How cleaning has changed through the ages

Imagine having to make your own broom by weaving together straw or having to make your own soap to clean your home!

It’s hard to imagine what it would have been like to live in times gone by where cleaning literally took hours to not only clean but to also make cleaning items and soaps and detergents as well!

Check out how cleaning has changed over the ages – you won’t believe what people used to have to do all in the name of being clean! ,/p>

Cleaning in ancient times:

• The oldest and most basic cleaning device is the simple broom or brush. It’s thought to have originated in ancient Mesopotamia.
• People during these times would take by-products of their agricultural harvest (straw, and other suitable materials), weave them together to create a simple brush used to sweep households.
• Amazingly the first evidence for soaps comes from ancient Babylonia and inscriptions indicate that these ancient soaps were made by boiling fats with ashes to create a soap-like substance.
• The first recorded use of a stain remover comes from the Romans, around 100 AD. At the time, this stain remover was made of urine and lye ash.

• Castles in the middle ages required full time cleaning by a dedicated staff.
• During the middle ages castles were often floored with straw or rushes over the hard surface underneath. This was swept and replaced as often as monthly. Housekeepers would sprinkle lavender, rose petals and chamomile on these mats as a way to hide the smells that would build up over time.
• Housemaids were known to even scrub walls down with soap and water.

• Disinfectants were first developed for use in surgery by John Lister in 1867. Phenol is regarded as the first compound to be used as a disinfectant. From this, many disinfectant brands were born, with some still using this product today.