What Do I Need to Clean After Head Lice?

There are many precautions you should take after finding head lice, but the truth is that you don’t need harsh cleaning agents or special chemicals to get rid of them. By taking a few simple steps, you can prevent reinfection and eliminate the source of the infestation. Before you begin the cleaning process, it is important to gather all of your home’s fabric and hair accessories. You can take large items to the laundry mat to be washed, or you can place them in a plastic bag and soak in hot water for at least 72 hours.

Once you’ve discovered that you have head lice, it’s important to clean your home thoroughly. You don’t need to strip your bed or remove every stuffed animal, but you should take the clothes you have in contact with infested clothing to a dry cleaner. This way, your clothes will be washed thoroughly and dried in a high heat. Another common source of head lice is a car. Whether your child uses the car frequently or has frequent contact with it, the seats are likely to harbor head lice, so you’ll want to clean them thoroughly after they’re infested. You can even use a vacuum cleaner to remove any infested clothing from the car.

You can start by washing all of your clothes and bedding before applying a lice treatment. Start by sorting your clothing like you would with regular laundry, putting the delicate items in one pile and the rest in another. After washing, make sure to put the clothes in the dryer on high heat for at least 40 minutes. For fabrics that cannot tolerate the heat, you can place them in a freezer for up to 12 hours and then place them back in the bag. This step is important, as heat kills the lice eggs in fabrics.

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