Seattle Eastside pest control company will help identify and remove bedbugs from the home.
Bedbugs are small, wingless insects that feed on the blood of people and animals while they sleep. They are easily moved from room to room on infested objects.Bedbugs prefer locations where they can hide easily and feed regularly, like sleeping areas. Their flattened bodies allow bedbugs to hide in extremely small locations: under wallpaper, behind picture frames, in electrical outlets, inside box springs, in mattress pads and in night tables.
Newly hatched bedbugs feed as soon as food is available. Bedbugs can live from several weeks to up to a year and a half without feeding. Older bedbugs can go even longer without feeding.
Bed bugs have flat bodies and may sometimes be mistaken for ticks or small cockroaches. Bed bugs feed by sucking blood from humans or animals. Adult bed bugs are reddish brown in color, appearing more reddish after feeding on a blood meal. Nymphs are clear in color and appear bright red after feeding. The wings of bed bugs are vestigial, so they cannot fly. However, they are able to crawl rapidly. Temperatures between 70 F-80 F are most favorable for bed bugs, allowing them to develop into adults most rapidly and produce up to three generations per year.
Bed bugs can live in any area of the home and can reside in tiny cracks in furniture as well as on textiles and upholstered furniture. They tend to be most common in areas where people sleep and generally concentrate in beds, including mattresses, boxsprings, and bed frames.
Bed bugs are most active at night and bite any exposed areas of skin while an individual is sleeping. The face, neck, hands, and arms are common sites for bedbug bites.
Bedbugs are small, wingless insects that feed on the blood of people and animals while they sleep. They are easily moved from room to room on infested objects.Bedbugs prefer locations where they can hide easily and feed regularly, like sleeping areas. Their flattened bodies allow bedbugs to hide in extremely small locations: under wallpaper, behind picture frames, in electrical outlets, inside box springs, in mattress pads and in night tables.
Newly hatched bedbugs feed as soon as food is available. Bedbugs can live from several weeks to up to a year and a half without feeding. Older bedbugs can go even longer without feeding.
Bed bugs have flat bodies and may sometimes be mistaken for ticks or small cockroaches. Bed bugs feed by sucking blood from humans or animals. Adult bed bugs are reddish brown in color, appearing more reddish after feeding on a blood meal. Nymphs are clear in color and appear bright red after feeding. The wings of bed bugs are vestigial, so they cannot fly. However, they are able to crawl rapidly. Temperatures between 70 F-80 F are most favorable for bed bugs, allowing them to develop into adults most rapidly and produce up to three generations per year.
Bed bugs can live in any area of the home and can reside in tiny cracks in furniture as well as on textiles and upholstered furniture. They tend to be most common in areas where people sleep and generally concentrate in beds, including mattresses, boxsprings, and bed frames.
Bed bugs are most active at night and bite any exposed areas of skin while an individual is sleeping. The face, neck, hands, and arms are common sites for bedbug bites.
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What do bed bugs look like? Briefly: 1/4” long, oval, flat, 6
legs, and reddish-brown.
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Some fast facts…
·
Life Stages: Eggs hatch
into nymphs. Newly hatched nymphs are tiny—about 1/16th of an inch.
·
Nymphs—which look like
small adults—become adults in 5 weeks. They go through 5 molts to reach adult
size—meaning they shed their old, smaller skin 5 times. They must feed before
each molt.
·
Females can produce 5-7 eggs
per week, laying up to 500 in a lifetime.
·
Bed bugs grow fastest and
lay most eggs at about 80°F.
·
They feed only on blood.
·
They feed when people are
sleeping or sitting quietly, often when it’s dark.
·
They seek shelter in
cracks and crevices when not feeding.
·
They poop out “blood
spots.” Spots look like dots made by a fine felt-tipped marker. You’d see them
near where they fed and near their hideouts.
·
Adults can live over a
year without a meal.
·
Adults, nymphs and eggs
can survive sustained heat and cold if given time to adjust.
·
Can be found in the
cleanest of clean places. But clutter makes them harder to get rid of.
·
They have no “grooming
behavior”—meaning that insecticides meant to be swallowed by roaches and flies
won’t work on bed bugs.
