How to get rid of fleas from your home without paying the exterminator costs. I adopted 2 cats that had a major flea problem, my house became infested with fleas and when I called the exterminator they said they would charge $400 to get rid of the problem. I found out some cheaper alternatives to get rid of my problem and they worked really well!
You will need:
A vacuum cleaner that has bag- *Bag-less vacuums won't work for this At least 2 vacuum bags 2 flea collars 1 Gallon of Zep Ready To Use Flea Spray FSH-128 with sprayer nozzle or any home flea spray that has the chemical Permethrin in it *This comes already mixed and does not need to be diluted and can be found at most hardware stores for under $15 1 bottle of PineSol- any scent will do
This is about a 2 week process depending on your home size but trust me this really works!
First, move your children and pets out of the room in which you are working. Then you will need to wash all of your clothes with a cap full of PineSol added to your water- this is to kill off any pests that may be in your clothes or bedding.
Second, place a flea collar into one of your new vacuum bags and vacuum any surface you can- the flea collar will kill whatever fleas that wind up in the bag.
Third, spray your rooms down with the gallon of spray, let dry for about an hour *DON'T go overboard Then, vacuum again after the carpets and surfaces are dry.
You will need to vacuum and spray at least twice daily, and it is work, but you will reclaim your house back! When vacuum cleaner is not in use place it in a room that you are treating until the next use.
I would suggest changing the vacuum bags every 4 days or so. Be sure to place the vacuum bag into an air-tight container or bag before throwing out.
There are traps that work at night as well that wont break the bank- usually found at hardware stores and cost around $10- They are called overnight flea trap light. They are handy to have and really do work.
*Be sure to bathe your pets with flea and tick shampoo during this process and keep them in fresh flea collars.
I place a small bowl with 1/4 of water in every room of the house by the baseboard electrical wall outlet. I put in a small sliver of soap with a teaspoon of bleach in the bowl. I plug in nightlights that I bought from the dollar store. The lights only have 5-7 watts so your electric bill shouldn't increase. I leave the lights on all day and night, and empty them every day. I usually catch 5-20 fleas a day, until the infestation subsides. Also, it is very important to vacuum or mop the entire house every day to pick up flea dirt, which is really flea feces. A bucket of water with a splash of bleach is a miracle picker-upper for just pennies a day.
Fleas love hot things. Many people have suggested this, and you can actually get a machine that does this for you, which I will link you to after this.
Put a pan of hot soapy water under a lamp. The lamp keeps the water warm, the fleas jump in from the carpeting, the soap weighs them down, and they sink. This is the link but I do not know how well it works.
First of all you need to get rid of the fleas outside. And then buy the flea bombs and use as directed. We control our flea population by spraying the yard in early spring and mid summer. We also flea bomb the house every year at the first sign of fleas.
I would go to the walmart or home depot and get a whole house fogger, specifically for fleas and ticks, they work on spiders and other bugs too. Get up early one morning take the pets w/ you out somewhere or to board at the local kennel. As you leave the house set off the fogger (s) depending how big your house is, will determine how many foggers you may need, put them in central locations throughout the house so they can reach as many area's & different rooms as possible.
While your gone, at work etc. the house will be fumigated. Come home open all the windows, put some fans in the Windows to pull in the outside air and after about 10 minutes bring your pets back into the house. Also your local pet store or vet probably sells a premisis spray to spray directly on your mattress, bedding, upholstery, under couches, chairs beds, etc. follow instructions on can. Last but not least, actually you should do this first before anything else, make sure you are treating your pets w/ frontline, or vectra or the like, every month, people can carry fleas and ticks into their homes on their clothing and even if you have an indoor pet, the fleas and ticks will jump onto the pet feed and breed, and your house w/ become infested.
My sister gets fleas in her house when she takes her infant over to a friends house who babysits her child for her occasionally. The fleas come home on the baby's clothing or the baby's bag, and infest my sisters house and cat, because her friend doesn't treat her many cats with flea and tick product, so now my sister has to treat her cat for fleas, because the friend didn't treat her own.
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Request: Controlling Fleas in the House (08/22/2009)
I need help getting rid of fleas in the house, also in the bed. I have washed all of the sheets and blankets.
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Request: Controlling Fleas in the House
Archived on 08/22/2009
I need help getting rid of fleas in the house, also in the bed. I have washed all of the sheets and blankets.
Thanks.
Margo from Canal Fulton, OH
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RE: Controlling Fleas in the House
We had a similar problem when our cat got out side. I sprinkled Borax, Boric acid washing detergent, (I got it at Walmart, pretty cheap), all over our couch and carpet waited about 30 minutes then I vacuumed it all up, no more fleas. Hope this helps. (02/25/2007)
Years ago I had a dog that brought fleas into the living room carpet. We used a product specifically formulated to kill fleas; it had a residual component in its formula that continued to work for about one week. In addition, we vacuumed three times a day for about 2 weeks. This may seem like overkill, but it is not. Fleas lay eggs that can remain dormant for a very l time, and vibration can cause the eggs to hatch. We followed this procedure and the fleas did not return. Hope this helps.
Kathy
(02/27/2007)
