Most of us use life hack's at some point or another - like tying a bright ribbon to your luggage or using a glass as a speaker for your phone.

But in 1800's, people had much simpler needs than we do now, so they came up with their own life hacks such as using sheep intestines to make condoms, or using potatoes to wash their hands.

The hacks were so popular that there were even books dedicated to them - including Facts and Hints for Every-Day Life and The United States Practical Receipt Book.

Borax used to be used as a heavy duty cleaning soap, but it can also be used as a flame retardant. You can easily buy it at most supermarkets, and all you have to do is dissolve it in hot water and dip your clothes or curtains in

Some of the hacks in the 1873 book Facts and Hints for Every-Day Life would still be useful now.

For example, if you need a fire retardant, you could use borax instead.

Borax used to be used as a heavy duty cleaning soap, but it can also be used as a flame retardant.

The naturally occurring compound can be used as to coat furniture and/or curtains to make your home safer in case of a fire.

You can easily buy it at most supermarkets, and all you have to do is dissolve it in hot water and dip your clothes or curtains in.

If you're all out of soap and borax and need to wash your hands, grab a potato lying in your kitchen cupboard.

THE 18TH CENTURY LIFE HACKS Fire retardant: Heavy duty borax soap can be used as a flame retardant for furniture and/or clothes. Dissolve it in hot water and dip your clothes or curtains in.

Hand soap: Use a boiled potato to scrub off dirt from your hands

Easy crackers: Mix en egg yolk with a pound of flour and add enough milk to it to make the paste stiff - then cut them with a wine glass, pierce holes with a fork and put them in the oven.

Stain remover: Mix four ounces of Fuller's Earth (a clay product), and half an ounce of pearl ash (potassium carbonate) with lemon to make the mixture into a paste, and roll it into balls and leave them to dry. When you spot a stain, wet the stain and rub the stain removing ball on it, let it dry and then rub off the dust.

Blister protection: Put soap inside your socks. When your feet sweat, it mixes with the soap to create a lather that protects the skin on your feet.

Condoms: Use pig intestine and attach a piece of ribbon to the open end.

Baldness: Prevent baldness by rubbing rum on to your head once a day.

Restore sour tasting wine by putting bits of horse radish into a bag and leaving it in the wine for two days.

Improving the taste of coffee: 13 parts of coffee to 3 parts of chicroy, and grind together.

Cheap beer: Boil green shells of peas and add wood sage as hops.

Alcoholism cure: Add eels to booze and encouraging a person to drink the disgusting concoction. Advertisement

Regular soap works by combining fat with a strong alkaline chemical - the opposite of an acid.

Combining the two attracts grease and dirt, which is washed away by water from the tap.

Potatoes don't work in the same way as traditional soap, but they're gritty and can pull dirt away from your hands if they aren't greasy.

So if you need a quick fix for washing your hands, you could boil a potato or use any other gritty substance to remove dirt from your hands.

When it comes to food hacks, the 1873 book suggests a three-ingredient recipe for making crackers. Simply mix the yolk of on egg with a pound of flour, and add enough milk to it to make the paste stiff. Roll the dough out and cut it into circles with the top of a wine glass, use a fork pierce holes in each circle and cook it in a slow oven

When it comes to food hacks, the 1873 book suggests a three-ingredient recipe for making crackers.

Simply mix the yolk of on egg with a pound of flour, and add enough milk to it to make the paste stiff.

Roll the dough out and cut it into circles with the top of a wine glass, use a fork pierce holes in each circle and cook it in a slow oven.

The 1873 stain removal hack requires a little more shopping for products, as you might not keep them in your house.

It requires four ounces of Fuller's Earth (a clay product), and half an ounce of pearl ash, which is potassium carbonate.

Mix in lemon to make the mixture into a paste, and roll it into balls and leave them to dry.

When you spot a stain, wet the stain and rub the stain removing ball on it, let it dry and then rub off the dust.

In 1873, if you wanted to avoid blisters on your feet, you put soap inside your socks.

When your feet sweat, it mixes with the soap to create a lather that protects the skin on your feet.

Bring along a second pair of socks too once the sweat soaks through the first pair.

One the most surprising tips is how to fashion a condom from a sheep intestine - the caecum to be precise, soda and ribbon. The caecum (illustrated) was chosen because being a pouch, between the upper and lower intestine, it has a closed end making it the right shape

If you do end up getting blisters anyway, Facts and Hints recommends a mixing lard and liquor and putting the mixture on your sores to heal them.

Another life hack book, The United States Practical Receipt Book published in 1884, offers 'recipes' and instructions from how to prevent baldness, to improving the taste of wine, brewing acorn coffee and even making condoms from sheep intestines.

The introduction reads: 'the intention of the publisher has been to furnish...a work comprehending the most recent discoveries of science, in a form convenient for practical use'.

One the most surprising tips is how to fashion a condom from a sheep intestine, soda and ribbon.

The recipe reads: 'Take the caecum; [a pouch connected to the intestine] soak it first in water, turn it on both sides, then repeat the operation in a weak ley of soda, which must be changed every four or five hours for five of six successive times; then remove the mucus membrane with the nail; sulfur, wash in clean water, and then in soap and water; rinse, inflate and dry.'

HOW TO MAKE AN 1884 CONDOM The recipe from the 1884 'United States Practical Receipt Book' reads: 'Take the caecum; [a pouch connected to the intestine] soak it first in water, turn it on both sides, then repeat the operation in a weak ley of soda, which must be changed every four or five hours for five of six successive times; then remove the mucus membrane with the nail; sulfur, wash in clean water, and then in soap and water; rinse, inflate and dry.' 'Next cut it to the required length and attach a piece of ribbon to the open end. 'Used to prevent infection or pregnancy. 'The different qualities consist of extra pains being taken in the above process, and in polishing, scenting.' Advertisement

'Next cut it to the required length and attach a piece of ribbon to the open end. Used to prevent infection or pregnancy.

'The different qualities consist of extra pains being taken in the above process, and in polishing, scenting.'

'Ley of soda' was the common name for sodium hydroxide, which was also used in soap making.

The ingredient would have cleaned unwanted biological material from the casing, while removing the mucus membrane would have stopped the 'condom' from rotting.

The caecum was chosen because being a pouch, between the upper and lower intestine, it has a closed end, making it the right shape.

Many medical remedies are also suggested in the book, the original copy of which is kept at the university.

They include 'cures' for potentially serious illnesses such as rickets and ringworm as well as cosmetic procedures like removing freckles and preventing baldness.

The book says: 'To prevent the hair falling off: Wash the head once a day with good old Jamaica rum.'

There are also recipes for the kitchen, including how to make waffles, walnut wine, 'a peculiar sauce,' acorn coffee, jam, cheese, 'macaroni cordial' and even a wedding cake.

As well as hacks for housekeeping, there are tips on how to raise children. They may seem slightly bizarre to modern day mothers, although the hint of not to give children alcohol still holds true

Instructions on how to restore a sour tasting wine, reads: 'Put in a bag the root of horse-radish cut in bits.

'Let it down in the wine, and leave it there for two days; take this out, and put another, repeating the same till the wine is perfectly restored.'

It also includes many recipes for coffee substitutes and how to make the drink taste better.

For example: 'To improve coffee: Coffee, 13 parts; chicory, 3 parts. Grind together.'

A recipe for 'cheap beer' involves boiling green shells of peas and adding wood sage as hops.

And for those who are successful in following one of many home-brewing liquor recipes, there is also a hack for alcoholism, involving adding eels to booze and encouraging a person to drink the disgusting concoction.

While the book may be an intriguing read, people are not advised to follow all of the hacks.