apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Well, if the pictures are those dust bunny, they do look all the same...so they probably come from the same source...perhaps a blanket or a sweater? In that case it's easier to control!

I have dust bunny tumbleweeds rolling through my condo on a daily basis. I can't gather them up before they start multiplying again. Any advice is appreciated.

It doesn't stop. I'm adopted a generally laissez faire attitude about dirt. Now that it's hot and the windows are open, it's worse but it's always that way. You do what you can and not let it drive you insane.

I'd much rather have hard floor surfaces where I can easily find and vacuum the dust bunnies than wall-to-wall carpets where they often just live within the pile of the carpets...

The only solution is to get rid of all your soft furniture and pets, and shave daily. Even that probably won't stop it. Just take it easy!

I'd have to say that I'm on the other end of the spectrum, bebsf. Although I prefer the look of hardwoods, I prefer carpeting, as the dust bunnies aren't so atrocious with carpeting. You can vacuum regularly, and while you're not getting it all up, they're not all floating around the apartment like tumbleweeds on a daily basis. With carpeting, they don't get onto my food, my shelves, and my desk.

With carpeting, dust bunnies are much easier to hide, much less stressful, and must less demanding.

Oh, and clothes, sorry, you have to go around naked.

My dust bunny situation is DIRE.

Part of my weekendly routine is that on Sundays I get up early and go for a long workout, then I come home to catch up on housework. One of these Sunday chores is the floors - sweeping and mopping.

This past weekend, my boyfriend-type-person came over and offered to help with some of my housework. I said, "Sure, you can do the floors if you like," floors being my most-despised chore of all and the one which I'm most eager to hand off to someone else.

He swept quietly for a few minutes and then came into the badroom, where I was organizing my closet, with a look of pure horror on his face. He said, "Don't you EVER sweep your floors?" I said, "Sure do! Every Sunday. Why do you ask?"

That's when he showed me the harvest of dusty tubleweeds in the dust pan. My condo is 600 sq. ft., but judging by the sheer quantity of dust bunnies my floors yield, you'd think I lived in some palatial 200 sq. ft. loft.

It's infuriating.

Blanket/sheet/clothing lint, pet hair, human hair, shed skin = dust bunnies.
As long as there is something reverting to its natural chaotic form, there will be dust bunnies. Stop growing new skin and cease to wear clothing and you'll be cured of this evil as long as your home is airtight. Simple as that.

Carpeting may reduce dust bunnies, but think of all the dust and dirt that gets trapped in carpet? At least with hardwood floors you can clean it up and dispose of it.

A really good air purifier and furniture polish should keep the dust levels down.

Why are those dust bunnies in the pic so blue? My dust bunnies are always a bland greyish color.

Honestly, I double the "dust bunny tumbleweeds" that's what we've got, too.

We're rather clean, well kept people, and we sweep EVERYDAY and EVERYDAY we see "dust bunny tumbleweeds" so we wonder about those people w/super clean wood floors with no signs of dust tumbleweed...what do they do: Sweep it 2/3/4x/day??? Cuz one sweeping day is a lot for us already.

We've given up and surrendered, we now learn to live cohesively with whatever else is on the floor (gives it an outdoorsy lifestyles), and when guests come...we sweep it all up and our home looks just like those photoshoot homes: spotless (for the few minutes that the guest are there, anyways). And when anyone spots our dust bunny tumbleweeds...we use the CHILDREN as excuses.

My Dustbuster seems to make them go away. They're a greenish tint, so it's probably from my rug. It's fun to suck 'em up!

In addition to everything mentioned above, it might have something to do with how well your windows seal and how windy it is at your place. Both places I've lived in SF have had nowhere near the dustbunny problems that many of you cite. A bit of dust will accumulate over 2 weeks (which is when I clean), but nothing like actual dustbunny tumbleweeds.

Oops, forgot to mention that I'm in San Francisco, so maybe it's less dusty up here as it tends to be foggier/more moist?

My house is about half carpet, and about half terrazzo tile. I have a long haired dog, a cat, and long hair myself. Dust bunnies abound. After I vacuum the carpet I take the nozzle of the vacuum around the baseboards, legs of the stools, and corners. There are a few places that they especially like to gather. The vacuum nozzle sucks them right up and it only takes as long as it take me to walk around the perimeter and the few other hot spots. Not too bad, at all.

~Mrs. Foss

madchaka,

I'm in the bay area and you wouldn't believe the dust problem I have.

I've been told it's because there's a beach near by?

we have the same problem... but our main culprit is our lab who sheds like its his job. i vacuum the entire house and all low flat surfaces once a day... its quite annoying but i hate seeing the dog hair pile up!

Give me a litter of dust bunnies over caked on pots and pans any day. That said, I believe the Roomba was specifically designed for those who want to wage dust bunny war.

