Rediscovering Victorian Cleaning  

C. A. Asbrey

The Victorians used to say that cleanliness was next to godliness, and that wasn't an easy state to achieve with industrial grime, open fires, and streets full of pooping horses to contend with. Cleaning was a daily process in the 19th century, with a deep clean taking place at least once a year - something we still call the spring clean. In some places, there were other ritual cleans associated with holidays or religious celebrations. In Scotland, the house was cleaned from top to bottom on New Year's Eve, with every speck of dirt being a portent of bad luck for the year ahead.  The Swedish tradition of Dostadning meant that the elderly cleared their house of clutter, and kept it in good order, to relieve their family the burden of clearing out after them. The Germans had Polterabend, a ritual clean to ensure that the newlyweds entered a clean house, in good order, again with every speck of dirt signifying bad luck.

However, normal, everyday methods were not only effective, but they still have a lot to teach us in the 21st century. They are not just cheap and readily available, they are efficacious, and environmentally sound.   

I'm sure that I don't have to tell you that cleaning started at the top of the house. First of all, chimneys were swept. And not only did that mean chimney sweeps sending children into the void, it also often involved servants scrubbing away every possible bit of soot at the bottom too. The less soot there was in your chimney, the less there was to drift out, and dirty-up your carefully cleaned house. Once cleaned, the fireplace and hearth were washed out and brasses polished until they gleamed. And don't think that soot was thrown away. It was organic, and rich with ammonia salts and nitrogenous matter. It was marvellous fertilizer, and used in the garden. Lucky sweeps also got to sell some as many tenements didn't have a garden. Most chimneys were swept four times a year, early in the 19th century, but as people moved away from cooking with solid fuel, it mostly went down to once a year by the turn of the century.  

Curtains and rugs were taken down and cleaned. Tea leaves were squeezed until almost dry and scattered on rugs along with bicarbonate of soda. The rugs were then robustly beaten to knock all the dirt from the weft. The tea leaves carried the dirt away, instead of clouding and falling back onto the carpet. The bicarbonate carried out dirt and killed smells, pests, and eggs. Curtains were laundered, with denatured urine being used to remove grease. Walls and paintwork were cleaned from top to bottom. The standard cleaning material had a smell most older readers will still be familiar with today - carbolic soap. The pungent bar was used for everything from cleaning out chamber pots to laundry. Pets, children, hair - you name it - it was washed with carbolic soap. The pungent odour came from phenol or carbolic acid, and it was sold in long blocks which the householder cut into bars, often with a cheese wire.   

Even wallpaper was cleaned. It was a valuable commodity in the 19th century. People expected it to last for decades, so they looked after it. Bread was rubbed on it, and it was perfect for removing soot and grime. Bread could also be pressed into malleable balls which could be presses into creases and crevices of picture frames and woodwork to remove every bit of dust hiding away in the dark corners, The use of bread also extended to books. They could be cleaned in a similar method to the wallpaper, press into a wodge and mop off the worst, before wiping it over with a slightly damp cloth. It's still an effective way of removing scuffs from walls without removing paint.

Baking soda was used for many things, but amongst the many uses was making glassware and dishes sparkle. Lights were often covered in a mixture of glass and metal. Baking soda brought the glass to light, and vinegar was used to cut through any grease from the fingers. The vinegar also helped to remove dirt from metal, and if necessary the coarseness of salt was added to bring things like brass to a wonderful sheen.   

So, now we've cleaned the chimneys, hearths, walls, paintwork, lighting, and dishes, we can think about the furniture. A weak mixture of water and vinegar was used as a wash to remove the thin film of grime caused by open fires before polishing. If the furniture has been polished for years, any build-up can be removed by a weak solution of turpentine and water. For polishing, it has to be based on beeswax.  You can make your own with a mixture of vinegar, beeswax, and linseed oil. It would be applied with one cloth, but buffed up with another. The polishing cloth had to be clean and ironed, as cloths with creases did not give as good a sheen. If your wood is looking worse for wear, a hot wash of 2 tablespoons gum turpentine and 4 tablespoons boiled linseed oil. The linseed oil will add a sheen to any bare spots.

Vinegar or cold tea are perfect for bringing a shine to your windows. The tea is best left for a few days before use. If you have stone floors, try milk. It seems counterintuitive, but really works. Skimmed milk works best, which gives us an indication of what they used the milk for after taking all they could for butter and cream. English Heritage tested this method while cleaning Brodsworth Hall in Yorkshire, and have decided there's no going back to modern cleaners. It does not smell, and leaves a beautiful finish on the floor. The same mixtures used on wooden furniture can be used on wooden floors. For filthy floors, damp tea leaves were dusted  around to lay the dust, then the dust can be gathered without scattering.   

