Dusting furniture -- what cleaner do you use?

[Shelydon]

I apparently have a very dusty house. My dark wood furniture always looks dusty. I cleaned it all yesterday using Method wood spray. This morning you can write your name in the dust and per hair. Eventually I would like to purchase a huge room hepa filter, but right now that's not something we can afford. So I need to find a better cleaning spray that maybe helps repel dust a little better. Any suggestions?

We have all tile floors, no carpet or rugs with the exception of small welcome mats at each door. That is likely part of the problem, there isn't something to suck about the dirt it gets tracked in from outside.  The kitchen, and main living area are open concept and about a thousand square feet. 

[Pawz4me]

I just use a microfiber rag, either dry or slightly damp (water only). I think most cleaners leave a film that tends to attract dust. In the winter a slightly damp rag seems to work a little better--something about the little bit of moisture helping break the static bond that attracts dust. When it's warmer and static isn't an issue I usually dry dust.

[stephanier.1765]

Your house sounds like my house, except that I have white furniture in a bedroom that's just as bad. I thought dusting the ceiling fans would help but it didn't make one iota of a difference. Of course, I have 5 cats so there's that. Super frustrating!

[Carrie12345]

For me, the thing that works best is daily vacuuming and/or robovacumming.  I have 2 rugs on the first floor, we don’t wear shoes in the house, I change the HVAC filter monthly, AND have an air purifier in the living room, but it still gets extra dusty if I skip vacuuming.

But I also have a 58lb puppy.

I’ve never found a particular cleaner to work better than a damp microfiber cloth.

[HomeAgain]

15 minutes ago, Carrie12345 said:

I’ve never found a particular cleaner to work better than a damp microfiber cloth.

Same.

Also, we have found we get better results if we focus our energy on cleaning the fans and grates once a week.   We have hardwood floors in our house and a kid with terrible pollen allergies.  I go through daily/every other day and do the floors to help eliminate the settled dust, and then wipe the fans/grates/radiators weekly so that there's less to push around in the air.

[Katy]

Change or clean your oven or HVAC filters.  Vacuum everything twice, including removing all the vents & returns and vacuuming inside them as far as you can reach. Preferably with a vacuum with a hepa filter. Try damp dusting with a well wrung out barely damp cloth. Microfiber is great. No sprays repel dust, they leave a sticky film that attracts it. 

[Grace Hopper]

I just use a slightly damp cloth, sometimes followed by a dry one (depends on the surface. Anything else just seems to cause a residue buildup over time. Lemon Pledge on my parents’ coffee table = core memory. 

[EKS]

The important thing is to NEVER TOUCH THE DUST.  If you make sure that the coating is even, you never need to dust again!

[MEmama]

I mostly vacuum surfaces with a hand held brush attachment and use a microfibre cloth for whatever that can't reach, or if I forget while I'm vacuuming. 

[ktgrok]

53 minutes ago, Carrie12345 said:

For me, the thing that works best is daily vacuuming and/or robovacumming.  

This. Our robot vaccum has drastically reduced the amount of dust on furniture. And the rooms upstairs taht get vacuumed the least have the worst dust. There is a definitely correlation. 

That said, supposedly pledge has a static charge that repels dust or something = but not the "all surfaces" kind, just the original kind. 

[Grace Hopper]

51 minutes ago, Carrie12345 said:

For me, the thing that works best is daily vacuuming and/or robovacumming.  I have 2 rugs on the first floor, we don’t wear shoes in the house, I change the HVAC filter monthly, AND have an air purifier in the living room, but it still gets extra dusty if I skip vacuuming.

But I also have a 58lb puppy.

I’ve never found a particular cleaner to work better than a damp microfiber cloth.

I was going to teasingly suggest you change your board name to Carrie June Cleaver, but then I remembered you have pups in the house. And that I am a pet free empty nester.  My housekeeping practices have definitely changed! 
 

OP you can also get filters for the HVAC vents in each room. 

[itsheresomewhere]

Dry cloth to wipe and then I use this stuff.  It really helps the furniture shine and I don’t find it collecting as much dust.  I have used it for years.  It also makes really old wood furniture look great. 
 