·
Anatomy: A bed bug has 6
legs. Its antennae point forward and are about half as long as the body—not
longer. Its head is broadly attached to its body and it has no wings. Eight
legs indicate a tick or mite. Six legs and long antennae with two spikes coming
off the back (cmight be a roach nymph. Carpet beetle larvae have hairs
all over their bodies. Carpet beetle adults have two hard wings.
·
Color: A “drop of blood
with legs” is probably a recently fed bed bug. It will be red, plump, and oval.
After it digests its meal, it’ll be mahogany-colored, round, and flat. Unfed
nymphs are tan. Eggs are oval, white, and stick to whatever they’re laid on.
·
Size: You can see the
adults—they’re about 1/4” long. The trick is finding their hiding spots. They
can wedge themselves into any crack or crevice. If the edge of a credit card
can fit, so can a bed bug. Eggs and just-hatched nymphs are tiny: 1/16” (1mm)
long—the size of the “R” in “LIBERTY” on a penny. They’ll plump up after
feeding—just like a mosquito.
·
Behavior: Bed bugs
crawl—scurrying into dark, tight spaces to hide—they move as fast as an ant.
They can’t jump or fly and you’ll never find them burrowing into your skin. If
the insect you have came out on its own accord at night when the lights were
out near the bed or a couch, it was probably a bed bug looking for a meal. Bed
bugs aren’t social insects like ants, so they don’t need a colony. But while
they group together in good hiding spots, loners could be hiding elsewhere.
Bed bugs can be a public relations nightmare. You’d hope
customers would respect a proactive hotel, motel, or landlord who tried to
educate them before a problem came in, but that’s rarely the case. Simply the
mention of bed bugs can deter customers.
And householders worry what friends, family, and neighbors will
say if their problem becomes known. Bed bugs aren’t associated with filth or
social status, but many people think they are.
Bed bugs aren’t known to transmit disease. And some people don’t
even get marks when bit. But scratching bites can lead to a secondary
infection. Resist the urge to scratch. People with health problems and children
are more at risk for infection because their immune systems are compromised or
they can’t stop scratching.
·
How do bed bugs feed?
·
How do I tell if my bites
are caused by bed bugs?
·
Why do I get bites, but
my significant other doesn’t?
You can’t describe the bites as looking only one way. Some look
and feel like mosquito or flea bites. Some people don’t react at all. On the
opposite extreme, others get big itchy welts that take two or more weeks to
heal. There’s a myth that bed bug bites occur in threes (“breakfast, lunch, and
dinner”), but it’s not true. Bites can occur singly, in clumps, or in a line.
Bites can show up within hours—or two weeks later. Confirming an infestation on
bites alone is impossible. You need evidence: a bed bug.
Bed bugs usually feed while people sleep, about an hour before
dawn. But if they’re hungry and given the opportunity, they feed anytime.
Feeding itself is painless—the bed bug’s saliva numbs the skin and makes the
blood easier to drink. But later, many people react to the saliva, getting
itchy bumps or rashes. After feeding for about five minutes, drawing only a
drop or two of blood, bugs return to their hiding places. Although bed bugs can
live for over a year without feeding, they typically seek blood every five to
ten days.
The only way to know for sure what bit you is to find a bug and
get it identified.
Bed bugs live off only blood—like mosquitoes do. They probably
prefer to feed on people. But if people move out, bed bugs can survive by
feeding on rats or mice—so control these pests, too. They’re attracted by
warmth and the presence of carbon dioxide—what we animals breathe out. They
usually feed about an hour before dawn, but given the opportunity, they may
feed at other times of day or night.
Remember—not everyone reacts to bed bug bites. (Not everyone
reacts to poison ivy, either.) You could get an itchy rash while your home
companion gets—nothing.
If you think bed bugs bit you, have a PMP do a thorough
inspection to determine whether an arthropod is in your living space, or send
samples to a diagnostic lab.
Bed bugs may have evolved when a close relative, the bat bug,
switched to feeding off cave-dwelling humans. The ancient Egyptians, Greeks,
and Romans wrote about them. They were part of many peoples’ lives in the U.S.
and around the world before World War II.
Then DDT came along. DDT seemed wonderful at the time. Unlike
most of the insecticides sold in stores today, DDT had a lasting effect—a long
residual effect. Insects died when they crawled where DDT was used, even if it
had been there for weeks. Though most homeowners used DDT for large pests like
cockroaches, it did the bed bugs in too. When the bed bugs came out to feed,
there was something there to kill them.
