Cat hair and litter *Update*

[Medusa]

I cleaned the entire house yesterday as I do every Saturday; started early in the morning and it was dark before I was finished. I have all hardwood floors except in my patio room, so I Swiffer, vacuum and mop. Last night I dropped something in my bedroom and thought it went under my bed, so I used a flashlight to look for it. What I saw horrified me! There was cat hair and litter everywhere! I couldn't see it w/the naked eye but the flashlight sure made it visible! Good grief, what else can I do? Now I'm concerned that perhaps people w/better vision than I can see it and just aren't saying anything, although I guess my son would have said something. I Swiffer and vacuum every day, so I just don't understand how all this cat hair and litter particles are escaping me! I figured the Swiffer would get the hair and the vacuum cleaner would get the litter but, of course, I use the attachments for the litter because I don't want the brush rolling on the hardwood floor and scratching it. Maybe a Swiffer vac? Whaddaya think? Anyone use it w/success?

[moosmom]

If you have a bedskirt on your bed, they are FAMOUS for hiding stuff. When I switched beds (it had a skirt on it) I couldn't believe the stuff under there. Cat toys, cat hair, a pair of glasses, you name it, it was there! Except for money. Figures.

[Medusa]

I wish I could say it was just under the bed. It was everywhere. When I shined the flashlight on other spots, there it was. I was horrified! I don't know if my vision has gotten worse or if you just can't see it w/the naked eye. Whatever it is, you can bet I'm gonna solve this. I used to clean houses for a living and none of my clients ever complained. Of course, none of them had cats either, except for two and one of those had an outdoor cat.
And the worst part is that I don't allow any cats in my bedroom except Puddy at night because she's in CRF and I need to keep an eye on her and Pidge during the day because she's getting older and wants to get away from the younguns. Guess I'll resort to candle light til I figure it out.

[gini]

I was having problems with my allergies. Rascal never gave me any problems but his fur is different than his sisters. I started noticing more problems when Annie and Emma showed up. Both shed a lot of short hair.

I decided to give my bedroom a thorough cleaning including under the bed.
I have carpeting throughout the house. I have a Roomba (better known as Rupert) and I set him loose under the bed. I about died when I first cleaned him - filled with fur. I turned him on again under the bed - again filled with fur and even to a third time. I felt like I had never cleaned my house at all.

I think my kitties are constantly shedding and it takes daily attention to stay on top of it.

[lizbud]

Have you had your heating/cooling vents cleaned once a year? It is
surprising how much dust & hair gets blown all over the house.

[Freedom]

Have you had your heating/cooling vents cleaned once a year? It is
surprising how much dust & hair gets blown all over the house.

I was wondering this too. I put some filtering material on the intake vents a bit over a year ago, and wow! does that gather the fur! At least it isn't going into the vents and back all over the house!

[jazzcat]

Lizbud - My house gets dusty so quickly. I can dust one day and there will be a fine white powder I can see on the darker furniture in just a couple of days. Does this mean I should have my heat/air ducts cleaned? How do they do it?

Medusa - if you figure it out please let me know. I try to vacuum with my Dyson every 2-3 days and I've found the best thing for the hardwood floor is the floor attachment. It even does a good job under the sofa. I also have the problem of having a couple of kitty droolers who leave drool drops on the hardwood. I have to constantly spot clean those and I try not to think about all the spots I can't see in the carpeted areas.

If I had my choice I would just put big stone or tile throughout my house. It cleans great and can take moisture like kitty drool plus I could wet mop it regularly.

[Medusa]

If I had my choice I would just put big stone or tile throughout my house.

Believe me, I considered that and I'm going to tile the enclosed patio this spring. But I like hardwood floors; it's warmer. I do use my vacuum attachment but it just doesn't do the job so I bought the Swivel Sweeper today. We'll see how well it works and I'll let everyone know.

[lizbud]

Lizbud - My house gets dusty so quickly. I can dust one day and there will be a fine white powder I can see on the darker furniture in just a couple of days. Does this mean I should have my heat/air ducts cleaned? How do they do it?

It depends on which company you use. Some use a steam hose to spray
though the duct work & then a giant suction hose to get out all the dust
dirt, hair, etc. I believe they charge by the number of duct vents in the
house. The last time I had mine done was about 2 years ago & it really
should be done every spring.

You might be amazed how much junk they can get out of the ductwork.

[Medusa]

it really should be done every spring.

I'm going to look into that. I just have never thought of that before and I do know that it should be done. Thanx for the heads up.

[Catty1]

I worked for a company that did that...what they did was to to every vent with a slim hi-pressure air hose and blasted the stuff in the vent and duct; there was a 'skip line' like tough, thick fishing line to help move the gunk. (Not sure they used steam...)

It all goes down to the heat exchanger in the furnace, where it is vacuumed out. The cleaning of the furnace itself it pretty simple - usually includes a visual inspection to make sure there is no crack in the heat exchanger (you don't want that...it is like getting a crack in your engine block ). I forget what the part is called - the ignitor? - that is usually checked too. If it needs replacing, the part is not too expensive.

Call around and ask for prices. Often a package includes a certain number of vents, with a few $ extra for each additional vent.

Ask what method they use. Watch for fancy gadgets like little robots that trundle down the vents and get them 'cleaner'. Not worth the extra $$, IMO.

[catmandu]

I HAVE THAT ALL THE TIME TOO AS SOME OF THE CATS ARE NOT HAPY JUST DOING THIER BUSINESS, LIKE MIQUELITO, SCRAPPY 2 AND JOSEPH. THE HAVE TO GET INTO THE BOX AND DIG, DIG AND DIG UNTIL ITS ALL ON THE FLOOR. I HAVE TO CLEAN THE 7 BOXES AND FLOOR AT LEAST 3 TIMES A DAY, AND PUT THE CLEAN LITTER BACK.

THAT THE LEAST FAVORITE PART OF MY FOUND CAT BASEBALL TEAM PLUS.

[Medusa]

Ok, I used my new Swivel Sweeper for the first time this morning and it worked fairly well, no complaints there. Cleaning it, however, is another story. Cat hair gets tangled in the brushes. It comes w/a little tool to untangle the hair but it took me longer to clean the thing than it did to sweep the entire house, except for the basement, of course, which is where all the litter boxes are. I know it couldn't keep up w/all that litter; I need to use the regular vacuum cleaner for that. Guess there are drawbacks to everything, eh?