How does dust affect pets?

Dust: composition and properties

Dust is an effective insecticide, which is produced in the form of a fine crystalline powder of gray (sometimes yellowish) color. The active ingredients of the drug are fenthion and deltamethrin. The composition often contains auxiliary components, including talc and compounds that attract parasites.

The dust is completely diluted in organic solvents, but upon contact with water it forms an emulsion. It is interesting that the Swiss chemist P. Müller received the Nobel Prize for the discovery and study of the properties of the insecticide.

The principle of operation of the product

This insecticide belongs to the group of cumulative poisons. The product remains on horizontal surfaces for a long time. Small particles of dust stick to the covering tissues of fleas and get inside the parasites. As the insecticide accumulates in the body, it causes paralysis and then death of insects.

Particles of the substance do not adhere well to vertical surfaces.

If you treat the floor with the solution, the effectiveness of the product will remain for 1-2 weeks.

Instructions for use

Fleas parasitize the body of warm-blooded animals, but do not always live on the skin. More often, bloodsuckers settle near a food source, for example, they hide under parquet flooring, in cracks on the floor, behind baseboards, in rooms with high humidity (in the bathroom, in the kitchen).

Fleas hide under hardwood floors and in cracks on the floor.

Dust powder can be used in different ways:

Sometimes the cracks in the floor and the space behind the furniture are filled with a dry product and left for a while. This method is suitable for treating non-residential premises. If there are children or pets in the house, leaving insecticide on the floor is dangerous.
The powder can be diluted with water, after which the resulting emulsion can be used to spray furniture and wash floors. For residential buildings this method is more preferable.

Types of flea dust

Different companies produce this insecticide, adding certain auxiliary components to the composition.

"Double"

The drug is available in powder form, packaged in convenient packaging. The main active components are esfenvalerate (concentration is 0.01%) and zeta-cypermethrin (0.02%). The product also contains piperonyl butoxide, which acts as a synergist and increases the effectiveness of the insecticide.

The product “FAS-Double” is intended for the destruction of fleas.

"Baygon"

The product is intended for eliminating fleas and lice at home. Propoxur is used as the active component (concentration - 1%). The composition contains special additives, thanks to which the dust adheres to the integument of insects. The drug can accumulate in the body of warm-blooded animals, so it must be used carefully.

"Tornado"

A universal remedy that can be used to combat any crawling insects. The composition contains cypermethrin, boric acid and talc as a filler. 150 g of insecticide is enough to treat 100 sq.m. The drug is characterized by a low level of toxicity and is safe for pets, therefore it is often used to clean pets’ bedding and beds from fleas.

“Tornado” is a universal remedy for all insects.

"Clean house"

One of the most popular products, which is available not only in powder form, but also in the form of ready-made emulsions and chalk for treating vertical surfaces. The active components of the insecticide are malathion and permethrin. The drug retains its properties even when the room temperature increases or decreases.

Features of an effective product

Bedbug dust is an insecticide and comes in the form of a powder.
This drug is a mixture with pyrethrum, boric acid, and other chemical active substances. The powder is often offered in pure form or with special fillers. Dust - what is it? This question is often asked by homeowners looking for an effective means of combating bedbugs. It is a fairly common and highly effective drug that can retain its properties at different temperatures. Such characteristics have been confirmed by numerous laboratory tests, and it has also proven its effectiveness in everyday life. Among the unfavorable conditions of use, experts call high humidity in the room. The dust is sold (photo below) in packs of fifty grams, designed to treat an area of ten square meters.

How to use home cleaner

Instructions for use:

Before the procedure, you need to move the furniture away from the walls and carry out a thorough dry cleaning with a vacuum cleaner.
The prepared dust solution is used for cleaning floors. It is important to carefully treat baseboards and cracks.
Hard-to-reach areas of the room can be sprayed with a spray bottle.
Upon completion of the procedure, the windows and doors to the room must be closed. It is not recommended to enter the premises for the next 6 hours.
Later, it is recommended to wash working surfaces (tables, shelves, window sills) and door handles with a warm soda solution.

Before cleaning your home from fleas, you need to move furniture away from the walls.

Breeding methods

The powder is diluted with warm water - the substance will lose its properties in a hot liquid, and will not dissolve in a cold liquid.

Dosage:

with a slight degree of infection, take 20 g of the drug per 1 liter of water;
if the flea population is large, then the dose can be increased to 40 g per 1 liter.

Application of dust soap

Dust soap is used to remove blood-sucking parasites that live on the skin of dogs and cats. The method of application is simple: first you need to wet the animal’s fur, lather the skin and leave the foam for 15-25 minutes. After this, it is recommended to rinse off the remaining product thoroughly.

Dust soap is one of the available, effective insecticides.

