Don’t Let Dirt Walk through Your Front Door

Think about all the time you spend dusting, vacuuming, and mopping.  If you’ve ever been aggravated by how quickly dirt seems to accumulate, you’re not alone.  But you can greatly reduce the time you spend cleaning simply by preventing dirt from entering your front door in the first place.  Just follow these simple tips to keep the dirt out of your house, and outside where it belongs.

1. Use doormats. These will help trap dirt before it has a chance to enter your home. Put one both inside and outside each door, which will give everyone two opportunities to wipe their feet, as well as double the sole-cleaning of those who forget.  It is very important to keep these mats clean, so make sure to regularly vacuum both sides.  According to the expert at Good Housekeeping, vacuuming the back pushes out more embedded dirt from the front side.

2. Leave shoes at the door. This will eliminate the possibility of tracking any leftover dirt into your home. If you prefer, you can even make your home a completely shoe-free zone and leave a pair of indoor-only shoes by the door.

3. Clean outside your front door. The dirt that collects on your front porch, stoop, or walkway blows into your home every time you open the door. Sweeping these areas regularly will help limit the amount of dirt flowing in.

4. Wipe pets down outside. Keep a towel by the door to dry off your pet’s coats and paws before they come inside, and brush them regularly – outside if possible – to control excess fur.

5. Wipe down your screens. Leaving your windows open can allow pollen and other particles to get inside. According to Mary Findley, author of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Green Cleaning, “Most of the dust coming in through your windows does so because of dust on screens.”  Combat this by giving your screens regular quick-cleans.  Use a rubber dry sponge to wipe them down, or go over them with a brush-vacuum or microfiber dust cloth and then wipe them down with an all-purpose cleaner.

6. Empty your vacuum outside. Dumping vacuumed-up dirt into your trash barrel will allow those particles to travel back into the air. Instead, empty your vacuum outside and get rid of that dirt for good.

7. Clean vents regularly. The dust that settles on your vents gets blown into the air when you turn on the heat or air conditioning, so make a habit of dusting your vents whenever you dust the rest of your home.

8. Change your furnace/AC filters regularly. Your air filters will not effectively trap particles if they’re dirty, so change them monthly to keep them running efficiently and to prevent dirt and dust from entering your home.