Years ago, as a window cleaner in Iowa, Jerry Rigdon new that there had to be a better way to clean windows on one of his downtown commercial accounts. The struggle was the last, bottom inches of the deep-set windows. There was no easy way to get that last little bit of the higher windows cleaned from the ground. At hand height, Jerry knew all the tricks to slide the squeegee and finish the glass, but what about windows that were just out of reach and higher? How could he clean from the ground with a pole and still get the perfect results his customer demanded? He knew there could be a better way.

With that in mind, Jerry became an inventor and the “wonder Ledger” as he refers to it, was born.

Once Jerry had made the first tools, window cleaners quickly pursued Jerry to buy his Ledger products. The recessed or deep-set window situation was common to window cleaners across the country and all around the world. While many pro window cleaners had created work arounds and trade “tricks” to get that last bit of the window cleaned, Jerry’s tool proved to be a much more efficient solution.

From that point, Jerry continued to add different models of ledgers based on requests and conversations from window cleaners. The ledger line up now includes the smaller, most popular models, along with longer models for more unique challenges and job sites. Turns out that some buildings and properties have windows with large ledges. The range of Ledger will cover between the typical 2” ledge all the way up to the 21” deep ledge.

Also, Jerry has expanded the line to include swivel Ledgers as well. These give tools the ability to access even more unique challenges on the job. The swivel feature allows great access to creative corners and windows.

The basic of the innovation of the ledger lies in the extension of the “neck” of the traditional squeegee handle. Think of a regular squeegee handle. The Ledger extends the distance between the bend of the handle and where the squeegee channel is inserted. The different options represent different lengths of that extension or “neck” area. This follows in the non-pivoting as well as for the pivoting models of the Ledger.

The extension or “neck” provides the access to the glass, but the accuracy of the performance is a result of the way the squeegee channel is held in the Ledger. There is no angle where the channel is held and this provides the pro window cleaner the ability to be precisely with their control of the squeegee and allows for that “closing” swipe of the glass to role all the way to the bottom of the window.

As a window cleaner, Jerry understood the Ledger would need to be made from rugged aluminum which could hold up to the daily demands of the window cleaner’s route. At the time Jerry created his Ledger, the construction and function simply just made sense to him. Jerry knew that he needed the tool and that it would solve his problem.

When the professional window cleaners from across the country first saw the Ledger, they all understood the value. All Jerry wanted to do was STAY OFF THE LADDER on his window account. Now, decades later, the Ledger can be found in the bucket of pro window cleaners around the world. Check out all of the sizes and options on the Detroit Sponge website.

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