# Would you take a job washing windows of a sky scraper? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 21, 2008, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847 "2008-10-21T02:37:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2008, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847/21 "2008-10-21T12:13:59Z")
Given that I hate, hate, hate, harnesses, no. Now, if I could do it without being tied, in a New York Minute. I have no problem with heights, just with being tied. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2008, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847/22 "2008-10-21T12:37:30Z")
Job’s boring. Height? Who cares? But the view would be nice when you had some spare time to look around. I’d be more unhappy with the cold & incessant wind than the height. Like many of the Dirty Jobs, I’d like to try it for a day. Can you imagine the stories Mike Rowe will be able to tell his grandkids? ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2008, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847/23 "2008-10-21T14:48:06Z")
What amazes me is the guys who work on building tall buildings, and walk around on girders, without any sort of safety harness, 300+ feet up. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Renee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/renee/32/287_2.png) [@Renee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renee)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2008, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847/24 "2008-10-21T15:02:20Z")
> [@Nanoda](#): > > I don’t think 9/11 is a realistic job hazard for window washers. There’s plenty of [actual ones](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvvSytXuQKs) though. :eek: Shit. The whole time I was watching that, I kept thinking “Don’t just stand there videoing that, you jackass, do something!” But, um, what was he suposed to do? I would be absolutely sick watching that in person and being unable to help. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2008, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847/25 "2008-10-21T15:10:18Z")
Make it 2 kajillion dollars and perhaps we’ll talk. Other than that, the damn windows can just stay dirty for all I care. ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2008, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847/26 "2008-10-21T15:29:35Z")
No way. I wouldn’t mind the temperatures. But the heights are a deal-breaker for me. ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2008, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847/27 "2008-10-21T15:37:27Z")
> [@Tabby\_Cat](#): > > Holy crap! What’s the story behind that? [It happened in Denver about three years ago](http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/5435459/detail.html). The booms on the roof collapsed, sending the platform swinging. Both guys on the platform came away fine (physically, at least). Incidentally, it wasn’t a good couple of days for that window washing company: > [@](#): > > Wednesday was the second day in a row that window washers were involved in accidents in Downtown Denver. > > In Tuesday’s accident, two window washers employed by the same company were injured when the platform fell on top of them as they were working on the roof of a building at 1875 Lawrence Street. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2008, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847/28 "2008-10-21T16:54:18Z")
I don’t mind the heights, and I’m sure you’d see some interesting stuff in the windows. 😉 But I’m sure it’s boring and very hot or cold depending on the time of year. Maybe if the pay was really good. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2008, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847/29 "2008-10-21T17:06:14Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > I don’t mind the heights, and I’m sure you’d see some interesting stuff in the windows. 😉 > > But I’m sure it’s boring and very hot or cold depending on the time of year. > > Maybe if the pay was really good. A friend and I asked the window washers out for drinks via a note pressed up to our window. They were awful cute. I wouldn’t go higher than about 5 stories. I get a little dizzy just thinking about it. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2008, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847/30 "2008-10-21T17:11:34Z")
> [@guizot](#): > > For me, I’d never do it. I have an extreme fear of heights. I know they have security belts and what-not, but I’d still never do it. Same here. I can’t even _think_ about it without getting all twitchy. ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2008, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847/31 "2008-10-21T19:37:46Z")
No problem with the heights, but the boredom and probably relatively extreme temperatures would get to me. ---
**Author:** ![jtsPimp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@jtsPimp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtsPimp)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2008, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847/32 "2008-10-21T23:56:46Z")
> [@guizot](#): > > How much pay would induce you to take such a job? > > For me, I’d never do it. I have an extreme fear of heights. I know they have security belts and what-not, but I’d still never do it. > > The reason I ask is that I have a friend who is trying to get his license to be a crane operator. He’s asking me to help him with the mathematics, which is no problem for me. But I’d never take a job going up in one or those things. > > I admire him that he’s willing to go up in one of those things. God, I’d love to do something like that. I missed an opportunity to do it too. I’d moved to Florida and got word of a job, so I called some guy’s cell left my details on his voicemail and never got a response. Called a couple of times, only to get his voice mail. Would’ve loved to do that. Shouldn’t neglect to mention I’m into skydiving and it’d be a great opportunity to hunt for BASE opportunities… ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2008, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847/33 "2008-10-22T04:38:35Z")
I’d love to do a ‘ride along’ some day but I don’t think I would find it interesting enough to make it a full time career. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2008, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847/34 "2008-10-22T19:37:54Z")
Some of the skyscraper window washers around here don’t even have those big honkin’ platforms. [They look like this.](http://www.peterpawinski.com/images/portfolio12.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harriet_the_Spry)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847/35 "2008-10-23T01:27:30Z")
I am well and truly not cut out for that kind of work, but if it were the only work available, I’d like to think I’d take it. ---
**Author:** ![Mooch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7bcc69/32.png) [@Mooch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mooch)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847/36 "2008-10-23T15:59:08Z")
I’d try it out for a while. If nothing else, think of the bored office worker flasher stories you’d have! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-job-washing-windows-of-a-sky-scraper/468847.md?page=1)