb at the University of Pennsylvania, There is no clear benefit from drinking increased amounts of water.”   Understanding hydration The human body is comprised of around 60% water, and is a well-tuned balancing machine. If we need sleep, we sleep. If we need food, we eat. And if we need water well, we drink. Another commonly held myth about hydration is that our thirst mechanism doesn’t kick in until after we are dehydrated and that simply isn’t true. Water in the body is measured in two ways; dehydration, the lack of water circulating in the blood stream, and hydration, the amount of water being held in bodily tissue. Dehydration occurs when the concentration of the blood rises 5% (our thirst mechanism is triggered at 2%) a way to visualize this is a reduction of 2% of body weight (4 lbs for a 200 lb man). With this picture we can start to see that many of us are simply not in a position of risk for dehydration over the course of a regular day. Also, hydration is not as simple as drinking more water as excess water doesn’t actually increase hydration, it only decreases the blood concentration and throws electrolytes out of balance. Fluid is stored in our fat and muscle tissues, with fat cells holding 15-25% water and fat cells holding up to 72% water. Therefore it is difficult to be properly hydrated if you are overweight. An overweight person might find themselves more often thirsty, causing them to drink more water as their body retains less than an average weight person while depleting nutritional stores and disrupting electrolyte balances. The best way to self-assess your hydration level is by examining the colour of your urine. It shouldn’t be a dark colour, nor should it be completely clear. The colour of our urine is affected by many things including the foods we eat, vitamins, medications etc. A light yellow colour is the best. If you wake up in the middle of the night to urinate, or go more than 5 times per day you’re drinking too much.   Getting what we need Rethinking hydration leads us to consider the water levels in our food. For example, an apple is 84% water, and yes the water from coffee, tea or alcoholic beverages do count. There are many ways to hydrate your body with foods that add to your nutrition whereas water depletes our system without adding anything back in. Coconut water, kombucha, herbal teas, coffee and soups are all great ways to hydrate your body, and avoid sugary sports drinks unless you engage in very strenuous and long work-outs. Work on resetting your water addiction by ditching that monster-size 24 oz glass in favour of a teacup size and decrease body fat to improve your hydration. “There’s no evidence to drink more water than thirst dictates”, Goldfarb says. “If one is just playing a game of indoor tennis or having a short run on an indoor treadmill, the need to maintain hydration during that is just non-existent” Goldfarb advises. So as the doctor says; go easy on the water. We need it to clean windows!

A memorable scene from the movie Fight Club displays the ultimate revenge against luxury car owners. Edward Norton and Brad Pitt lay down massive amounts of bird feed on the roofs of luxury car dealerships resulting in the absolute covering of the cars in bird droppings. The scene, a point of humour in the movie, is far from it in real life. Pigeons and other birds have adapted so well to the urban environment. Our litter provides a constant food source and our buildings are perfect for roosting, and there are barely any predators. Because of this you can find them practically everywhere. These airborne pests make their homes in rafters, under bridges, parking garages, airport hangars, warehouses, lube shops, repair facilities and more. In any environment, these nuisance birds can cause problems but in concentrated populations can bring serious risk. Pigeons are the most common pest and are well adapted to urban life and widely distributed. They breed throughout the year, producing up to six broods annually. Gulls have adapted so well to city life they are found far inland away from their coastal origins and can be aggressive when nesting. Bird droppings can carry disease, erode steel, and devalue other capital assets. More than a nuisance Wherever birds nest or roost on buildings, fouling is an inevitable result. Apart from being unsightly, accumulations of bird droppings can lead to long term property problems. Bird waste contains uric acid, and has also been identified by inspectors as a contributing factor in the tragic bridge collapse of 2007 in Minneapolis. Bird droppings can deteriorate almost any building material. It can block gutters leading to water ingress and cause localized flooding, damage can also build up unseen on flat roof spaces. Masonry, particularly limestone is highly sensitive to bird droppings. Ornate architecture provides more spaces for birds to roost leading to disfigurement of a buildings design features. Bird droppings can ruin fabric awnings and short out electrical equipment. Inevitably maintenance activity has to increase to protect a building against bird infestation. Health Risks The real danger is to your health, as bird droppings contain hazardous diseases and parasites. Entomologist research has identified more than 60 transmittable diseases and dangerous parasitic organisms associated with bird droppings, Ornithosis (a flu type disease) Histoplasmosis & Cryptococcosis (a potentially fatal lung infection), Ecoli (a gastro-enteritis disease), and Toxoplasmosis (a parasitic infection) are among the most common, as well as Encephalitis and Meningitis. The most common methods of contracting illness from droppings are inhalation and ingestion. Inhalation occurs when droppings are dried and disturbed creating an airborne dust that can be inhaled. Histoplasmosis can be transmitted through inhalation. Ingestion occurs when eating or drinking foods that have come into contact with bird related micro-organisms. Toxoplasmosis can be transmitted by ingestion. In addition to disease and related illnesses, bird droppings also create a slip hazard a particular problem with fire escapes. Taking control There are many solutions in the market available to fight back against your avian invasion ranging from lethal to non-lethal. Nets, wires, spikes, gels, visual deterrents, sonic devices, live trappings, falconry, and other population control measures have been used to manage offending bird problems. You may choose to use two or more solutions together as part of an aggressive control strategy, but remember birds are adaptive, make a note to move visual deterrents or change settings on machines to keep birds off balance.