Wand-eeze Ergonomic Carpet Cleaning Wand Kit

Hey Guys I've been in touch with Dave Yoakum the maker of the Ergo Wand Handle. He's interested in a loaner program at the Lounge. What you guys? Should we test this out. I figure if it make slinging the wand easier and saves your body some wear and tear it would definitely be worthwhile.

As usual your unbiased and honest review is required. Who's in?

I haven't watched the video yet, but if I can get in line before Dave so that I don't have to ship it out to the next one, I'm in, I'll just drop it off at Dave's after I'm done.

You in Dave? Rob, Matt, AC, Andy, Joe "Carpet Daddy" etc.


Hard hitting questions.

Is the Ergo Handle really better than the other trigger style valves out there?

is this JUST the handle that is floating or the whole wand gona float?

I would like to try it, my wrist kills me and been thinking about a pressure wash grip for a while now.

Whats this thing cost anyways? I might want to buy it if it does for me what I think it will.

Just the handle with a leader hose and wrap. Its retailing fro 299.00 definitely more expensive than a regular pressure washing handle. Maybe Mr Yoakum will offer special pricing for lounge member or a special price on the loaner

you have a link to see one?...my pics arent loading for some reason...think the storm has me!

Yea, I'd like to check it out.

It's too bad these guys don't get it when it comes to shooting video..........turn the damned phone 90 deg. and get a full screen shot rather than the peep hole look.

I am all about improving the ergonomics as I do often clean for 7-8 hours at a time on commercials which is why I choose longer wands and upgraded my grab handles to the new high reach style from Joe.

That being said, I don't know if this idea is a good one. You still support the weight of the wand, just using different muscles than the suitcase grip and now you are adding more weight to the equation.

I stopped using my Bentely wand because it had too much overhang of wand causing the hose to pull down more on my grip than normal. Four hours of that and I was cramping up badly. Adding that much weight to the grip seems like it would just cause your bicep and upper forearm to fatigue.

I might be wrong...you all know that has happened many times, so a floater might just be the ticket to find out.

Fair and honest reviews....I'm in if you want to start one up. Actually, it would be better to start a couple of them around as the reviews start to be meaningless when they take months for the evaluations to start rolling in.

Personally, I would love to see the reviews compiled after a month's time.

I just went back and viewed the first video....cleaner was from Omaha and the handles are in Lincoln?

Well, now I know what I may be doing this weekend....I do have 2 marathon sessions scheduled early part of next week.

I just watched the video too and I think I'll pass, I'll just trust your reviews and will consider it in the future when I have the need for it.

dp1 wrote:I just watched the video too and I think I'll pass, I'll just trust your reviews and will consider it in the future when I have the need for it.

Any particular reason you want to give? Just curious.

I'm not big on gun type handles either, but will give it a try as I figure ?I really have nothing to loose.

Good questions. I know he mentioned the weight being taken off the wand by something. Ill shoot him a email link to this thread.

DP since Dave wants to test you may as well give it a shot or let your tech test it.

Like I said we have nothing to lose and everything to gain. I have a lot of respect for manufactures that have the cojones and confidence to put their tool in the hands of cleaners. As opposed to some that roll out a tool with out testing it.  Maybe it's awesome, maybe it's not and maybe we can make it better.

I did tell Dave that we would give him our honest opinion of this tool. 

As I was cleaning today my finger getting cramped by pulling the trigger and holding the tube, I thought I would give Dave a call to see if his tool would help.

Devon07 wrote:you have a link to see one?...my pics arent loading for some reason...think the storm has me!

Here's the link Devon

http://www.ergowand.com/

A couple of reasons, he mentioned that with the handle you can do longer stroke without bending your back and he may be right ( even though he didn't demo it well ) BUT that makes you have to use one hand to do the pushing and pulling, the position of your hand may make it easier for your wrist but it will put almost double the load without the other hand on the handle helping the push and pull, I would rather bend my back slightly as long as I can get 2 hands on that wand.
The 2nd thing is the price point is WAY too high, $ 300 ? Ummm, I would rather invest in another true titanium wand with green glides and soft touch valve and hsk for $ 800 than buying a handle for $ 300.
I'd probably go out to LB when Dave has it just to see it in action and may be try it out, I just don't want to waste a few days of time while others that may potentially purchase it waiting around for the floaters.

Mo wrote:Good questions. I know he mentioned the weight being taken off the wand by something. Ill shoot him a email link to this thread.

DP since Dave wants to test you may as well give it a shot or let your tech test it.

Like I said we have nothing to lose and everything to gain. I have a lot of respect for manufactures that have the cojones and confidence to put their tool in the hands of cleaners. As opposed to some that roll out a tool with out testing it.  Maybe it's awesome, maybe it's not and maybe we can make it better.

I did tell Dave that we would give him our honest opinion of this tool. 

As I was cleaning today my finger getting cramped by pulling the trigger and holding the tube, I thought I would give Dave a call to see if his tool would help.

Weight off-set by using the fixed whip and the QC on the floor.....looks that way any how.

