# The color of dust **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 18, 2006, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-color-of-dust/369236 "2006-08-18T15:40:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dflower](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dflower/32/3270_2.png) [@dflower](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dflower)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-color-of-dust/369236/1 "2006-08-18T15:40:04Z")
Dust - regular household dust - is in my experience a light color, grey mostly. But my house is covered in black dust. Why? I have no coal burning stove. Do not live in LA or any large city. I am not near any industrial plant. I quit smoking some time ago. Mr. flower and I have 3 dogs so I am used to the dog hair, but this dust is giving me a pain trying to figure out why everywipe of the dust rag comes up black. Is it true that having your air ducts cleaned is a ripoff? And do those expensive air filters for you AC system really just clog up so quick that they do more harm than good? Any dopers with this problem or insight into the color of dust? ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-color-of-dust/369236/2 "2006-08-18T15:53:09Z")
My dust is dark blue. I have no explanation for this. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-color-of-dust/369236/3 "2006-08-18T16:14:16Z")
Do you burn candles? ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-color-of-dust/369236/4 "2006-08-18T16:23:49Z")
[QUOTE=dflower] …every wipe of the dust rag comes up black. [/QUOTE] You’re not using a white rag, are you? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![jay-c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@jay-c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jay-c)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-color-of-dust/369236/5 "2006-08-18T16:38:19Z")
I came in to ask about candles, too. If I burn a lot of candles, I notice that my dust takes on a definite “sooty” color. Even more so the dust that accumulates on the fans. ---
**Author:** ![David\_Simmons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9de053/32.png) [@David\_Simmons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_Simmons)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-color-of-dust/369236/6 "2006-08-18T17:16:39Z")
It’s difficult to tell the color of indivudual grains of a finely divided material based on the color of them _en masse_. Individual snow flakes are clear crystals of ice and a polar bears’ hairs are transparent yet both look white because the assemblage of them reflect all colors. ---
**Author:** ![dflower](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dflower/32/3270_2.png) [@dflower](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dflower)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-color-of-dust/369236/7 "2006-08-18T22:26:47Z")
Well I just tried a green rag and it does look black still but I see what you mean. I have no black one to try. I don’t burn candles often but I do burn incense sometimes. Can that cover the entire house with soot? It is no more dusty in the room where I burn the incense.