Meet the Drones Washing Winnipeg's Skyscrapers

Video courtesy of Global News Morning.

There's a new sound on the Winnipeg skyline — and it's not scaffolding or a boom lift. It's the hum of a drone, hovering a meter or two off a building, running a hose down its own washing wand and cleaning windows dozens of stories in the air.

That's Clear Horizon Aerial, a Winnipeg company using purpose-built drones to wash the windows and facades of the city's high-rises — and it recently caught the attention of Global News, which featured CEO Ryan Ridge.

Photo courtesy of Global News Morning.

How It Actually Works

This isn't a consumer drone with a squeegee taped on. The rig is a heavy-duty setup built around a DJI Matrice 400 RTK, connected by hose to a ground-based wash unit — deionized water tanks, soap tanks, a pressure pump, and a heater that brings the water up to a comfortable working temperature. That system feeds a wand mounted underneath the drone, which the pilot maneuvers directly against the glass to clean facades and windows up to 18 stories high.

Fully assembled with the wand and hose attached, the drone weighs in at around 35 pounds — enough mass that it doesn't respond quickly, and enough momentum that once it starts moving, it takes real skill to control precisely.

Photo courtesy of Global News Morning.

Why Drones Make Sense for This

Traditional high-rise window washing means swing stages, boom lifts, or rope access — all of which take time to set up, close off ground-level areas, and carry their own risks for the workers involved. A drone crew can be airborne in a fraction of the time, reach angles and setbacks that are awkward for suspended platforms, and do it all without anyone dangling from the side of a building.

It's also precise. Because the drone can hover and hold position right at the glass, crews can target specific sections of a facade without washing an entire elevation — useful for spot cleaning or hard-to-reach architectural features.

The Skill Behind the Stick

Flying this kind of mission is a different discipline than typical aerial photography or videography work. Pilots are operating within a meter or two of building faces and, often, power lines — all while flying in Cine mode with obstacle-avoidance sensors switched off, because the sensors themselves would prevent the drone from getting close enough to do the job. Every movement is fully manual.

That combination — heavy equipment, tight clearances, and no automated safety net — is why Clear Horizon Aerial specifically looks for pilots with advanced certification and real hours of precision flying experience, not just recreational time in the air.

A Seasonal Operation With Room to Grow

Right now, the work runs through the warmer months, generally wrapping up around November as weather becomes a bigger factor. But the technology doesn't have to sit idle over winter — the same aircraft and pilot skill set open the door to other services, like thermal imaging inspections of building envelopes, giving the operation a year-round runway as it expands.

For a city with a skyline that keeps growing, it's a glimpse of where building maintenance might be headed: less scaffolding, more precision flying.

Clear Horizon Aerial is based in Winnipeg, Manitoba.