What Are Some Bedroom Cleaning Tips To Keep Dust Mites Out?

Dust mites are microscopic bugs that live in carpets, upholstery, mattresses, bedding, and any place that dust can accumulate. Dust mites eat dead skin and other organic matter, so they thrive quite nicely in our beds, on our pillows, and on other bedroom furnishings. Dust mites themselves are fairly easy to ignore; it is their feces, however, that tends to cause reactions in sensitive people. The proteins found in the excrement of dust mites are responsible for many allergic reactions including rhinitis (hay fever) and asthma, and therefore it is important to keep your home as dust-mite-free as possible,particularly the bedroom since that is where many of us spend a good number of consecutive hours.

To keep the dust mites out of your bedroom, Melissa Briones, owner of Melissa's House Cleaning in Lawton, Oklahoma, recommends, "Wash your blankets and comforters in very hot water every week. If someone has an allergy to dust mites, they should consider using a dust mite cover or washing their blankets at least once every two days."

Two enemies of dust mites are heat and dryness. Keeping your room at a low humidity and washing your bedding in hot water, even steaming your carpets, will go a long way toward decreasing the dust mites in your bedroom and throughout your entire home.

Dust-proof/mite-proof covers are available for mattresses, comforters, and pillows. Those who don't wish to cover their comforters or pillows with dust mite covers might want to consider using comforters and pillows that are stuffed with synthetic materials which are unattractive to dust mites.

Drapes and curtains should be washed regularly also, as dust mites can make a home there too.

Briones says, "Vacuuming is a big thing. Dust mites collect in the carpet as well as on the comforters, blankets, pillows, etc."

Since dust mites thrive on all kinds of dust, keeping the bedroom well-dusted is important. Staying organized in the bedroom can also help lower the dust mite population. When clutter piles up for too long, it provides many surfaces for dust to settle on and this promotes further dust mite reproduction. Briones says, "Dusting is a mandatory thing as well. Just keep your room as tidy and dust-free as possible." Organizing your bedroom will not only reduce the surface area on which dust can settle, it will also make dusting easier with fewer things to move.

Dust mites love humidity, so during the humid months it is best to use a dehumidifier or an air conditioner to control the climate of your bedroom. Vacuuming with a vacuum cleaner that has a high efficiency particulate air filter (HEPA filter) can also help reduce the dust that mites thrive on. Those with serious allergies should consider removing carpets from their bedroom.

Does this seem like a lot of inconvenience to go through to get rid of dust mites that we can't even see? "Yes, it is a lot of work," says Briones, "but the reward is a good night's sleep."