Keep fleas, ants, and roaches out of your home for good with these 12 easy methods
Keep fleas, ants, and roaches out of your home for good with these 12 easy methods
Fleas, ants and roaches are common household pests. There are many products that claim to kill these annoying critters, but most of them are full of harsh chemicals, require you to leave your house for a few days or leave a toxic residue in the carpet that you wouldn’t want your children or pets to be playing on.
Instead, a number of safer home remedies can get rid of fleas, ants and roaches using common household products and good hygiene practices. Keep reading for 12 awesome methods:
1. Use dishwashing detergent against fleas
Borax: This versatile powder can be sprinkled on surfaces to kill and deter fleas, but be careful about using it near your pets and children. Leave it on the floors for 12 to 48 hours before vacuuming it up.
Rosemary: Steep 1 to 2 cups of fresh rosemary leaves in boiling water; after it’s cooled, mix with your pet’s bath water for a flea dip. Allow your pet to air dry.
Apple cider vinegar: Add a capful to your pet’s drinking water daily; fleas don’t like the taste of sour blood.
Dish soap: Used as either a bath shampoo or trap, dish soap kills fleas. To make a trap, get 1 shallow dish (or more) and fill it with warm water. Add a few drops of dish soap and place on the floor, close to light.
2. Deter ants with household products
Yeah they’re tiny and virtually harmless, but when ants start marching through your kitchen like they own the place, it’s a problem. Depending on your preference, you can either kill them or repel them.
Ant Repellents
Lemon juice: Spray or squirt lemon where ants enter (walls, cracks, etc.), and the scent will deter them.
Chalk: Sounds funny, but people claim that by drawing chalk lines at entry points, ants won’t cross the path. The calcium in it acts as a repellent, and gardeners tout chalk powder for its effectiveness, too.
Cinnamon and clove: One of Granny’s faves. Combine these two powders together and sprinkle around the house to keep ants away.
Cornmeal: Using cornmeal indoors or outdoors is known to get rid of ants and their nests.
White vinegar: Spray a solution of ½ water, ½ vinegar where they hang out and the smell will drive them away.
Ant K.i.l.l.e.rs
Borax: Mixed with sugar, water, and dish soap into a spray, this recipe is a disaster for ants. You can also make borax bombs by dipping a cotton ball into a solution of borax and sugar and setting them out.
Red pepper: Cayenne powder blasted into cracks, anthills, or any other spot will kill them.
Honey traps: Watch the video below by Sicilian Prince to see how to whoop ant butts with honey. Seriously.
3. Roaches
Everyone’s favorite immortal creature – the roach – can be defeated with the right tools.
Diatomaceous earth: Great for getting rid of fleas too, FOOD GRADE diatomaceous earth placed around the house will dehydrate the bugs from the inside out. Another bonus? It’s harmless to pets.
Baking soda: Mix it with powdered sugar to lure them into a digestive death trap. Once ingested, their guts disintegrate.
Borax: You can’t go wrong with this one: 3 parts borax to 1 part sugar. Sprinkle in cracks, crevices, cabinets or floors. It has the same effect as the baking soda cocktail.
Though using Borax is very effective, you want to be careful about pets and kids inhaling or ingesting the loose powder. For more serious bug infestations, longer application periods for these remedies may be needed, or you may decide to hire a professional exterminator.
4. Wash and vacuum … everything
To get rid of fleas, you need to get rid of their eggs and larvae, so spend a day washing everything in the house where they might live. Throw all your bedding, bathroom mats, clothes and soft rugs into the washing machine, paying special attention to your pet’s favorite blankets or cushions
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If you have a pet and the flea problem has been bad, it might be worth throwing out its bed and getting a new one, since fleas lay their eggs in the stuffing as well as the cover. Next, vacuum your house thoroughly and be sure to get into all those dark spots; fleas love to live in areas that don’t get a lot of sunlight.
5. Salt your carpet
A layer of salt will dehydrate and kill the fleas living in your carpet. Use finely ground salt, and sprinkle a generous layer over your entire carpet. Leave it for one to two days or as long as you can, and then thoroughly vacuum.
6. Make a natural flea spray
Once you’ve controlled the initial flea population using the steps above, make your own natural products to keep the fleas away. Neither of these contain any harsh chemicals and are safe to use around the home, but be careful not to use rosemary oil or powder on your cat; it might have an adverse reaction.
Source:tiphero.com, remedydaily.com
