Help! How Do I Get Fleas Out of My Durham Home?

Are you at your wits end? Have you spent days, or even weeks, trying everything you can think of to get rid of the fleas in your Durham home? If so, you're not the first Durham resident to experience this. Some flea infestations can be extremely difficult to address. You can bathe your pets, apply flea collars, use home remedies (and also store-bought flea control products) on every inch of your home, and still have fleas appearing. If you're wondering what on earth is going on, we have a few insights that might help you solve the mystery.

Durham Fleas

First of all, the fleas that you're likely dealing with are cat fleas, or Ctenocephalides felis. This species is the most common in the United States and they plague dogs, cats, and people. An adult cat flea is 1/4 of an inch long and dark reddish-brown. Fleas in general range from 1/12 to 1/16 of an inch long.

Flea Development

If you see fleas in your Durham home that are smaller than ¼ of an inch, they're not baby fleas. They are fleas of a smaller species. This is important to understand. You're not going to see fleas until they start springing around inside your home. A flea will go through three stages of development before you start to see it.

Egg - The eggs of a flea can be almost microscopic. Viable eggs will be found in your carpets, bedding, couch, other furniture, clothing, and in the gaps and cracks of hardwood floors.
Larvae - When fleas hatch, they look like little worms or maggots. These will be found where the eggs are found. If larvae can find flea dirt (the feces of adult fleas) they will be able to grow, cocoon themselves, and develop into pupae.
Pupae - This stage of the flea will remain cocooned. In its cocoon, the flea will develop into an adult.
Adult Fleas - At this stage, the flea will wait in its cocoon until it sees an opportunity to take a host. It may also respond to the presence of a human and break free of its cocoon to get a blood meal.

What You Can Do

Since fleas get into rugs, furniture, cracks, crevices and other hiding places in order to develop, you must target these to get rid of eggs, larvae, cocooned pupae, and the flea dirt that the larvae need for sustenance.

Vacuum all rugs, hardwood floors, and furniture. Be sure to get every crack.
Put all clothing and bedding through a 30-minute dryer cycle. This will exterminate fleas in all stages of development.
If you use products, be sure to use veterinarian-prescribed products that have a residual effect. These will address any fleas that emerge from their eggs.

The Problem With Flea Control

If you've been unsuccessful at killing the fleas in your home, it is likely that you're only addressing the symptom and not the problem. There are many things that can kill adult fleas, but killing adult fleas won't eliminate the eggs in your home. And many treatments have little effect on pupae because they're protected by their cocoons. Any products used to address a flea problem must be residual. This is so that emerging fleas will be destroyed by the product long after the treatment has been applied. These products are best handled by a licensed professional.

Three Ways The Eco Man Can Help

If you live in Durham, The Eco Man Pest Solutions can arrest your current infestation and also help you keep fleas from becoming a problem again.

Our technicians apply appropriate products to break the cycle of infestation and prevent fleas from continuing to reproduce inside your home.
We offer ongoing exterior pest protection that can include flea management. When wild animals bring fleas into your yard, they don't live long enough to get onto your pets and find their way into your home.
Rodents can be a key part of your flea problems. Mice, rats, squirrels, and other rodents can bring fleas into your yard. When mice and rats get inside, they can carry fleas into every part of your home. Our technicians can address any rodent issues inside or around the exterior of your Durham home.

The Next Step

When fleas, rodents, and other pests become a problem, The Eco Man has the solutions. Hop over to our contact page and tell us about your pest control problem. We know that it can be frustrating to deal with fleas and other pests. It is equally as frustrating to spend time, energy, and money correcting a pest control problem only to have the pests continue to plague you. Get relief. Reach out to The Eco Man Pest Solutions today for flea control that works. We also provide commercial pest management services for businesses.