How to use dust to clean your home from fleas

Insecticidal powder is used in two versions :

in dry form , scatter throughout the premises, paying special attention to the corners;
dilute the product in water , and then spray the apartment or house.

The second method is considered more effective , since it covers a much larger area , and, therefore, the effect of using dust increases.

It is impossible to work with dust without protective equipment - it is toxic not only to parasites, but also to humans . In addition, during the treatment of the premises, all pets must “removed” . To preserve the skin and respiratory tract, a regular respirator , as well as elbow-length rubber gloves Once armed with protection, the procedure is as follows :

40 grams of dust are diluted per liter of warm (not hot) water. If the degree of flea infestation is low, you can get by with 20 grams of the product.
Use the resulting solution to wash the baseboards and floors. Furniture should be treated with the solution at a height of up to one meter. It is also a good idea to spray the back surfaces of carpets and rubber underlays.
Hard-to-reach places should be sprayed with a spray bottle. These include far corners, surfaces behind furniture, cracks in walls and floors (surprisingly, spraying treats these areas better than washing with a rag).
6 hours after treatment, you need to wash work surfaces, such as door handles, kitchen tables, armchairs and chairs, with soda and soap water. If you initially used not 40, but 20 grams of dust, then you can wash the surfaces after 4 hours.

If the dust does not help control fleas in the apartment, then the procedure should be repeated . This should be done no more often than once every three weeks .
Attention! If the dust gets on your skin, you should immediately wash it off with running water. If it gets into your eyes, you should seek medical help.

Danger to humans

If you follow safety rules, treating your apartment with insecticides will not adversely affect the health of residents or warm-blooded pets. But inhaling dust or accidentally getting it into the digestive tract is dangerous, because... may lead to an allergic reaction.

The active components of the insecticide can accumulate in the human body.

If the concentration of substances constantly increases, this can lead to the development of hepatitis, pathologies of the heart and blood vessels, diseases of the respiratory system, and muscle paralysis.

What is dust, properties and composition

Dust or DDT is an insecticide that can destroy pests: fleas, cockroaches, bedbugs, lice. It has the appearance of a whitish or gray powder, without a noticeable odor.

The active ingredients are pyrethrum, boric acid and others. Another important component of the insecticide is pineronyl butoxide, an element that has the property of increasing the duration of action of other components of the composition.

The product is based on the active ingredients deltamethrin and fenthion. They act on insects through contact and, when they enter the body, cause paralysis and further death.

This contributes to a longer lasting effect from the use of the drug. Depending on the manufacturing company, there may be minor differences in composition, mainly aimed at giving a more pleasant smell or color. However, in practice it is recommended to use dust in its pure form.

The dust is sold packaged in 50 and 100 g in plastic packaging. To treat 1 m2 of room, 2–3 g of product is enough. Popular products are produced under the following brands:

Tornado;
Fas-Double;
Phenaxin;
Clean house;
Baygon.

The advantages of the product include:

high efficiency in exterminating pests;
Availability at any hardware store;
the ability to destroy the entire population of pests, including larvae;
minimal consumption when using;
long validity period (up to 15 days);
low price.

However, the main disadvantage of the product is toxicity. In some countries, the product is banned because its components accumulate in the body of humans and pets. Therefore, dust is most often used for anti-flea treatment of industrial facilities and non-residential premises, basements.

Dust powder is highly resistant to environmental changes, such as increases or decreases in temperature. The presence of dust in the processing areas also does not interfere with the process of baiting bedbugs.

But what can negatively affect the effect of dust is getting wet. Then the substance becomes viscous and loses a significant part of its effectiveness.

The scope of application of the dust is quite wide; it acts on bedbugs, fleas, prussians, ants and other pests. However, due to the peculiarities of using it against bedbugs, you need to take more powder than to fight other insects.

Another “pro” is the fact that the powder particles retain their activity for at least one to two months, continuing to destroy pests, and given the vitality and immunity of bedbugs, this is very beneficial to us.

Features of integrated flea control

Dust powder is one of the most accessible, cheap and easy to use products. But to remove fleas, it is not enough to walk across the floor with a rag soaked in an insecticide solution. In such a situation, an integrated approach is important:

Before treatment, thoroughly vacuum the floor, move furniture away, and treat corners and baseboards.
It is important to clean all textiles in which fleas could lay eggs. Clothes, bedding, and bedspreads must be washed in hot water using disinfectants.
To treat carpets, sofas and other upholstered furniture, it is better to use a steam generator, because... parasites die at high temperatures.
Fleas are also sensitive to cold. In winter, you can take carpets and other textiles outside or leave them on the balcony for several hours.

Before treatment, you need to vacuum the floor.

How to use this product to control parasites?

To get rid of parasites you should:

comb the cat thoroughly;
To reduce itching, give your pet the necessary medication (as recommended by a doctor);
change or wash the cat's bedding;
disinfect the apartment or room where the animal lives.