In many places, it was common for the local baker's oven to be used for a whole village until at least the mid 19th century. Cooking a Sunday roast often became a social occasion for men while they waited for the joint to cook. Men were charged with bringing the meat home while the women prepared the rest. But when ovens became commonplace, they needed to be cleaned. Baking soda was smeared all over the oven, and left overnight. It was then cleaned with a carbolic solution. If scouring was required, crushed eggshells were added to the carbolic solution. Bath brick, emery powder, and silver sand could be added. Silver sand and vinegar, or lemon juice, brought up a beautiful shine on copper pots. In poor homes, it wasn't unknown for a random brick to sit on a windowsill to be ground down for scouring material.    

For pest removal, there are a few remedies. Bedbugs were treated with 4 beaten egg whites mixed with mercury. You can see why that one feel out of fashion. Ants were tempted out with strips of quartered cucumber, then thrown on the fire - with ants attached. Cucumber also makes cockroaches drowsy and can be used for them too. A dish containing a mixture of pepper, sugar and cream was laid out to attract the flies away from food. Sticky fly papers containing arsenic soon became popular too. Most treatments for lice depended on suffocation, poisoning, and containment. Many remedies were available. Lard was often used, as was the herbal insecticide stavesacre (Delphinium staphisagria) or mustard. A mixture of spices, lard, and vinegar was also popular. For moths, wipe the inside of drawers of cupboards with ammonia a couple of times a year.

For a blocked drain, put washing soda crystals down and pour boiling water over them. When they stop fizzing, pour more boiling water. Laundry was done using flakes of carbolic soap. Stained clothes would be treated (see below) and the treatment left to take before added. They would then be vigorously agitated with a dolly, and scrubbed on a washboard where necessary. After many rinses, they would go through a mangle to remove excess water. Whites were treated with blue dye to make them appear brighter. People would collect rainwater as soft water uses less soap. A spoonful of borax also softens water, as can a cupful of vinegar in your final rinse.

To Remove Stains     

Ink - use citric acid (do not use a metal spoon) and moisten with water. Pour water as hot as the fabric can bear until the stain dissipates.

Rust - Stretch over a bowl and our water as hot as the fabric can bear until the stain dissipates.

Blood - soak in cold water with either salt, or bicarbonate of soda overnight. Scrub in cold water until stain is gone.

Mildew - soak in buttermilk.

Grease - two grated potatoes in one pint of water. Leave to mix for at least an hour, then apply to the stain. Once dry, wipe with a damp cloth until mixture is removed. For candle stains on carpet, the process will need to be repeated a few times, but the oxalic acid in the potatoes should gradually remove the stains.    

Scorch Marks - two bruised onions are boiled in a half-pint of vinegar and soap flakes. Add two ounces of Fuller's Earth, and mix into a paste. Apply to the marks and leave overnight, then wash.

Tea or Coffee - soak in a solution of methylated spirits for at least an hour, then wash as normal.   

Mould or Mildew on Washing Machine - rub with vinegar. For grouting, scrub with vinegar, then spray weekly with a solution which is one part vinegar to three parts water to prevent recurrence.

Removing Seawater Stains from Leather Shoes -  dissolve a teaspoon of washing soda in two tablespoons of hot milk. 

Removing Water Stains from Polished Furniture - put salt on the stain, dab on methylated spirits and rub hard. Polish immediately with beeswax.

Stained Enamel Pans - Use stewed rhubarb with the leaves still on. DO NOT eat, as the leaves are poisonous.

Tarnished Silver  - line a bowl with tinfoil. Place cutlery of jewellery on top. Scatter a cup of washing soda on top, then add hot water. When it stops fizzing, take out, hand wash and polish. 

To Freshen Tainted Thermos - crush eggshells and fill with vinegar. Leave to stand overnight, then rinse. 

 

Do you have any old cleaning tips of recipes handed down? Why not share them with us, so others can try them out?      

EXCERPT

     “So, you want to pretend you’re a Pinkerton? As a female?” His eyes darkened. “I’ve questioned one before, although he didn’t know who I was. They’re trained real well on being both sides of interrogations. You don’t want to do this. Not as a woman. He had a real hard time. You’ll have it even harder.” 

     She sat staring ahead once more, her face impassive and stony.

     “You’ve nothing to say?”

     Her eyes flashed. “Beating the hell out of me won’t change anything but my view of you.”

     Nat reached out and entwined a hard fist in her hair and dragged her backward until the chair balanced on the back legs. He brought his face close to hers, his hot breath burning into her cheek.  “Think harder, lady. This isn’t a game. Who are you?”

     Abigail felt the dragging pain at the back of her head as shards of pain lanced across her scalp. He held her, balanced between his painful grip and a clattering fall to the floor but her stubborn nature wouldn’t let her acquiesce.

     “Others will come after you, no matter what you do to me.” She darted her eyes to meet his, unable to move her pinioned head. “I won’t be the last.”