I always go with extra long wands, and with my ape arms, I like to give the wand a long reach....maybe this idea gets me even another 2-3 feet per stroke. That has real potential to me if you can keep the wand head firmly planted throughout the length of the stroke. Will not know unless I tried it.

The price is high for a handle, but if it allows you to work without hand / wrist pain and gets you another 2-3 feet per stroke, then it is a bargain. Just will not be for every cleaner....nothing ever will be.

No problem DP. So you can't use the wand handle with the ergo?  It is a little pricey and for that price It had better relieve the stress and be more ergonomic.

What would be cool is to compare it to a regular pressure washing grip valve?

In my mind it would seem that you would be putting more stress on your shoulder. If only we could test it out before we buy it. Oh wait we can

OK So far loaner participants:

Mo
Dave
Brian
Tom
Andy
Tim
Ken
Devon
Rob


Anybody else?

Hmmm interesting.



Not sure it captures my interest enough to make a purchase yet BUT the marketing side of his product is of more of an interest to me than anything.



I have a product that sells online for that price point and can sure help him with some tips if he is willing to talk to me.



I didnt get all the info I wanted off his site.



If he joins us I wouldl certainly like to talk with him

Devon07 wrote:Hmmm interesting.



Not sure it captures my interest enough yet to make a purchase yet BUT the marketing side of his product is of more of an interest to me than anything.



I have a product that sells online for that price point and can sure help him with some tips if he is willing to talk to me.



I didnt get all the info I wanted of his site.



If he joins us I wouldl certainly like to talk with him

I believe they call that "opportunity knocking"

Hi . I’m Dave Yoakum the creator of Wand- eeze the ergonomic wand retrofit kit. Here is an introduction to how this product came about. I have been in this business for a 30 years. About four years ago I was experiencing problems with my fingers and wrist from reaching around the 2”tube of the wand to hit the trigger and repetitive motion with a cocked wrist and stooping. The big problem was I had Trigger Finger on most all of my fingers. My fingers would lock up and they had to be pulled back open with my other hand as they would pop open. Not fun!
That started my quest to find a solution . I needed a much better way to use a cleaning wand that wasn’t so hard on my body. I tried those Gun type valves looking for some kind of relief. To my disappointment I found that they put all the weight of the wand right onto the web of skin between my thumb and forefinger. This caused even more hand pain.  So, after using gun valves my fingers still had problems and now my thumb did too.
After all that in vain I knew I would be up to me to find my own solution.  Because there was no help available on the market. It took a cleaner to find a cure.
#1 Cure was to fix that nub on gun valves that happens with every top mounted valve on the market. It puts all that weight into the web of your hand..   My solution was to design a bracket with a pad that moves the weight from the that painful  web of your hand onto the entire top of your hand. This distributes the weight into a much broader area that causes no pain. It also has the pad made of Sorbothane  which is used my Olympic athlete because of it’s unmatched shock absorbing abilities.
#2 The other problem with top mounted wands was that they were at the wrong angle. The most ergonomic  angle I found is what I call the “Saw the wood” angle. To solve that problem I designed a way to change the angle on the fly to your desired cleaning angle. ( An other industry first) You can choose from 90 degrees to 180 and every angle in between.
Some of the other benefit of a top mounted valve  (besides not having to reach around the tube) is that your freedom of movement is significantly increased . Your stroke will be 30% longer, Your cleaning will be more productive and  you won’t have to stoop.  I could say much more. But I’ll save it for later. But I would like to hear more from you guys and I’m here to answer any questions.
Dave Yoakum

Thanks Dave for the run-down on it............Now I'm excited to try it, and buy it, if liked!

When are we going to have thing thing in our "hands''?!

Hopefully the loaner will fit a 2" tubed wand?

Thanks for the back-story Dave, I think the longer stroke is a big deal to me. My hands haven't suffered that much abuse yet, but getting the job done faster without compromising performance is always interesting to me.

I should measure my stroke presently and then see what the difference would be with that handle. I already reach farther than a Zipper and if I can add another 2-3 feet without breaking the angle of the wand head.....that would be a real winner.

I'm also glad you explained the way the handle sits on the hand. The gun styles that I tried in the past did exactly what you described...painful, just in a different location. What you are doing is sort of like an old sword / foil where there is a hilt distributing the weight over a larger area....smart.

If you were interested, I would love to return to Lincoln next week and see this thing in person. Maybe we can meet mid-week and talk shop over at the Watering Hole?

Soon Dave. It sure would be nice to have some more members volunteer to test it out.

But the guys that have volunteered I know well tell it like it is and hopefully have some suggestions that might make it better

For you guys that have been around before glides and now can't live without them. Give this tool a test drive. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. There is no obligation to purchase it.

One more thing cleaners lounge members will not be paying the advertised price. More on that later

Mo wrote:Soon Dave. It sure would be nice to have some more members volunteer to test it out.

But the guys that have volunteered I know well tell it like it is and hopefully have some suggestions that might make it better

For you guys that have been around before glides and now can't live without them. Give this tool a test drive. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. There is no obligation to purchase it.

One more thing cleaners lounge members will not be paying the advertised price. More on that later

And that would be called a "tease"......it works for me.