How to Clean Pine Needles on a Christmas Tree Without Damaging Your Vacuum Cleaner
Please do not use a vacuum cleaner to pick up pine needles from your tree or wreaths this year. You may cause serious problems for your device and ultimately make the situation worse. I’ve got a few ideas on how to clean those dry, crispy needles without ruining your vacuum, as well as a foolproof method for preventing a mess.
Why you can’t vacuum pine needles
I’ve never had a real Christmas tree, but I have had bunnies, which means I have a lot of hay in the house, and for our purposes it looks so much like pine needles that I can say that a vacuum cleaner is not the answer. Step away from the vacuum.
Long, inflexible debris quickly clogs the vacuum’s head and tubes, making it difficult for anything to pass through. You can see an example of what this looks like in this TikTok video . At best, you’ll have to constantly unplug the head from the machine and empty it through a trash bag to clean it, which is tedious and makes cleaning take forever. In the worst case scenario, you will end up damaging your filter, completely destroying the vacuum.
If you are going to use a vacuum cleaner, make sure it is cleaned beforehand, just to give the needles and all the dust that will accumulate around them some space. Traditional vacuum cleaners are also much better than robot vacuum cleaners because those little guys just can never handle it.
How to clean pine needles instead
Hopefully you won’t use a vacuum cleaner to clean up the pine needles at all. You have a few more options. Try these:
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A broom with rubber bristles can remove pine needles from carpet grooves much easier than a traditional stiff bristle brush, so try the FURemover Carpet Rake ($12.98), which is designed to do just that (and can be used year-round to eradicate dog hair). and cat hair too).
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A rubber squeegee is also a good option for quickly picking up pine needles, as it will prevent them from escaping like traditional brooms. Here’s one for $9.69 .
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The Extra Wide Long Handle Lint Roller ($26.98) for Carpet and Furniture will also pick them up easily.
Preventing Pine Needle Mess
The easiest way to prevent a mess with your Christmas tree is to use the large plastic bag it originally came in. When you set up your tree, do so with the plastic wrap still on, then roll it down the tree and around the base while it’s still attached to the trunk. Place the tree skirt over the bag to hide it, and when the end of the season comes, carefully lift the tree skirt and shake it into the plastic bag hidden underneath.
Then pull the bag back onto the tree before removing the whole thing. Secure it on top and you’re ready to pull out the suction cup without leaving any needles behind.