Living with cats presents a unique blend of joy and challenges that only fellow cat owners can truly understand. The purring companionship and individual personalities of our feline friends add an irreplaceable warmth to our homes. However, with this delight comes the reality of managing cat hair, dander, and the occasional accident, which can disrupt the cleanliness of our living spaces. Maintaining a pristine household amid the chaos of cats isn’t just about aesthetics; it’s crucial for the health and well-being of both the cats and their humans.
I have 9 indoor cats. I once had 14. So trust me – I KNOW how to keep a multi-cat household clean and tidy. For me, it is a non-negotiable since I am, wait for it… allergic to cats.
The journey to purr-fect cleanliness involves more than just daily chores; it requires an investment in the right tools and products to make your life as the human cat servant easier. It has taken years to find the ideal cleaning routine and the best products out there to keep things manageable. Before we dive into the actual products I use and love (and that are very safe for cats), let talk some cat basics.
Table of Contents
Understanding Cat Dander and Hair
Cat dander are tiny, often invisible skin particles shed by our feline friends. Cat hair is self-explanatory. Cat dander and cat hair find their way onto every surface in our homes and accumulate in nooks and crannies. Both can trigger allergic reactions, making the air we breathe less fresh.
Fun fact! It is actually the cat’s saliva that causes the bulk of cat allergies. Since cats lick themselves constantly, it gets on their fur and dander which is what triggers those cat allergies in humans! Yes, cat hair and dander can set off a case of the sneezes but the true allergy is the cat spit.
Air Purifiers: A Must-Have for Cat Owners
I have always had air purifiers in my home because as a mold inspector, I know how critical it is to have frequent air exchanges and filtration only an air purifier can provide. But in a home with cats, an air purifier becomes even more critical.
The right air purifier is incredibly effective in tackling the invisible challenge of cat dander and cat hair. By capturing these fine particles, it drastically improves the air quality within a living space.
In addition to capturing fur and dander, air purifiers can also draw in particulates created by cats. They dig in the litter box, they scratch things, they dig at cardboard, fling catnip, and the list goes on. As these particles get turned loose in your home, an air purifier is there to capture anything before it has a chance to settle on a surface in your home.
Let’s not forget those cherished cat odors too. Cat litter has it’s own special smell as do the daily deposits. We will get to litter and litter box hygiene later but the right air purifier can REALLY help control those unique cat odors.
I use two different air purifiers in my home. For the main part of my house and bedrooms, I use the Intellipure. Its ability to capture small particulars and lock them in is unmatched and it’s odor removal ability is fantastic.
In the room where I have the litter boxes, I have found that the Mila air purifier works best because I can order the pet filter for it. It works wonders for litterbox dust and odors.
In addition to air purifiers, did you know that there are air filters for your HVAC / furnace system that are designed for pet owners? I use and love the filters from Colorfil. These are a game changer!
Colorfil is a patented filtration technology developed to effectively clean indoor air from unwanted chemicals, unpleasant odors, and pet allergens while being safe for all pets and animals. When it is time to change the filter, it will shift from pink to yellow. The main active ingredient in Colorfil’s color-shift coating is citric acid, a naturally derived chemical found in fruit. This takes the guesswork out of when to change your filter.
The Colorfil filters do an excellent job of creating a pet odor free living space which is why I love them so much!
The Robot Vacuum – Every Cat Owner’s Best Friend
Cats shed constantly. Their hair mysteriously finds it way everywhere. It finds nooks and crannies you didn’t even know existed until one day a giant hairball explodes from some unknown location. This is where a robotic vacuum becomes your best friend.
I have tried 5 different brands of robot vacuums. Let’s face it, nine cats means my vacuum works overtime. I can’t have a vacuum that only does an “ok” job. I need a work horse that isn’t afraid of a challenge.
I personally use the Eufy X8 Pro with self emptying station. Is the self-emptying station a luxury? Yes it is. Could I live without it now that I have had it? Absolutely not. Let me tell you, the Eufy X8 Pro is hands down the best robot vacuum I have tried. Literally nothing compares to it’s ability to navigate with precision, not suck up cat toys, not suck up cat tails, serve as an amusement park ride to cats, and deep clean everywhere I need it to! Sometimes I am shocked at how much it sucks up. I run it every morning and during shedding season sometimes in the evening if I am noticing a lot of fur around.
