Reinventing The Bucket - Kickstarter Campaign

Sparkling clean windows with less water wastage with the Eco Window Cleaning Unit.

Reinventing The Bucket - Kickstarter Campaign: Sparkling clean windows with less water wastage with the Eco Window Cleaning Unit. Why It’s Better Than a Bucket…  It Saves Water! Using the traditional method of cleaning windows, you ‘dip’ an Applicator into a bucket to absorb the water, and then you can either wring it out with your hand and get soaking wet hands. …Or do what most cleaners do and pull it out of the bucket with all the water on it and slop the water all over the window. Wasting about 250ml of water every time! The Eco Window Cleaning Unit uses less than a teaspoon, as the excess water is removed from the applicator before it gets anywhere near the glass.

The EcoBucket was featured on the blog before here.

It Saves Time! The Eco Window Cleaning Unit can hold 6.5 litres of water. You’ll be able to wash 64 glass panels of between 0.5 and 1 sq metre approximately. That’s enough for a window cleaner to last a whole day without a water change! The specially fitted pump and micro-jets mean that only the right amount of clean water is delivered to the squeegee when you need it. All you have to add is one teaspoonful (a quick squirt) of fairy liquid to break down the grease and that’s perfect!

KickStarter campaign has begun - click here to claim your EcoBucket

About this project

Hello, my name is Clyde Jordan. I’ve been a commercial abseiler for the last 10 years and window cleaning is a very big part of my career. I am based close to London where, like in any large city around the world, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of tall skyscrapers. This is where commercial abseilers play a very big part in keeping the cities looking their best by cleaning the windows of these buildings.

Our abseiling equipment that we use to get ourselves down, or sometimes even up, buildings has been tried and tested over many years and, in my opinion, it has also proven to be the safest way of accessing hard to reach areas, where the conventional way, i.e. ladders, scaffolding and so on, can’t get the job done. Our equipment is constantly being monitored and upgraded to make commercial abseiling safer. However, I had found that the tools we use are not as forthcoming in development as our abseiling equipment, as in using a bucket for cleaning windows while suspended in the air on ropes.

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Don’t get me wrong, a bucket is of great use as I am sure most of us have one or have used one but for commercial abseiling I found it to be really annoying and unconventional. I found that my cleaning tool lanyards always kept getting tangled and when maneuvering on the ropes to get to certain areas, I would almost always finish the day with a soaking leg and a wet sock and when having to do internal cleans where you want to use the least amount of water, it’s just not possible when using a bucket.

Simple process to speed up your window cleaning

I also found that on those not so often cleaning jobs my water constantly got dirty really quickly and I ended cleaning the glass with the dirty water so I spoke to a number of my work colleagues and asked them if they were also having the same problems. Most of them said “yes, but there is no other way of doing it”, which got me thinking “there HAS to be a better way”. I came up with a few ideas and started making homemade prototypes and handed them out to my work colleagues and their colleagues. I got loads of feedback from them and their thoughts on what would make the unit more comfortable and easier to use so I went back and made a lot of changes over a couple of years. I got a prototype that seemed to be good and liked by most abseilers that had a chance to test it. Some of the guys are still using the prototypes now years later!

It really is traditional window cleaning done the smart way.

So where are we now with the project?

During the design stages, the patent process and testing, it was found that the window cleaning unit saves water so the design team (Innovate Product Design) and myself came up with the name ECO WINDOW CLEANING UNIT. A lot of people might think “why worry about the water wasted during window cleaning?” but with millions of windows being cleaned on a daily basis, the amount of water wastage is phenomenal. The Eco Window Cleaning Unit reduces the amount of water wasted during window cleaning by keeping the dirty water separated from the clean water.

For the last two years we have been working with a large reputable manufacturing and managing company and have built up a trusting relationship to ensure that when it comes to production of the Eco Window Cleaning Unit every aspect runs as smooth as possible.    

We have been granted a UK patent and have a pending international patent, and are now happy to announce we are ready to start production of the Eco Window Cleaning Unit. To the people who do window cleaning whilst working at height and those who do indoor window cleaning, I say: Once you try an Eco Window Cleaning Unit, you will find it hard to go back to the bucket method. You’re going to save water, you’re going to save time, and you’re going to make your job a lot more comfortable!

The Eco Window Cleaning Unit - Reinventing The Bucket

The Eco Window Cleaning Unit - reinventing the bucket. Click to enlarge. It is predicted that a  competitive price will be around around £65.00 + VAT. The unit is a single module.

The Eco Window Cleaning Unit  - A Window Cleaning Unit That Saves Water and Cleans Better! We all love admiring the beautiful views through our apartment and house windows but most of us are unaware of the impact which window cleaning has on the environment. With millions of windows being cleaned daily, the amount of water wastage is phenomenal – until now. With the creation of the Eco Window Cleaning Unit, we can all play a small part in reducing the amount of water used during window cleaning, reducing the impact on the environment. The Eco Window Cleaning Unit still uses the traditional window cleaning squeegee and applicator, but with clean water and a fraction of the amount used before. It really is Window cleaning done the smart way and your windows will be even cleaner than ever!

Why It’s Better Than a Bucket…  It Saves Water! Using the traditional method of cleaning windows, you ‘dip’ an Applicator into a bucket to absorb the water, and then you can either wring it out with your hand and get soaking wet hands. …Or do what most cleaners do and pull it out of the bucket with all the water on it and slop the water all over the window. Wasting about 250ml of water every time! The Eco Window Cleaning Unit uses less than a teaspoon, as the excess water is removed from the applicator before it gets anywhere near the glass.

