There are few things more unsettling than typing out the query: how to get rid of fleas in bed.
Because while finding fleas on your dog or your carpet is unpleasant, there is nothing worse than the feeling of finding a flea in the cozy, intimate space of your very own bed.
Seriously, is nothing sacred to these blood suckers?!
If you’re in the unfortunate situation of sharing your sleeping space with fleas, take comfort in the fact that it’s not too difficult to get fleas out of your bed. Yes, it’ll take some work but it can be done even without the expense of professional pest control.
The thing is – you want to start as soon as possible.
Fleas breed at an alarming rate and once they start laying eggs on or around your bed, the situation can get a lot itchier.
You don’t want that. So here’s exactly how you can get rid of fleas in bed in 6 simple steps. You’ll want to get started on it. Like, now.
But first…
Is it fleas in your bed?
First things first, before we get to ridding your bed of fleas, are you sure it is fleas that you’ve found in your bed?
Fleas don’t typically hang around in human beds so if you suspect fleas because you have bites or saw a tiny, disgusting bug – we’re sorry to break it to you, but it might be bed bugs, in which case, the situation just got a whole lot worse.
But don’t panic – here’s how to check which blood sucking parasite you’re dealing with.
- Check your mattress and/or your pets. Mattresses are prime real estate locations for bed bugs, but fleas won’t typically seek them out. Instead, fleas prefer to live in your pet’s fur – you’ll be able to see them moving between hairs. So if you’re not sure – check your mattress for signs of bed bugs. If you find nothing, you’re probably dealing with fleas.
- What do the bites look and feel like? Bed bug bites look like raised, flat red welts and often appear in a line or clusters – they don’t always itch. Flea bites can be randomly placed but usually occur around your lower legs, since fleas jump rather than fly or crawl. Flea bites tend to look like small red spots surrounded by reddish haloes. They itch like crazy.
- Watch how they move. If you can spot any live bugs, watch them to see if they crawl or jump. Bed bugs crawl. Fleas jump.
Okay, fleas it is! Thank your lucky stars and let’s move on to the next step.
How to get rid of fleas in bed
The first step to getting rid of fleas in bed is going to be painful, both for you and your pets because it means…
No more pets in your bed
…at least until the flea situation is under control.
We know, we know – you love sleeping with Fido on your bed but since flea infestations typically begin with pets, your furry friend is sort of like the flea “ground zero” and shouldn’t be allowed back into your bed until you’ve treated his fleas and followed the following steps to get rid of bed fleas.
How do you get rid of fleas on your dog (or cat)? Here are some foolproof guides:
Wash all your bedding
The second you find fleas in your bed, you should strip all your sheets, pillowcases, blankets, comforters and toss them into the wash. Wash and dry at the highest setting – fleas die at temperatures hotter than 95 degrees Fahrenheit so this simple step may be enough to wipe them out – as long as the flea infestation was confined to the sheets.
However, if you can’t remember the last time you washed or changed your bedding, the infestation might have spread to your mattress…
Suck up future fleas
Flea eggs can wind up anywhere since they don’t stick to animal fur (or any surface), which makes it easy for them to fall off pets and land on your carpet, cushions or your bed. And this is bad news ’cause it’s the flea eggs make up the majority of any flea infestation.
If you don’t clear them up now, the flea attacks will never completely stop. Plus, the thought of sleeping on a bed with flea eggs, larvae and pupae is seriously gross.
To clear your mattress of these future fleas, vacuum the entire surface of the bare mattress. Go over the surface two or three times and then flip the mattress over and repeat.
Remember to take the vacuum cleaner outside before you remove the bag so the fleas don’t sneak back into your house.
Completely de-flea your mattress
Some fleas may escape the vacuuming and others could be hiding nearby in carpeting and cushions, biding their time to jump back into bed with you.
To not give them even a sliver of opportunity, we’re going to completely de-flea your mattress.
Here are the best ways to do this.
Steam your bed
A steam cleaner is one of the best flea killers simply because it is an all natural way to kill fleas in all life stages. A steamer like Vapamore’s MR-100 Primo Steam Cleaner will reach temperatures of 220 degrees Fahrenheit, which is more than hot enough to kill off adult fleas, flea eggs and larvae.
