graceless Posted April 3, 2005 Share Posted April 3, 2005 Hi guys, I foster dogs, and have a lot of dogs through my place..anyway, one of them had fleas and now i feel inclinded to flea bomb the whole house just as a precaution. How should i go about it? the only tank that will be in a treated area is a standard 4 footer that has plants and a few small fish in it. How have others dealt with this issue before? how do you recommend i do it. Cheers Grace Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuckmeister Posted April 3, 2005 Share Posted April 3, 2005 You'll have to move the tank, Grace. I cant see any other way around it. The other options are a little risky IMO Chuck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
graceless Posted April 3, 2005 Author Share Posted April 3, 2005 moving it isn't an option hmmmm... alternatives to the aerosol flea treatment/prevention? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ash Posted April 3, 2005 Share Posted April 3, 2005 Can the inhabitants be moved & the tank emptied in situ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
graceless Posted April 3, 2005 Author Share Posted April 3, 2005 Sadly, no/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ducksta Posted April 3, 2005 Share Posted April 3, 2005 Turn anything off that draws external air (ie. airstones) and cover the tank in heavy blankets. If the tank is lightly stocked as you say, you should be fine to bomb away. I have done this and had no losses, but I agree the other options are far less likely to cause grief. Also I take NO responsibility if anything goes awry, as my advice is based on what worked for me, ONCE :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
graceless Posted April 3, 2005 Author Share Posted April 3, 2005 Cheers Ducksta. THat's what i was thinking of doing. And mate, i'm not a d*#$%ead. I wouldn't BLAME you if something died. I have 2 bristlenoses, 3 cories, and a krib in there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ViS Posted April 3, 2005 Share Posted April 3, 2005 I have 2 bristlenoses, 3 cories, and a krib in there. Sounds like a pretty easy tank to remove the inhabitants from for a day or so. Why not put them in a bunnings tub for 24 hrs with a filter from the main tank? Then cover the tank anyway, but you won't have to worry suffocating them when you switch the air off overnight. Either way they should survive. As ducksta said, switching off the airpump is the main thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eddie Salita Posted April 3, 2005 Share Posted April 3, 2005 Two alternatives I know of are: Hydrated lime powder(the stuff brickies use) and garlic are dynamite on Fleas. The lime kills em in 30 secs on contact, and the garlic...........kills em dead also If you have hot dry dirt in your yard, fleas will love it there, so hit that with the lime. They will be gone quick smart. I dont have any ideas on how to use them inside the house, but they are VERY effective alternative flea killers. Cheers, Jason Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
graceless Posted April 3, 2005 Author Share Posted April 3, 2005 Awesome Eddie. I will definitely get onto that. I don't even know if there are still fleas around... just getting dogs from the pound kinda invites them really. I just want to be on the safe side. Will the lime kill my grass? Will it make the dogs sick? Do i need to water it in? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eddie Salita Posted April 3, 2005 Share Posted April 3, 2005 In the past I have just sprinkled it around the areas of the yard where there is no grass on a dry day by hand coz the fleas congregate in the hot dry areas. It will burn sensitive skin, so dont breathe it in! I dont water it in. I dig it into the vege garden soil(makes em grow), but I dont put it on the leaves so I dont know whether it will burn the grass. I have never noticed any skin reaction on my dog, but I do watch to make sure she doesnt get a rash. She seems to avoid the areas where i put it as well. Maybe because of the smell? I dont know how/why it works with plants, maybe someone with a green thumb can explain? But fleas sure hate it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bru55el Posted April 3, 2005 Share Posted April 3, 2005 Ducksta wrote: Turn anything off that draws external air (ie. airstones) and cover the tank in heavy blankets. If the tank is lightly stocked as you say, you should be fine to bomb away. I have done this and had no losses, but I agree the other options are far less likely to cause grief. Also I take NO responsibility if anything goes awry, as my advice is based on what worked for me, ONCE I agree as I have had to bomb a few times in situations where I could not move the tanks and i haven't had any loses yet. I went so far as to cover the blankets with heavy black builders plastic for added piece of mind. I also make sure that I put my air pump on top of the tank underneath the blankets so no nasties get anywhere near it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skippy Posted April 4, 2005 Share Posted April 4, 2005 Hi Grace, I "bombed" my house a few months back (damn spiders) no fishy fatalities were recorded. I remove anything that is poking out of the tank ie power cords, hoses or whatever. I then sealed up the top with a liberal application of glad wrap and then laid a blanket over the whole thing for insurance. You're supposed to turn off all the power in the house, so shutting down airpumps etc is a given. After the recommended dosing time, open all your doors and windows for a couple of hours before your remove the seal on the tank. Running fresh carbon in the filter may help absorb any nasties that land on the water. If I don't see your scratching at the next CDAS meeting I'll assume your flea eradication was successful. Cheers Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ged Posted April 4, 2005 Share Posted April 4, 2005 When I flea bombed the house a few years ago I like some people placed a towel over the tank except I wet the towel and wrung it out so that it was damp but not dripping. It worked for me. Gerard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
graceless Posted April 4, 2005 Author Share Posted April 4, 2005 Mmmm... another good idea. I may not have to flea bomb after all.. but i want to do something. I just get paranoid. Cheers guys. Hopefully all other dog owners will find this info useful at some point too. Grace Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rosco Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 Grace, I get my house professionally sprayed every year for spiders and other such nasties and I just do what Mike (Skippy) does Except I am a little lazier and I don't throw a blanket across the tanks. In saying that he is extraordinary careful when spraying around the tanks, it is a controlled spray (unlike a bomb I suspect) and he uses pryoethreme (sp???). But I reckon if you did put a heavy blanket over the tank it would be really help. cheers Rosco Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cannula Posted April 6, 2005 Share Posted April 6, 2005 I have had to flea bomb different rental houses over the years, about seven times all up with up to ten tanks in the house at the same time, no loses. I find it easiest to remove any hoods and just go nuts with the glad wrap. Make sure you turn off any airlines too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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