Mite infestation!

Question
Hi Diane,
I'm having a really urgent problem with mites in and around my bearded droagon's tank. Yesterday, I woke up to find literally thousands of grey coloured mites on all surfaces of my tank. However, on closer inspection, my fears were confirmed- the problem was certainly from inside, not outside the tank. The beardie has several wood furnishings in the tank and also corn cob substrate- am I right in thinking that it could have something to do with this? I have heard of a thing called mite off which can be used all inside the tank as it is non-toxic- however is it effective? Will just spraying around the tank do the job, or do I need to do a total clear out? And are there any better products available?
I am to the point were I am considering burning the tank completely and giving my beardie to a friend until I can afford a new tank. Any ideas?

Answer
Hi Jamie,
Oh, I hate those nasty lil bugs!
Since I do rescue, some of the critters came in with mites.  What I used and recommend 100% is called "REPTILE RELIEF" made by the company NATURAL CHEMISTRY.  The stuff is 100% natural ingredients, and is extremely safe.
To treat...  give your beardie a bath... spray him down with the "RR" and place him in another cage/tank or small container such as a tote or other solid surface container(you don't want to use a cardboard box as the mites can hide too well in that unless you burn the box immediately after spraying/using it.
Continue to take all hard objects/branches/etc out of his tank...Wash them and spray them down.  Dump what ever substrate you have in the tank into the garbage.  Was the tank, spray it down.
Go back and rinse off the branches, etc that were in the tank..then rinse down the tank, dry it well...
Put your beardie back in is tank..and spray down the temporary cage you used and then rinse it.  You may have to do all of this 2 times, possibly 3...
You have to do everything, there is no part way when treating for mites. You do need to also take everything out so that you can wash it well in the hot water and then spraying it with the RR.
I do want to point out that corn cob bedding or any loose bark /litter substrates should never be used with beardies as they can ingest it and it will cause severe blockages.  Go with newspaper or paper towels and if you want to have some sand in a "sandbox" in the tank, be sure to use only childrens play sand..NEVER use the ones that are said to be edible!
Now, what you may be seeing MAY not be reptile mites(but you can treat the same)but may be cricket mites that, due to the conditions with the corn cob bedding have provided a good place for the mites to grow.  in most cases mites come from pet stores(on the critter, on branches, etc or from in the substrate litter/bark/corn cob bedding.
If you have other reptiles, I recommend treating them and their cages also as reptile mites will get to them also be it they are transferred to them from you(handling one then going to the other).
Keeping clean cages is vital to keeping mites away...this also goes for the cricket mites that form in unclean cricket tanks.
If you need more info on proper uvb lighting, etc on beardies, check out some of my past answers or let me know and I will be happy to send you my caresheet.
Good luck with getting rid of the bugs and try not to get too discouraged.  Yep, they are a pain to deal with, but with diligence and 2-3 treatments of everything, they will be gone!!! Be sure to read the directions on the bottle!!