Even better, the steamer can run continuously at that temperature for up to 60 minutes. You can steam all the fleas living in your bed to death in that time.
The only downside to the Vapamore Steam Cleaner is its price tag. Luckily, there’s a cheaper alternative that’s also great. The McCulloch MC1275 Heavy-Duty Steam Cleaner produces steam that’s over 200 degrees Fahrenheit for up to 45 minutes. And it’s half the price.
Use flea killers
If you don’t have or don’t want to go the steam cleaner route, you can use flea killers directly on your mattress. But since this is where you sleep, we don’t recommend actual pesticides. Especially when there are such great natural options, like…
- Food-grade Diatomaceous Earth (aka, “DE”) – get it here. Safe and non-toxic for you and total hell for fleas as it will dehydrate them to death on contact.
- Vet’s Best Natural Flea and Tick Home Spray – get it here. Natural flea spray that kills adult fleas on contact as well as flea eggs. Works immediately so you have less fleas in the short term while DE does its thing.
You can definitely use both but not at the same time. And we recommend getting a mattress cover.
Start by spraying your bare mattress with Vet’s Best Natural Flea and Tick Home Spray and then wait a few hours until the mattress is dry.
Once dry, scatter DE across your mattress and then slip on the mattress cover. Seal up the mattress cover.
The DE is harmless to you but we still want to make sure it’s sealed so you can trap all the fleas that are in your mattress. Once fleas come into contact with the DE, it only takes a couple hours to kill adult fleas, but we recommend leaving your mattress sealed for a solid month to ensure any hatched flea eggs have also made contact and died.
The mattress cover we recommend feels lovely on the skin and is comfortable to sleep on so a month is nothing. And plus, you’ll be getting rid of fleas in your bed while you sleep!
Prevent new flea infestations
The above de-flea method will eliminate fleas from your bed…but if you have fleas in your carpet, upholstery, cushions and around the house – it’s only a matter of time before you’re repeating steps #2 to #5.
You have better things to do.
So let’s do it right the first time – just like the first step in getting rid of fleas on your bed was to treat your pet, the last step to complete this extermination is to clear your house of fleas. Don’t worry, it’s not as hard it sounds – here are the best flea killers to completely eliminate fleas from your house.
I am having a hell of tine getting fleas gone from my apartment. Used bpmbs, barriers, sprays for furnature, exterminator, sprays for killing eggs,, dishes of soap by LED lights, vaccum, steamers, tea tree oil. These fleas are evolved and travel with me place to place. I even took a trip to Las Vegas from Illinois. They where with me all the way until i bpught new clothes. When put jacket on to go home where back again. I bombed with a fleas bomb for 3 days & 2 times a day. Came home & aired out house. They where right there & just seems to make them mad. I DON’T EVEN. HAVE PETS. How do i get these gone cuz spent thousand or more on treatment.. My phone number is 815-509-7499.
First, don’t ever post your phone number in a public forum, what’s wrong with you? Literally anyone can read that! Second, stop wasting money on home remedies and just call the damn exterminators already. You’re clearly missing areas with infestations. Let the pros handle it so you know it’s done properly.
He literally said “exterminator” in the list if things he’s tried.
I’m in the same situation!!
I can’t seem to get rid of them !!
Do you still have this problem if you don’t please share how you got rid of them permanently!!
Help!!!
It’s more than likely one of your closest neighbors that is the source of that particular infestation. You will never be rid of them until you locate the source of the problem, kinda like a zombie plague, find their lair or original apartment and attack them their. Maybe your best bet is contact the landlord, tell them your situation, and request that every tenant in every unit has a pest inspector come and find where it’s worst, where it originated from. I’m dealing with fleas on my 18 year old teacup Chihuahua, it’s sad, heartbreaking, embarrassing, and a flat out pain in the ass…seeing your post, it’s probably a 90 percent chance that there’s a neighbor in close proximity of your unit with the mindset of a redneck hillbilly gutter trash who doesn’t know what soap and deodorant is, so the last thing they care about is their pets health and well being. If your constantly at war fighting them back out of your apartment, chances are they are so overwhelmingly overpopulated in a close by apartment that your basically in the path of their tornado, they’ll keep coming wave after wave…idk but dawn dish soap on pets, baking soda and salt in the carpets help dry the area out, which is key, but vacuuming regularly and then IMMEDIATELY take the vacuum and bag outside, they are sneaky crafty tricky little bastards…maybe pour salt or baking soda all along the walls and door ways, maybe it will act as a barrier, but they more than likely will hop on gou for a ride into your place, but it’ll slow them down…hope my theories/suggestions help if you haven’t rid them yet, or moved out altogether. Good luck!
