What Is the Best Way to Clean Dog Hair Off Hardwood Floors?

If you’re like most families, your dog is part of your family. They’re all over your house, and so is their hair. Because of that, you’re looking for the best way to clean dog hair off hardwood floors. 

The professional cleaners from Upstairs Downstairs are going to share some tips to help keep your hardwood floors as dog hair-free as possible.

 

Where Is All This Dog Hair Coming From? 

Day-to-day, as you’re petting your dog, you see some loose animal fur come off because your dog sheds naturally. You’re sweeping and cleaning pet hair what feels like all the time, but everywhere you look, you’re seeing dog hair. Sure it’s part of pet ownership, but where is all that loose hair coming from and how in the world do you get rid of it? 

There are some spots in your home that might be trapping hair that you might not have noticed. Give these spots a check to see if you’ve got stray pet hair hanging out. A quick clean-up of a few spots can help reduce the amount of your pet’s hair hanging out in your house. 

1. Carpets and Rugs

Many homeowners have carpets and rugs down in their houses to protect their wood floors. Those rugs can hold on to pet hair and cause it to get spread all over the house. Make washing them part of your regular cleaning and laundry routine to help get the pet hair off of them. You can also use a pet vacuum cleaner or rubber broom to help get loose pet hair off between washings. 

2. Under Furniture

You might be sweeping the floors each day, but are you getting under couches and other larger pieces of furniture? Hair can get trapped under there and make it look like there’s always dog hair on the floor. Use a vacuum cleaner, broom, or mop to clean underneath larger pieces of furniture in your home to get the loose dog hairs off your hardwood floors. Be sure to clean around table legs and legs of furniture where pet hair tends to hide.

3. Beds, Toys, and Kennels

You love your dog and they’ve got their own cozy bed, plenty of toys to play with, and a cozy crate that they like to sleep in. All of those things can hold on to dog hair and spread that trapped dog hair around your house. Keeping them all clean can help reduce the hair you find around your house. 

Wash the blankets and toys as part of your normal cleaning routine. Add wiping out your dog’s kennel to your cleaning routine too. Remove dog hair that’s settled in the bottom of the kennel. Consider pulling out the kennel and cleaning around it as well. 

4. The Air

Loose pet hair can float around in the air and wind up all over the house. Having a quality air filter can help to contain some of that hair and dander. Just be sure to replace or clean the filter so it keeps working properly. 

Humidifiers can also help with pet hair control around your house. Based on the climate you live in, you might not need to run a humidifier all year long, but when there’s less humidity naturally in the air, it can help to run one in your home. 

What Do I Need to Get the Dog Hair Off My Floors? 

There’s no magic fix to remove all the hair from your floors, but there are some things that can help keep the dog hair under control. These products can help to pick up dog hair on a daily basis and some are great for deep cleaning. You might already have some of these things on hand to try: 

1. Traditional Broom and Dust Pan

You’ve probably already got these at home, so it’s a great place to start with getting that dog and pet hair under control. Sweeping smaller areas and moving room to room can help to pick up the most dog hair while sweeping. Sweep the pet hair into small piles and throw it into the trash after you’ve swept it into your dustpan or use your vacuum cleaner to suck up the piles of dirt. 

There are also brooms specifically made for pet hair. They’ve got special bristles in them that are thicker or made of rubber to help pick up pet hair without needing two separate brooms to get the job done. 

2. Microfiber Mop or Duster

Using a microfiber mop like a Swiffer or other mop works great for removing dog hair from hardwood floors because they’ll pick up the dust and dirt and take the hair along with it. 

You can use a mop with disposable pads or reusable ones that you can wash between uses. Both should deliver the same results, but give them both a try to see what works best with your hardwood floors and dog hair.

3. Damp Mop

If you’ve already got a mop that you love, keep using it! After sweeping your floors to remove as much hair as possible, go over the floor with a damp mop to pick up any stray hairs left over. The trick here is to make sure your mop is not too wet or lose pet hairs can stick to the wet floors, making them harder to sweep up later. Mopping with a damp mop will let your floor dry faster. 

4. Rubber Broom

A rubber broom is great for picking up dog hair off your floors without damaging them. Sweep your floor with a rubber broom, as you would with a regular broom, pulling the broom towards you on the floor. With each pass, you should see a pile of dog hair being picked up.

Rubber brooms are also great to help get dog hair off rugs that you have in your home. Keeping your rugs clean can also help keep hair off your hardwood floors. 

You may notice dog hair in the rubber bristles of the rubber broom so be sure to clean it between uses to keep it from spreading the hair to other places. 

5. Window Squeegee

If you can’t find or don’t want to purchase a rubber broom, try using a window squeegee. This also works if your hardwood floors are just in a small area in your home. You can also use it on your furniture to help remove pet hair so it’s a great multi-use tool. 

6. Dryer Sheets

Dryer sheets are not just for the laundry room! Get your dryer sheet damp and wipe it over your floors. This method works best for small spaces or dog hair in tricky places like baseboards because you’ve got to actually get down on your hands and knees to wipe the floors with the damp dryer sheets.