Time to clean the dreaded ‘Sahara mud’ from your terrace?

Is it time to clean the dreaded Sahara haze ‘mud’ from your terrace?

Many areas across Spain were hit with “Martian” haze skies in March. On Monday, March 14, skies in Almeria turned a deep orange with all the dust. The event was caused by Sahara Desert dust which was held in suspension in the air.

In Spain this phenomenon is called calima. The calima seen in many areas in March was the worst experienced in Spain for several decades. Social media was awash with images of orange “Martian haze” skies for many days.

After the haze the rain hit. This caused the phenomenon known as “blood rain” or “mud rain.”

The conundrum of when to clean your terrace has become a talking point. Every time people start to clean their terraces more rain comes in carrying Sahara desert dust again.

Cleaning Sahara Sand

Many people have come up with their own way to clean the sand. This includes jet washing or using a hosepipe. Many areas of Spain though are experiencing water shortages and hosepipe bans could be in force.

As reported by LaSexta, the best way to clean away the dust is using a bit of muscle and sweeping “as much as possible with a fine broom”. It is then recommended to mop the floor to remove more of the sand. This is a process that will need to be repeated multiple times over the space of several days to get a terrace fully clean.

Some locals in Spain have said that limited use of a hosepipe is the best way to go. This depends on the area and whether this is allowed though. For properties in residential areas washing away the sand could cause issues as drains can become clogged with mud.

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