It’s impossible to get rid of household dust completely, but you can certainly reduce it with the right cleaning tactics. Use these tips to reduce household dust and improve indoor air quality in your Edmonton home.
- Clean the sheets: Dead skin cells accumulate between the sheets, providing food for microscopic pests called dust mites. Wash sheets in hot water weekly to remove dead skin and kill dust mites. Then encase pillows, mattresses and box springs with allergen-proof covers to keep dust mites from finding a home.
- Vacuum with the blower on: Vacuuming captures a lot of dust, but plenty is still swept up into the air by the agitator. Turn the thermostat fan setting to “on” while you vacuum to send much of this airborne dust through the HVAC air filter instead of settling on other surfaces in your home. Just remember to turn the fan setting back to “auto” 15 minutes after you finish vacuuming.
- Upgrade the HVAC air filter: Your efforts to catch airborne dust while vacuuming will be even more effective if the HVAC filter has a higher efficiency rating. Look for replacement air filters rated between 8 and 13 on the Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value (MERV) scale for the best results.
- Choose the right vacuum: For carpeted surfaces, choose a bagless HEPA-filter vacuum with a powerful agitator. For hard floors, sweeping and mopping is best, but a once-over with a canister vacuum is a quick way to remove dust bunnies.
- Install air purifiers: If you have trouble sleeping at night because your allergies or asthma symptoms flare up, an air purifier could be just what you need. Install one in the bedroom and elsewhere in your home if needed to filter out dust particles and other airborne allergens while you sleep.
- Clean from top to bottom: Gravity sends dust to the floor, so clean tabletops and counters before sweeping, mopping and vacuuming. You’ll end up with a cleaner house for the same amount of effort.
For more tips to reduce household dust and improve indoor air quality, contact The Furnace Company. We've been serving Edmonton residents since 2001.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Edmonton, Alberta about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about reducing household dust and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
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