Fleas...Help !! (home, live, store)

[pianogal]

Astrid...Welcome to Florida. I am the one who had lived in the apartments a couple of years ago. I'm sorry you got one with fleas. Obviously the previous owner had pets. The pest control company should be able to take care of the problem. They may have to treat it a couple of times. After the treatment be sure to wash all your linens.

We had a flea infestation in Tampa years ago and we took care of it ourselves with flea powder and bombs...but you are paying rent..the apartment management should take care of it ASAP!

[sunrico90]

Originally Posted by Astrid J

Hello Everybody,
Any advice or Home remedies...please hurry, cause i feel being eaten alive by fleas!!!!! We moved here in this Apartment about a week ago, and at first all was fine. Then i noticed the bites on my ankles (my Daughter and Hubby too), but mostly me... and now....oh boy....120 bites and going! What can i do to help the itching and to get rid of those Fleas ???? The Rental Office is bringing in the Orkin Man today to Fume out the Apartment. But does that really help? I have lived in many places...Stateside and Germany...but this is a first ever....Please, what helps??? Someone said skin so soft from Avon? After the fuming...then what ?
Thanks so much already!

Astrid J,

Give us an update....

[Christian11]

Originally Posted by Astrid J

Hello Everybody,
Any advice or Home remedies...please hurry, cause i feel being eaten alive by fleas!!!!! We moved here in this Apartment about a week ago, and at first all was fine. Then i noticed the bites on my ankles (my Daughter and Hubby too), but mostly me... and now....oh boy....120 bites and going! What can i do to help the itching and to get rid of those Fleas ???? The Rental Office is bringing in the Orkin Man today to Fume out the Apartment. But does that really help? I have lived in many places...Stateside and Germany...but this is a first ever....Please, what helps??? Someone said skin so soft from Avon? After the fuming...then what ?
Thanks so much already!

Dude, FL flees are the strongest in the USA. We moved into the apt and the previous owner's dog left flea eggs and they hatched. They had to fog the apt.

If you have pets, talk to your vet about something called "Revolution". Also Capstar is a quick flea killer, very good stuff. You are hearing this from a vet's son.

[C Risley-OcalaHouses.com]

You will have to use Precor first (you can only get it at a professional pest control store) 1 can does 2000 sf $20 or so. This will kill the preemergent fleas. You may have to treat one more time. If you do have animals make sure they are off the floor until it drys. If you have birds take them out of the apt for the day.

[FedUpInFtMyers]

I don't know why, but this time of year is always the WORST for fleaa where I live. I got some good advice from a pet rescue person, and it is as follows:
Sprinkle 20 Mule Team Borax on the carpet and vacuum after 20 minutes or longer. Apply Sevin dust to all pets and anywhere they sleep, but only after bathing them in regular Dawn dish detergent, the blue detergent. Start at the front of the animal and work your way back to keep the fleas from running into their eyes, ears, or mouth. Leave the Dawn on for 5 minutes and rinse. You will see A LOT of dead fleas. It actually kills them on contact and is safer than a flea dip or flea shampoo.
I know the original poster said there are no pets so hopefully keeping the bed linens washed and carpets vacuumed constantly with a throwing away of the vacuum bags in addition to the use of the 20 Mule Team Borax, which can be found in the laundry detergent aisle, and the Sevin dust, found in any gardening center, will work. As far as topical treatments for pets, I never had a problem when I was getting Revolution for my pets. I have had some problems in the past with Advantage and especially Frontline. No idea why Frontline doesn't work so well here, but is just doesn't. Revolution covers EVERYTHING from ear mites to heartworm prevention. Good Luck.

[Turtle]

I know you don't have pets,but there is a company called Virbac that makes pet products (including things like flea and tick control) I think they have a house spray or some kind of treatment, so if Orkin doesn't get rid of the problem, I would recommend looking into their products, I work for a vet and we really like their products and recommend alot of them to our clients. I would also highly recommend treating your car etc...it may be possible that you can carry the fleas on your clothing or items that you carry with you regularly, for a short time and they drop into your car and the infestation continues. I would mention though, if there is a flea problem outside the house in a yard or common area, you will probably never be rid of them long term.

Good luck

[Abllas]

Yeah, MoMark is completely right.

I had an infestation where the fleas infested me, my cat and my whole house. Luckily i got it bombed, cleaned the house till I was physically drained, and then sold anything the fleas could live on, including curtains bed sheets blankets and other stuff. After that I was clear of the fleas, but I noticed the "wiggly rice" on my cats ass, I googled it and it turned out that my cat had tapeworm, got her dewormed and I was finally free of the pests and bugs.

If the fleas do infest your head, (some people say only lice can do that, but i'm speaking from experience that yes, fleas can and will infest your head) What I find works best is R&C lice shampoo, it comes with a nit comb that will help an awful lot. Comb through thoroughly and keep applying the shampoo once a week for as long at 2 months or longer. That will guarentee that the fleas don't come back, if your house is clean, and your pets, and your head, you shouldn't have any more problems.

If they do come back, don't waste your time. Move out, your landlord will freak but no one deserves to put up with that, move.

Really, fleas have tormented me, my family and my pets, we had our share of experience with pests and bugs and I quite frankly come to the conclusion that it was uncomfortable, annoying, and you kinda just wish it was over every single second. I never ever thought that these infestations could cause such a huge impact on my life, so be careful when it comes to bugs like fleas, ticks, lice, tapeworm (tapeworm will infest you too, thats a fact, it's not that common but they can and will live in your gut) and other bugs.

Hope this helped, it was coming from a VERRY (maybe a little too) experienced person.

[Lu Ann]

Hello ASTRID J,
My hubby does pest control. You need to ask your Orkin man if they do an annual flea treatment. It consists of a boric acid powder that gets beaten into the carpets by a machine. It really works as we did it to our house and it lasted several years, but that also depends on how often you shampoo the carpets. Until then, they can spray the furniture and carpets but eggs hatch every 7-10 days so it needs to be repeated for several cycles till they are gone. There is not a one time cure all by spraying. The annual is worth it but check around to several companies as Orkin being a national group will probably pricier than a mom and pop local company and the materials will be the same, so be a smart shopper. I would think that spraying the furniture and carpets would be better than fumigation as it will penetrate better but either way will require you to be out of the place till it dries. Also check your clothes before you walk into your apartment, as fleas will get on you too from the yard. Whoever was there before must have had pets, now the pets are gone and the fleas are starving for "attention"!

[HockeyMom72]

Home remedies. I used this years ago and it really did work. If you have rugs, get 20 Mule Team Borax. You will need at least one box per small room. Spread it all over the rug and work it deep into the rug with a broom. You can also put some of it inside the cushions of your furniture. Leave it there for several days and don't vacuum. The idea behind this is that this is a salt derivative and it disintergrates the fleas, their eggs, and larvae.

As for the pets, go to a health food store and get brewers yeast. Mix a small amount of this in with their food. I don't remember how much but you can ask at the store or call the Vet. Actually, it was my Vet who recommended this as a "natural" way. I don't remember exactly what this does. Something like it gets in the animal's bloodstream and fleas don't like it - more or less.

I know this might all sound crazy but it really does work. I had tried everything from sprays to dippings (almost killed one of my cats) and nothing worked until this.

It is all natural and very inexpensive.

[wickedmountain]

Yep Borax soap or even salt can help.