How do you keep your layout looking clean and new?

Every Christmas I dump some fresh white snow on it!

My layout is located in our finished basement.  We change the furnace/AC filter at the beginning of each month, something I think keeps the train room and the crafts room free of most dust.  Once every six months or so, I use one of those Swiffer extension "brushes" with a single spray of Pledge on it to wipe any cobwebs or dust strings from the overhead lights and along the corners of the room.

 

I don't run smoke in my locomotives, another factor I think helps in preventing dust build-up on the layout and gunk build-up on the rails.

 

Clean the layout???? What, and get rid of all that natural weathering?????

Exactly! I've gone to great pains to have everything weathered anyway.

Yes, a clean layout is an incomplete layout. I have waited for years to see the fine, natural patina (not all bad...) settle over everything - even me, if I don't move much.

 

It's not a "dusty layout"; it's a dust collection displayed on mechanical forms.

 

Art, y'know. 

well I do clean stuff once or twice a year, usually when I get a bright idea to move stuff around for no apparent reason. cleaning all the WWll planes overhead gets interesting at times.....

Seems like it would definitely be a bigger problem for enormous layouts, but with just two 4x8's, it's easy to tear it all down every few years, clean it up and start fresh with improvements along the way.

I also find those adhesive lint rollers do a good job picking up general debris around the layout.

Handyandy, just don't use a leaf blower unless you want to model the after effects of a tornado.

I just slide the track around a little and vacuum the carpet.

 

Dave

Papaaray, you are correct about the leaf blower!!!  Been there done that.

 

Brent

The paint brush is my favorite, along with a miniature attachment set for the shop vac. I also have a filter on the a/c and a Jet brand jumbo air cleaner from the Woodcraft shop in the workshop portion of the building. I've been experimenting with soft dusters made of various sorts of microfiber, but I haven't found the right one yet. What I am looking for is something like a feather duster that doesn't shed. The ones I've seen so far have too much structure and tend to knock things around when you use them. A feather duster just sheds too much - unfortunate, because it would otherwise be perfect. 

Do you have animals that shed fur and skin. That might be contributing to the dust.

Is there a clothes dryer that blows lint and dust around the room?

 

Andrew

For large areas I use my shop vacuum with a brush attachment.

For small or delicate areas I use a Dirt Devil cv2000 detailer micro vacuum.  You can see it here:  http://dirtdevil.com/products/...ls/mcv2000/detailer/

 

Blue tarp from harbor freight when not in use

Frequent vacuuming from the carpet on up, dusting of all surfaces nearby, like pictures, work surfaces, blinds, etc, and regular HVAC filter changes on the unit that services that part of the house. I find that as long as I keep up on everything near the layout it reduces my need to mess with the layout itself.

D500, I like the cut of your jib!

In the past I used lightweight cotton sheets. The person(s) that bought my layouts appreciated it enough, that now they are doing the same.