We have a Roomba, and we are winning on the dust bunny war (on the floor at least). However, it doesn't help with the dust everywhere else. Once I came back from 2-week vacation and a layer of felt had formed on top of the TV, on shelves, on my desk, etc. Does furniture polish actually help with that? Is there some kind of polish that would be safe for electronics that would repel dust as well?

I use used dryer sheets to dust cabinets and dresser tops. It does a fairly ok job picking up the dust but not sure how effective it is compare to commercial products like swiffer and such. It doesn't "keep them from multiplying" by any means though :P I wish!!

Dust everyday? Who has the time?

When was the last time you changed/cleaned the air filter in your air conditioner or furnace?
Also, have to agree, those dust bunnies are awfully blue, are they yours? I would look for something in your house that is that dark blue color. Curtains? Rug? Couch? Might need a good vacuum/wash. All my dust bunnies are brownish-gray like my kitty (because they mostly contain cat hair).
You could consider an air purifier of some sort, but unless you have particularly bad allergies I wouldn't worry that much about it, everyone gets dust bunnies.

I have two hairy dogs who not only shed, but drag all manner of material in from outside on their coats. My dust bunnies are more bunny than dust. I try to vacuum daily to keep them under control. I actually enjoy watching the canister fill up. During the worst of the dog shedding, I need to empty the large canister daily.

just keep calm and carry on!!! hahahahahahaaa!!

I think bunnies are just a fact of life in a hard wood space. Swiffers work well and are quick and easy; that's the best solution I've found so far.

i have hardwood floors in my home and so you can see all the dust (not the hair) and because i have a toddler, i am constantly cleaning the floor. i've tried those sweeper vacuums and dust wipes and they help a little. it's so much work! i'll admit that i don't get every single one but one is better is than none.

oh, to vacuum just once a week, instead of once a day (two dogs)

Since you asked, here's how I handle it --
Like MrsFoss, I have half terrazzo; so, no problem with dust bunnies on the floor. The other half of the place is hardwood; again, no big problem.
I do confess a Roomba helps, but until someone invents a Roomba for dusting, I still have to dust. However, since I got rid of the carpets, the dust is minimal.
I second the motion about Swiffers. tabithacat is right; they're quick and easy; just wish I could recycle those Swiffer sheets and use them again and again.
Oh, and when the electric bill comes each month, that's my cue to change the filter.

I sweep daily and can barely keep things under control. My mother has one of these:

http://www.thecleanteam.com/productdetail.cfm?id=4404

Which I should just buy. Better than a swiffer, exactly because you can wash the mop heads.

I live with dust bunnies made from Real Bunny! (2 house rabbits, that shed like you would NOT believe, plus two cats...) Back when I had long hair, that was a big problem, too -- you lose about 100 hairs per day from your head, probably mostly when grooming it, and they have to go somewhere! (I used to have to take the beater brush from my vacuum and clean off the hair with embroidery scissors because it wrapped the beater so the thing didn't work!) (Not to be gross, but just to remind long haired people this can effect your vac performance...)

No solution, just clean as often as you need to. And the fewer fibers you have, especially fluffy ones, the less dust -- carpeting causes a lot, so do fluffy afghans etc.

I don't get that many dust bunnies--just under the sofa, and I never see those until I look underneath. I only swiffer once a week at most, and the ones under the sofa don't bother me.

"I live with dust bunnies made from Real Bunny!"

So cute! I guess I should call mine dust dogs then. Because they are made up almost entirely of fur from my Great Pyrenees/St. Bernard/Akita mix, who has a LOT of long hair.

I get lots of gray dust bunnies... but I also have a gray bunny.
I don't think there's really a solution other than to dust regularly. I just stock up on Swiffers when I go to Costco!

BTW - When I was in USAF Basic Training, we of course swept and dusted the barracks every single day...
...and there were STILL dust bunnies.

It's just one of those things.

"I just stock up on Swiffers when I go to Costco!"

Rather than throwing your money away on those things, why not use an old damp towel on the end of a pushbroom or a dustmop - works just as well, is washable and reusable.

I sweep, then vaccuum, then dry swiffer, then mop, then once more with the dry swiffer once a week, and just sweep on the days in between. Also, dry dusting doesn't work and just spreads the dust around. Damp cloths or wood polish works for me. I have 2 cats, open windows, a dog and live smack dab in the dirty city. Even with the effort, there's still a major dustbunny collection when the once a week clean comes around.

Yep, I have dust bunnies.
Let's see...2 cats, I have long hair and so does my girlfriend, hardwood floors throughout, no air conditioning so my windows are always open and I live 2 blocks from the beach which adds fine particles of sand and sticky coastal moisture that sneaks thru the window screens.

My solution is to sweep and dust mop every day and I wash all the rugs in my apartment once a month.

