Getting Rid of Fleas

The best thing you can do for fleas in your home is vacuuming. Vacuum your carpets and floors as much as possible, every day if you can, but at least three days a week. You can also buy some chemical sprays and foggers if you have a bad infestation.

If you do this, make sure you buy a product that contains both an insecticide, such as pyrethrin, as well as an insect growth regulator (IGR) such as methoprene. This ensures that the spray will kill both adult fleas, as well as eggs, larva and pupae.

The key to this simple program is to continue to treat both your home and pet long past the time the fleas seem to be gone. If your pet stops scratching, still treat them with Frontline. If your home seems fine, don't stop the frequent vacuuming. Fleas can be quite tenacious and hide out as eggs and larva, only to surprise you with a new infestation just when you think you're in the clear.

While a serious flea infestation can be both horrific and difficult to eradicate, with careful attention to the above steps, you can achieve success even in the most dire circumstances.

If, however, you follow the plan of treating both your home and your pet, vacuuming daily, treating problem areas with an IGR containing spray, and treating your pet regularly with drops such as Frontline, and you still can't get rid of the fleas, it may be time to consider a professional pest control service.

These are easy to find and generally offer free consultations and even money-back guarantees in the event they aren't successful. Before you incur this additional expense and hassle, do follow the steps detailed above. Many people fail in their flea control program because they give up and quit too soon, allowing the fleas to re-infest their homes and pets.

flea drops

As we've seen, effective flea control requires that you treat your home as well as your pet. Flea eggs and larva aren't present on your pet, but in the carpet in your home, in bedding, and outside where your pet frequents. There's no point in killing the fleas on your pet if they're just going to be reinfested from eggs and larva in your home.

Treat your pet

There are many products these days that provide effective flea control for your pets. The easiest, and most effective, are the long-term oral and topical treatments, such as Program, Frontline, and Advantage. They're easy to apply, and generally provide long-lasting protection from fleas, often for up to a month per application.

These products are the most popular and effective way to treat to treat your pet for fleas. They're simple to apply, don't require messy sprays or powders, and work for up to one month. Regular applications of these flea control products will prevent re-infestation, once you've rid your pet and home of fleas.

These topical treatments are far more effective than traditional sprays and powders. They're also less toxic, and more localized to the pet being treated, as opposed to sprays which result in a toxic cloud being released into the air, in addition to on your pet.

The Electric Nissan Leaf

First released in late 2010, the Nissan Leaf has been dubbed the "world's first affordable, zero-emisssion car." Unlike a hybrid vehicle, which uses both an electric motor and a gas engine to provide power, the Nissan Leaf is entirely electric.

This approach also differs from the upcoming Chevy Volt, which has an auxiliary gas generator to provide power when needed. As of this writing, the Leaf is the only all-electric compact family car on the market.

All of the electric motor's 207 foot pounds of torque is available from a standing start. This is quite unlike a gasoline engine, where the torque increases with engine RPMs.

nissan leaf review

Charging of the battery is done in three different ways:

1. With standard, three-pronged 110-120v household current like you'll find in any home. This is not really intended for every day use, unless you drive less than 40 miles, but more for "topping off" while you visit a friend. Charging will take about twenty hours using household current.
2. What Nissan calls "level 2" and uses 220-240v, such as you would use for your electric clothes dryer in your home. This method requires a hard-wired charging dock be installed by an electrician, which is then connected directly to the Leaf.
   
   These charging docks are estimated to cost about $2000 to install, but this price may be offset by Federal tax rebates to some extent. Full charge from a depleted battery will take about seven hours using this method.
3. DC Fast Chargers, which require 480v and take only 30 minutes to add about 80 miles of range to your battery's charge. These chargers require industrial rated power supplies, so you won't find them in the average home or business.
   
   Most likely, the prevalence of DC Fast Chargers will depend a lot on the adoption of electric vehicles like the Nissan Leaf. For most drivers at this point in time, one of the other two options is going to be much more practical.
The Leaf's official 100 mile range is just an estimate, of course, and will be effected by driving style, temperature, and other ambient conditions. Other factors, such as using the heating and cooling for the cabin or the head lights, will have a minimal impact. The Leaf also uses regenerative breaking, which means during deceleration, the electric motor is engaged to generate current to charge the batteries, which also slowing the car. So, much of the energy you use to climb a hill can be recovered while going downhill. The design of the Nissan Leaf is much like you might expect from a typical compact car, although much more modern looking. The front end is very low profile since there's no combustion engine, and the hood includes two unusual looking headlights. Light is produced by solid-state and very efficient LEDs, and the headlight design itself diverts the airflow off to each side to reduce wind noise and drag. The Nissan Leaf also uses an advanced GPRS system similar to that used in cell phones to locate and track nearby charging stations that are within range and plot them on the built in map screen. And, since the Leaf is so quiet, Nissan actually created specific sound technology, which produces noise while the car is under way to warn pedestrians.

Flea Drops for your Pets

Flea eggs and larva aren't present on your pet, but in the carpet in your home, in bedding, and outside where your pet frequents. There's no point in killing the fleas on your pet if they're just going to be reinfested from eggs and larva in your home.

Treat your pet

There are many products these days that provide effective flea control for your pets. The easiest, and most effective, are the long-term oral and topical treatments, such as Program, Frontline, and Advantage. They're easy to apply, and generally provide long-lasting protection from fleas, often for up to a month per application.
These products are the most popular and effective way to treat to treat your pet for fleas. They're simple to apply, don't require messy sprays or powders, and work for up to one month. Regular applications of these flea control products will prevent re-infestation, once you've rid your pet and home of fleas.

flea drops

These topical treatments are far more effective than traditional sprays and powders. They're also less toxic, and more localized to the pet being treated, as opposed to sprays which result in a toxic cloud being released into the air, in addition to on your pet. Flea drops are a particularly convenient way to treat your pet as well.

For many people, applying any kind of chemicals to a pet's skin is unacceptable. Fortunately, there are many natural flea control remedies available, which don't use chemicals, but instead rely on essential oils and herbs to repel fleas. Garlic, brewers yeast, and eucalyptus oil are just a few of the natural flea remedies you can use. See our natural flea control page for more details.

For many people, treated flea collars seem like a safe and convenient method to control fleas on their pets. Unfortunately, despite what manufacturers may claim, collars alone are not very effective at controlling fleas. Flea collars generally work in one of two ways - either by emitting a toxic gas, or by releasing toxins that are absorbed into the layer of fat beneath the pet's skin.

The toxic gas method is usually only effective in the immediate area of the collar, i.e. the pet's head and neck. These collars are best used in vacuum cleaner bags, where the gas is contained, and can be effective against fleas that are vacuumed up.

Flea collars that release toxins that are absorbed into the fat layer are much more effective. These can contain pyrethrins, as well as IGR's, or insect growth regulators that inhibit flea egg and larva growth. Remember, controlling the early stages of the flea life cycle is just as important as killing adult fleas.

Ask your vet for recommendations bout the best collar for your pet. Some ingredients, such as permethrins, should not be used on cats. Your vet should be able to recommend, and even provide, the best flea collar option for your pet.

Keep in mind, as with any topical flea treatment, success depends on treating the environment as well. That means consistently killing fleas in your home as well, and undertaking a regular program of treating and vacuuming your carpets, particularly the areas your pet frequents, washing bedding, and treating any other areas that may harbor fleas, eggs or larva.