Celebrity cleaners Aggie Mckenzie and Kim Woodburn are the scourge of dirt and dust wherever it hides. Now the stars of Channel 4's How Clean Is Your House? have turned their attention to allergens and how cleaning your house can minimise their presence.

Some 15 million people in the UK suffer from allergies and four in ten school children have at least one allergy. Dust mites, mould spores and pets are amongst the most common causes, however, help is at hand thanks to the dynamic duo.

When you are doing a really heavy day's cleaning, wear a facemask to prevent breathing in fumes from your cleaning products and the dust and dirt you are trying to eradicate.

Ventilate rooms regularly. When you are cleaning - particularly vacuuming and dusting - close the door and open all the windows, which lets you and the room breath and helps prevent dirt seeping out into other areas.

Do wear rubber gloves when using cleaning products. Ideally buy them one size bigger and wear thin cotton gloves underneath to soak up the inevitable clamminess that rubber gloves cause.

Don't go overboard with cleaning products; follow the manufacturers' guidelines. You don't get a better result by using more and, far from being "cleaner", you may end up leaving a residue of soap or chemicals.

Carpets get soap-bound if you use too much carpet cleaner and that attracts dust and dirt. Be very sparing - it's not bubble bath and shouldn't be used like it.

Use wooden chopping boards for bread only. Any surface that can be grooved will harbour bacteria and wood is the worst. Marble isn't bad and glass is ideal for chopping boards. Kim swears by using old plates, but Aggie hates the sound of cutting on china or glass. Both agree that ideally you should have one board for preparing meat and another for vegetables.

Don't forget to dust the kitchen. Dust collects on the tops of cupboards and the surface and lids of jars and should be removed regularly. Vacuum the tops of cupboards and wipe over with a clean, damp cloth to attract any excess dust particles.

Change the bag in your vacuum cleaner regularly, before it fills, so that it works at maximum efficiency and so that dust mites and other micro-organisms aren't escaping back into your home. Don't be mean and wait for the bag to be at least half full. Ideally, change it once a week - who wants their dust and dirt sitting around for weeks?

Empty the vacuum cleaner directly into the dustbin and put the bin bag out immediately. Do not leave it in the house or you are giving the micro-organisms you've vacuumed up the chance to escape.

If you use a bagless vacuum cleaner, empty it once a week and wash the inside of the cylinder with hot soapy water and leave to drip-dry.

Use a vacuum cleaner with a HEPA (high efficiency particulate air) filter, which removes more dust, animal hair and mould spores than traditional models.

Vacuum at least once a week. Areas that see a lot of use or heavy traffic need to be vacuumed more often. For instance, if you have a house full of family, particularly children, for the weekend, the living room is likely to benefit from vacuuming every day or every other day at least. Whereas once a week is fine for a dining room that's infrequently used.

Wooden floors harbour less dust than carpeted ones, but be vacuumed as regularly. Use a slightly damp, clean cloth to collect any stray dust particles. Use a specialist polish once a month with a cotton cloth mop, which creates less static.

Soft furnishings and thick cushions offer dust mites a perfect breeding ground so vacuum them regularly. Choose soft furnishings with removable covers and shake them out and wash them regularly.

Vacuum your mattress once a month and really go at it. Bear in mind that the average mattress contains over 10,000 dust mites. Be thorough and vacuum under the mattress and under the bed and behind it. Move the bed right out so that you can get into every nook and cranny. Turn your mattress once a week, but check the manufacturers' instructions first as some mattresses aren't designed to be turned.

Wash bed linen once a week - twice a week in hot weather - at 60 degrees centigrade as this kills dust mites. There is no need to boil bed linen.

There are some very good anti-allergen mattress covers on the market. If you use one launder it regularly in accordance with the manufacturers' instructions.

Use two pillowcases. Everyone's head sweats at night and everyone dribbles in their sleep. Using an under pillowcase will protect your pillows, which cuts down on cleaning, and prolong their life. Change the under pillowcases at least once every two months.

Washing feather pillows is a tedious business, but it must be done regularly. Put tennis balls in the tumble dryer with them and they will beat the pillows back into shape for you. Hypoallergenic pillows should also be washed regularly in accordance with the manufacturers' instructions.

Mould spores can trigger allergic reactions. They thrive in dark, damp, poorly ventilated areas, such as wardrobes, so make sure your clothes are bone dry before you put them away and store them in zip-up plastic covers.

Over 15 per cent of people are allergic to their pets, although it is not usually pet hair that is the problem. A protein found in the animals' dead skin flakes, which is known as dander, oil, saliva or urine usually causes the allergic reaction. Shake pet beds and bedding outside every day. Wash their beds regularly with anti-allergy or ordinary detergent and separately from the household's laundry.

People think that antibacterial cleaners will do all the work, but they are not a substitute for very hot soapy water.