Once vacuuming is mentioned, the next thing that comes to mind is a chore that takes too long.
Cleaning is one chore that most people never satisfactorily tell themselves that they have done well. How often should you dust and vacuum your house depends on what needs vacuuming.
You should vacuum carpeted floors and rugs at least twice a week. Hard surfaces, like tile, hardwood, laminate, and vinyl, should be vacuumed at least once a week.
Read on to learn why you need to vacuum your home, how to use a vacuum, how often to vacuum, and strategies for efficient vacuuming.
Why Vacuum Your Home?
Why do we need to go out of our way and stress ourselves with vacuuming our homes? Is vacuuming our home worth the stress we go through, and why engage in this tiresome task?
We know that floors of all types collect dirt, which could be outside sources like debris and the shedding of human skin cells, pet dander, and dust mite excrement.
A dirty floor is excessively unsightly, allowing excessive grit and grime to accumulate, damaging the finishing of your floor. It also reduces your hygiene rating before visitors and can wear out rugs and carpets.
Excessive dust and bacteria accumulation in your home can pose serious health challenges. Leftover and unused but poorly stored food particles can also encourage the growth of mold and mildews and attract household pests.
Why Should I Use Vacuum?
It is not mandatory to use a vacuum cleaner to clean your house, nor is there a rule that says that you can’t use a broom or dust mop to clean your house.
But the truth is that vacuum helps keep your room sparkling clean. You can adjust vacuum cleaners to clean carpets, rugs, and hard surface floors properly.
Another advantage of vacuum cleaners is that they trap dust and prevent it from spreading into the air, which will help it resettle again.
How Often Should You Dust and Vacuum Your House?
Whether or not you vacuum depends on the number of people in your house, the job you do, and the type and number of pets you have.
In a nutshell, carpeted floors and rugs should be vacuumed at least twice a week, which means if you can do it more than twice a week, that is awesome, but if not, do not go less than twice a week.
You should vacuum at least once weekly for hard surface floors like tile, hardwood, laminate, and vinyl.
If you have furry pets in your home, you should vacuum all your carpets and floor daily to clean off dander, dust, and dirt.
The rooms that receive high traffic, like entryways, living rooms, and kitchens, should be vacuumed frequently, while rooms like guest rooms.
Why Should I Vacuum Frequently?
Vacuuming your carpets and rugs should be done twice weekly because carpets and rugs collect much more sand and dust than hard surfaces.
If this dust is allowed to accumulate, it sticks and adheres strongly to the fibers making it much more difficult to clean the carpet.
If care is not taken, the excessive accumulation of soil on the carpet or rugs damages the fibers and backing of the carpet.
You should vacuum hard surfaces weekly. Hard surfaces do not hold on to dust or loose soil like carpets.
The accumulated soil can stay in the corners, grout lines, and even crevices of hard floors. It can also scratch the surface of the floor and then leave permanent damage.
If you have pets, there is a need for daily vacuuming, irrespective of the floor surface, because the pets tend to litter the floor with their hair or dander.
Some zoonotic diseases come from animals or are of animal origin but can affect man. They include Cyclospora and Salmonellosis; when they infect man, they can be detrimental to your health.
Should I Dust or Vacuum My Home First?
In theory, dusting is the most effective way to remove dust from your home, but there are good reasons to vacuum before you dust on some occasions.
Dusting with a cloth will lift a lot of dust and other allergens into the air, where they will come into contact with skin or be inhaled.
If the surface you are cleaning can be vacuumed with a small brush or crevice tool, we recommend running the cleaner over the area first to pick up the bulk of the dust.
On the other hand, if you can’t vacuum the area, perhaps delicate ornaments or glassware, dust it before vacuuming the rest of the room.
Read: How to clean a sink with baking soda & 5 Tips to prevent it from clogging.
Strategies for Efficient Vacuuming
In other to achieve your aim of having a sparkling house or home after vacuuming, you have got to use the right strategies or techniques, and they include
- Remove the rugs and carpets, and vacuum the floor under them weekly. Try cleaning the back of the rug with your vacuum’s upholstery.
- Ensure that your selected vacuum is best suited for your home floors. Canister vacuums are usually more efficient in collecting soil from hard surfaces, while for rugs and carpets, an attachment or upright vacuum with a beater bar is best.
- Ensure that vacuum is frequently cleaned so its operation is at total capacity.
- If your home has multiple stories, it is advisable to keep a vacuum on each floor if possible, as this will save you the stress of carrying a vacuum cleaner and even encourage frequent cleaning.
- To trap as much dust, dander, spores, and bacteria as possible, choose a vacuum with a HEPA (High-Efficiency Particulate Air) filter.
- Take advantage of your vacuum cleaner’s features, and adjust the vacuum head height on upright vacuums to match your floor type.
- When vacuuming, do it slowly. Move the vacuum several feet ahead and pull it back towards yourself, following the same path.
- If your vacuum is broken, you can sweep, dust, mop hard surface floors, and clean carpets and rugs by beating, scrubbing, or using a carpet cleaner until you get another one.
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Take-Home
I hope this article has given an in-depth discussion to answer the question: How often should you dust and vacuum your house?
The amount of dirt coming into your house from your working gear and the type and number of pets will determine how often you vacuum.
In a nutshell, carpeted floors and rugs should be vacuumed at least twice a week, which means if you can do it more than twice a week, that is awesome, but if not, do not go less than twice a week.
You should do it at least once a week for hard surface floors like tile, hardwood, laminate, and vinyl.
If you have furry pets in your home, you should vacuum all your carpets and floor daily to clean off dander, dust, and dirt.