Is It Safe to Clean Second-Story Windows Yourself?

Cleaning second-story windows yourself is usually safe when you can reach the glass from inside or from the ground. Climbing an extension ladder to reach it is the risky part, and that job is best left to an insured pro with the right gear.

How risky is a ladder, really?

More than most people think. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates that about 273,000 injuries involving ladders and stools were treated in emergency rooms in 2024. A 2014 CDC report on ladder falls opens with this: 43% of fatal falls in the decade before it came out involved a ladder.

You don’t have to be way up high to get hurt, either. That same report looked at ladder falls on the job. Falls from 6 to 10 feet were the most common, and they made up half of the emergency room cases where the fall height was known. A second-story window usually sits higher than that.

Can you clean second-story windows from inside?

Often, yes, and it’s the safest way to do it yourself.

Tilt-in sashes. Many double-hung windows, and some single-hung ones, have sashes that tilt in so you can clean the outside of the glass from the room. Check your window maker’s directions before you force anything.
Sliders. On many sliding windows, the moving panel lifts out of its track. Lay it flat on a towel, clean both sides, then set it back in.
Fixed glass. Picture windows and other glass that doesn’t open can only be cleaned on the outside from the outside. That’s where a pole or a ladder comes in.

Never sit on the sill or lean out an open window to reach the glass. If you pop a screen out from inside, keep a hand on it. A gust can carry it right off the second floor.

How do you clean high windows without a ladder?

An extension pole with a scrubber and a squeegee head can reach second-story glass from the ground on a lot of homes. It takes practice, though. From below, it’s hard to pull a clean squeegee stroke, so streaks are common.

Two things to skip here in the Treasure Valley:

Don’t rinse with the garden hose. Most of our water is hard, and it dries into white spots. Here’s how to deal with hard water spots.
Don’t use a pressure washer. High pressure can force water past the window seals. Here’s why we never pressure wash windows.

Professional water-fed poles get around the spot problem by rinsing with filtered, pure water that can dry without spots. That’s why you see them on high glass.

If you do climb, follow these ladder rules

Most of these come from OSHA’s portable ladder safety card. The last few are for Treasure Valley yards.

Look up first. Check for power lines before you carry or raise the ladder, and don’t use a metal ladder near them.
Inspect the ladder. Don’t climb a damaged one, and make sure every lock on an extension ladder is engaged.
Set the angle. Put the base out from the wall a quarter of the ladder’s working length, the part from the ground to where it rests: about 1 foot out for every 4 feet. The free NIOSH Ladder Safety app helps you set it at about 75 degrees.
Keep three points of contact. Two hands and a foot, or two feet and a hand, while you climb, and always face the ladder.
Stay off the top three rungs of an extension ladder. Don’t lean out past the rails. Climb down and move the ladder instead.
Firm, level ground only. Never set the ladder on boxes or anything else to gain height.
Turn the sprinklers off the day before. A soaked lawn lets ladder feet sink or slide, and landscape rock can shift under them.
Pick a calm, dry day. Skip frosty mornings, snow, ice and windy afternoons. We move our own jobs for heavy rain or unsafe wind, and you should too.
Don’t climb alone. Have someone hold the ladder and pass up your tools.

When should you hire a pro instead?

It’s time to call someone if any of these sound like your house:

The only way to reach the glass is an extension ladder.
The ladder would have to stand in a flower bed, on a slope or on rock, or the window sits above a first-floor roof or a deck.
The high glass has hard water spots from sprinklers. Those take hands-on work, not a quick rinse.
You have tall windows inside too, like in a two-story great room.
You’d be climbing alone, or you just don’t feel steady up there.

“Fantastic service with upbeat enthusiasm! My windows look great after having them professionally cleaned by these guys. First time hiring out for this type of service for my home - glad I did! Thanks guys!”

Lisa W. · Google review

How do pros clean second-story windows?

Pros reach high glass with ladders, water-fed poles or both. Here’s how we do it. We clean by hand with a mop and squeegee: scrub the glass, squeegee it dry, then detail the frames and sills. On some second-story glass, you may see us use a water-fed pole: a long pole with a soft brush that scrubs and rinses with filtered, pure water, so the glass dries without spots. Here’s how the two methods compare.

Every outside window cleaning covers the glass, frames and sills, and we take every screen off and put it back. Want the screens washed too? Screen cleaning is an add-on. Inside, we clean tall windows from a ladder as well. Here’s more on interior window cleaning.

Why does insurance matter for high windows?

Anyone working on a ladder at your home should be insured, so ask before you book. Double Take is locally owned and fully insured, and every tech is background-checked. We clean high glass with ladders and water-fed poles. If anything isn’t right, tell us within 48 hours and we’ll make it right.

Ready to skip the ladder?

Your price depends on how much glass you have, what you want cleaned and how easy the windows are to reach. Here’s what window cleaning costs in Boise. For an outside-only cleaning, nobody needs to be home, and you never need to give us water or move furniture. We clean second-story windows across Boise, Meridian, Eagle, Nampa and the rest of the Treasure Valley. Get a free quote, or call or text (208) 484-5207, Monday through Saturday, 8am to 7pm.