Lice Removal FAQ

What are nits attracted to?

Nits are lice eggs and are glued to the hair shaft and do not come off easily. Nits are not attracted to anything since they don’t move.
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Can mayonnaise kill lice?

If mayonnaise could consistently kill lice, why would there be any lice products, prescriptions, and lice removal businesses?

Think carefully before you attempt this home remedy. Every article that recommends mayo also recommends combing with a lice comb because lice combing gets rid of lice. Mayo may suffocate some of them, but you won’t get the nits and probably won’t get all the adults. When lice can hold their breath when submerged in water for more than 8 hours, mayo is not going to do much.
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What can I spray on furniture to kill lice?

Unless they are body lice, they will die within 8-24 hours without spraying anything. Your best option is to vacuum the furniture, concentrating on the headrests.

Spraying listerine on your furniture is a great way to damage or ruin your furniture and won’t kill head lice. Don’t do it.
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How long can lice live in carpet?

After spending 8-24 hours off a head, without feeding, head lice will dehydrate and die. Any nits that fall off the head are unlikely to hatch and if they do, they will die very quickly unless they can feed,

Unless you are rolling your head around on the carpet, you are not going to get head lice from there.
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Can a hair dryer kill lice?

It is unlikely you will completely eliminate head lice using a hair dryer without damaging your scalp or hair in the process. Even professional services that rely on heat devices with carefully calibrated temperature and airflow manually comb for 30-60 minutes or more after they use the device. If you are tying to treat lice on your own, get a professional quality metal lice comb, some hair conditioner, and start combing regularly.
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Can you get lice from a quick hug?

Yes. If you are worried, get a professional lice check and you’ll have peace of mind instead of fretting about it. Lice spread primarily from head-to-head, or hair-to-hair, contact.
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Do lice like clean or dirty hair?

Lice do not care if hair is clean or dirty. They are bugs that evolved to live on heads of all kinds and eat blood to survive. It’s not worthwhile to anthropomorphize head lice or label people as dirty or clean because they were unlucky enough to get head lice.
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What is the best treatment for lice?

The best treatment is fast, effective, affordable, convenient, and healthy.

Compare all the time and money lost trying to do it yourself: the cost of a lice comb and products, lost wages from missed work, lost daycare days you already paid for, childcare for missed school days, and hours spent combing on irritated children, hiring a service will be the best option.

If you simply can’t afford it, I recommend buying a lice kit, a high quality, metal lice comb, and learning how to comb for lice and manually removing all lice and nits.

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How long does it take to get rid of lice?

It depends on how you treat them and if you check and treat everyone that might have them.

Here are the ways to get rid of lice from fastest to slowest.

Shaving everyone’s head. It’s the fastest, but also very unpleasant.
Hiring a lice service is the second fastest way to get rid of lice. When we finish your treatment you are lice-free and 100% non-contagious.
If you can get a doctor’s appointment quickly and a prescription and it works on the first try, you should be lice-free in a week or two.
Buying a kit and manually combing everyone’s head with a high-quality comb will take you at least two to three weeks to be absolutely sure you are lice free, but you should check once a week afterward to be safe.
Home remedies are a gamble and may make the problem worse because you will think it’s gone, but it is still there and steadily getting worse as the lice reproduce and spread to more people.

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Can head lice live on pillows and sheets?

It is possible for head lice to live on pillows and sheets for about 8-24 hours. After that, they will be too dehydrated to generate the saliva they need to feed and will dies. They do not burrow into beds or pillows.

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How do you get rid of lice quickly?

Identify who has it and who doesn’t by checking everyone in the household or getting a professional lice check.
Treat everyone at the same time using a lice service, a drugstore lice kit and combing everyone’s hair, or combing with hair conditioner. If you choose to treat it yourself, you will have comb through everyone’s head multiple times until there are no signs of lice.
Wash your sheets and pillowcases in hot water or put them in the dryer or high for 30-60 minutes.
Optional: bag up anything that can’t be washed and has contacted an infested person’s head and leave it for 48 hours. Vacuum the headrests of your furniture and car. Lice rarely spread from these objects, but it is possible.
Continue checking for lice once or twice a week for three weeks to ensure it is gone and no one was reinfested.

The fastest way to get rid of lice is to hire a service to do it in one appointment.
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Based on 962 reviews

Touk Keo

Really sweet and kind space for my lice check. My kiddo loved it and most likely we’ll come back again.

Kim Cabrera

Fast and thorough. She did a great good job thank you for getting us in so quickly. We have been to your clinic for the last 2 years.

Anna Campbell

Margaret is amazing, and as a mom there’s nothing better than knowing you’re being cared for yourself too! Couldn’t recommend more highly!

Ellen Whatmore

Shayna got our family of four in immediately and got us lice-free with kindness and patience. 10/10 recommend

Stephanie Bekooy

Nobody wants to have to deal with lice in their house (ever), and I was so relieved to get such excellent service from Lice Charmers. Margaret was fantastic! She was friendly, efficient, and full of helpful information. She is GREAT at what she does! We're relieved to have taken care of the cooties, she helped us to know exactly what we needed to do at home, and she advised us on the best way to avoid future problems. I cannot recommend Margaret enough!

Lorri Trussell

Super awesome! Came in on a Holiday weekend to help us! Did a fantastic job and gave me piece of mind that the lice are finally gone for good.

Brian von Dedenroth

My daughter got denied going to overnight camp since they found lice. We had several incidences at her school this year but we thought we were in the clear. Lice Charmers were able to see her same day in the morning. The Portland location seems like it's in a sketchy building near the railroad tracks and with a lot of vacant offices. Once we entered the suite though it looked like a clean barber salon. Shayna the lice charmer was great. Professional, courteous, knowledgeable and good working with my 8 year old. She also offered a signed letter asserting my daughter had been treated and was lice free. The camp asked for it so I was glad to have it. I would recommend Shayna and Lice Charmers if you find yourself needing professional help. At $225 though it's not cheap.

Kendra Linders

June took such great care of my daughter. She was thorough, fast and an absolute delight. She made my 4yo feel comfortable during the entire treatment.

Katie Mitchell

Such peace of mind knowing that someone who knows what they are doing treated my daughter. June was very professional and kind, answering any questions we had. Highly recommend!

Julie Kevin

We had a great experience! My kid found out last minute she had lice and was terrified of missing out on sleep-away camp. On a sunday afternoon, i was able to easily book a last minute appointment for 5pm. The technician was awesome. Explained everything and really put our minds at ease. She offered to check me as well during the same appointment. Turned out i had it too. She was able to work me in during the same appointment. Great experience! 2 thumbs up!

In-Home Lice Removal

One appointment and you’re lice free!

No devices, chemicals, products, or aftercare required.