ok, so i finally got rid of the tenents from hell…apartment cleaned, repaired, completely emptied of all the junk, etc. found to be infested with fleas, bombed the apartment twice 6 days apart. been sitting a month now vacant and doing some final touch up prior to showing it….fleas. they gotta be living in the carpeting (wall to wall) any thoughts as to the best way to get rid of them? anything effective to use on the caarpet?
thanks in advance
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Replies
While it's empty, fog it.
The eggs hatch after about two weeks. Nothing kills the eggs. So fogging has to be done at two week intervals.
There are lots of products that work well in carpet. My favorites are some of the boric acid products. Sprinkle the dust on the carpet, sweep with a broom, vacuum. What is left will kill fleas for as long as it stays dry.
Burn the house down.
Honestly, we had fleas ere once and we didn't have any pets. I am told that kids can pick them up certain times of year.
It was insane trying to get rid of them.
We bombed the house a few times and even left for a weekend after a heavy application of flea poison. Those little so and so's are amazingly resilient.
I think it took us 2 months to rid ourselves of the problem because I hear they lay eggs and they hatch in 30 days... so even though you think you got them, there are more in waiting.
get a poison that kills or sterilizes the eggs too.
http://www.petedraganic.com/
thanks everyone for your replys. unfortunately cant burn it down, it is a 10 unit apartment building and when i am not fixing things provides a decent income. will bomb again and try the carpet powder
Go to your local farm supply store or well-stocked hardware store. They sell straight boric acid by the pound for about $3-4. Sprinkle liberally on the carpet and "rake" in with a broom. Vacuum lightly after a few days. Also works for any other hard-shelled insect and snakes.The boric acid causes small scratches in the shell of the insect causing dehydration and death.Jason
thats one reason why you dont want to use it what do you think it does to your lungs
go to your pet supply store and buy sodium polyborate for carpets.it is a modiflied boric acid that clings to your carpet fiber and lasts up to one year. dont use boric acid straight,too toxic, some brand names flea busters,hansons carpet powder.
i don't know if this works or not but i thought we had fleas and someone recommended that i sprinke regular morton salt on the carpetand wait a couple ofdays then vacuum. he swore by it.
At the intitial discovery there's something like 3 generations of fleas (something like a 1 week life span IIRC) to deal with, 1 of which is the eggs. So multiple treatments or something that has a lasting effect is necessary to eliminate the population.
The suggestions for use of Boric acid are good ones. Twenty mule team borax , by the box in the grocery, is the same stuff. As everyone says, spread it around leave it two to three days and vacuum. Problem should be solved.
IIRC, the eggs take thirty days to hath out, sometimes longer if there are dry cool condtions or something that is non condusive to their survival.
so what you are seeingh now is newly hatched hungry little buggers. Whatever you do, don't feed'm
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I've had great success with Fleabusters. Maybe it is the same as other versions of store bought Borax... but isn't it worth a few dollars more for a possible better chance of that apartment being retable in two weeks? $35 vs. $5... it ain't that big of a jump.
Rebuilding my home in Cypress, CA
Also a CRX fanatic!
If your hair looks funny, it's because God likes to scratch his nuts. You nut, you.
Borax and similar products are a good idea.
But also look at the bug bombs.
There are a couple of different types. One is specifically for feas. It has been a while since I used one of that type, but it either will attack the eggs or it has a residule action and will kill the next hatch.
Other types only get what is live at the time.
.
A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
Does FrontLine make something for rooms?Worked wonders for my dogs by not allowing the fleas to get old enough to reproduce & killed the adult fleas.
Nicht schneien, NICHT SCHNEIEN!! As far as red alerts on escapes, we are over 20 & I'm not counting anymore. She just wants playtime w/Sheba. When she's done, she goes back over the fence. Dogs are weird.
Here's a site with some info on eradicating fleas:
http://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheets/hgic2502.htm
I bought a project house that was flea infested (which in turn infested my truck, and the house I was living in at the time, ugh). I got a spot-treatment spray from my vet, and worked along the baseboards. I had yanked the carpet, so there's not much I can say about eradication there.
I also cranked up the heat (per the vet's advice) to speed up the life-cycle of the fleas (and thus speed up eliminaton).
Good luck!
soj
Try Precor IGR. I've bought the 1 oz bottles at Home Despot in the past. Larger bottles are available.
http://www.zoecon.com/precor.htm
Insect Growth Regulator was what broke the cycle of fleas in our yard, that and actively trapping the opossumsRebuilding my home in Cypress, CA
Also a CRX fanatic!
If your hair looks funny, it's because God likes to scratch his nuts. You nut, you.
diatomaceous earth
You can buy it through garden supply outfits. It kills the larval stage and only has to be applied once.
We had a problem with them once around 1990 and the diatomaceious earth worked first time. You can buy it online, of course.
"Doubt is not a pleasant condition, but certainty is absurd."
~ Voltaire
diatomaceous earth
Don't breath it though.
dont use the grade ment for swimming pools or filters.got to get the human grade of earth.yes there is quit a bit of difference
Years ago I used to be a Bug Man. The MOST often overlooked instance is NOT emptiying the vacuume bags/canisters after a through vacuume..the eggs will hatch in there and re-emerge.
Back then we used FICAM a wettable powder in a B&G sprayer, adding DURSBAN LO if a real severe case was determined.
Befriend a PCO and get a Ficam treatment, problem solved.
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
"If you want something you've never had, do something you've never done"
the chemical man speaks.what the heck.
Some of the nomadic herding people used to have some sheep walk through their tent when the fleas got bad. Reportedly, the fleas are attracted to the sheep but can't live on them, but stay on them long enough to end up outside... I don't know if goats work the same way.
I moved into an apartment in Berkeley that came equipped with a healthy quantity of fleas. I put on some shorts and went barefoot and walked around the apartment and ended up with about 30 fleas on me. I then went outside and brushed them off. Did this several times and soon the number dropped to just a couple each day. In less than a month, there were no more. However, if you try this method, some anti-itch cream might be a good investment...