Believe it or not, the history that precedes our Carpet Cleaning Orlando profession is extensive! Various methods of cleaning and protecting in home carpet date all the way back to the early 1800’s. Before the industrial revolution, many wealthy families would take precautionary steps to protect the carpet in their homes. Whether the homeowners would be leaving town for a while or having guests over, there would be some simple things that would be done to protect their carpet. Prior to effective cleaning methods, people would simply cover their carpet. People would cover their carpets with thick, heavy woolen goods that spread underneath tables and other exposed areas, called Druggets. These Druggets would help to prevent spills from staining the carpet. The more wealthy populous would use canvas sheets that they had custom made to protect their in home carpet. One of the more prominent problems that carpets would face back then was excessive buildup of dust, dirt and soot. Ventilation in homes used to be very poor, which would create these excessive buildup issues. Homeowners place great value on their homes, as well as the contents inside. This is why they would take certain steps to try and protect their carpets from any damage that could occur.
It wasn’t until the 1830’s that the first known methods of removing stains came about. Now, without the common vacuum, homeowners would have to sweep their carpets. Or if they were loose, they could be taken outside and be beaten to knock the dust and dirt out. Simply sweeping or beating would not remove any kind of stains though. Common carpet stains would be created by oil, ink or grease. All three of which can cause quite the stain. One of the first known methods may sound a bit odd, but remember what kind of technology our recent ancestors had available to them at the time. This early method was to scrub the stained portion of the carpet with a lemon and water mixture, using a loaf of bread. Once the area was scrubbed, the carpet would then be flushed out with cold water and (if removable) hung outside to dry. Nowadays we have a plethora of products and solutions to use for attacking a variety of carpet issues that may occur. Back then, homeowners had to be a bit more creative. Thank you progression!