It Saves Time! The Eco Window Cleaning Unit can hold 6.5 litres of water. You’ll be able to wash 64 glass panels of between 0.5 and 1 sq metre approximately. That’s enough for a window cleaner to last a whole day without a water change! The specially fitted pump and micro-jets mean that only the right amount of clean water is delivered to the squeegee when you need it. All you have to add is one teaspoonful (a quick squirt) of fairy liquid to break down the grease and that’s perfect!

It Cleans Better! With just an Applicator and a bucket, you end up cleaning dirty glass with dirty water because after a couple of panes the water WILL get dirty as it removes dirt from the earlier windows. In fact, it’s not just ‘dirt’, it’s called settlement and is comprised of the sand and dust that sticks to the applicator; over time it will damage the glass leaving a permanent haze and you just won’t get a clean finish. The Eco Window Cleaning unit solves this with it’s patented water flushing mechanism.

And It's Eco Friendly: The Eco Window Cleaning Unit changes the way water is being stored and used during window cleaning. The Unit reduces the amount of water wasted during window cleaning by keeping the dirty water separated from the clean water. The Unit is designed for both left and right handed users, and is light and easy to transport from job to job or around office areas and the house without worrying about spilling water. The Eco Window Cleaning Unit is really great for cleaning at heights, whether it’s used by industrial rope access or ladder work. It has lanyards which attach the cleaning applicator and squeegee to the unit and the way in which the cleaning equipment is positioned on the Eco Cleaning Unit prevents the cleaning equipment from getting tangled. And of course, it’s easy to use at ground level too!

Who Can Use The Eco Window Cleaning Unit? The Eco Window Cleaning Unit is perfect for anyone who has to clean windows, but is especially useful for window cleaners working at height, whether on ladders or using rope access. It works great inside an office with furniture and computers because you can just walk around without disturbing the occupants and with no risk to their work.

For janitors working internally on stairs, lifts and communal areas, the same benefits apply; easily transportable and no spillage. It just slips over your shoulder and you’re good to go!

There’s no need to refill the water and the pump, microjets and flushing mechanism mean that you’ll be cleaning windows with less water, clean water and getting a better finish. You can even use it at home, flush it out and store it in the cupboard easily. This really is window cleaning for the 21st Century.

About the inventor: Clyde Jordan has been a commercial abseiler for the last 10 years; these are the guys you see abseiling down the sides of tall buildings doing whatever work they have been contracted for. Commercial abseilers have to be multi-disciplined by the nature of their work and may be called upon to repair masonry and brickwork, welding, painting, installing glass panels and more, but window cleaning is a big part of the work as there really isn’t a more practical solution, particularly nowadays as building shapes and sizes are becoming more adventurous! Clyde became acutely aware of the problems facing the “rope access” technicians when it came to window cleaning, and he set out to to solve the problems.

• A standard bucket isn’t made for working at height
• It uses a lot of water
• The water gets dirty, so you end up cleaning glass with dirty water
• The equipment (applicator and squeegee) are always getting tangled up
• It’s just plain uncomfortable

Clyde decided there was a better way of doing it. From initial idea, home-made designs, concepts and prototype testing has taken 7 years.

Clyde Jordan at work in London, with 30 St Mary Axe behind aka "the Gherkin."

The Story Behind The Eco Window Cleaning Unit: I made the first prototype by hand, making my own holster, using bottles and copper tubes to see what worked and through relentless testing, I found what worked…but it was too bulky so I needed to scale it down. Once I found one that I was confident in, I sent it off to a design company who came up with some further enhancements. This company helped me through the patent process and they made the first prototype. We had to change the whole design before coming up with the current system; for instance, one of the things we’d not considered in the early stage was the ease of use whether someone was right or left handed. The final design addressed this.We still needed a few things tweaked but it gave us enough to get a price for manufacturing in bulk. The manufacturers suggested some more refinements with their experience of tooling, manufacturing and shipping and we got another prototype made. 

The whole process including prototypes, design, patent attorneys, has taken 7 years. I’ve even had to buy products so that I can use different components. For example, I bought a hoover for £80 just to experiment with a spring inside! There are so many things I bought just to get stripped down parts because I had to get a working prototype for myself before I could even look at using a professional design company. I tested it myself on a window cleaning round initially and then a few of my friends working in rope access caught up with what I was using and asked if they could try it so I made a few for them.

They came back with great feedback such as “This isn’t quite balanced” or “You’ve got a problem with this not sitting right” so I was able to change it and give it back to them, tweaked to their requirements. In fact, a few of them are still using them a year later! The best story I have is their use on the Shard in London. I’d been working offshore and I was asked to help clean the glass panels on the Shard They had problems cleaning the windows on The Shard because it was a new building and all the glass had been kept in the yard so it was pretty dirty when it was installed. The way the building is constructed, it was only possible to clean one panel at a time, and with a long transfer time between panels including changing water, one guy managed 3-4 daily, which equated to £30-40 – not a lot of window cleaning income. Then there was the problem of guys dropping their tools because the applicator and the squeegee were getting tangled.

So I spoke to the man who was in charge of the contract, and I showed him what the unit does and he asked me for some right there! I made 15 units and sold them to him and it improved the job so much that he actually won the window cleaning contract because he included details of the unit in his risk assessment. The clients were blown away by the safety aspects as you can imagine from a Health and Safety perspective, objects falling from a building can have dramatic consequences. From a efficiency point of view, the amount of window panels cleaned daily per man went up from 3 to 4 to 20! That’s a massive timesaver because there was no need to stop and change the water.

I truly believe the Unit can transform the working practices and livelihoods of those window cleaning at height.

Clyde Jordan

Inventor and Founder