Hello, I have the same problem. and its not from a neighbor. the fleas followed me to my new house and I don’t even have a pet anymore. Did you get rid of your problem?
I’m having the same problem . I don’t have any pets and I live alone. I got some boxes out of a storage unit and within days my house was totally infested. I’ve tried everything and the exterminator found no evidence of rodents in my home. They’re living on me and it’s maddening. These fleas are in my hair and back . I swear it’s like a biological weapon- nothing kills them and all the online sites talk about treating your pets. This isn’t that type of flea and they go wherever I go no matter how many times I shower and wash my hair. Years ago when I had pets I would have occasional flea problems but absolutely nothing like this.
Try the lemon & apple cider vinegar home remedy
Did you ever get rid of the fleas?
You might actually have vasculitis instead of a flea infestation, if you haven’t actually found any fleas consult a dermatologist
Fleas need at least 50 percent humidity to survive. Use your aircon and make sure the humidity is lower than that for at least 48 hours. Don’t have an aircon? Try buying an industrial heater and keep the temperature over 95 F for the same time.
And to kill the eggs you have to vacuum a lot.
I have I think fleas bits on me I chech for bed bugs and did not have them on my mat. They jumy on me they never bit me before andvi have a rash red comes up. I put salt down every where and it hrlps it kill them I get spray for flesa and tick. I nom my houde once guess I’ll have to do agsin I’m very clean don’t know what else to do can you help. Think u
I found that if i shampoo carpets and put down baking soda. Shampoo carpets with flea and tick shampoo for dogs and cats. And with lemon stuff does not matter aslong as it has lemons. Do laundry with lemons and all of it. It a whole day exercise. Spray and shampoo furniture and beds aswell. Put baking soda down. For a few hours atleast. Then i spray a dab on a laundry sheet for drying and put under everything it. Gets rid of most infestations. But i do all floors
How do you know you have fleas? Have you seen the actual flea?
Maybe you have scabies which live on your body and then you need to treat your body appropriately according to a doctor.
From the sounds of it your issue probably is not fleas. Literally everything I’ve read about them said they cannot live on you (they can bite you and leave but not live on you permanently) or live in your hair since we don’t have a cover like fur/feathers they cannot stay and live on us. If you’re seeing them on you, in your hair and have bites on you constantly, you may have body fleas/body lice/scabies. You absolutely need to go see your Dr. like yesterday and tell them what’s going on. Good luck, hope you figure it out
This is pretty slick. The comments are a little much though.
I had a flea infestation and spent several hundred dollars on treatments that didn’t work. Someone told me about moth crystals. Sprinkle all over your house for a day then vacuum up. The crystals kill larvae, eggs and adults. Worked fantastic. Your vacuum is an incubator for eggs but when you vacuum the moth crystals it’s kills what’s inside your vacuum.
Naphthalene &/or paradichlorobenzene are the potentially toxic chemicals used in moth crystals. When used for clothes, they are sealed in with the items, and then the items are aired out before use. If I were to use them for fleas in my home, I would treat them like flea bombs and remain out of the house until ready to vacuum them up and dispose of them then air out the house a while. Good luck.
