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Stop dust in its tracks! How about a dust-free home in the first place? Shy of a bubble over your house, you cannot prevent it all from coming inside, but try at least one of these to slow the entrance of dust. Then we will conquer the dust that is already inside!

1. Check the weather stripping around all of your doors and windows. You should do this at night with your partner and a flashlight. You should not be able to see light around doors, thresholds and windows. If light will pass, so will dust. Do not assume storm doors or windows will prevent dust entrance. Check the dust between the outer and inner glasses.

2. Keep down the pollen. If you have flowers or blooming trees in your yard, do not water at the roots. Spray the plant from the highest point. This will settle the pollen to the ground rather than letting to fly through the air and into the door.

3. Walk a few steps. If you park by the back door, use the front door. Your vehicle drags foreign dirt and debris with it along with its own exhaust. Don't let this in your house by flinging open the door to walk inside. Not to mention, it is good for your heart!

4. Be doubly welcoming! Two different welcome mats will reduce the amount of dust that walks into your home. The first should be a rubber nippled mat to crunch away the bigger particles that break up once inside. The second should be a tight-weave natural fiber without a rubber backing. This will reduce the smaller particles and will allow the rain (or your water hose) to rinse away the dust, rather than collecting it.

5. No slip stairs. By adding no slip surfaces of rubber or asphalt (looks like roof shingles), you can reduce by at least half the amount of dust and dirt walking into your home.

6. Heating and cooling cleaning. Keeping your air conditioner clean is key to reducing the amount of excess dust sucked into your house. Turn off the system when you do yard work near the system. Allow 20 minutes before you turn the system back on to ensure that the dust settles before the system begins cycling air.

Now, if the dust is already inside, keeping it from flying is the only way to control it. Here are a few ways to do that.

1. Before you drag out the HEPA filtered vacuum, mist the carpets with this dust-stopping, smell-controlling, stain-reducing mixture: 1 part oxygen action powder, 1 part liquid fabric softener, 8 parts water. When you mix this, make sure the water is hot and let it breathe in a container twice the size of the liquid for one hour

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