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Cleaning

Pet hair on furniture and clothes: what works, what doesn't

Sticky sheets, rubber gloves, a damp cloth, a roller with a chamber, a fabric shaver, a vacuum. Each one is right for something and wrong for something else. Here is which.

Yellow and orange FurSweep reusable roller being used on a coral sofa

No single tool removes pet hair from everything, and the ones that claim to are the ones that end up in a drawer. Hair behaves differently on a flat weave, a knit, a car seat and a rug, so the honest answer is a short kit and a habit. This guide is about the kit.

Sofas, chairs and cushions

On flat upholstery the hair sits on the surface, and anything that drags it in one direction gathers it. A sticky lint roller works but eats sheets. FurSweep does the same job with two directional fabric rollers: push and pull across the cushion, the hair rolls into a chamber inside the head, open it and tip it in the bin. Nothing to refill. It is the tool for the two-minute pass before guests arrive, and for a car's fabric seats. It does nothing on leather or vinyl, which give the rollers nothing to grip.

Sweaters, throws and anything that pills

On knits, hair clings to the fuzz and pills on the surface, so removing the pills removes most of the hair with them. Renew shaves those off behind a guarded mesh and collects them in a cup; a two-hour charge gives up to 90 minutes. Test an inconspicuous area first and use light pressure — it is not for delicate or loosely woven pieces, and it is a fabric tool, not a hair tool: on a smooth weave with no pilling it will not do much.

Seams, tracks and the corner of the sofa

Hair gathers where the cushion meets the frame, in the tracks of a sliding door and along the skirting. A roller can't follow those lines. Sliver is three slim hard-bristle brushes in straight, narrow and curved profiles that get into the seam and lift it out.

Where the vacuum still wins

Carpets, rugs and deep-pile fabric hold hair below the surface. No hand tool lifts it out; a vacuum with a brush head does. Use the kit above for the surfaces a vacuum is awkward on, and for the pass between vacuums.

Two habits that halve the work

A washable throw on the spot the dog actually uses catches most of the hair before the sofa does, and it goes in the machine. And a hamper by the bedroom door — FoldCarry folds to 2 cm when it's empty — keeps hairy clothes off the bed where the hair transfers.

The short list

The three tools above, with who they suit and who they don't, are on the reusable pet hair removal page.