Modern furnishings and appliances helped too. Bed bugs don’t
care if a home is clean or messy. They just like good hiding spots—and food.
When modern furniture came into style they had fewer hiding spots. Home
appliances such as washing machines and vacuums helped keep them at bay. Bed
bugs were a rarity in the US from the early 1950’s through the late 1990’s. A
whole generation of people grew up who’d never seen one.
By the mid 1970’s insecticides like DDT, which were blamed for
environmental problems, were on the outs. The pest control industry began to
use the environmentally friendly approaches common today. Using non insecticide
traps and monitors, blocking entry into homes, and using pest-specific,
least-toxic insecticides became the staples of an integrated pest management
approach.
Bed bugs had been off the radar for so long they were almost
forgotten. By the time anyone noticed, they were back in a big way. Right now
there are no traps or monitors proven to detect a population when it’s still
small. And since bed bugs travel on things such as luggage, souvenirs, and
furniture we bring into our homes, it’s hard to block their entry.
Fortunately, some modern insecticides work well. Because these
insecticides break down quickly—making them safer for humans—they may not be
around to kill the bed bugs that hatch from eggs laid before the insecticide
was applied. Two or more carefully targeted applications are the best way to
eliminate bed bugs. Leave insecticides to the professionals—even the right
ones, used incorrectly, can scatter bed bugs to other rooms. It would take an
extremely capable and dedicated person to learn and do everything necessary to
get rid of bed bugs on their own.
How to Find Bed Bugs
·
Are bed bugs a sign of
poor sanitation or hygiene?
·
Where do bed bugs hide?
Any place with a high turnover of people spending the
night—hostels, hotels near airports, and resorts—are most at risk. But the list
continues… apartments, barracks, buses, cabins, churches, community centers,
cruise ships, dormitories, dressing rooms, health clubs, homes, hospitals,
jets, laundromats, motels, motor homes, moving vans, nursing homes, office
buildings, resorts, restaurants, schools, subways, theaters, trains, used
furniture outlets…. Bed bugs don’t prefer locations based on sanitation or
people’s hygiene. If there’s blood, they’re happy.
Bed bugs and their relatives occur nearly worldwide. They became
relatively scarce during the latter part of the 20th century, but their
populations have resurged in recent years, particularly throughout parts of
North America, Europe, and Australia.
What about in your home? Most stay near where people sleep,
hiding near the bed, a couch or armchair (if that’s where you snooze)—even
cribs and playpens. Their flat bodies allow them to hide in cracks and crevices
around the room and in furniture joints. Hiding sites include mattress seams,
bed frames, nearby furniture, or baseboards. Clutter offers more places to hide
and makes it harder to get rid of them. Bed bugs can be found alone but more
often congregate in groups. They’re not social insects, though, and don’t build
nests.
How infestations spread through a home or within an apartment
building differs from case to case. Inspect all adjacent rooms. Bed bugs travel
easily along pipes and wires and the insides of walls can harbor them.
Before treating, you need to confirm that you have bed bugs. The
only way to do that is to find a bug and get it identified.
Look in the most likely places first. We tell you how. If you
find one, freeze it for identification or put it in a sealed jar with a 1 tsp.
of rubbing alcohol. Then stop looking—you don’t want to disrupt the bugs—and
call a professional.
·
Do bed bug-sniffing dogs
work?
·
How to I check a room for
bed bugs?
Have these on hand during the inspection:
·
flashlight
·
magnifier or hand lens
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a vial, pill bottle, or
ziplock bag to hold specimens for identification
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tweezers or sticky tape to help grab the bugs
·
gloves (vinyl, latex, etc.—or even a plastic bag over your hand)
·
knife, index card, or
credit card for swiping bed bugs out
of cracks
·
trash bags and tape for bagging infested items
·
vacuum cleaner (just in case you find a large group): keep a few for
identification and suck up the rest. Since the vacuum bag will have live bugs
in it, take out the bag right away. Seal it in a plastic bag and throw it away.