Daddy Van's All Natural Lavender & Sweet Orange Oil Beeswax Furniture Polish Chemical-Free Wood Wax Conditioner. No Petroleum Distillates - One Tin https://a.co/d/9yMkM7j

[Carrie12345]

11 minutes ago, Grace Hopper said:

I was going to teasingly suggest you change your board name to Carrie June Cleaver, but then I remembered you have pups in the house. And that I am a pet free empty nester.  My housekeeping practices have definitely changed! 
 

OP you can also get filters for the HVAC vents in each room. 

Hey, I said I find daily vacuuming works best. I didn’t claim that it always happens! 🤣🤣🤣

[Soror]

A damp rag is all I use here.

I just have 1 inside cat. 

Dh does regularly change our HVAC filter. 

We don't have carpet either but some area rugs. 

I don't think my house gets super dusty but I think the darker wood shows it more. Dusting is done weekly here in main living areas.

[Harriet Vane]

I use a rag dampened with vinegar. Not a.wet rag. Just dampened.

[MercyA]

My mom cleaned houses, churches, and businesses when I was growing up and was very good at it. For dusting, she always used a water-dampened rag followed by a dry rag.

I did the same until I got lazy and switched to Swiffer dusters. 

Adding my voice to the chorus saying that a lot of those dusting sprays leave sticky residue. 

Edited March 14, 2023 by MercyA

[TechWife]

I just use a dry microfiber cloth.

Occasionally I'll use some Murphy's Oil Soap on my dining room table.

[Ausmumof3]

Just a damp rag, cleaning products make the dust stick. Mind you my house is not an ad for my cleaning practices 😂

We have birds and a wood fire so they make a lot of dust. In the years after the bushfire it was always fine ash and would stain white surfaces if wiped. That was fun. 

[prairiewindmomma]

5 hours ago, itsheresomewhere said:
 

Daddy Van's All Natural Lavender & Sweet Orange Oil Beeswax Furniture Polish Chemical-Free Wood Wax Conditioner. No Petroleum Distillates - One Tin https://a.co/d/9yMkM7j

I use this polish also, on wood items. Most of the time I just use a microfiber cloth on the rest.

ITA with the advice to clean and filter your air.

[Shelydon]

On 3/14/2023 at 11:40 AM, EKS said:

The important thing is to NEVER TOUCH THE DUST.  If you make sure that the coating is even, you never need to dust again!

I think this will be my new method.

[mmasc]

On 3/14/2023 at 11:41 AM, Pawz4me said:

I just use a microfiber rag, either dry or slightly damp (water only). I think most cleaners leave a film that tends to attract dust. In the winter a slightly damp rag seems to work a little better--something about the little bit of moisture helping break the static bond that attracts dust. When it's warmer and static isn't an issue I usually dry dust.

This is what I do as well. I really do think it works better than furniture polish. 

[stephanier.1765]

13 minutes ago, mmasc said:

This is what I do as well. I really do think it works better than furniture polish. 

After reading this thread, I tried this method the last time I dusted. It's amazing how much of a difference it made and how well the furniture looked days after.

[Lecka]

Some houses are just dustier than others.  I don’t know why.  I have moved several times as an adult, and the dust situation is different in every home.

 

I have had a house where it was dusty no matter what, and a house where I have no particular memory of dusting. 

 

I have had two times when I think that it was dusty when we moved in, and then after 6 months or so it seemed less dusty, and I think it just took that long to clean up accumulated dust that I wasn’t able to get up by dusting or vacuuming, because of just stirring some up when I would dust.  And then I also took time to really actually clean the whole house 2-3 times such that I was really getting the accumulated dust.  
 

My current home is one of them, and the previous owner had really neglected some areas, and I would find extremely layers of dust and then just stir it up in cleaning, so I wasn’t really getting all the dust.  
 

But nothing like that happened with my previous dusty house.  It was just always dusty.  I could see dust in the air.  It was the newest house we have lived in, so it wasn’t that it was an old house.  Well, actually it was worse in the summer and not as bad in the winter.  We did not have whole-house A/C there and I think that made it worse, it seemed better when the heat was on.  
 

But I think once we were there and I realized that, I tried to really stay on top of it when the heat was off, and it was better our last year there.  
 

I think too you are describing a surface that really shows dust.  It doesn’t mean your house is really dusty.  I think you might dust and polish separately.  If you are dusting while polishing, I think dust can settle back onto the polish.  I think maybe only polish rarely, and mostly dust without polish.  Use polish when it doesn’t seem dusty!    
 

