Count the area first, then turn it into time
One screen looks like a five-minute job, and then the whole house swallows an afternoon. Enter the width and height of a window, how many windows are that size and the time you need per square foot, and the page returns the combined glass and screen area together with the total time. It answers whether this is a single Saturday morning or not.
How the numbers are worked out
The area of one window is width times height converted to square feet, and the screen is taken as the same area on the assumption that it sits inside the same frame at the same size. The total to clean adds the glass and the screen, which is why it comes to twice the window area. No officially recommended time per square foot is offered here: it swings widely with how dirty the screens are and what you clean them with, so there is nothing standard to quote. As of October 2026, clean one and measure.
Cleaning products, how to remove a screen from its frame and working safely at height are not covered here. For removal and washing, follow the product manual and the manufacturer's instructions.
Frequently Asked Questions
A screen normally sits inside the same frame at the same size, so one window area is reused for it. If your screens are smaller or cover only part of the opening, enter the width and height of the screen instead.
No officially recommended figure is offered here, because it swings widely with how dirty the screens are, the tools used and whether you can reach comfortably. Clean one window, divide the time it took by its area and use that.
Because one face of the glass and one face of the screen are each counted. Window area and screen area are also listed separately, so if you plan to do only one of them, read that line instead.