Who Invented the Window Cleaner?

Innovations in window cleaning have come a long way. The industry first made strides in 1892, when A.L. Lewis invented the first window cleaner. But cleaning tools remained rather inefficient until Ettore Steccone, a business-savvy Italian immigrant, invented the single-blade squeegee in Oakland in 1936. Since then, the Ettore Products Company has remained a family-owned business, even surviving buyout offers from corporate giants like Home Depot. Amazingly, the squeegee model has stayed virtually the same since its inception in 1936. When a product works, it works. 

With these two tools, cleaner and squeegee, it's now possible to eliminate window streaking altogether. Everyone knows that using paper towels and newspaper to wipe windows causes visible streaking. No matter how many times you rewash your windows using this method, you’ll never fully eliminate the streaks. So, how do you clean your windows properly? Get the right tools and learn the technique.  

The process requires clean, soapy water, a washer or scrubber to remove the dirt, a squeegee to remove excess sudsy water and a chamois cloth to dry the windows. There are numerous window cleaners available, including concoctions you can make at home. Vinegar mixed with water and a little dish soap or plain undiluted rubbing alcohol in a spraybottle both work well.