Fleas!!!

kschwab0203
kschwab0203 Posts: 610 Member
edited November 2024 in Chit-Chat
My new house is infested with fleas!!!!

It took us almost 6 months to find a house that had everything we wanted... right school district for the kids...yard for the dog, EVERYTHING. We went to pick up the keys over the weekend and it is infested with fleas! Thank God this is only a rental, but still!

The owner wants to treat the problem himself. I want him use a pest control company and make sure they are completely eradicated from the home before I move in. I've heard the DIY bombs don't really work.

Has anyone had any experiences with this?

Replies

  • cee134
    cee134 Posts: 33,711 Member
    Bombing it would probably work, and if there is no furniture inside then it will make cleaning up easy. Just make sure if he does that he cleans, the WHOLE house to get all the chemicals up. There is probably an issue in the yard as well.
  • laurenebargar
    laurenebargar Posts: 3,081 Member
    Same thing happened to us, before you move anything in you need to make sure they are gone, or else you will never get rid of them. We were alot younger, and didn't have the money to spend on a pest control company (the apartment would reimburse us but you cant be 100% sure of these things) we chose to eliminate it ourselves, with the DIY Bombs from home depot. We had one in every room (may have been overkill) left it the right amount of time (several hours) then went back in opened all the windows, left again for several hours, came back, and cleaned every inch of the house. The carpets we rented a cleaner for, we scrubbed the walls, etc. and we never had a problem again. It was a huge pain in the *kitten*. So if you have the money maybe go for the pest company, but I will mention what my husband always says about pest companies "if they really fixed the problem the first time, these companies wouldnt be in business long" Ive had friends who said the problem never really went away using a company, but you never truly know how its going to turn out.
  • laurenebargar
    laurenebargar Posts: 3,081 Member
    cee134 wrote: »
    Bombing it would probably work, and if there is no furniture inside then it will make cleaning up easy. Just make sure if he does that he cleans, the WHOLE house to get all the chemicals up. There is probably an issue in the yard as well.

    Oh yeah I didnt even consider the yard :o
  • SomebodyWakeUpHIcks
    SomebodyWakeUpHIcks Posts: 3,836 Member
    I need to tune my ukulele. What's the best way to do it?
  • RunHardBeStrong
    RunHardBeStrong Posts: 33,069 Member
    laurenebargar wrote: »
    cee134 wrote: »
    Bombing it would probably work, and if there is no furniture inside then it will make cleaning up easy. Just make sure if he does that he cleans, the WHOLE house to get all the chemicals up. There is probably an issue in the yard as well.

    Oh yeah I didnt even consider the yard :o

    Luckily we have never had an indoor infestation problem but once we started treating our yard, we have been able to stop treating the cat and dog with chemicals. I suppose if they aren't in the yard, they aren't getting on them. Of course we go for walks and to the park but the past three years it hasn't caused a problem.
  • pinuplove
    pinuplove Posts: 12,871 Member
    cee134 wrote: »
    Bombing it would probably work, and if there is no furniture inside then it will make cleaning up easy. Just make sure if he does that he cleans, the WHOLE house to get all the chemicals up. There is probably an issue in the yard as well.

    Good point about treating the yard. No use clearing the house if you're just going to be carrying more in on your shoes. Make sure whatever you (or the owner) uses (if you don't opt for the professional treatment) interrupts the hatching/reproductive cycle. Eggs can take up to 2 weeks to hatch (sometimes longer) and aren't necessarily killed by the bombing chemicals.
  • Tacklewasher
    Tacklewasher Posts: 7,122 Member
    Had to deal with fleas a few years back. Pain in the *kitten*.

    First and foremost, get flea protection for your pets. Pretty much removes the food source.

    We did the home DIY bomb and it worked pretty well. I'd give it a shot, with the understanding that if they still are there in a month, he gets the pro's in. Vacuum well and throw out the bags once done. Get into the habit of taking your shoes off at the door if you've been in the yard. For some reason, putting the shoes on dryer sheets is sticking in my mind as something we did. Not sure if it is an old wives tale or if it helped.
  • Riffraft1960
    Riffraft1960 Posts: 1,984 Member
    Had a bad fleas infestation about 20 years ago. It took 3 sets of bombing over about a 4 or 5 week period but it worked. Bombed, Hope we got all the eggs. A little over a week later fleas, but not as bad as before. Bombed again. Again about a week or so later more fleas, but not as bad, Bombed again, problem solved
  • kschwab0203
    kschwab0203 Posts: 610 Member
    Riffraft1960 wrote: »
    Had a bad fleas infestation about 20 years ago. It took 3 sets of bombing over about a 4 or 5 week period but it worked. Bombed, Hope we got all the eggs. A little over a week later fleas, but not as bad as before. Bombed again. Again about a week or so later more fleas, but not as bad, Bombed again, problem solved

    This is the problem with the DIY treatments. I am supposed to be moving out of my current house in 2 weeks. I refuse to bring my stuff into a home with a flea problem. Unless he agrees to have it treated by a professional, I am cancelling my contract.
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,423 Member
    My experience with non-professional treatments is that it will take repeated treatments to house and yard and animal as new fleas emerge.
    I'm not sure if a professional treatment is a one time thing.
    https://www.orkin.com/other/fleas/ suggests that there would be a follow up visit and other efforts.
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