Suggestions for clean cat home?

[sirrahbed]

OK, I am confessed clean freak It is impossible, of course, with six cats around - but I am looking for hints and ideas.

Vacuum cleaner? I would like to have a Dyson but they are expensive ($500+) - maybe someday. I try to vacuum every few days...

Dusting? every few days with a swiffer cloth

Furniture? am looking for a sofa and considering microfiber which seems to be a winning fabric for cat owners. we have two leather recliners and yes they are scratched but are durable and look great. I think a lighter leather may have been a good idea..

Air filters? constantly gets clogged with litter dust and hair - needs to be changed at least monthly

Litterbox room? using Freshstep scoopable and love it for odor, but the room gets dusty EVERYDAY. this room is currently the laundry room and hubby just installed a cat flap so it can stay closed off to contain the dust.

Odor? I love the Oust fans and have them in the litterbox room. my favorite air fresher spray is Febreze, and I use several electric plugins throughout the house.

oh and I have lint rollers throughout the house for clothing, quick furniture cleanups, coats, etc...

So, do you guys have any cleaning ideas for me?? The cats DO own the house and everything we do is with them in mind. But, I do have this clean streak that is part of me

[moosmom]

I tried the Dyson Animal vacuum the other night at work because ours was broken. That thing ROCKS!!! It'd suck the paint off the walls. I wish I could afford it though. It's somewhere around $549. For that price it should do it on it's own weekly!!!

[sirrahbed]

I tried the Dyson Animal vacuum the other night at work because ours was broken. That thing ROCKS!!! It'd suck the paint off the walls. I wish I could afford it though. It's somewhere around $549. For that price it should do it on it's own weekly!!!

I would also love to have one, Donna. It is something I am saving towards. I think it would be a good investment for us as it would make our carpeting last longer - and also feed my cleaning obsession Not really sure I can actually part with money, though. I looked at the regular Dyson - not the Animal. I will look and compare. Thanks for the input.

[jenluckenbach]

The only thing I can truley suggest, is a blindfold, for you. (LOL)

[sirrahbed]

The only thing I can truley suggest, is a blindfold, for you. (LOL)

I KNEW that someone would suggest this!!

[Kfamr]

I'm not sure what grooming you do on your cats but I know weekly grooming sessions with my dogs (and my brother's cats when they lived here) greatly reduced the amount of fur in our house.
Brushing your cats more often, and then vacuuming afterwards may help a lot.

[Corinna]

Howabout a nice long walk like to my house.

[Catty1]

I use a higher density sponge that is made for taking fur and hair off fabric. I don't know what it's called - I found it at my local hardware store. It "rolls" the fur up into easy to grab clumps.

Grooming is definitely a help. If you have long-haired babies, consider getting them semi-shaved every so often.

I've been thinking of getting a Swiffer myself. Sweeping and damp mopping all in one.

For dusting - a magnetic duster.

And I got rid of my clumping litter because of all the dust. There is one - in Canada anyway - called Maxx Cat with a urine deodorizer, and NO DUST. The urine evaporates fairly well; and I wouldn't go back to the dusty clumping stuff for love or money! Not sure it's good for the cats either.

Good luck!

Catty1

[Lizzie]

I hated the greyish dust that seemed to move through the entire house when I used any kind of clay-based litter, and even the very fine newspaper litter. I switched to SwheatScoop and there is barely any dust at all. It's made a big difference to the amount of dust collecting on surfaces and I can now leave my towels on the shelves outside the bathroom near the litter room. It's not perfect, I doubt if any cat litter will satisfy cats and humans completely. Although it's quite fine, the granules are a bit bulkier than the clumping litter and it does track more. Since you vacuum every other day, this shouldn't be a problem. I also find that the cats are less likely to cover poop since they don't like digging in it - but you have fans in the room so that should take care of that. You probably, like most of us here, clean the litter room a couple of times a day so the poop is scooped away pretty quickly. There is no urine odor at all, even after they've just peed. Although it does clump, the granules don't soak up as much urine as clay based clumping litter, so you use more litter and there is more to scoop away. I feel this litter is best for the cat's and my health, and best for the house.

