Said It Here

How to clean thick dust off a screened patio

Scrub brushes and paper towels only push heavy patio dust around into mud because the dry buildup needs to be vacuumed or blown off before any liquid is applied. Starting with a wet cleaner traps dirt in the screen mesh and leaves a smeared mess that is nearly impossible to clear.

What people tried

Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.

  1. 1
    Using a shop vac
  2. 2
    Using a mop and bucket
  3. 3
    Using a pressure washer
  4. 4
    Installing plastic sheets upon departure
  5. 5
    Vacuuming loose dirt and bugs first using a brush attachment or shop vac
  6. 6
    Scrubbing with household cleaner and a toothbrush or q-tips
  7. 7
    Wiping clean with a wet cloth

In their words

Unedited, most upvoted first, each linked to the thread it came from.

My in-laws beach condo has this screened-in patio that gets really dusty. They only use the place once a quarter and upon return are greeted with a thick coat of dustsource ↗

iceburgd · r/CleaningTips · 16 upvotes

Many of my window sills have this horrible buildup of dirt, dust, and dead bugs.source ↗

I have tried general purpose cleaners and paper towels together with scrub brushes but only succeeded in pushing the nasty dirt around and making it muddy.source ↗

ImprezaDrezza · r/CleaningTips · 2 upvotes

Where this came up

People with this problem also raised