Pollen
A seasonal particulate that is part of ordinary dust for most of the year and overwhelms it for a few weeks. Dry removal first, because wet pollen stains.
In detail
Pollen is a component of ordinary household dust — the conservation definition of dust names it alongside soil, sawdust, combustion by-products, textile fibres, hair, skin flakes, dust mites, insect bodies and food particles — and for most of the year it is unremarkable. For a few weeks it is the dominant deposit outdoors and on anything near an open window. Two properties decide the method. Pollen grains are fine and light, so they follow air currents into every sheltered surface and are readily re-suspended, which means a dry duster moves them around a room rather than removing them; suction with adequate filtration removes them, and filtration matters because a poorly filtered vacuum returns fine particulate to the air. And some pollens carry pigments that stain when wetted, which is why a wet cloth drawn across a pollen-covered car bonnet or window sill can leave a yellow smear where a dry lift would have left nothing. The sequence is the standard one for particulates and unusually important here: remove dry first, then treat what remains. On a vehicle, rinse generously before any cloth touches the paint.
What works
Vacuum cleaner is effective against Pollen Supported
Why
- Pollen is explained by Why different surfaces get different dirt
Sources for this page
Sources
Conserve O Gram 15/2: Dusting Guidelines for Stone Objects and Interior Architectural Features
National Park Service, US Department of the Interior · Government or regulator
Relied on for: That dust is composed of loose surface soil, sawdust, pollen, combustion by-products, textile fibres, hairs, skin flakes, dust mites, insect bodies and food particles, and that dust with an abrasive component can scratch if pressure is applied during removal. (states this directly)
Verification: a person has read the passage relied on.
Read on — The sections headed What is Dust?, Why Dust? and Preventive Maintenance. Supports the claim as stated. Upgrades the dust record from a description to a composition, and supplies the attract-and-hold-moisture link that connects dust to the mould records.
Conserve O Gram 1/6: Choosing a Museum Vacuum Cleaner
National Park Service, US Department of the Interior, 2003 · Government or regulator
Relied on for: That HEPA filtration removes at least 99.97 per cent of particulates 0.3 microns or larger and is more effective than water filtration for fine particulate. (states this directly)
Verification: a person has read the passage relied on.
Read on — The sections headed Filtration System — Dry Vacuums, Wet Vacuums and Wet-Dry Vacuums, plus the physical-feature checklist. Supports the claim as stated. Gives the vacuum record a filtration standard and, more usefully, a ranked comparison between three machine types that consumer coverage treats as equivalent.
Last reviewed by a person on .