i am new to this site as well as internet an computers. would like to say that most of the solutions for fleas is great and effective however more information an suggestions should be included. leas from previous owners, other people bring in, regardless if you have pets or not is a process an dedication to eliminate the problem. if you have pets i suggest you kennel them a week, vacuum entire home beds furniture. immediately take vacuum outside empty into plastic bag tie securely. all floors should be sprinkled with a mixture of borax, crushed dried lavender,basil,cedar an citronella. let stand 24 hours. vacuum everything up an again empty vacuum outside in plastic bag tied. make a spray to apply to beds, couches, pet beds made with 1/2 of your spray bottle of witch hazel, 5 drops each of lavender, lemongrass, peppermint, tea tree and eucalyptus fill rest of bottle with water. spray everything. mop all floors an floor boards with same mixture. bath your pets with an oatmeal shampoo and add few drops of lavender and tea tree prior to bringing pets back into home.. use the sray mixture weekly pet beds or where pet spends alot of time, if you dont want to use advantage or products of that nature should bath pet every 2nd or 3rd week in shampoo mixture. hope this is of help an relief to others out there. i also put cedar bow clippings under pet bed an around the yard

Mandy, I wish I could help you - any pictures of the varmints? I came to this thread because I do have spider mites on many houseplants I bought in early winter from big box stores during distressed sales, and I've been fighting spider mites for the past few months. I'll be honest - they're all in a room where sometimes they are forgotten for a week or more at a time so they get dry and stressed, and the mites don't get noticed sometimes until they've gotten down and dirty. But when I have found them and use the spray I bought (can't recall the name, got it at WalMart, in a green bottle) really well and wipe the leaves down, it keeps them off for a while. Then they show up on another plant. I'm just tired of fighting the spider mites - already have enough on my plate (2 toddlers, I work, I'm not the best organized, and we got a bit flooded in the recent rains, so I'm in "purge" mode) and want to know your thoughts on my choices: First off, is there such a thing as a total cure, as in they're not coming back? Or will this be a constant battle now that they're here? I don't remember my mom ever having spider mites with her plants, but she didn't have a lot of plants either (maybe this is why). Can I give them a good treatment with the spray and offer them on freecycle to anybody who would want to try to rehab them (with full disclosure of what they might be taking in), or is that just giving the mites the opportunity to infect somebody else's stuff... and therefore I should just toss what I have in the trash and save everybody the trouble? I know I will be giving the heave-ho to some fancy ivies (two kinds of "King's Choice" and "Gold Baby" which I thought were pretty but look a little bit ratty now), two earth star plants (just had pups), a Janet Craig dracaena that is in very good shape, a Pilea (Moon Valley) that looks awful but not because of mites (I just don't know what to do with it - I think it needs pinching and re-rooting but I'm never good at that so it's got legs a mile long and a few leaves at the top), a couple of diffenbachia (no mites), and maybe some more if I can make myself let go of them (corn plant that has a lot of mites on it (getting treated tomorrow), couple of little dracaena marginata, another spotted dracaena I brought back from near death, and my three red sister ti's in a pot but I don't think I can give them up... yet. Thanks in advance for your input. Terri

Hi Donna, I live in NC and work in veterinary medicine, so I get the flea question a lot. Perhaps I can offer you some helpful advice. The best product to use in your home is orthoboric acid (one brand is Flea Terminator II). This compound is completely non-toxic to humans and pets. The acid comes in a powder form which you sprinkle onto carpets as well as furniture (making sure that you get all sides of the seat cushions and under them). Also make sure that you get under furniture, fleas love dark places. After sprinkling on the powder, you brush it in using a broom and leave it. I would also make sure that prior to this, you vacuum your home thoroughly and then throw out the bag immediately. Anything that can be washed, wash in hot water. Keep in mind that flea larvae can live in your carpet for up to 9 months. I would also make sure that your cat is on flea prevention, and that you are applying it every three weeks for now (it is safe to do so). If there are ticks in your area, I would use Frontline, but if ticks aren't a problem, then I'd go with Advantage and keep her on it year round for now (stay away from grocery store products such as Hartz or Sargeants, they don't work and are toxic in some cases). Also, it would probably be best to get a professional exterminator to treat your yard - they will guarantee their results for up to six months. Just check make sure they aren't using anything that could be toxic to your kitty! It sounds like a lot, but, as I'm sure you've guessed, fleas are persistent little buggers! Hope that helps! Julie (Vet tech/Vet student)

Fleas can survive soap and water?! I read that they drown in plain water. I already know I wasted my time washng everything. I guess they did live through it. I read about a trick to use where you take a candle and put it in a water dish. The fleas jump toward the heat and CO2 but land in the water and drown. I'm so deparate I was even going to try that, even though it sounded bizaar. What I don't understand either is that it seems to be the basment that is the worst. It is just a cement basement. No rec room, no carpeting, no curtains. I just was down there again for about one minute to spray again (again!) and when I came up the stairs my ankles and feet and calves were COVERED WITH THEM. It reminded me of that old commercial for Off Incect Repellant where the guy sticks his arm into a glass box filled with mosquitos and they all land on his arm. The worst thing about these fleas is that when you slap them, unlike mosquitos, they just spring right up and can't be crushed. I went into my little tool room in the basement, where I rarely go, and there was so much flea dirt that it looked like coffee grounds were scattered all over the table. I had to SWEEP flea dirt out of one of my closets in the guest room there was so much. Things stored in the basement are covered with flea dirt. All my stored canned goods and extra stuff stored under the basement stairs is covered with black specks. HOW????? I know it it flea dirt because when I try wipeing it with a paper towel the specks turn red. How could this have gotten this bad so fast like they just exploded all over. I hope that I don't have the fleas down there because of critters. :shudder: Critters are just about impossible to get rid of once they get in. There are a lot of skunks in the area, I just had one on my back steps a couple of weeks ago. I had to stand in my driveway until it decided to leave. I was hoping it wasn't going to go to sleep there for the night. Front door was locked. Possums too. Lots of rabbits and squirals My garage is overridden with field mice even though I have glue traps, snap traps and poison all set out. Nothing works on those critters. If they got in the house I don't know what I would do. I have to deal with the death of my dear cat Max. My anger at Hartz. And now this flea nightmare that is getting worse and worse. If I find a nest of critters I am going to go insane.