ATTENTION! Cat fleas move into carpets, rugs, upholstered furniture and clothes, so disinfection of the apartment is necessary!

There are many options for ridding cats of parasites. These are drops and shampoos, aerosols and injections, powders and flea collars, as well as folk remedies.

The best remedy is drops applied to the withers and neck area, where the cat cannot lick them off. The most famous are Bars, Frontline, Stronghold, Lawyer, Advantage, Inspector.

If your pet loves to wash itself, use Barsik and Biovax shampoos.

Comfortis tablets are effective, but the most common type of treatment and prevention is flea collars.

IMPORTANT! The collar is designed for 4-7 months of use; if your cat wears a collar, you need to remove it from time to time so that the animal does not rub its neck and does not experience irritation.

Folk remedies

It is believed that placing wormwood in the apartment has a great effect in the fight against fleas, since its smell repels them.

When washing animals, the use of tar soap gives good results, if, of course, your pet allows you to lather yourself with it from ears to tail!

Read more about traditional methods in the article.

Regardless of which anti-flea product is chosen in the apartment, the quality of the treatment also affects the result. The algorithm of actions is as follows:

If there is a cat or dog in the house, treatment begins with the animal. You can remove fleas from a cat or dog using pharmaceutical products. Veterinary pharmacies offer a wide selection of flea medications for pets: shampoos, sprays, drops, collars for various breeds of cats, dogs, their weight category and coat thickness. After eliminating parasites on an animal, you should put a flea collar on it to prevent re-infestation. If drops were used on the withers, the effect of which lasts 1-3 months, there is no need to use the accessory.
It is imperative to treat all pet accessories: cat or dog bedding, toys, accessories, houses. Pests can be destroyed by boiling or using a solution of flea medication that was used on the animal.
Wet and dry cleaning in the apartment. Females do not bother laying eggs in a quiet, secluded place; they do it on the go, as a result of which the embryos scatter throughout the room. Eggs are found in furniture upholstery, children's toys, and carpet pile. Using a vacuum cleaner can significantly reduce the number of eggs.
Textiles and bedding must be treated with a steam generator or subjected to another method of temperature exposure: washing at high temperatures, treatment with a hot iron sole, exposure to sunlight or freezing if sub-zero temperatures are recorded outside.
All accessible surfaces must be washed with a disinfectant solution.
When using insecticides against fleas, you should take care of your own safety. All work should be carried out wearing a respirator, closed clothing, and gloves.
During disinfestation, no household members or animals should be in the apartment. Aquariums and insectariums are covered with glass.
Flea poison is applied to furniture, baseboards, and walls at a distance of 1 meter from the floor. Particular attention should be paid to places where household waste and flower pots are stored, since this is where flea larvae prefer to live.
At the end of the procedure, leave the apartment for 2-3 hours, after which it is ventilated.
In case of severe infestation, the treatment is repeated after 4-5 days.

Due to a limited diet, the list of flea remedies will not be very long. The fact is that these insects are not able to eat the bait, so they can only be poisoned with the following drugs:

Sprays and aerosols - enter the body with oxygen, act very quickly, and help remove parasites in one day.

Crayons. As a rule, they are used to treat hard-to-reach places where the use of other chemicals becomes impossible. Crayons are considered a relatively safe product. The main thing is that there is no open access to them.
Powders. They are suitable for treating only horizontal surfaces, penetrate even the smallest crevices, and can destroy not only adults, but also larvae (the latter feed on organic remains and are therefore capable of eating poisoned food). You can use insecticidal dusts without problems in everyday life - the product is simply scattered under beds, cabinets, carpets and baseboards. Remember, the longer the powder sits there, the fewer insects will survive. Experts advise not to clean areas with dust for at least 4 days.

Sprays. They are considered one of the most convenient products and work equally well on any surface.
Liquid preparations are presented in microcapsules and ampoules with concentrated poison. The substance must be diluted in water for wet cleaning. The advantage of liquid products is that they cannot be swept out with the trash. The poison will remain in place until the next wet cleaning.

The first step should be to treat your pets and their habitats (rests, litter boxes, rugs, etc.). There are special safe products for this - shampoos, drops, tablets. You also need to close all the ways through which parasites can enter the apartment. Only after this can you start baiting fleas with an insecticide. Here is a whole list of fairly effective and completely harmless products, as well as reviews of them.

Raptor

An inexpensive spray with a long-lasting toxic effect. It retains its qualities for 3 weeks, so all the larvae will also quickly disappear. A distinctive feature of Raptor is its pleasant mint aroma.

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Sinuzan

A professional product for killing fleas, the use of which requires extreme caution. This strong concentrate is diluted in water, so you will need a respirator, goggles and gloves for handling. Due to its strong toxicity, it should not be stored in places accessible to children and pets. Unlike the previous version, Sinuzan has a rather pungent odor.

