Treatment of apartments and premises from fleas

Tools Overview

To choose effective flea treatments in your apartment, you need to decide on the type of pest.

The following parasites may be found among household fleas:

• mouse or rat;
• feline, canine;
• sandy;
• earthen or basement;
• bedding

Regardless of the method of entry, they cause a lot of discomfort to all inhabitants of the room. Most often, such parasites are localized on carpets, beds, soft fleecy toys, crevices, baseboards, and sinks.

They may also concentrate in areas where pets live or on certain pieces of furniture.

If you know exactly the secret places of parasites, then it is possible to begin an effective fight and choose the right remedies for household fleas. The chemical industry produces many products against such insects.

However, when selecting an insecticide for treating an apartment, it is important that it meets the following requirements:

• it should have a detrimental effect on fleas, but should be safe for people and pets;
• when using it, there is no need for special equipment, and the processing could be carried out by anyone without professional skills;
• after disinfection, there should be no stains or drips on the furniture;
• the effect of the product should be quick so that the owners do not have to leave their homes for a long time;
• a complex composition that includes several active components that belong to different groups of insecticides.

The difficulty is that such insects often develop resistance to the most commonly used group of insecticides.

Therefore, to more reliably get rid of fleas in a residential area, it is advisable to use combined products.

Aerosols

Homemade flea treatments are often available in aerosol form. Most commercially available insecticides target not only fleas, but also other crawling and flying insects.

The general principle of action of such drugs is damage to the nervous system, which causes paralysis and leads to the death of pests.

When choosing an aerosol, it is important to pay attention to the active components in the composition. It is good if there are organic phosphorus compounds or substances based on pyrethrum (insecticides of the pyrethroid group), which have a detrimental effect on fleas.

In order for the purchased flea remedy to fully meet your expectations, you must proceed as follows:

1. The first stage of the struggle involves thoroughly cleaning the room and throwing out garbage and unnecessary things.
2. If there are carpets in the living space, they are removed from the walls or floors and sent to dry cleaning or taken out into the fresh air to fry in the sun or freeze.
3. All furniture that is near the walls is moved away.
4. All people and pets living in this premises must leave. If there is an aquarium with fish, then cover it with glass and turn off the compressor pumping air into the water.
5. The drug is sprayed or applied to all surfaces in the room: the floor, baseboards, corners of rooms, doorways or any other secluded places where such insects can hide.
6. The apartment is left for several hours with all windows closed. After this, the room is thoroughly ventilated, wet cleaning is carried out, and traces of the insecticide are removed.

As a rule, aerosols are recommended to be used twice.

To destroy new individuals or survivors after the initial treatment, the procedure is repeated after 7 days.

The following aerosols have proven themselves to be effective:

1. Raptor. Contains 2 active components at once (cypermethrin, tetramethrin), providing instant action. The product has a pleasant peppermint scent.
2. According to many consumers, this is the best remedy for fleas in the apartment. It contains 3 active ingredients at once: cypermethrin, imiprothrin, prallethrin. Does not contain ozone-depleting refrigerants. Has a pleasant lavender scent.
3. Dutch insecticide containing: piperonyl butoxide, methoprene and pyrethrum extract. Can be used both for treating apartments and for treating pets (cats, dogs). Its effectiveness remains even after wet cleaning of the room.

Aerosols can be an effective means of controlling fleas and are quite safe for humans, provided personal safety rules are followed.

Solutions

Special solutions are also actively used to treat apartments in the presence of fleas. These must be non-toxic products so that even children's rooms can be treated with them. Popular liquid flea products include Get Total.

The bottle with the product contains a liquid concentrate that needs to be diluted with water.

After preparing a solution of the required concentration, it is sprayed on the contaminated surface. The product dries after 8 hours, and microcapsules with the active substance remain on the treated surfaces for up to six months.

When new insects enter a living space, running over the treated surface, they pick up poison on their paws. It gradually penetrates the chitinous cover and affects the function of the insect’s nervous system, causing its death.

Get's solution is good because it affects both adult fleas and nits of fleas. The main condition is the presence of contact with the treated surface. The effect of such a solution is not immediate. It may take up to 2 weeks to completely eliminate pests.

An interesting feature: 3-5 days after treatment, fleas may become more active, and it may also seem that their number has increased.

But this is a good indicator. This means that the insecticide has worked and in 2-3 days they will all die.

How dangerous are fleas to humans?

The bite is sensitive because an enzyme gets into the wound with the little vampire’s saliva, thanks to which the blood does not clot. Therefore, the flea can get plenty of food. A small pink spot remains at the site of the bite, which causes severe itching.

