5

I profoundly dislike dusting, but getting rid of dust is a necessity. It seems to me -- although it might be just an impression rather than a fact -- that lately way more dust gets on all surfaces than it used to few years back, yet I can't place any possible reason for that. Just things get dustier (and faster) and cleaning doesn't last. I do use furniture polish after dusting, but it doesn't seem to protect much against the dust.

Is there any way to make the cleaning last longer so I can dust less often?

EDIT: Buying equipment (like air precipitators or other stuff) is not a desirable option. I need a hack to make the cleaning to last longer.

2
  • Keep the windows closed always in the storage room. This isn't desirable in all rooms as it would lead to lack of ventilation
    – user600016
    Dec 3, 2019 at 8:10
  • 1
    How would you feel leaving a bucket of water in every room? The water will capture part of the dust, so there will be less in other places of the room. Dec 3, 2019 at 14:53

5 Answers 5

3

I use HEPA+ filters that go down to PM2.5 to filter everything that is bad not just dust but including smoke sized particles.

Not sure you would like the ongoing noise but if you run them during the day while you are at work they will still do a real good job.

2
  • Thank you so much for the tip. Before you mentioned it I didn't know about Hepa filters, so I Googled it, and have read a lot about it since: there are a multitude of brands and types, in a wide price range too. I'm seriously thinking of buying one, since - considering all answers posted here - there seems not to be a way to make the cleaning to last longer, the only option being to minimize the set of dust. The hepa filter I'm eyeing is especially designed for allergic people. I'm looking forward to get it. I want to see if what they say in the site is true. I'm tired of misleading adverts.
    – Joy
    Dec 3, 2019 at 22:41
  • 1
    @Joy If you want to cut down on dust, a full Hepa filter is unnecessary. The lifehack would be to put a "Merv 8+ furnace filter" inside a cardboard box with a couple of 12v computer case fans to pull air through it. This is the cheapest possible solution (under $20) and really does keep the dust down. - Source: I built one. Jan 3, 2020 at 3:02
4

Buying a Hepa filter is an option, but they are expensive and noisy. The real life hack would be to take a 20x25 inch Merv 8+ furnace filter and fit it into a cardboard box. Then use a computer case fan to draw air through it constantly and filter the dust in the room. This is what I'm doing now and it really is an effective solution.

Unlike Hepa filters, these furnace filters can be replaced for under $10 and the computer case fan only draws a few watts. The plus of using a case fan is that there is a ridiculously large selection of them online and if you're like me you may have a few lying around already.

They can also whisper quiet compared to most of the Hepa filters on the market today. Make sure to get ones that 120mm or larger to 1. Avoid high pitch noises and 2. Move a lot more air. On the box I built in the living room, I'm using two 200mm fans to draw air through a Merv 13 air filter constantly to keep the dust down. Because these fans are so large, they draw a lot of air, but do so quietly enough that I can't even hear them.

1

Not a full solution, but i find that beating or shaking duvets and clothes daily helps. Just shake you duvet or whatever bed-cover you have out the window in the morning.

You can also do this with clothes and pyjamas to shake off hairs and skin-flakes that accumulated on the inside.

0

As I understand it, dust is the waste of dustmites which are small organisms that usually live in carpet and eat fallen human skin.

They may also live in mattresses or other soft furniture like a sofa with a non-waterproof surface, but if a large area of your house is carpeted, 1 sofa and 1 bed is a minor part of the problem.

I recommend against carpet in the home because it allows the dustmites to survive and thrive, and thereby create the dust.

If it's not possible for you to live somewhere without carpet (or to replace your carpet with tiles or other hard flooring) then regularly vacuuming the carpet should be your priority.

The solution is to focus on the source of the dust (the dustmites in the carpet) rather than the dust itself. Using furniture polish for this purpose is like putting a bandage on a bullet wound.

If you don't have carpet in your home, please describe your house, flooring type, types and materials of sofa or other furniture etc, because I would be interested to know how the dustmites can survive, or whether the "dust" that you refer to may be caused by something else.

3
  • There is no carpet, but I have a small rug. The dust I refer to is mostly the type of dust that appears over the furniture (tables, desk, computer etc).
    – Joy
    Dec 2, 2019 at 1:57
  • 3
    Dust contains so much more than dust mite „residue“. All fabrics shed fibers (lint) and other particles and so do humans during their normal daily activity and lots of other materials. Plus there is what is carried inside or blown inside through the air, from pollen to tiny pieces of earth and stone... the list nearly endless. The individual pieces may be small, but they do add up.
    – Stephie
    Dec 2, 2019 at 9:16
  • Since moving to an apartment with no carpets, I am much more aware of dust (especially cat fluff) than before! Dec 18, 2019 at 20:18
0

Dust is practically unavoidable unless your environment is a hermetically sealed bio-dome. Cosmic dust alone probably makes up a hefty percentage. Estimates vary of how much cosmic dust enter Earth’s atmosphere each day, but range anywhere from 5 to 300 metric tons per day.However there are effective and affordable ways to reduce dust, pollen's, and the many other assorted allergens and various micro-particles floating around our living spaces. one particular science is HEPA air filtration coupled with Ionic air purification.

Ionic air purifiers or, air ionisers are used in air purifiers to remove particles from air. Airborne particles become charged as they attract charged ions from the ioniser by electrostatic attraction.

Air purifiers currently available today for consumers mostly utilize a few popular technologies within the air systems, these technologies include ozone, HEPA, carbon, PECO, and ionizers. Air ionizers are a fairly prominent type of air purifier that many air purifier companies use inside their systems, however, they are also an air purification technology that has gained attention for the potentially hazardous effects it produces into the environment, effects that can be possibly dangerous to human health.

SO, DO YOUR RESEARCH for the system(s) best suited for your household.

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.