I do always wet-dust (with water) but if there is a lot of dust I still stir up dust.  

 

[Lecka]

I do think some of my wood items look like they need polish about once a year, my dining room set can look a little dried out and the wood just looks better.  For other things I don’t see any difference.  It makes no difference for my bookcases.  It makes no difference for my current kitchen cabinets, but I did like to do them once in a while in a previous house.  
 

I think this has to do with the finishes, but I don’t know what the finishes are.  
 

Most of my wood things never look dried out, or dull, in this way, and I have seen the Polish to make no difference.

 

I am also trying to remember if I have used polish or Murphy’s soap…. I might be using Murphy’s soap.  I think it’s also good for a dried-out or dingy look sometimes.  But I would not put it on a lot of things.  I think of it as a Polish.  

[Lecka]

I would not use Murphy’s soap if it seemed like it was already dusty, though.  Or if it seemed fine without it.  It’s kind-of a hassle.  When it works well it’s really not needed very often at all, for things where I have used it.  
 

But if your actual wood surface looks fine, I would not use any product.  

[Lecka]

For example I think it has been 2 years since I used Murphy’s soap on my kitchen cabinets, they still look fine.  They looked horrible when we moved in here and I thought we would paint or re-face.  I turned out to be happy with them after Murphy’s soap.

Some things I have tried it on and it appears to not make any difference.  

[gardenmom5]

36 minutes ago, Lecka said:

Some houses are just dustier than others.  I don’t know why.  I have moved several times as an adult, and the dust situation is different in every home.

 

I have had a house where it was dusty no matter what, and a house where I have no particular memory of dusting. 

 

I have had two times when I think that it was dusty when we moved in, and then after 6 months or so it seemed less dusty, and I think it just took that long to clean up accumulated dust that I wasn’t able to get up by dusting or vacuuming, because of just stirring some up when I would dust.  And then I also took time to really actually clean the whole house 2-3 times such that I was really getting the accumulated dust.  
 

My current home is one of them, and the previous owner had really neglected some areas, and I would find extremely layers of dust and then just stir it up in cleaning, so I wasn’t really getting all the dust.  
 

But nothing like that happened with my previous dusty house.  It was just always dusty.  I could see dust in the air.  It was the newest house we have lived in, so it wasn’t that it was an old house.  Well, actually it was worse in the summer and not as bad in the winter.  We did not have whole-house A/C there and I think that made it worse, it seemed better when the heat was on.  
 

But I think once we were there and I realized that, I tried to really stay on top of it when the heat was off, and it was better our last year there.  
 

I think too you are describing a surface that really shows dust.  It doesn’t mean your house is really dusty.  I think you might dust and polish separately.  If you are dusting while polishing, I think dust can settle back onto the polish.  I think maybe only polish rarely, and mostly dust without polish.  Use polish when it doesn’t seem dusty!    
 

I do always wet-dust (with water) but if there is a lot of dust I still stir up dust.  

 

Some areas just have more dirt/dust in the air.
houses with central HVAC systems usually have filters. (some filters are better than others.)  But the ductwork does need to be cleaned periodically as dirt and dust will accumulate on the insides.  (and then there will be more dirt/dust floating around inside to land on any flat surface.   My kitchen vent leaves dust on the wall next to it . . other vents don't have that problem.)

ductless heating systems don't stir up the air the way a HVAC system does.

21 minutes ago, Lecka said:

I would not use Murphy’s soap if it seemed like it was already dusty, though.  Or if it seemed fine without it.  It’s kind-of a hassle.  When it works well it’s really not needed very often at all, for things where I have used it.  
 

But if your actual wood surface looks fine, I would not use any product.  

There's vegetable OIL in it.  I recall once someone taking umbrage that anyone would say there was oil in it.  Hello?  it says it right on the front label!  Oil leaves a film that attracts and traps dirt.  (There's oil in cooking - that's why the tops of kitchen cabinets get so grimy).   

I will use lemon oil (or beeswax) with a cotton rag on antiques occasionally to moisturize the wood. (or cleaning crevices) depends upon the finish.   I've used orange oil to clean the grimy buildup on chairs.   

for general dusting - I use a microfiber "feather" duster. And shake it out frequently.  For some things, I use the brush tool on my vacuum.

Edited March 27, 2023 by gardenmom5