Gloves! What’s the Difference?

As the temperature drops, you’re probably thinking about what gloves are the best to get you through the winter. But there are so many options to choose from! Which gloves are the best? Will they last? What do all the options mean to you as a professional window cleaner?

You’ll be outside in the cold, working with water and wet tools. So the two obvious things your gloves have to be are WARM and WATERPROOF. You also still have to clean windows with your hands covered, which means you want GRIP to hold your tools and for your gloves to be FLEXIBLE. Gloves should also be DURABLE. A good pair of winter window cleaning gloves should last you about a season.

Let’s use these five factors to grade some of our most popular winter window cleaning gloves. We’ll also compare the prices.

Winterhawk Mechanic-style Gloves $17.80 to $18.69

These are our best-selling gloves! They’re made of a waterproof, breathable fabric that won’t make your hands sweat, with a synthetic leather palm and 100 grams of Thinsulate. They’re flexible and reinforced in the places where your tools will rub. An elastic strap with velcro keeps the gloves snug on your hands and keeps out the cold air.

Benefits:

Pros: They’re breathable fabric. So your hands don’t sweat.

Cons: They’re not as flexible as some other gloves. They’re not as easy to slip on and off frequently.

Can Do Warm & Dry Gloves $19.90

Can Do is a company created by a window cleaner. He saw a need and made gloves to fill that need. Can Do gloves feature an innovative strap of velcro on the cuffs of both gloves. Velcro the cuffs together and easily slip your hand out for fine detail work. These are heavy duty, three-times-dipped, PVC-coated gloves. They’re good for gripping tools, flexible, and waterproof, as well as chemical, oil, and abrasion resistant. They have a long gauntlet to keep water from getting in and thick acrylic liners to keep your hands warm while you’re working.

Benefits:

Pros: They’re easy on and off without dropping your gloves.

Cons: They’re not as flexible as some other gloves.

Showa Temres 282 Gloves $20.48 to $23.95

These Showa brand gloves are quickly becoming a window cleaner favorite. They are double-coated polyurethane with a breathable liner between the coating and the warm, acrylic liner to keep your hands from sweating. They have a rough finish for gripping and a seamless design that makes them flexible yet durable. They’re ergonomically designed to prevent hand fatigue.

Benefits:

Pros: Seamless and ergonomic for long life and greater comfort.

Cons: It’s no wonder these gloves are so popular. I couldn’t find any cons!

Unger Neoprene Gloves $24.48 to $33.12

Unger is well known for its quality products. Their neoprene gloves are no exception. They feature textured neoprene for great tool gripping and a waterproof design, plus a warm foam interior for use all winter long. They have a wrist strap to keep your gloves in place and keep water and cold air out.

Benefits:

Pros: These gloves have great flexibility for good tool manipulation.

Cons: Neoprene can get nicked, which will cause the gloves to leak. These may not be a good glove for some jobs with sharp surfaces, such as cleaning gutters.

Glacier Glove Perfect Curve Gloves $31.45 to $32.95

Glacier Gloves makes reliable, long-life gloves that work great for window cleaners. The Perfect Curve are their most innovative gloves, with pre-curved fingers to reduce hand fatigue. They also have a seamless palm for long life and a 100% waterproof 2mm fleece-lined neoprene.

Benefits:

Pros: These gloves have great flexibility and pre-curved fingers to reduce hand fatigue.

Cons: Neoprene can get nicked, which will cause the gloves to leak. These may not be a good glove for some jobs with sharp surfaces, such as cleaning gutters.

Alaskan Pole Liner Gloves (or Mittens) $28.09 to $29.35

There’s no warmer glove than the Alaskan Polar Liner Gloves (or Mittens). They’ll protect your hands from the cold in even subzero temperatures. The waterproof, textured rubber exterior allows you to grip even wet tools without exerting much effort. They also have a removable, replaceable liner, so you never have to worry about smelly gloves.

Benefits:

Pros: These are the warmest gloves, hands down, and slide on and off easily.

Cons: These gloves are not as dexterous as most of the other gloves.

PRO TIP: You can add a pair of glove liners (we have white or blue) to keep your hands warmer and keep your hands from sweating, especially with neoprene gloves. If you are going to add a liner, get your gloves one size bigger than usual. Some window cleaners will even wear a pair of disposable latex gloves inside their gloves to keep their hands drier and avoid getting chemicals like soap and methanol on their skin. Try one or both!

And there you have it. For under $35, sometimes under $20, you can find the perfect winter window cleaning gloves.

Are you still having trouble deciding which gloves would work best for you? Call us at 800-535-6394. We’d be happy to go over the options with you, so you know you’re making the best choice. We want you to have the best tools for the most success, always.

Be sure to check out our YouTube for videos like this one with Mike talking about winter window cleaning gloves: https://youtu.be/4-c0HrLVYYA

You can also find us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. Check out our website for great prices on great tools and our current promotions.