To think that by 38 i should have heard of damp dusting???

[mumofBeth]

First post but have been lurking for a wee while. So just been told that my DD has a house dust mite allergy. First thing I do is Google to see what I can do to help and find info about hypoallergenic pillows and duvet (no problem with that) then everything I read says to damp dust. I've never heard of this! I can't imagine that a yellow duster will be much use damp so what do I use?? And does it just mean damp with water or is there some magic cleaning formula that I'm missing too??? Surely I should have heard of this before now!!! Any help from the more house proud/better informed would be very welcome!!!

I've known how to damp dust since I was a kid, had no idea it's not common knowledge here.

I saw someone say use zoflora - don’t!!! If your child is allergic to house dust it’s likely that chemicals will set him off too - if you need to use a spray use method/Ecover or make your own. I don’t understand the obsession with zoflora, the chemicals in it are horrendous!

Ok I think I might be cleaning wrong

I dust everything once a week with a yellow sister cloth and spray polish. So any surface you would usually dust I spray with the polish then wipe over with the cloth. If it’s picture frames or things I can’t spray the polish on I spray it into the cloth and then wipe.

Should I not be using polish? Does not using polish not let the dust come back quicker?

I have a house dust mite allergy too, lots of great suggestions on here.
I've found if you use a diluted solution of fabric softener and water to damp dust, it doesn't collect again as quickly on surfaces. I used to use ecover softener because anything too highly perfumed (even fairy and comfort) would set off my million other allergies, but Method have just brought out a new one and it's divine so I'm using that. I only use Method products now because, although they're pricey, I can use them all safely without an attack of wheezing. Their stainless steel cleaner was a revelation to me! Oh and the ecover toilet cleaner, because method don't make one yet!

Why wouldn’t you damp a yellow duster? It’s just a piece of material! I don’t actually soak it and wrong out, just briefly wave under the tap so it’s slightly damp. No yellow has ever come off on surfaces. Dust is removed. Easy.

I always find that the dust just spreads around and stays on the surface as opposed to the damp cloth. Maybe I'm not using the right type of cloth.

If you don't damp dust then you are just rearranging dust around the house, surely?

Soft side of a sponge or microfibre duster then rinse under the tape or pop in the washing machine

I was tought to vacuum first and then to damp dust to minimise allergic reactions.

The talk about "dry" dusting presumably a lot of people use furniture polish of some sort. The Zoflora "thing" down to Mrs Hinch, (very popular on here) I am afraid I said she uses far too many chemicals which are bad for people in a house and the planet.

The vacuum cleaner with the dust attachment is also great for dusting - it's quick and stops any of it going into the air. Better for electronics too

We used a damp chamois cloth in vinegar water to remove the old polish on furniture before repolishing with beeswax.

Vacuum before damp dusting also

Four pack of microfibre cloths for £2.00 from Tesco, sorted.
Just wet them with warm water, wring out as dry as you can and use where you’d use a duster.
If things need a bit of polish on afterwards do that, but the damp dusting picks up all the dust rather than throwing it into the air.

I've always cleaned this way, I just thought it was the normal way. I didn't know it had a special name.

I wet a microfibre cloth with warm water, wring it out and wipe everything over with it. It usually needs rinsing in between, and I use a bit of furniture polish/glass cleaner/zoflora, (not all at once) too. I then dry the surface with a dry microfibre.

I do this to the mirrors, windowsills, furniture. Doors and radiators get wiped too but less often.

I'm surprised people 'dust' any other way, as surely the dust just flys around everywhere and resettles.