Flea Infestations in the Home
Fleas are an unhealthy annoyance in many homes. Most often they enter your home on your pets, but they can also find their way in on their own.
If you are finding fleas in your home, your infestation is likely a lot worse than you think. The reason being that adult fleas only make up about 5% of the total flea infestation. Also in your home are flea eggs, flea larva and pupa fleas.
For every flea that you see, there may be thousands more hiding in your home in the form of eggs, larva and pupas. Flea larva can survive for almost a year in your carpet before turning into pupa that can then remain dormant for up to another year before finally turning into an adult. As an adult, female fleas will then lay hundreds of more eggs creating a never ending cycle.
The fleas in your home love to hide in your carpets, bedding and just about anywhere else close enough to where your pets hang out. The area where your dog or cat likes to sleep is generally the most infested part of the house. For these areas your best solution is to vacuum for fleas and utilize flea powders for carpets and bedding.
Vacuuming is the first line of defense. You can pre-treat your carpet with flea powder before getting started for added effectiveness. Most flea powders kill all four stages of fleas and come in scented varieties. In addition, all animal toys and bedding should be removed and washed in hot water with color-safe bleach.
At first, vacuuming should be done everyday, and the vacuum bags sealed in a plastic garbage bag and thrown out. Apply Attachments should be used to vacuum in hard to reach places such as behind televisions and bookshelves.
It is important to be aware of the fact that flea infestations are not simply an indoor problem. If you don’t treat your yard as well, your house will become re-infested before long.
For the yard, many people have found success by using diatomaceous earth for flea control. This is soil made of microscopic fossils that have been ground up. The soil is full of jagged edges that will damage and kill any insects that walk across it. Diatomaceous earth is inexpensive and available in up to 50 lb bags, but it is important to only use “food grade” diatomaceous earth, which is completely safe for both humans and pets.
