Potentially contaminated spaces, like a restroom, kitchen, or anywhere in a health care setting, also need cleaning chemicals. But dust and light soils can be cleaned from floors and surfaces with water alone.
Wet dusting or dry? The best way to dust. The best tool for dusting is a damp cloth. This is because the dust gets absorbed instead of spreading around the home.
Nothing gets really clean with just water. There's still food residue we can't see. And humans shed skin and deposit oils (that's why we leave fingerprints). That stuff builds up over time.
A moist towel picks up dust better and a dry towel will cause micro scratches in the finish of many surfaces. They make dusting sprays I do suggest you use them too.
Microfiber cloths. For general dusting like wiping down the table, counter, or another smooth surface, a microfiber cloth works wonders. While other cloths simply move dirt and dust from one place to another, the tiny fibers in microfiber cloths collect and trap more dust than cotton cleaning rags.
Vacuum cleaners with HEPA filters are the best for containing dust, and remember that sweeping isn't nearly as effective for removing dust. If you like, you can also use any multi-surface dust spray, and finally, water when mopping the floors or cleaning the windows.
How to Make Dust Repellant Spray. To make the spray, she combines 2 cups of water, 1 cup of vinegar to disinfect and cut through grime, 2 tablespoons of olive oil to polish and keep dust away for longer, and a drop or two of dish soap for extra cleaning power.
The science behind why damp dusting is more efficient than a dry cloth comes from the fact that a damp cloth introduces capillary force to the dust particles. In short, the damp cloth draws the particles in and lifts dust from the area instead of moving them around.
Dusting Frequency for Optimal Home Health
In order to keep your home's air quality top-notch, you should be dusting at least every other week, if not weekly. Choose a time each week, like after you pick the kids up from soccer practice, to dust your house, or dust a certain area each day.
Dusting from the top down will not only prevent dust from falling on sections you have already cleaned but will also ensure that you don't miss any easy-to-forget areas. Begin dusting each room by first tackling cobwebs and hard to reach high-up dust before moving down to other areas.
Ben Barankin, a Toronto dermatologist and the medical director at the Toronto Dermatology Centre, said going soapless wouldn't be an assault on your personal hygiene.
It's easy to believe that, to make something clean, you need to use chemicals. Surely you can't clean a floor with only water - can you? The answer is yes: it's been proven that water is often enough to clean efficiently when used in conjunction with a good auto scrubber.
The answer is a qualified yes. Plain tap water, combined with the right cleaning processes and tools, effectively removes soils and bacteria from surfaces. Giving up cleaning products and using water alone offers lots of benefits.
Health Impacts
Exposure to dust inside homes can have adverse health outcomes, such as respiratory problems, asthma, allergic reactions, and lead poisoning (if the dust contains lead). Dust comes from two sources. First, dirt and dust can be carried in from outside on shoes or blown in through windows and doors.
Damp dusting is the removal of dirt and bacteria from hard, flat surfaces with a damp cloth or sponge. Unlike using a feather or yellow duster, damp dusting means the dust sticks to the cloth rather than floating in the air.
Poor Indoor Air Quality
The accumulation of dust, moulds, and pest droppings negatively impacts your home's air quality. Poor indoor air quality can lead to various health issues, including allergies, asthma, and other respiratory conditions.
The Good Housekeeping Institute says that your sheets should be changed at least once every two weeks. However, if you suffer with night sweats or allergies such as asthma, it's worth washing them weekly to get rid of any grime or potential irritants and keep your sleeping space fresh and clean.
The suction power of a vacuum cleaner can pick up crumbs, pet hair and other larger contaminants that you can't get rid of with dusting alone. Dusting first is generally advisable because it helps remove any loose dirt, debris and dust from the surfaces in your home before you start vacuuming.
Water Is a Short-Term Dust Solution
In order to do this successfully, it's important to use a combination of sprays, mists, and water guns. Ideally, you'll apply light, frequent applications rather than heavily spraying the surface in less frequent intervals.
“Long-term health is intertwined with sleep.” When you breathe in allergens like dust, your body recognizes these tiny particles as unwanted intruders and launches an inflammatory response. This causes uncomfortable swelling and irritation in your nasal passages — aka allergic rhinitis.
Should you dust with a damp cloth? We at Castle Keepers find dusting with a plain, slightly damp microfiber cloth the best way to remove dust from the home, much superior to dusting with oils or sprays. “Damp dusting” is also much easier than dry dusting and more effective because it catches more dust.
If you notice a lot of dust in your house, it's likely due to a combination of factors affecting air quality and ventilation. Dust particles from outside can enter through open windows or doors, while indoor sources like pet dander, dead skin cells, and fibers from textiles contribute to the buildup.
Microfiber: All but a few picks in our guide are made from microfiber. This is the most common material used for dust cleaning, as the particles tend to cling to its soft fabric texture.