will steam cleaning carpet stop flea problem

This is the first time we ever have been infested with fleas. Our dog had them on him and it took us 2 days to realize that he actually had fleas. And then we went to work with bombing the house, vacuuming the carpets and furniture, washing sheets on the bed, throwing out the dogs bed, washing all the dog toys in hot water, and spraying the carpets, flooring, and furniture. The dog has been treated with spot on treatment Frontline Plus, Capstar pills to kill adult fleas, and Program to kill flea eggs and larvae. And he gets a bath at least every 5 days. Since he has been on the Capstar pill I have not seen any fleas on him. But I know we still them since we have flea traps throughout the house and are still catching them. My first question is that if there are no fleas in a trap and it has been 3 weeks does that mean that room has no fleas? Second question is that we live in a 2 family home, with me and my family living on the bottom floor and other relatives living on the top floor, so if we went upstairs or in the car or anyone elses house, could we take the fleas on our clothes and have someone elses home infested or our car? Third and final question is that we are planning on steam cleaning the carpet and have gotten mixed opinions on whether to do it or not, will it help? and if we do treat the carpet/area rugs can we put powders (fleasbuster) down afterwards? How dry does the carpet have to be? Also, if we do steam clean the carpet does that mean fleas will hatch sooner and we can come home to a swarm of fleas afterwork? Just trying to get an idea on this. The dog would not be around when treating, so they won’t after him if we came home, any ideas or suggestions would help. I’m just not sure when this will be over.

My first question is that if there are no fleas in a trap and it has been 3 weeks does that mean that room has no fleas? No. FLEA TRAPS are a great tool to help monitor and even reduce local populations. But their range is limited. If you don’t catch any fleas for 4 days, move the trap 10-15 away from where it’s been and repeat the process. Only after you’ve moved them throughout the entire house for 8 weeks with no fleas having been caught can you safely know they’re done. But the key here is that during these 8 weeks, you will have been moving the traps as described above and not just letting them stay in one position.

Second question is … could we take the fleas on our clothes and have someone elses home infested or our car? Yes. Since 25-40% of our customers are people who don’t have pets, it’s clear that fleas will jump onto a person, take a blood meal and then lay eggs where this person resides. So it only stands to reason that if you had a flea hitching a ride on you during a trip to the other part of your home or even during a visit to someone elses home, you could carry a pregnant flea. But remember, the reverse is true. In other words, anyone that enters your home or your car could do the same whether they own a pet or not.

Third and final question is that we are planning on steam cleaning the carpet and have gotten mixed opinions on whether to do it or not, will it help? Steam cleaning will definitely help the fleas but not the “flea problem”. In other words, fleas need moisture. And when you steam clean your carpet, you’ll be both destroying all the chemical you’ve applied as well as added moisture to where they live. The end result is that they’ll be able to develop faster and thrive. So yes, steam cleaning will help the fleas. But my guess is you were asking if it would help stop the flea problem and the answer to that question is no.

…and if we do treat the carpet/area rugs can we put powders (fleasbuster) down afterwards? How dry does the carpet have to be? It needs to be completely dry. On average, it will take 1-2 weeks for the carpet to dry enough before any ONCE A YEAR FLEA GRANULES can be applied.

Also, if we do steam clean the carpet does that mean fleas will hatch sooner and we can come home to a swarm of fleas afterwork? There is no way to tell whether there will be a surge or not. Surging populations are dependent on when the pupae are ready to hatch so if there are lots of fleas ready to hatch following a steam cleaning then yes, you’ll see more.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

Flea Traps:  www.bugspraycart.com/traps/electric/flea-trap

Once a Year Flea Treatment:  www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/dust/first-defense-20-ounce-jar

Flea Control Article:  www.flea.net/flea-control