(This link will open in a new window)Health & Environmental Services
Tel: 08450 450 063
Contact Centre:
Mon - Sat: 8.00am - 8.00pm
Offices:
Mon - Fri: 8.30am - 5.00pm
Fax: 01954 713149
Email: env.health@scambs.gov.uk
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Dust Mites
South Cambridgeshire District Council do not offer a treatment for dust mites.
The house dust mite Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus is about half the size of a dot or full stop. The mite has no eyes, no organised breathing system, cannot drink and lives for approximately 3-4 months. Twenty droppings a day may be produced by the mite, which means approximately 2000 during its lifetime. The house dust mites can get nourishment from its own droppings and may eat them up to three times over. The females can lay from 60-100 eggs depending upon living conditions, which ideally, are warm dark and damp for breeding mites.
Methods of treatment:
- Freeze - Putting soft toys or small soft furnishings in the freezer overnight will kill the dust mites.
- Lower Humidity - Tumble dry soft furnishings on a hot setting or place in direct sunlight to kill the dust mites.
- Washing - Wash sheets and blankets at 60c
- Avoidance - Dust mites need damp areas to survive.
For more information visit www.housedustmite.org (This link will open in a new window)