I have a horrible dustbunny problem in my bedroom. Between my hair, my lab/mutt's hair, and just life in general I usually sweep them up twice a week. The dollar store (I think it's Dollar Tree) by my house sometimes stocks a Swiffer Dustmop knockoff that I'll stock up on when I see them. It's not the greenest solution but it works. My Mom (I still live at home) also has a cheapo vacuum cleaner that I'll use occasionally, it's just a little clunky. To be honest, I've pretty much just come to terms with living with them. My hair is my hair, so it doesn't freak me out, and I adjusted to my dog's shedding problem a long time ago. Dirt happens. I don't eat off of my bedroom floor and I'm a pretty clean person in general so I try not to let them gross me out.

My dustbunnies look like the blue ones above - that's because I bought a new blue wool rug from Anthro and 6 months later it's still shedding like a mother. Now I vacuum 1-2 times per week, Swiffer 1-2 times a week, and use a Dirt Devil hand vac around the perimeters of all rooms once/week to keep the bunnies at bay. It sounds like a lot but I bet it only adds up to an hour, maybe less. It's a really pretty rug.

Can we talk Roomba? Are they worth it. I have cats and vacuum/sweep daily. I have always been fascinated by the Roomba. I'd love some feedback from those who have them.

I used to have this problem, and it has been greatly reduced by sealing the doors and windows better. We live on a busy street in the city as well, and our solution went as follows:

We found a roll of foam about 1 inch wide, with adhesive on the back (local hardware store). We put this all around the inside of the door frame when the door was closed. The foam should be flush with the door. Not only did this greatly reduce street noise, it really helped reduce all of the dirt that was getting into our place from the street.

yes... i too would like to know more about the roomba...

I invested in a rubber broom - usually seen in hairdressers - and i have found it's the best by far to sweep tiles and floorboards. Easy and light to use, and rinses off with water if really dirty.
I have thrown out the evil static mop.
Now to invest in a quiet little vaccuum cleaner for the bedroom carpets.....

I was retrieving a toy my cat had hidden under the fridge, and along with the toy came out about a POUND of dust bunny, or dust cat in my case. Now I clean under there once a week, lots and lots of dust. sigh

I made reusable swiffer covers out of fleece (ever notice how fleece attracts EVERYTHING?- Exactly!) I made about 15 of them out of some scrap fleece I had from another project. You can also use old fleece scarves or vests, etc. I keep all of them in a bag in my linen closet and when they're all dirty I wash them all together. They work really well!
Here's a link to a tutorial I posted on another site on how to make really easy covers.
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=292546.msg3324869#msg3324869

We have a major dust bunny issue at our house, with 2 dogs, 2 cats (one a long haired Persian!) and two humans shedding constantly. We vacuum and sweep and dust once a week, but we really should do it more like 2-3 times a week! We had a Roomba at our old house with wall to wall carpeting, and it couldn't keep up with the amount of hair that we all created. The Roomba is able to keep up better at our new place (one area rug, the rest tile floor). The only drawback that I've found to the Roomba is that the dust trap in it is very small, so it gets full quickly. That and one of the cats likes to turn it on in the middle of the night!

My dust bunnies are all pug.

Like a few kids have already said, dust bunnies are a culmination of pet/human hair/skin, insects and natural fabrics/papers and open windows. No solution for pet's but for human you can minimize by using moisturizer, this keeps skin from flaking, then exfoliating during showers. Carpeting can be a major factor also, it does a better job masking floor bunnies but you'll notice them more everywhere else. Keep cloths locked away in closets, shoes also. Throws and excessive pillows should be kept to a minimum. Overall leather or like material is best for upholstery. Curtains over windows, with frequent washing as the curtain can help trap dust. As for insects... good luck.

I just pull out the furniture when I vacuum. Seems to keep them under control, as I vacuum once a week. Keeping things clean isn't much of a struggle for me, so maybe that's why my place doesn't get terribly dirty.

Dust bunnies are one of the only things in this world that bring me close to vomiting. And believe me, I ain't no neat freak.

Am I the only one?

I have a double coated Australian Shepherd AND a cat- I bought a Roomba. I throw in an sweep here and there, and do the hardcore vaccum about 1.5xs a week. BUT Roomba IS the dust bunny manager in my world

Monica,

they may wear a lot of denim. I read recently of a German scientist who researched tummy button fluff (!) and found blue was the most common colour.

When I moved from Boston to Los Angeles I noticed a serious increase in dust bunnies. It's so dry and if I leave a window open for a few days... forget about it.

I have a shedding wool, shag carpet. Wool dust bunnies everywhere.

Saw this documentary at the DC Environmental Film Fest - German, a bit slow, quite odd.... "Staub (Dust)"

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1094277/

A look at the pervasive power of dust from its tiny particles settling in unseen places to its ability to cause illnesses and create the cosmos.

I have all hard-floors and only one tiny carpet at home, soI vacuum clean or mop once a week. Keeps the bunnies away.
(Vacuum seems to be more effective as it better picks up hair and some heavier particles.)

I find that bunnies are quicker to come back during winter because of woolen clothing and increasing air pollution. Also, construction never seems to cease around where I live, which certainly increses dust amount.

More than the bunnies, I find the dust setting on my bathroom and kitchen counters much more annoying.