Most often, bites are clearly visible on the legs. They are located scattered, in the form of small pink dots a few centimeters from each other. Flea bites are also noticeable on other parts of the body: most often on the arms, neck and armpits. If flea bites are actually present on a person, then there is tar soap and flea shampoo intended for people. If you find pink sores on your child's body, you should consult a doctor.

Depending on the individual characteristics, various lesions occur on the skin:

• allergies of varying severity,
• tumors at the site of the bite,
• swelling occurs and internal hemorrhages are possible,
• wounds become infected and ulcers form,
• dermatitis develops.

Before fleas bite people, they can parasitize other animals, transmitting infection and becoming pathogens of diseases: plague, typhoid, tularemia, salmonellosis, hepatitis B and C. They can also transmit helminth eggs, which leads to the development of parasites inside the body .

Important! Fleas are temporary parasites that can jump from one place to another, picking up an object to feed on. They develop best at t=+18-27C and humidity 70-100%. In 20-50 days, under favorable conditions, the flea turns into an adult. At low humidity the larva dies.

Folk remedies

Home remedies for fleas include the following:

1. Infusions of medicinal herbs. Their effectiveness is associated with a specific, pungent odor that repels insects. A popular mixture is wormwood, tansy and eucalyptus. Treat the room with the prepared infusion using a spray bottle, paying special attention to the floor and carpeting. Such infusions can also be effective prophylactic agents.
2. Pine sawdust. They are used to fill the beds on which pets sleep. This is a good solution to the problem if fleas were brought into the house by cats or dogs.
3. Cold or sun. It is recommended to periodically take pillows, mattresses, and carpets out into the fresh air. Fleas die when the air temperature becomes too cold or too hot.
4. Soda. The combination of baking soda and salt allows you to get rid of pests in small enclosed spaces. Having combined these two components (1:1), it is recommended to sprinkle the mixture on the floor. And the next day, cleaning will need to be done using a vacuum cleaner.
5. Wormwood and pine sawdust. It is recommended to scatter this mixture in front of the entrance to the living space of a private house. It will repel fleas and they will not attempt to enter.
6. Garlic and brewer's yeast. The floor is treated with this anti-insect composition and left for 10 hours. After this time, the room is thoroughly vacuumed.

If you have pets at home, you should definitely choose a product to kill fleas on them.

Classification of flea products

If parasites are found in the house, bites constantly appear on the legs, and signs of activity (jumping small insects) are noticed at a level of 1-1.5 m from the floor, you can remove them yourself. For this purpose, drugs based on toxic substances are used.

Such products are classified according to the form of release:

• powders or dusts;
• crayons;
• aerosols;
• sprays.

The products of the first group are the least effective compared to analogues of other types. This is due to the fact that during the processing process no poison enters the body of insects. Parasites come into contact with the poison only if they end up on the surfaces where it is applied. In other places, fleas may continue to exist.

Powders do not emit unpleasant odors. They do not contain volatile components that are released during processing. Such remedies only work in contact with parasites. Particles of dry matter corrode the chitinous covers, the poison penetrates the body, destroys the nervous system, which leads to paralysis and difficulty breathing. If you sprinkle the powder in areas where fleas are rare or do not live at all, the infestation of the apartment will continue.

The crayons are on the same level as the previously discussed products. With their help, stripes are drawn on surfaces. This is done in areas where parasites may occur. It is not advisable to apply stripes too often, as this increases the consumption of the substance and makes it difficult to move around the apartment.

The advantage of bulk products and crayons is the absence of a pronounced odor. Thanks to this, you can be in the apartment during processing.

Aerosols are more effective drugs. The poisonous substance is contained in a sealed container and is released through a sprayer. At the same time, tiny particles in the form of suspension enter the air. Gradually they settle on the surface where the treatment is carried out.

This method allows you to kill fleas faster, since the toxic substance penetrates the respiratory system of the parasites and at the same time settles on the chitinous integument. This is how the remedy works if you direct a stream of insecticide at jumping fleas when your home is heavily infested.

If the parasites were hiding at the time of spraying the substance, they will still have to come into contact with the poison, since the fine suspension gradually settles on all surfaces and continues to act for some period after release.

The advantage of aerosols is the possibility of penetration into the body of insects through the respiratory system and chitinous integument. In addition, the suspension covers the entire surface, and not part of the area, as is the case with crayons and powders. The disadvantage is the threat of poisoning people and pets.

Sprays are similar in principle to aerosols. However, unlike the latter, such preparations must be prepared independently. Purchase a concentrated liquid containing a large amount of insecticide, dilute it, and then use it to treat surfaces using a spray bottle. The disadvantage of the spray is its high toxicity. In addition, this treatment method releases a larger suspension than from an aerosol dispenser.