My old boss in Denver swore by using a shop vac with a HEPA filter for cleaning up after a sweep, and after trying it for the first time yesterday, I'm a total convert.

The amount of fine creosote dust it pulled out of a customer's living room rug that my regular vacuum always left behind was honestly shocking, so what's your go-to method for final cleanup?

4 comments

4 Comments

oscarc121mo ago

Nah see that's where I gotta push back a little. That misting thing just makes a wet paste that clogs up your vacuum filter way faster and then you're fighting with that for the rest of the job. I'd rather just take the extra minute with a shop vac and a good filter doing a slow pass over the carpet. The key is going slow enough that the suction actually pulls the dust up instead of just blowing it around. I've had way better luck that way than messing with water on top of ash and creosote.

keith9003mo ago

Honestly, that part about the fine creosote dust really hits home. I read a forum post a while back where a guy said he always mists the area with a super fine water spray first, just a little, to weigh down the ash before he vacuums. He swore it stopped the super fine stuff from just getting kicked back up into the air. Tbh, I tried it last season and it made a huge difference on hard floors, way less dust cloud. Still use my shop vac for the final pass though.

wadew513mo ago

That "mist first" trick is such a classic example of a small fix for a messy problem. I see it everywhere now, like dampening a paper towel before wiping up flour.

viola_allen3mo ago

Tried that misting trick after reading @keith900's post and it's a total game changer for keeping the ash down.