Cotton Dust
 

My husband does the daily vacuuming around the house. He made a comment today saying that my quilt room is always so much dustier than everywhere else, noticeable even when he had just vacuumed the day before.

The amount of dust doesn't actually surprise me - anyone who has cleaned out the bobbin area of their machine would agree!

However, my inquiry is related to any respiratory conditions you have that may be related to this and what strategies do you use to mitigate quilt-dust around the room. I'm thinking about getting an air purifier, not sure if that would help?

Thanks!

I am wondering if some of that "dust" might be chemicals coming off the fabrics.

Although there is almost always lint on the lint collector in the dryer after drying a load of cottons .

How would an air purifier capture cotton dust?

Maybe keep the humidity in a comfortable range? Dry enough to avoid mildew and mold , but humid enough to be comfortable?

I never really noticed. We do keep a dehumidifier going in the basement.

Your nose will catch particles and would be stuffy if a lot of cotton dust was in the air. That would be the first sign that there is a lot in the air.

If you wash or as I starch my fabrics by dunking them into a container of starch,then let them dry and then I press them by misting with water and vinegar, will that help eliminate some of the dust? I know there will still be dust on the fabrics on your shelves still but while working on the fabric, I'm hoping I'm eliminating some of the dust. My sewing room is in the basement so everything is coming thru the open rafters above me so I have to vacuum and dust quite often.

My sewing room is also in the basement but it is 'finished' as in it has a drop ceiling. I have allergies. I never use Best Press and rarely use starch. I try to always work with fabric that has at least been rinsed to remove the sizing--another trigger for me. I don't think there is any way of getting rid of the lint etc that is in sewing room air, other than not creating it in the first place LOL. Having stated that, my DH is a woodworker and has an air filter in his workshop. It is basically like a dryer filter in that a fan pulls air thru it and the filter captures the tiny wood particles. I wonder if something like that is available for a sewing room.

I don't really notice that much more dust in the sewing room than the rest of the house. I have allergies, but the lint from fabric doesn't appear to bother me. I don't have carpet in the sewing room anymore and that has seemed to help keep the dust down in there, but other than that I don't really have a problem. It could be that I run the A/C pretty much year round and that filters out the air a bit

I have a lot of cotton dust/lint - I find that there is more if I am cutting a lot of fabric and/or batting. And still a bit when I am sewing, especially once I get to large pieces. I have major dust allergies. I wear a face mask when cutting batting as it sends me into sneezing and coughing fits if I don't. I also use allergy meds and they help as well, but I still don't like inhaling it all. So if the fabric causes me to start sneezing or I get itchy eyes, etc. I'll limit my time and do other things in my quilt room to give my allergies a break or even leave the room for a while to let the 'dust' settle. I used two small air purifiers in my quilting room and even though they did pick up quite a bit of dust in their filters, they really do not have the strong air pull that I'd like, so I'm thinking of getting a better one, like my DH uses in his wood shop. You can find them most anywhere there is woodshop/workshop tools, like Wood Craft, Home Depot, etc.)

Just because your nose isn't full of 'dust/lint' doesn't mean that it isn't flying around the air. It's not like it is in clumps in the air. They are super fine particles. You would be surprised of just how much. Just look at a sun beam coming into a room through a window, it's full of dust particles.

DH runs the vacuum a lot in my quilting room. So that helps a lot as well. He is such a dear! He also dusts off the open shelves and light fixtures as well. He also cleans out my machine from the dust and lint and oils it after every project or two. Also when I change a bobbin, I take a larger, soft paint brush (that is used for oil or water paint) and use it to pick up the lint laying in the bobbin area. If I even get dust on my hands or skin, it gives me have contact dermatitis and itches until I wash up. That's why DH does all the dusting/vacuuming.

The best you can do is try to keep the dust/lint level cleaned up as much as possible. And if you have a place for an air purifier, especially part way, like shoulder level, between the floor and ceiling, that is were it works best. If it is on the floor, the dust has already fallen most of the way, and if it is too high, the majority of the dust might be missed in the air flow. So, mid-level is were it would pick up the most. At least in my experience.

Of course dust is flying around in the air. It goes through you nose first so if a lot of dust a lot of stuffiness. A good indicator there is too much in the air.

Did you just say your husband does the vacuuming?
Daily?
Where oh where did you find such a treasure?

