Lunar Dust is what you sweep off the Moon’s surface and sell to pay for better gear. You collect Dust with a tool, then deliver and sell it at the Depot for money. Later on, a Conveyor Belt can make that trip for you, and the Pressure Chamber and Stone Press turn raw Dust into Moon Sand and Moonstone, which have higher listed selling values.
What I covered:
How to Collect Dust in Moon Sweepers
The Toothbrush is free. Grab it from the supply wall at the starting base and sweep the dirty ground around the station. Sweeping fills the tool’s Dust container. When it fills, press Q to pack Dust into capsules so you can keep cleaning. Stay near the Depot at the start, since that first container is tiny.
How to Pack Dust Into Capsules
Press Q to pack the Dust in your container into a Dust Capsule. One capsule is 1 kg, so a Household Broom with its 3 kg container makes three capsules per load. A $30 upgrade doubles that container to 6 kg.
You collect Dust and sell it as two separate actions, and a packed capsule earns nothing until it reaches the Depot.
- Take the Toothbrush from the supply wall and sweep dirty ground near the station.
- Keep sweeping until the Dust container is full.
- Press Q to pack collected Dust into 1 kg capsules. Repeat as needed.
- Return to the Depot, deposit your Dust or capsules, then select Sell Dust to receive your payment.
How to Sell Moon Sweepers Dust
To sell Dust manually, return to the Depot and deposit the Dust from your tool or the capsules you’ve collected. Then use the station’s Sell Dust option to receive your payment.
A completed sector also gives you a separate reward. Early gameplay showed a $10 bonus per sector, while the Region Bounty upgrade can increase that amount.
How to Sell Dust Automatically
For automatic selling, place a Packager, load it with collected Dust, and connect its output to a Conveyor Belt leading to the Depot’s Deposit Intake. The Packager creates the capsules, but the intake handles the sale.
Since patch 1.0.3, Dust delivered through the Conveyor Belt is credited as it arrives. If you need help setting up the machines, our Moon Sweepers Packager guide explains the process.
How to Collect Dust Faster
A wider tool clears more ground per pass, and a bigger container means fewer trips. The Wide Broom costs $75 and the Extra Wide Broom $150. The Dust Compactor upgrade adds 15% container capacity to all tools for $150, and the Auto Packer packs a capsule at your feet when the container fills.
Vehicles come later. The Lunar Sweeper ($2500) holds 1200 kg, and the Mega Vacuum Rover ($6,000) starts with a 3000 kg tank. Robot Vacuums collect Dust and transfer capsules through connected Conveyor Belts. J.O.O.N.A.S. units work across the Moon and launch their Dust Capsules to the nearest Capsule Catcher. Patch 1.0.4 also made J.O.O.N.A.S. faster and able to keep cleaning when players are far away.
None of this changes what Dust sells for. Market Contracts does, and one early level cost $120 for a 6% launch payout bonus. Our Moon Sweepers Guide has the full equipment order.
How to Turn Dust Into Moon Sand and Moonstone
First, unlock the Building Tool, which costs $50 in the release gameplay. Processing machines need power, usually supplied by nearby Solar Panels. You can manually load Dust into a Pressure Chamber, while Conveyor Belts help automate material delivery. During the night, machines can keep running on stored power until the available charge runs out.
How to Make Moon Sand With the Pressure Chamber
The Pressure Chamber costs $500. Its in-game description says it presses Lunar Dust into Moon Sand, up to 5 kg every 12 seconds, and that Moon Sand sells for 3x Dust. That works out to 25 kg a minute per machine.
How to Make Moonstone With the Stone Press
The Stone Press costs $1000 and needs two materials. It takes 1 kg of Dust plus 1 kg of Moon Sand and makes 2 kg of Moonstone every 6 seconds, and Moonstone sells for 7x Dust. It also draws 18 kW.
Each input accepts one material. If the Conveyor Belts feed Dust and Moon Sand into the wrong inputs, the Stone Press may stop processing.
| Material | Machine | Rate | Listed selling value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dust | None | Swept up with your tool | Baseline |
| Moon Sand | Pressure Chamber | Up to 5 kg every 12 seconds | 3x Dust |
| Moonstone | Stone Press | 1 kg Dust + 1 kg Moon Sand makes 2 kg every 6 seconds | 7x Dust |
Is It Better to Sell Dust or Process It?
Raw Dust is the easy option, since it needs no machines and no power. The 3x and 7x figures are listed selling values, so they do not promise triple or sevenfold earnings. Each machine has a cap and one belt carries only so much. A machine without power or the right input makes nothing.
Conveyor Belt throughput can limit production even when you have enough processing machines. If your belts start backing up, consider sending excess raw Dust directly to the Depot instead of forcing every capsule through the processing line.
The exact Dust-to-Sand conversion yield is disputed in this Steam discussion, so the listed 3x selling value does not guarantee triple the profit. Selling raw Dust is the simplest option early on. A Pressure Chamber becomes more useful when you have enough Dust, power, and transport capacity to keep it running.
Why Is Dust Missing or Not Selling?
If Dust reaches the Depot without paying, check that the Conveyor Belt connects to the Deposit Intake. Patch 1.0.3 fixed payouts for Dust and Stone delivered by belts. Patch 1.0.4 also fixed machines stopping with the “Could not pack a capsule” error and Dust reappearing in multiplayer. The problems below are separate player reports and may not affect the current version.
- Dust disappears mid-sweep: One player said unused Dust vanished while they swept with a broom. The thread has no cause or answer.
- Capsule stuck on the wrong belt: One Steam player suggested deleting the affected machine to release the capsule back onto the belt. This is an unconfirmed workaround and may cost money.
- Sector stuck at 98.9%: A group had no Dust left to see, yet the map showed the sector unfinished. Brushes and vehicles did nothing, and a Robot Vacuum called it complete while the map disagreed.