The BIG key in everything he did, all which is connected, I feel is the D.E. -diatamaceous earth. Shit works great on anything w an exoskeleton… let me say that again.. ANYTHING. TOTALLY DEHYDRATES THEM…DEAD. the bad, it WILL suck any moisture out of anything. Can use it on u j your pet. Just be prepared hair will feel like straw lol.but all dead… USE ALL around your house n use a fine metal cylinder to distribute or use the puffer bottle…rub into carpet, pets fur..u lol….then wait a lil bit, preferably overnight…. all DEAD. ..Has been no fleas for like 6 months…gotta do it again before winter house seal up….but….last thing….understand its gonna be like a volcano exploded nearby….n look like it….fine , grey powder…..EVERYWHERE……but no fleas. So, be prepared to dust…n dust….n more lol… totally worth a day or two of dusting :)♡♡
Can fleas infest a wig
Been fighting fleas living on me for 1 1/2 years! They are able to live off of me w/o needing to feed off of anything else. I know this because I brought them to work and then lived under my desk there (not bothering anyone else). My company at first believed me and treating my office, but give this huge expense I couldn’t go back I ask them to do it again when they came back. They have infected my two houses, my cars, and my office at work and they try to travel with me anywhere I go. I have tried many remedies including extermination by multiple pest control companies, my own self treatments which included everything I’ve ever heard anyone suggest including diatomaceous earth, borax, ammonia, plant oils, undiluted very strong pesticides of all sorts including IGRs, washing, mopping and vacuuming constantly, I boil my clothes in 15 gallon pots (inside of plastic bags). I wear I full body bee suit to bed so that I can sleep (this is specially fitted so that the feet and gloves are all one seamless piece). I have to wear thick boots with thick neoprene scuba socks to bed because they will otherwise poke through the bee suit and turn my calves and feet into beef tartar. I wear a double layer of the 3mm neoprene socks all day in shoes that are 2 sizes above my size. I have to tightly tape on the neoprene socks with medical tape for my skin and duct tape so they dont squeeze in and feed. If I make a mistake (such as leaving a small opening in part of my bee suit) the fleas get in. Once one gets in they all learn the trick very quickly. It takes alot of extra time to live this way, but at least I have greatly cut down on the number of bites I get. Still looking for the silver bullet! Btw, early on I had plenty of specimens, but in the past year I have not been able to get a good enough specimen to have the species identified. I seems to me that many of those have have posted above have a problem a problem with the same species. Given that these fleas don’t seem to bother most people, my current guess is that they are cat fleas, but I would really like to know for sure. Btw, I was even treated with Ivermectin (for scabies) which of course did not work.
You sure you weren’t diagnosed with scabies? Because they can easily do that. Seems strange to me that they would prescribe you Ivermectin without diagnosing you properly. There are also creams you can apply if you do have scabies.
Fleas need at least 50 percent humidity to survive. Use your aircon and make sure the humidity is lower than that for at least 48 hours. Don’t have an aircon? Try buying an industrial heater and keep the temperature over 95 F for the same time.
And to kill the eggs you have to vacuum a lot.
Very helpful. Thank you.
DE does work great and its cheap. However, don’t use it on your long haired dog. It absolutely ruins the fur for about a month.I ended up having to wash the DE off my Aussie it felt and looked so bad. I use topicsls on my dog DE on my carpets and beds. I also keep a bottle of instant killer spray that is natural. Believe me in working dogs you really have to stay on top of the fleas.i treat my Aussie year round whereas my Weims 9 months of the year as we live in a very cold climate.
Thank you for bringing even more important and excellent information and facts to I’m sure many people and myself.I thought I knew a lot more about the most miserable parasite to me at this time (please nothing more)that can invade your pet and home and drive you pretty much over the edge, it becomes a war between yourself and a minute “bug” before your very eyes. It’s really upsetting, so sometimes I wonder if I’ll ever concur them, I am having a terrible infestation that I can’t get a hold on, my poor cat’s, it is upsetting watching them. There not even outdoor cats. Besides asking for a miracle, I do have the “DE” and I’m wondering if you can make it into a spray from the powder, it has been successful to apply the powder by it self but different to maintain because of the time frame that’s required to leave it in place before you can vacuum it, my understanding is like 3 days, but if you can make a spray from it that would be so much better, I only have carpet in 1 room, so they are even more so in cracks and crevices. So Thank you again for the new knowledge for me that your article presented.
Much like baking soda, salt is a great natural flea home remedy when accompanied by vacuuming. Salt acts as a dehydration agent, helping to get rid of adult fleas. To treat fleas with this natural remedy take some salt (finely ground works best) and sprinkle it all over your carpets in each room.