The chances of me dragging out my Prolux vacuum and vacuuming every day are slim. Yes, I still do vacuum by hand once a week because I need to keep the cat trees clean and there are a few spaces (like under the couch) the Eufy can’t reach. But without my trusted robot vacuum, I guarantee the fur game would be strong in here.
Smaller Tools
Air purifiers and a robot vacuum are my two big tools that I rely on to keep the bulk of the cat hair, cat dander, litter dust, and cat odors in check. However, there are a few must-have smaller tools to deal with things like cat fur on the furniture and cat trees.
The Pet Hair Remover Three Pack is literally in multiple rooms of my house. The Copper Head Scraper is for stubborn pet hair, great for heavy-duty and thick-piled items, such as carpets, car mats, rugs, cat trees, etc. The Silicone Scraper is for most surfaces like couches, beds, carpets, car interior, etc. The Y-shaped Scraper with smooth TPE teeth, won’t snag fabrics and is great for soft surfaces like clothes, blankets, beds, pillows, coats, etc. These items are great for getting stuck on cat hair off of your furniture and other items quickly and without damaging them.
Although I love the three tools above, they aren’t quite right for getting cat hair off of clothes. For that, I use the Chom Chom reuseable lint roller. It does an amazing job of getting all the fur off of clothes and you can use it again and again.
I do keep a small handheld vacuum around for various reasons including a quick cat litter pick up, cat hair removal, or cat food spill. My personal favorite is the Black + Decker Cordless Pet Handheld Vacuum. It is the handheld vacuum that has lasted the longest for me. I like the washable filter and it does a pretty decent job of getting cat hair off of a chair quickly. In the grand scheme of things, most any handheld vacuum would work. This just happens to be what I am using now.
Protecting Your Furniture
Who has time to constantly remove cat hair from furniture? Not me. While I do a quick daily fur removal, I prefer to protect my actual couch both from cat hair but also any accidents. Let’s face it, cat accidents happen.
Throw blankets and furniture protectors became my go-to. These items shield sofas and chairs effectively from the relentless shedding and scratching that come with owning a cat. However, not all furniture protectors are created equal. The ones I initially chose were cute with fun patterns but when that first accident happened… well cute didn’t cut it!
I needed something that was easy to wash and dry, wouldn’t slip off the couch or bunch up when I sat down, and something that was water and urine resistant so it wouldn’t soak through to my couch.
I’m sure I drove Amazon crazy because I was ordering and returning couch covers like mad. But finally after much trial and error I found the perfect solution. In fact, I love these pet proof furniture protectors so much, I ordered two of each size I needed in case they stop making them. Yes, I love them that much!
Be sure to check out the Eismodra store on Amazon. I use these specific waterproof, pet proof sectional couch covers.
Let’s Talk Litterboxes
With so many cats, litter and litterboxes are kind of a big deal around here. I had struggled with managing cat litter effectively until I discovered a litter and the litterboxes that changed everything.
Scooping the litterboxes daily is enough of a chore and I don’t want to create even more cleaning by having a “high maintenance” cat litter. So I am very picky about cat litter. First, it can’t be dusty because that sets my allergies off and increases the dust load in the house. Second, it can’t track everywhere because what a nightmare with so many cats. Third, it needs to offer some level of odor control. And fourth, it has to clump.
For years I was very happy with OkoCat Less Mess. It checked all of these boxes although it wasn’t exactly perfect. Then I tried Tofu cat litter. I regret not doing this sooner. My word. Talk about a game changer. Not only does it check all the boxes but it is much easier to work with since it is so lightweight. The odor control is insanely good. But best of all? It has so little waste because of the efficiency of clumping that it lasts longer than any litter I have tried. My favorite brands are Michu and Pidan. They might seem expensive at first but the litter in each of my litterboxes lasts two weeks!!! The savings has been unreal.
