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A natural alternative to flea infestation (drum roll please)
Use the sprayer with your water hose to spray Ivory liquid dish detergent on the lawn. presto, no fleas.
Uno mas
for bees or wasps: swirl a cup of water with detergent, aim well, and douse the nest. The bees fall down dead in instant. They aren't stunned, they won't get back up and fly away. They're dead.
Chemical free.
Not to argue with you, because I have no idea if it works or not, but being a dog owner, I have discovered washing your dog with soap designed to kill fleas, doesn't work very well for killing fleas....
So either your plan doesn't work, or I should dump the flea soap and wash the dog with plain detegent...? Just asking...
Insecticides have to go through a more thorough testing process, and stuff like Sevin breaks down pretty safely. I'd think insecticidal soap has gone through a similar safety check.
I'm not too sure about Sevin. I did some reading about it last year and learned that it's a likely carcinogen.
Cool thing about insecticidal soap - I used to think it might be a rip off because it was so expensive (and it's soap) and did a little research and learned that liquid soap like Murphy's Oil Soap is virtually the same thing. Seems to work well, too.
As far as ordinary dishwashing detergent being good for killing things - heck yes, ever since I was a kid, my dad has used warm sudsy water to kill wasp nests. They fall to the ground and die.
OK, I'll try the Murphy's Oil Soap. I have some squash bugs I need to get rid of. In regard to soap not working well on dogs, fleas spend 90% or more of their time OFF the dog, so the ones on the dog are quickly replaced. Spraying the grounds and bedding is a much stronger attack.
I have used the idea of the pan of soapy water with a small light bulb over it. In one apartment, where the place had been over-run by fleas, it was wildly successful. I turned the AC to a cold temperature, set the lamp and water out, and by the following morning had sixty fleas doing the deadman backstroke. The following night there were forty, and only a handful on the third night, when the boric acid I had scrubbed into the carpet started to kick in.
OK, I'll try the Murphy's Oil Soap. I have some squash bugs I need to get rid of. In regard to soap not working well on dogs, fleas spend 90% or more of their time OFF the dog, so the ones on the dog are quickly replaced. Spraying the grounds and bedding is a much stronger attack.
I have used the idea of the pan of soapy water with a small light bulb over it. In one apartment, where the place had been over-run by fleas, it was wildly successful. I turned the AC to a cold temperature, set the lamp and water out, and by the following morning had sixty fleas doing the deadman backstroke. The following night there were forty, and only a handful on the third night, when the boric acid I had scrubbed into the carpet started to kick in.
You can also rub Brewer's Yeast into your dog's fur as a flea deterrent, sprinkle Brewer's Yeast on your dog's food (it's nutritional), and with caution, add garlic into your dog's diet. All are flea and tick repellants.
A serious vacuum - like a Dyson - is a good remedy as well, it gets up any flea eggs that might be in your rugs/carpets.
I use the Brewers Yeast on my cats food, no flea problems this year at all. I had them last year before I started the brewer's yeast. And I have indoor cats! I guess my indoor/outdoor cat owning friends were bringing hitchhikers in their coats!
I use a small squirt of any dish detergent in a spray bottle filled with water to spray flies that come in. I wait until they get on a window, and spray them hard several times. They drop like stones, and die within a minute. The soap apparently keeps them from flying, as I have nailed them in the air this way too, but I don't like spraying soapy water all over the house in the effort. The soap will muck up your windows a bit, but when it comes time to wash them, the soap is already there! Tonight I started spraying the lawn with detergent in a heavy concentration, and watered it in so the cats don't get too much on their feet, to kill fleas. I hope it works, as all the other things I have tried (diatomatious earth, vegetable oil "soaps", and essential oils) all helped, but there was no magic bullet. I read that dish detergent doesn't poison insects, but it makes them sick. Tell that to my dead flies. Not one has ever lived after being sprayed well.
Not to argue with you, because I have no idea if it works or not, but being a dog owner, I have discovered washing your dog with soap designed to kill fleas, doesn't work very well for killing fleas....
So either your plan doesn't work, or I should dump the flea soap and wash the dog with plain detegent...? Just asking...
Flea killing soaps usually kill the adult fleas, but not the eggs or immature fleas that hide in the animal's bedding and carpet. The best way to kill them is to treat the animal, then wash the bedding and either bug bomb or shampoo the carpet. If you just kill the adult fleas, you won't take care of the problem permanently.
In response to the post above, boric acid is poisonous, and not just to insects. I would not use it anywhere that it could possibly be ingested by animals or people.
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Dish Detergent Kills Flies!