Hahahaha! I agree! I think my husband vacuumed the carpet once when he spilled some granola. But that was only after the dogs ate most of it and he felt guilty about making a mess. Other than that, I don't remember him ever vacuuming in almost 40 years lol

My quilting room is the dustiest one in the house

i have always attributed it to the fabrics, threads and batting shedding just that much every time they are cut or fooled with. I don't mind. It is easy enough to dust. I keep a Dyson stick vacuum in that room ready to use. I have another one downstairs.

In don't have any ailments or allergies
except seasonal ones so for me it is just the way it is

That's what caught my eye too. I can't imagine vacuuming daily, and DH couldn't either.

Well, that explains the dust on the cupboard in my sewing room where I store some of my quilts! I never thought about the dust being from fabric. I could dust that piece of furniture daily as it seems to be a dust magnet. Guess it is time for me a better housekeeper in my sewing room and to dust and vac more often.

My husband doesn’t even know we have a vacuum! Never mind use it! But he does wash dishes, does laundry and occasionally cooks. So I’m not complaining about the vacuuming.

My husband and I share housework and cooking. He's cleaning the fridge now because he couldn't find the jar of jelly this morning. Funny because there was no jelly in the fridge but he moved every item to look. We have lawn service, we both dislike yard work.

So true! I've never vacuumed daily. My mom did but not me.

When my boys were little I remember vacuuming at least once a day sometimes twice.
Well now after all these years my middle son is a vacuum cleaning maniac! His wife commented on it and he told her my Mom did so every day LOLOLOL. He's a neat freak for sure.

My DH does all the vacuuming, dusting, scrubbing the floors, cleaning windows, cleaning the shower, in addition to yard work, basically all the heavy work. I can't do most of that or it would knock me down for days. I will help out, with holding ladders, picking up fallen twigs, handing things to him as needed like another paper towel when he does the windows, or a tool that he needs, etc. I do all the clutter, sinks and toilets, laundry, the cooking and meal clean up, and most all of the lighter work. Anything else that comes up, we either both do it, or if it is heavier, he will do it, if it is lighter, I'll do it.

We are partners in all, what one can't do, the other does. We work as a team. It's been that way since we first got married. No complaints, no nagging, if we see that it needs done, it gets taken care of and if one of us can help the other while doing the work, we are right there..

I admit that even if the waste basket was right beside me and as big as a tub, my scraps and threads would still end up on the floor. I try really hard, to grab my sewing room broom (yes, I have a dedicated broom lol) and sweep up all that 'stuff' every evening before I head upstairs. If I am planning to load a quilt, the central vac comes out and everything gets a good going over before I touch the machine.

DH uses the Dyson on all the rugs. I use the central vac on the hardwood and vinyl flooring. Sharing that load does help both our backs. I do the laundry and he most often lately, takes care of the dishes. I do almost all the cooking, altho, the other evening I desperately wanted to finish what I was sewing and gave him minimal instructions about what we had and what could be done with it. He made a very tasty stew style casserole from leftovers with added fresh veggies. Wish he'd take the initiative tho.

I have central vac in my home and it is way too much trouble for me to use. It sounds great and I was excited to use it when we bought the house. It's not great. Getting it all hooked up and other things is just too much. I don't have the patience for it. That long hose has to go somewhere out of site.

Our "used" house came with the outlets in the wall for the central vac and the instruction manual but no other parts. We have not replaced it. I have an original Dyson Animal we got when we had the German Shepherd and it still works great but cumbersome. I got a smaller Dyson cordless and that is upstairs in the sewing room. I recently got an another Dyson cordless for downstairs which works just great. I can do the entire downstairs with a charge and plenty more juice leftover if I want to use attachments on baseboards, etc. (And yes, I know there are other cordless vacs similar to the Dyson that get good reviews and if you enjoy those that is wonderful.)

I was cutting fabric today and noticed that the rotary cutter and board had what could be "dust" I am guessing that all that cutting leaves a lot of the dust. I am not allergic or sensitive so it doesn't bother me.

Any concerns about long term health issues with the "dust"? I found research about workers in textile factories getting "brown lung", and while most of us probably don't quilt like a full time job, over the decades, we do spend a lot of time in our quilting spaces!

There are only so many things in life I can worry about and this isn't one of them

I surely do agree with this!!!