Cut up a lemon, pour boiling water over it, and let it cool down overnight. Pour into a spray bottle and spray on furniture and pet bedding. It's supposed to keep fleas away; I don't know yet if it works, but it smells nice, and lemons in a blue bowl are always good.
Wonder if it will bleach things?
A flea repellent I swear by is to mix in a small spray bottle one part water, one part rubbing alcohol, with 10 drops of lavender oil. Fleas hate lavender, but I love it!
ReplyDeleteyes!
ReplyDeletei heard the same thing about lavender oil!
I had such a flea episode last year.
Now i murder them if i find them on my cats...that sounds so terrible..
I've never tried any flea sprays. Apparently Fleago is the bomb. Also, diatomaceous earth (if you can find it, sometimes at garden shops) is a kind of ground up soil stuff that sucks the moisture right out of insects, so it's good for fleas/roaches/ants/whatever else.
ReplyDeleteWe have a vaccuum that filters through water, it's really good for getting rid of flea eggs. It's the eggs and the larvae you have to watch out for, they make up 90% of the flea population in a home. The eggs like to hide in the cracks in wooden floors, so you need to vaccuum regularly. I suspect a deterrant spray will help keep fleas off couches and stuff but unless it actually kills them it won't stop an infestation. You need something that kills the eggs/larvae before they jump onto your pet and get their first blood meal and become adult reproducing fleas.
I have a bit of a thing about fleas, I swell up badly from them and they really seem to like my sweet blood. I search my cats regularly for fleas and squish the ones I do find.
Oh, what also works to draw them out of carpets and the like is a bowl of warm water on the floor. They are attracted to heat so will jump onto anything warm at foot level. You can also do a floating candle in a bowl of water.
You can also turn that mixture into a great room deodorizer afterwards by simmering the lemon peels with orange peels, cinnamon and cloves. Just be careful not to leave it on too long so the water evaporates! Makes your house smell great especially with multiple dogs!
ReplyDeleteThis reminds me of spraying lemon juice in my hair as a teenager. Not to repel fleas I hasten to add but to get summery highlights. I got highlights alright - and hair like straw for the rest of the summer. lesson learned.
ReplyDeletewhat was the outcome of your lemon bath...did it keep the fleas away? were there any bleach marks on fabric?
ReplyDelete