How can I use electrostatics to collect dust in my home?

[danem]

hi,
i'm trying to find a way to attract small dust particles in a household environment to a surface.
i have no physics and no engineering skills whatsoever so this is all new to me, but what i am wanting to do is have a surface with a constant charge, as perhaps this is the way to achieve this (in order that it always collect and continue to collect), so that small particles that come within its field will remain stuck to it.
it doesn't need to be actively pushing air through it, in fact, more ideally it would be a flat surface, painted/metal.
how do i do this??
any help would be much appreciated.
thanks
dane
ps even cylinder rods would be ok, if it works...

 

[Bob S]

We had an electrostatic dust precipitator installed in the furnace in our previous house. There were 3 screens, about 18" square, separated by about 1.25 inches. The mesh was perhaps 1/8 to 1/4 inches square. The two outside screens were grounded, and the inner screen was perhaps 20,000 volts DC.

 

[danem]

ok, so if i understand right, if i was to get some large sheets of metal (which metal in particular? and what thickness? and can i powder-coat/paint it - or would that act as an insulator?) and I'm guessing there has to be some relationship between the size of these sheets and the voltage? and then have some wire mesh (of any particular kind - or any mesh as long as its perforated?) so the middle screen was not grounded but connected to the power source? and the mesh, was that not attached, nor grounded? 20,000 volts DC seems like a lot, how do i regulate that, and what would be the safest way to ground the outer sheets? plus, I'm assuming it would be dangerous to touch any of this once attached to power?
thanks again...and sorry for my huge number of questions.