Museum Of Clean

Museum of Clean to open in Idaho: Pocatello, Idaho — Don Aslett challenged a group of local youth to square off in a squeegee window cleaning contest against none other than the cleaning guru himself at the Museum of Clean.  At the request of a The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints group, the entrepreneur opened up the doors to his six-story building to provide the group with a sneak peek in advance of the museum's soft opening celebration slated for Nov. 18-19.

The Museum of Clean, located in Pocatello, Idaho, is the world's first museum dedicated to the value of "clean." The facility showcases cleaning instruments dating back 2,000 years and offers hands-on, interactive cleaning demonstrations and displays. Owner/curator Don Aslett looked to Idaho Power to help make the museum as energy efficient as possible. With high-tech lighting, heating and cooling systems that use as little energy as possible, the museum saves money and leaves a smaller footprint in the community around it. Aslett's goal is to achieve a LEED Platinum rating.

Don Aslett, owner and founder of Varsity Contractors, Inc.–one of the nation’s most successful cleaning companies–and self-made millionaire, has revolutionized both the home and the workplace with his popular cleaning services, products, and books. His media-genic personality, business savvy, and unique housekeeping philosophy prove a winning combination–whether he’s sharing decluttering secrets on Oprah, demonstrating his Time Saver cleaning products on QVC, or designing the Clean Green World building to house his Museum of Clean.

Aslett’s own collection began with the acquisition of a 1907 hand-pump vacuum. Over the next fifteen years thousands of historic items related to cleaning have been added through donations from friends, employees, family, and vendors. Recently the Peter Frei collection from the Boston area was purchased for $300,000. Housed in Varsity’s corporate headquarters, the collection has grown to 6,000 pieces, all of which will find a home in the new Museum of Clean. The museum will be a combination of new construction and renovation of a stately, six-story, 1920s, goliath in Pocatello’s up-and-coming historic warehouse district.

“The theme, purpose, and value of the museum will be to sell the public on the value of ‘clean,’” said Aslett. Cleaning efforts over the centuries will be chronicled through displays, demonstrations, and even dramatized in a cleaning melodrama. Items dating back more than 2000 years along with an amazing collection of pre-electric vacuums, are part of the Aslett/Varsity collection.