How it all began.
Francis Gabe
How we wish we could live in cleanliness without spending a lot of time and effort on constant cleaning and laundry. That’s fantastic, you might say! But Frances Gabe, an American, proved that even such an incredible dream is possible.
From childhood she was an eccentric and curious child, fascinated by technology and science.
Back in 1931, Frances graduated with an externship from a polytechnic college, which allowed her to be well versed in physics and mechanics.
From the age of 17, she had to feed her family because her husband was in constant search of work. But this didn’t upset Frances at all, but rather inspired her to start her own business rebuilding destroyed buildings.
Work took up a lot of time and energy, there was not enough time to clean the house, and her children and husband, whom she eventually separated from, did not want to do it at all. Another temper tantrum about cleaning the kitchen led Frances to the idea that it was possible to create a dwelling that would clean itself.
As implausible as that might sound, she succeeded. Not only did the world see an incredible house that is self-cleaning, but also a closet that washes dirty things without taking them off the racks. It even has shelves for dishes that wash themselves, and a fireplace that gets rid of the ashes on its own.
The inventor worked on this idea for more than twenty years, eventually creating a fantastic miracle house.
The house holds a whole basket of patents
Throughout her development, she has patented 68 fantastic inventions that not only allow her house to wash, but importantly, to dry.
The most involved person only takes part in activating the cleaning system, that is, one must simply put on the cloak, take the umbrella and press the button.
Here’s the exterior of the house.
What had to be done to make the house «work hard»
But to make it work, the landlady had to rebuild her own house.
The walls, made of concrete blocks, were stacked so that the holes in the slabs formed a large number of small windows.
The sun’s rays passing through the amber glass, taking on a golden color, created the illusion of a beehive. This delighted the creator, because she believed that light should penetrate the entire house. The windows were hermetically sealed with organic glass, which housed cute trinkets inside.
The floors were made with a slope toward the walls. Special troughs for water drainage were made along the edges of the rooms.
The walls, floors and even the ceiling were covered with waterproof resin. The entrance door was made of strips of tree bark poured with special resin, which prevents it from absorbing moisture.
All the furniture had to be replaced by specially constructed waterproof materials. She didn’t even have to give up her paintings and pencil sketches because they were sealed with waterproof plastic.
Only the carpeting had to be sacrificed, but that’s the least inconvenient thing to endure.
To do general cleaning and more, you just need to press a button, triggering the rotating sprinklers installed in the ceiling of each room. At the same time, the detergents come directly into the pipes and are distributed throughout the room.
To wash away the dirt along with the soap solution, it is necessary to press another button and clean water will wash everything away. The water drains into the fireplace, at the same time flushing the ash down the drain. Then the hot air drying starts.
For example, a special closet was designed for washing clothes, which acts as a huge washing machine with a dryer. It has three compartments, one for washing, one for drying, and one for storing clean clothes.
And even the shelves in the kitchen have a special design, the dishes are washed and dried with the room.
The garbage chute, which is connected to the trash can outside, also frees and cleans itself.
Yes, Frances was able to create a home that made her life easier, freeing up a tremendous amount of time to spend with her children. For twenty whole years she enjoyed her multi-functional and clean home.
At one time, this unusual house attracted attention. The creator was often invited to various exhibitions and television shows. The house was visited by tourists.
But, unfortunately, this innovative project was not widely used, although it opened such opportunities for people with disabilities and working mothers.
This video, will give you the opportunity to meet a great woman inventor, and see the house from the inside.
Frances Gabe died in a nursing home at the age of 101, surviving her husband and children.