Chlorpyrimac

Another affordable and very good product. It is usually used to control garden pests, but it also works on fleas. Chlorpirimak is very easy to use. To get rid of parasites, just apply it to the surface, and after a couple of hours, rinse it thoroughly (until the white coating disappears).

Biorin

How to deal with fleas in an apartment? For this purpose, Biorin is often used. Unfortunately, there is no free access to it - this product is sold only in sanitary services. The main active ingredient of this insecticide is deltamethrin. "Biorin" is effective for 8 weeks, but most parasites die almost immediately.

Combat

To combat domestic fleas, you can use Combat, which contains aromatic additives of lemon or mint. Thanks to them, insecticidal treatment of the room becomes similar to using an air freshener.

This safe product is odorless and easily copes with both fleas and other parasites. “Varan” also prevents the reappearance of insects over the next 2 weeks.

Dust selection criteria

When choosing insecticides, you need to pay attention to the following characteristics:

composition - if the powder contains substances that attract parasites, then the effect of its use will be more pronounced;
release form - aerosols are much more dangerous than soap and products for preparing emulsions;
hazard class – level IV products are considered relatively harmless; if the packaging indicates class III or II, it is better to refuse the purchase;
cost of the product - more expensive insecticides are not always more effective.

What precautions should you take?

Dust should be used carefully, following the safety instructions:

For processing, you need special clothing that fits tightly to the body, as well as a mask, gloves and safety glasses.
During the procedure, the windows must be opened - the room must be ventilated.
Do not smoke, drink, or eat food while in contact with the solution.
If you have pets, it is better to move them to another place for a few days.
After treatment, clothes should be removed and washed at high temperature, and take a shower in case the product gets on your skin and hair.

Release forms

The effectiveness of the insecticide under discussion depends on several factors. First of all, it depends on the number of insects in the house and the extent of bedbug infestation. An important factor for achieving the best results is the competent choice of the form of the drug. There are four such forms in total:

aerosol;
dust;
gel;
spray.

Aerosol

Remove the stopper from the bottle.
We direct to the area where the parasites were noticed.
Spray for a few seconds.
After 15 hours we repeat the procedure.

Cypermethrin in the aerosol contains 13%, and tetramethrin - 2.5%. Particles of poison entering the airspace become harmless to humans and warm-blooded animals within a couple of hours.

Peculiarity. Bedbug dust “Clean House” is a powder that has an unsightly gray color. It is designed to spread in places where bedbugs are concentrated. But, judging by user reviews, it has proven itself much better in the fight against cockroaches and moths. Due to the reduced concentration of active substances, compared to an aerosol, more powder has to be used. A 50-gram package is enough to treat half a standard room in an apartment.

We put on rubber gloves and a respirator.
We open the package with dust so as not to accidentally spill its contents.
Sprinkle powder on bedbug nests.
After three to four hours, we wash off the powder, having prepared a soap solution in advance to thoroughly wash the places where the dust was applied, as when working with poison in the form of chalk.

The dust contains 0.2% cypermethrin and 0.02% tetramethrin. However, the composition of the powder is supplemented with another component - piperonyl butoxide, the concentration of which is 10%. Having become part of the liquidation “trinity”, the substance significantly prolongs the effect of the two toxic components. This means that dust treatment can be done once and, as a rule, does not require repetition.

Spray

Peculiarity. Clean House Bed Bed Spray is a relatively new form of insecticide. It differs from an aerosol by the same pressure inside and outside the bottle. While for aerosol these indicators are different. In addition, the latter sprays larger particles - approximately 5 microns, while aerosol particles are about 2-3 microns in size.

We remove the limiter.
We spray a few times to the side to bleed out the air.
We aim the nozzle at the parasites and spray their habitats.
If necessary, pour the contents of the bottle into a garden sprayer and work with it.

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It is believed that liquid preparations in the fight against bedbugs are more effective than “Clean House” powder for bedbugs. Therefore, if you have dust in the house, you can prepare the spray yourself. To do this, you need to dissolve 5 g of dry substance in 0.5 liters of water, pour it into a sprayer, and carry out the treatment in a well-known way.

Peculiarity. Gel “Clean House” is found on the shelves of supermarkets and hardware stores less often than other forms of poison. However, this particular form is considered one of the most promising. First of all, due to low toxicity. At the time of treating the house, the family does not have to leave their home walls at all - even pets can stay inside (provided that you prevent them from coming into contact with the insecticide). The person doing pest control only needs to wear rubber gloves and a respirator. Protective clothing is not required.

Apply a thin layer of gel to the areas where bedbug nests are concentrated.
Leave it for two weeks.
After the specified time period, completely rinse off the remaining product with water.
Apply a new portion of gel.

None of the developmental stages of the garden pest, except for the adult insect, harm apple trees.