On to the litterbox. I have cats ranging from teeny (barely 5 pounds) to beast-like (26 pounds). I have cats that pee high and cats that like to hang off the edge. I needed litterboxes that keep the dust down but that can accommodate the pickiness of each cat. I tried A LOT of litterboxes. Hands down, the ModKat litterboxes have been the best! I have had the same litter boxes for years and they meet every cat’s needs as well as mine.
To help keep the house clean, I keep the litterboxes in their own area and vacuum up any escaped pieces of litter with my hand vac twice daily. The tofu litter barely tracks so there isn’t much to clean up.
Cat Safe Cleaning Products
Choosing cleaning products that are cat safe is HUGELY important. Cats are very sensitive to the various chemicals, essential oils, and fragrances in cleaning products. However, as we all know, you sometimes need a little extra something to remove cat odors.
Enzyme cleaners are quite popular but I don’t like them. I said what I said. I don’t think they work well. Instead, I use a hypochlorous acid cleaner for everyday cleaning and a hydrogen peroxide based cleaner for cat odor removal. Both work brilliantly. Both are totally safe for cats. My home does not smell like a single cat lives here let alone 9. The two products I use are:
Superstratum Everyday Cleaner for counters and floors. This is a hypochlorous acid based cleaner which is essential specially charged salt and water. It kills everything under the sun but won’t harm your counters or floors. One of my cats (Carlos) really loves this stuff and enjoys rolling all over the wet floors after I steam mop with it. I also use this to clean my showers and bathrub.
Rescue for removing cat urine odors or in my house sweaty paw odors. It is safe to use on fabrics including carpet and won’t bleach things out. Makes a great litterbox cleaner too.
For glass, I just use vinegar with a few drops of rubbing alcohol. Works wonders for a streak free shine and won’t harm cats who like to lick mirrors. Not that I have one of those… ahem Fred.
Cleaning Routines
I have two main cleaning routines. I have my daily cleaning routine and my weekly cleaning routine. My everyday cleaning looks like this:
- Wipe counters after waking up because cats have walked on them all night.
- Start robot vacuum.
- Quick fur removal of couch and barstools.
- Spot clean floor after wet food has been demolished by the cats.
- Scoop litter boxes.
- Vacuum up any litter off the litter catching mats.
- Empty trash.
- Wipe the kitchen counter area before prepping meals and eating.
- Quick kitchen counter wipe after dinner.
Steps 1-7 take me 30 minutes. That’s it. I get up at 6:00am and am done with all of that no later than 6:30am.
Once weekly I get out the big vacuum so I can get into nooks and crannies with the hose attachment and also de-fur the cat towers. I mop immediately after with this steam mop. I also go around with microfiber cloths and dust wood furniture. I don’t use any furniture polish as that actually make the fur stick to the furniture. This routine takes my about 90 minutes if I am being a sloth. It takes 60 minutes if I am chugging away and not getting distracted by my phone.
Every 3 -4 weeks I wash all the couch covers.
Every 4-6 weeks I deep clean the litterboxes. Since the ModKat boxes come with reusable liners, I usually do this when I do a complete liner change.
Every 2 months I wash all the mats inside the cat towers.
Final Thoughts: Embracing the Chaos
I’ve journeyed with you through my world of cat servitude, delving into the intricacies of keeping my home clean while sharing it with these enchanting creatures. We’ve unpacked tips and strategies, from employing air purifiers for pets to wrangling cat dander and cat hair removal, maximizing our efforts to maintain a purr-fectly clean home. Along the way, we’ve encountered the indispensability of gadgets like the cordless vacuum and the robot vacuum, alongside heroes of cleanliness like Superstratum Everyday Cleaner.
This journey reaffirms that a little mess here and there is but a small price to pay for the joy and unconditional love our cats extend to us every day. By integrating these housekeeping strategies into our lives, we not only ensure environments that are conducive to health and happiness for us and our pets but also deepen the bond that we share with our feline family members. As we adjust our routines and embrace these practices, let us remember that the purr-fect balance between a clean home and a life filled with pets isn’t just achievable—it’s worth every moment.
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