Reducing dust and keeping the air clean in our house is pretty important to us as a family. I have dust allergies, and my boys both suffer from hay fever during the summer.
However, my husband has no allergies whatsoever. I won’t actually enter his office room now because if I do, I immediately start sneezing. That’s his way of keeping me out, ha ha!
If you are in the same situation as us and are wondering how best to remove dust from the air naturally, the number one thing you can do is to keep regularly dusting and number two, use a HEPA filter.
Besides that, there is lots more you can do to get dust out of the air. Read on for more tips.
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How to get dust out of the air naturally - 13 actionable tips
There are several things you can do to remove dust particles floating in the air and to help you breathe easily.
Let’s take a look at all the effective options:
1. Vacuum regularly
Vacuuming your floor regularly will make the air cleaner and thus keep surfaces dust free. Walking on a dusty floor will churn up dust as you walk. This is especially true if you have carpets.
2. Always use a HEPA filter in your vacuum cleaner
A HEPA (high efficiency particulate air) filter is a special kind of filter that is capable of filtering out at least 99.97% of dust, pollen, mold, bacteria, and any other airborne particles from the air.
A HEPA filter in your vacuum, prevents it from sending dust back out into the air as you use it. In fact, you can often find the air is cleaner after you vacuumed.
It wasn’t until I got one that I stopped sneezing when I did the housework.
This is the vacuum I have owned now for about 15 years, and it is still going strong. All I do is change the HEPA filter every six months.
Related reading:
- The best way to clean dust without a duster
- Why your vacuum cleaner smells like your dog, and how to fix it for good
3. Add plenty of houseplants
Indoor houseplants are fantastic natural air purifiers. The more you have, the better!
Choose plants that are best for the position you have in mind for them.
Here is a list of 12 best houseplants for purifying the air.
4. Open windows
Opening windows will help to replace dusty air with fresh air.
However, if you live on a busy road, or in an area with high air pollution, it will be better to keep them closed.
5. Use an air purifier
We love our air filter by Winix for filtering out the dust, smells and pollen. It has a HEPA filter, which means in can filter out very fine particles from the air. Having one of these is a godsend for us during the hay fever season. It really helps to stop my boys sneezing!
Related reading:
6. Dust regularly with a dry microfiber cloth
I recommend dry dusting with a microfiber cloth (rather than wet) because a dry cloth will attract dust and hold it in the fibers. So, you don’t end up spreading the dust around.
Another thing you can do to make dusting easier is by adopting a top to bottom approach.
Begin by dusting high up, for example, the tops of bookcases, lampshades, and door frames and then move down. Finish up by vacuuming the floor.
Related reading:
7. Reduce clutter
Getting rid of clutter around your house will mean there is less surface area for dust to collect on. Dusting will become quicker and easier.
8. Switch your carpet for wooden floors
Walking on a dusty floor will churn up dust into the air and onto your surfaces.
It is much harder to keep a carpet dust-free than hard floors. Plus, dust is easier to see on a hard floor, especially when the sun shines on it!
9. Use a dehumidifier
Reducing the humidity in your home can prevent dust mites. This is because they thrive in a moist environment.
10. Keep your pets groomed
Just like humans, pets shed skin cells and, of course, hair, too.
Keeping your pet regularly groomed will help you breathe more easily.
11. Change the filters in your HVAC system
An HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) system with a clogged filter will be much less efficient than a new one.
Change the filters every two to three months to ensure it isn’t circulating dust back out into your home.
12. Change bed linen at least once a week
Unfortunately, unwashed bed linen will be choked up with dead skin cells, dust mites, and bacteria.
This is quite shocking, but according to Imperial College London we humans lose 200,000,000 skin cells every hour. In a typical night, that amounts to an incredible 1.6 billion skin cells.
Imagine those cells wafting around the room whenever you turn over in your sleep!
Let’s not get too worked up about this, though. Dead skin cells are a fact of life.
Washing your bed linen once a week should be sufficient to keep the air clean.
13. Close off your chimney flue
If you have a fireplace that you aren’t using, shut the flue. This will stop dust and debris from flowing down the chimney into the room.
Another thing you can do is to get it regularly swept.
How to remove dust from the air without an air purifier
All dust eventually settles on something until it gets churned up back into the air. Due to someone walking on a dusty floor or plumping up dusty bed linen, for example.
If you can get into the habit of regularly dusting, there will be less of it to circulate, without having to run an air filter or purifier.
Here’s my tip for developing a dusting habit.
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Take a pile of clean microfiber cloths and position them around the house, preferably in the worst places for dust.
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When you pass your carefully positioned cloth, you might just be tempted to pick it up and dust around quickly.
Before you know it you have a dust-free spot, and then you have several, and in no time you might find you have a dust-free house, accidentally!
Besides trickery, there is another very effective thing you can do to stop dust circulating, and that is to make sure you have a HEPA filter in your vacuum and that you regularly replace it. That way, vacuuming will not result with even more dust in the air.
What devices help to clean air in your home?
The best device for cleaning the air is an air purifier.
I recommend this air filter by Winix. It’s the one we have in our home. We move it from room to room during the summer, to help my boys with their hay fever. It really helps filter out the pollen from the air and freshens the room too.
Frequently asked questions
Do air purifiers get rid of dust?
Many air purifiers contain HEPA filters and so are capable of filtering out very fine dust particles.
Is dust dangerous?
For those of us who are sensitive to dust or who have low immunity, household dust can cause health issues. These include asthma attacks, and breathing problems, among others.
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