You have just confirmed your worst fears; one of your loved ones has been carrying head lice. You just completed treating the affected individual and inspected other family members for head lice. Cleaning doesn’t stop there. Head lice can easily be transferred through direct contact via hair combs, towels, caps, pillowcases, blankets, and even fall off from the head to other home surfaces. Without proper cleaning measures, you risk spreading the head lice further, which can be quite challenging to eradicate. This piece aims to guide you through cleaning your house after discovering head lice.
Disinfect hairbrushes and combs in boiling water
Bring a kettle of water to a boil. Clean out all hair attached to the brushes and combs and soak them in hot water for about two minutes. It would help if you added a disinfectant in the water. Pick the combs and brushes using tongs and spread them on a mat to dry preferably out in the sun. Accessories such as earrings, phones, headphones, and glasses that come into contact with hair need to be wiped down with soap and water.
Put linens and blankets in the dryer
Water doesn’t smother head lice; hence, no need to wash the linens and blankets. Instead, turn the dryer on high heat and insert all your linens and blankets for about 30 to 45 minutes. Include all clothing, jackets, towels, pillowcases, and comforters worn in the past 48 hours.
Certain items can’t be dried due to delicate material. Things such as helmets, stuffed dolls, wigs, and hats need to be isolated, sealed, or bagged for 10 to 14 days. The hair wigs and helmets could survive in the freezer for about twelve hours. This should kill the lice effectively.
Consider dry cleaning some items
Be sure not to ignore certain clothes because you cannot wash them on your own. Consider taking them to the dry cleaners to remove any lingering lice. You might want to let the workers know about the head lice menace in your clothing. Alerting them about lice ensures that they will wash the clothes thoroughly and dry them in high heat.
Vacuum your home
Due to the frequent use of cars and direct contact between passengers and the car seats, your car may harbor head lice. For perfection, make use of vacuum cleaners at the car wash. Vacuum all surfaces to clear all head lice and nits. Pass the cleaners across all cracks and crevices to ensure your car is free from lice.
Bottom line
Head lice need a live host for survival. Basically, with all these cleaning tips mentioned above, lice lingering in your home should die in a few days. Before beginning your lice removal process, ensure that all your home occupants have been through the head lice treatment clinic and they are free from lice. Don’t panic, call us today and let us help you handle the head lice mess.
