How to Get Rid of Dust Mites
Nearly every home is host to a hidden danger that may be causing you, your friends or your family to experience an allergic reaction. If you or anyone who spends time in your home suffers from mysterious ailments, the cause of the problem may not be so mysterious. Like many allergens, they cannot be seen with the naked eye, but they are in your home with you, crawling on your bed and through your carpet. They may be stuck to your clothes or directly on your skin, because skin makes up the bulk of their diet. They are known by many names, but most commonly, they are referred to as dust mites.
About Dust Mites
The house dust mite flourishes in many homes, especially ones that are not thoroughly cleaned. They are thought to be a leading cause of asthma and other allergy symptoms. These pests are not insects but arachnids and are closely related to the spider. However, unlike spiders, they do not eat living creatures. Instead, they eat a combination of dead skin and other small food particles. Their common name came about due to the fact that house dust is primarily composed of dead skin, which is shed by people and pets at an extraordinary rate, so they gather in dusty places to feed.
Dust mites do not bite living people or animals, and they pose no particular danger to those who are not sensitive to the allergens they produce. People who are sensitive to dust mites are not allergic to dust mites themselves, but they are allergic to their feces and their discarded exoskeletons. Allergic symptoms can take many forms, but the most common include runny or stuffy nose, sneezing, trouble breathing, watery eyes and skin irritation.
Dust mites thrive in warm, humid environments. They live best at temperatures between 75 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit with a relative humidity between 70 and 80 percent. In this environment, females can lay eggs every three to four weeks, which is about the same length of time it takes for dust mite larvae to mature. This allows the population to grow tremendously large in a very short time. Mature dust mites are a creamy blue color when viewed under a microscope, and they can live for nearly three months.
If you are experiencing allergy symptoms from an apparently unknown cause, dust mites may be the culprit. Fortunately, because dust mites are such a widespread problem, a lot of attention has been placed on how to get rid of them. Several methods have proven effective, so far. Using a combination of these methods is a sure way to rid your home of dust mites, but you must also be vigilant and keep up with the treatments or a reinfestation can quickly occur.
Where Dust Mites Live
To get rid of dust mites it is important to understand where they live. Although they can be found just about anywhere, having been carried through the wind, a few particular places are known to be their favorite for nesting and breeding:
• Rugs and carpet – Rugs and carpet hold a lot of humidity, and they capture a lot of food-carrying dust and other food particles.
• Bed – Beds and pillows are favorite habitats of dust mites because your body often generates moisture while you sleep, creating a comfortably humid environment in your sheets, mattress and pillows.
• Furniture – Sofas and chairs may also harbor large populations of dust mites, especially if you spend a lot of time on them or eat while sitting on them.
• Curtains – Curtains, especially thick or heavy drapes, collect a lot of dust, thus attracting dust mites.
• Plush dolls – Stuffed animals and other plush toys may also harbor dust mites.
• Clothing – The clothes in your closets, your dresser, on shelves or in your attic are very attractive to dust mites, and they provide a good means of transportation in getting to other locations in your home.
Once you know the areas you have to target, dust mite treatment can begin. Treatment initially starts with eradication of the existing population. After that is accomplished, dust mite treatment consists of keeping up with preventative measures to make sure they do not return.
Climate Control
The first and easiest way to treat a home for dust mites is to control the indoor temperature and humidity. Of course, this becomes more difficult in the summer or in tropical climates and requires the use of air conditioning. If you have rooms that are not air conditioned, you may want to purchase additional air conditioners or extend your central climate control system. If not, the dust mites will simply gravitate to the rooms most suitable to them.
Air conditioners are the perfect weapon against dust mites because they affect both the temperature and the humidity. When you first begin treatment, you will want to lower the temperature below 70° F. If your home is properly insulated without any drafts, this will also sufficiently lower the humidity, which should be less than 35 percent. If your air conditioning does not sufficiently lower the relative humidity in your home, you may want to consider purchasing one or more dehumidifiers to take care of the job.
Once you have eradicated the dust mites in your home, you should be safe at temperatures lower than 75° F, but running stand-alone dehumidifiers will become more important the higher your thermostat is set.
General Cleaning for Getting Rid of Dustmites
General housecleaning will not remove all dust mites from your home, but it is a good start. For the most part, general cleaning means vacuuming and removing dust deposits and small food particles. If you are like most people, you probably have places in your home where the dust has piled up a little too thickly. For your own health, you may want to wear a facemask as you are cleaning.
The first step, logically, in cleaning your home is dusting. Try to get to places you do not always clean but may be harboring dust. This includes the tops of shelves, the tops of books, window blinds, nooks, crannies and other hard-to-reach places. Once the freestanding dust is taken care of, you will want to clean with a damp cloth and a cleaning solution containing either bleach or ammonia. Just remember never to use both bleach and ammonia at the same time.
After the hard surfaces are clean, you can start vacuuming. You will want to use the hose attachments of your vacuum to clean your curtains and your furniture upholstery. Ideally, your vacuum cleaner will have a HEPA filter that will capture all of the contaminants without shooting them back out and spreading them even further around your home.
After the curtains are vacuumed, you will also want to vacuum your furniture, including your mattress and pillows. Be sure to clean the outside of your furniture thoroughly and inside all the crevices. Finally, finish up by vacuuming all of the rugs and carpeting. If you have hardwood floors, it will not hurt to mop them with an ammonia-containing cleaner.
Laundry for Dust Mites
Everything that can be laundered in your home should be laundered. Clothes you have not worn in years should be washed along with all of your favorites. All of yours sheets and pillowcases should also be washed. A hot-water wash cycle that lasts 15 minutes is usually enough to kill all the dust mites that might be living in them.
If you have fabrics that cannot be washed in hot water, as an alternative to washing them, you can kill all of the dust mites by freezing them. Put the items in a freezer for 24 to 48 hours, and then, put them through their usual wash cycle or have them dry cleaned.
Deep Dust Mite Cleaning
General cleaning is not always enough to get rid of dust mites, so deep cleaning may help. One of the best deep cleaning methods is professional steam cleaning. Steam will eradicate all of the dust mites in your carpeting, rugs and upholstered furniture. If your allergy to dust mites is strong and you do not want to steam clean your carpeting on a regular basis, you should consider stripping it out and going with hardwood or tile floors.
How to Kill Dust Mites
Killing the majority of dust mites in your home may be as simple as cleaning with standard cleaning products, hot water and steam. However, this will never eliminate dust mites 100 percent. A few simple ideas can help you reach as close to that 100 percent mark as is humanly possible.
No pesticides are labeled for treating or killing dust mites indoors. Even if there were pesticides, you probably would not want them sprayed in your carpeting and on your furniture. As an alternative, you can use two natural compounds that will help kill dust mites: eucalyptus and tannic acid. Some people add a few drops of eucalyptus oil to their laundry to help kill dust mites. Several tannic acid products are also available over-the-counter and are safe to use inside your home. In addition, several branded natural dust mite control products are also available that can help kill dust mites without the use of chemical pesticides.