Cleaning Your Home After a Head Lice Infestation: A Comprehensive Guide

Discovering that one of your loved ones has head lice can be a distressing experience. After successfully treating the affected individual and checking other family members, it’s important to take additional cleaning measures to prevent the further spread of lice throughout your home. In this article, we will provide you with a guide on how to treat your home for lice.

How to Treat Your Home for Lice

Disinfect Hairbrushes and Combs

Start by boiling a kettle of water. Remove any hair that is stuck in the brushes and combs, and then soak them in the hot water for approximately two minutes. You can also add a disinfectant to the water for enhanced cleaning. Afterward, use tongs to remove the combs and brushes from the water and place them on a mat to dry, preferably under the sun. For accessories like earrings, phones, headphones, and glasses that come into contact with hair, wipe them down thoroughly with soap and water.

Use the Dryer for Linens and Blankets

Unlike washing, water alone does not suffocate head lice, so there’s no need to wash linens and blankets. Instead, set your dryer to high heat and place all linens, blankets, clothing, jackets, towels, pillowcases, and comforters worn in the past 48 hours inside for about 30 to 45 minutes. This heat treatment will effectively eliminate any lice or nits. 

However, delicate items such as helmets, stuffed dolls, wigs, and hats should be isolated, sealed, or bagged for 10 to 14 days. Hair wigs and helmets can also be placed in the freezer for approximately twelve hours to kill any lice effectively with a cold treatment.

Dry Clean Clothing

For clothing items that cannot be washed at home, consider taking them to a professional dry cleaner. Inform the cleaners about the presence of head lice in your clothing to ensure that they thoroughly clean and dry the garments at high heat, effectively removing any lingering lice.

Vacuum Your Car with Lice

Head lice can also be present in your car, especially due to frequent use and direct contact between passengers and car seats. To ensure a thorough cleaning, take your car to a car wash that offers vacuuming services. Use the vacuum cleaner on all surfaces, including cracks and crevices, to remove head lice and nits, thus ensuring your car is free from infestation.

Things to Consider When Removing Lice from Home

It’s important to note that head lice require a live host to survive. By following the cleaning tips mentioned above, any lingering lice in your home should perish within a few days. Before starting the lice removal process, make sure that all household members have undergone treatment and are free from lice.

If you need assistance in dealing with the head lice situation, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. Call us today, and let us help you manage the head lice situation effectively.