Question
QUESTION: I have been having a huge problem with fleas in my home.  We have bombed the house twice in the past two weeks.  We have used Borax on the carpeted areas and we have also used a product given to us from a local exterminator.  Unfortunately we STILL HAVE FLEAS in our home.  We have hardwood floors everywhere in our house except the upstairs which has berber carpet.  Is there anyway of getting rid of these horrible insects?

ANSWER: Susan,

I'm afraid you've been given some bad advice. Flea bombs or foggers are not effective because fleas live on the pet and in the pet's bedding. By fogging you treat, at best, the small percentage of the flea population that is off the animal or away from the "nest". Borax (or borate) treatments don't work either for the same reason. The only treatments that consistently work target the host animal (pet) and the bedding.

My first choice for on-pet flea control is Frontline TopSpot (not Plus) and to treat the pet's bedding and your home with methoprene insect growth regulator. Advantage will work as well but it does not control ticks. Flea collars are not very effective against fleas but they do work against ticks so I recommend that if you want to use Advantage also use a flea (tick) collar.

Here's an article about flea control http://www.livingwithbugs.com/flea_con.html that should be useful. Be sure to follow the links for Frontline, Advantage and using methopene. Post a follow up if you have questions after looking over this material.

There are ways to control fleas without the relatively expensive Frontline or Advantage. See the pages cited above if you have the time and energy to go this route.

Jack DeAngelis, PhD
Extension Entomologist (ret.)
My website about home and garden pests: http://www.livingwithbugs.com



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: My pets are strictly outdoor animals and have been treated with frontline.  So now i just need to get rid of the problem in the house.  Is there anything i can do?

Answer
Are you sure these are fleas? Cat fleas (the species that infests dogs and cats) can't survive on our blood alone so won't develop in a house without pets. I'd suggest capturing a few and having them identified. If they are a different species we can talk about control options. You can get them identified through your local Cooperative Extension office, google your zipcode+"Extension" for the nearest office.

Jack DeAngelis