I have a Miele vacuum cleaner, the one that picks up cat fur really well. It was one of the home improvement purchases I made when I took out a home equity loan last year, a real investment and worth every penny. When I switch to my old Hoover downstairs, even though it's a good one, the difference is dramatic - I have to work over the surfaces with that one.

I liked moosmom's suggestion since I wear a "virtual" blindfold all the time.

[CathyBogart]

I use white vinegar to clean all the flat/hard surfaces in my house. Even with just one kitty, there was always a bit of kitty perfume at my parents' house and this seemed to help a lot, not really sure why. White vinegar is great for cleaning glass too!

[catmandu]

The Hardest thing to control in The Found Cat Hotel is all the litter that ends up on the fllor,especially now that there are Kittens doing a lot of digging.
I used the Swiffer Wet and dry quite a bit as that helps as much as possible to keep things clean.

[jazzcat]

Debbie - I just bought a Dyson this past week. It arrived Friday and I'm in love with it so far - except is sucks so hard it doesn't work well on my area rug or throw rugs when the beater brush is going and I need it to get the hair up. It will suck those rugs up into the vacuum unless I set it on the bare floor setting. Anyway, I got it refurbished on Amazon for a lot cheaper than full price. So far I'm impressed with it but Richard isn't since it didn't work well on the are rug in the den (I'm not surprised because online reviews stated this was a problem.) I would highly recommend it for anyone with mostly carpeted floors without lots of area or throw rugs.

I like how it did on the furniture too. The animal tool or mini turbine tool as it's called did a great job getting the hair off the cat beds and cat trees.

[christa]

Hi Debbie!

I am also a clean freak, even with 2 cats I can't stand the litter dust, litter on the floor and cat hair everywhere. (sorry guys)

As you all know, Josie is my Asthma baby and I am trying every way possible to make her life better.

I haven't got it yet (it should arrive in the next few days), but I just recently ordered an Ionic Air Cleaner and Freshener with Light by Air Innovations from QVC. I plan to put it in our office, AKA The Cat's Room, where the litter box is and our major litter dust problem exists. I hope that it will cut down on the dust problem and may cut down Josie's asthma attacks. It's supposed to clean the air too, leaving it smelling fresh, so I'm hoping that I won't have to use so many air freshners anymore. (they scare me - fire hazard!)

I would LOVE to have a new vacuum. My mom just bought a new Oreck and she loves it. I've played with it and it's so light weight, which I think I'd love because I do have some back problems. But the suction is great!

I did buy myself a new Bissell SpotBot back before Christmas. I was just so sick of cleaning up vomit! It has been a GodSend! I love that machine! That is the best money I've spent on a cleaning machine! I love that thing! Turn it on and leave the room and ta da! Done!

Of course there's the lint rollers & the swiffer cloths.

I am also planning to look for a new couch this year. I am surprised that so many cat people are opting for microfiber. I always figured that the microfiber would be like a magnet for the cat hair! Is it not?

[Pam]

Hi Debbie!

I am also planning to look for a new couch this year. I am surprised that so many cat people are opting for microfiber. I always figured that the microfiber would be like a magnet for the cat hair! Is it not?

I bought new living room furniture about three months ago and had also looked at microfiber. Actually at two of the stores I went to the sales people told me it was virtually impossible to get cat hair off of it because it is like a magnet and the hair becomes one with the fabric. I opted to go with a woven fabric for that reason.

I have one large litterbox in the basement. It is actually one of those *under the bed* plastic storage boxes. I have a plug-in down there but other than that and simple vacuuming I don't worry too much about dirt and/or odor. I have furniture throws on my sofas which help to protect the furniture from cat hair, hacked up hairballs (Trevor chooses to do this on furniture or the kitchen table ) and doggie feet that may be less than clean after romping around outside.

[Donnaj4962]

I don't have any tried and true "cleaning miracles" for those of us with kitties! I just try to look the other way and know that the house looks "lived in"!!!!

I do have a caution for you though about your plugins that you stated you use. I have recently come across some emails and articles about these things causing fires since they get so hot in the outlets! PLEASE, be careful! I have not ever used them, but I know that there have been some concerns with them causing devastating house fires. I just wanted you to know about this.... but I don't want you to think that I am an alarmist! Just use caution. Donna