Look for bed bugs in all their life stages: eggs, nymphs and
adults. Also look for cast skins and blood spots. But note: blood spots,
hatched eggs, and cast skins may be from an infestation that’s been dealt with
already. Live bed bugs are the only confirming evidence. Use a flashlight—even
if the area is well lit—and work systematically. A magnifying glass will help
you zoom in on hard to see spots. Start with one corner of the mattress and
work around the piping, down the sides, and underneath. Do the same with the
box spring. If you own the bed, slowly remove the dust cover (ticking) on the
bottom of the box spring and seal in a trash bag. Next, inspect the bed frame.
If you can take it apart, do so. Bed bugs could be hiding in the joints.
No bed bugs yet? Work out from the bed in a systematic way
(clockwise or counter-clockwise) to the walls of the room. Look in the pleats
of curtains, beneath loose pieces of wallpaper near the bed, the corners and
drawers of desks and dressers, within spaces of wicker furniture, behind door,
window, and baseboard trim, and in laundry or other items on the floor or
around the room such as cardboard boxes. Inspect everything. Any crack,
crevice, or joint a credit card edge could fit in could hide adult bed bugs.
This routine gives you a systematic approach and increases the chance you’ll
find evidence early on.
One last way to inspect—about an hour before dawn, lift the
sheets and turn on a flashlight. It might lead to a discovery, but this method
can also be unsettling.
If you don’t find bed bugs but bites continue or you find blood
spots on bedding, contact a professional with bed bug experience and have them
inspect.
Professional inspection may be done by a person or by a bed
bug-sniffing dog and its handler. Dogs have a powerful sense of smell and can
be trained to find bed bugs (which do give off an odor). They’re best used to
find infestations. If used to tell whether bed bugs are gone, they may find old
evidence rather than fresh. If you hire a handler and dog, be sure they’re
accredited.
If you find bed bugs at home, it’s best to keep sleeping in the
bed—or try to find someone who will sleep there. Packing up to spend time
elsewhere could bring bugs to an uninfested area. And the bugs could move to
neighboring rooms in search of a meal.
Bed bugs come in as stowaways in luggage, furniture, clothing,
pillows, boxes, and more when these are moved between dwellings. Moving out
won’t solve the problem, since bed bugs will just come with you. In fact, while
dealing with bed bugs it’s best not to sleep away from home. Used furniture, particularly
bed frames and mattresses, are most likely to harbor bed bugs. Watch out for
items found on the curb! Because they survive for many months without food, bed
bugs could already be present in clean, vacant apartments.
In a few cases, bats or birds could introduce and maintain bed
bugs and their close relatives—usually bat bugs and bird bugs.
The source of the infestation determines where your inspection
should start. Look through these scenarios and see which fits:
·
Only one bedroom: inspect
that room first.
·
People watch TV or snooze
on a couch: check it after inspecting the bedroom.
·
A traveler returned home:
insects can hide in luggage and then crawl out when it’s dark and
peaceful—begin where luggage was placed upon returning home.
·
A used bed or piece of
furniture (bought or from the curb) was brought into the house: inspect it
first.
·
The problem began after a
visitor stayed overnight: inspect the beds that they slept in and where their
luggage was placed. Next, inspect the nearest place where people sleep.
·
An infestation persists
after several treatments by a professional: bed bugs may come through the wall
from a neighboring apartment. Inspect rooms that share a wall with a neighbor.
(This scenario happens in large apartment complexes and hotels where management
didn’t get adjacent rooms treated.)
·
If the building has a
laundry room, inspect it too.
·
Home health aides come in
frequently: bed bugs may have hitched a ride on their bags.
·
Backpacks go to and from
school: could have bed bugs. Inspect the bed or couch nearest the spot where
backpacks are kept.
How to Prevent Bed Bugs
Insecticidal dusts will remain effective if not covered by other
dust. As part of the IPM approach, routine spraying of insecticides is strongly
discouraged. Bed bugs do not spread disease, but insecticides do pose risks.
Only use them when the pest insect is confirmed and the least-toxic steps have
been tried. As a preventative measure alternative to insecticides, inspect and
clean regularly, keeping bed bug-hiding spots in mind.
Every traveler should learn about bed bugs. Always inspect
before settling into any room. Pack a flashlight (even the keychain LED
variety) and gloves to aid in your inspection. The inspection should focus
around the bed. Start with the headboard, which is usually held on the wall
with brackets—lift up 1 – 2 inches, then lean the top away from the wall to
gain access to the back. If you’re traveling alone, someone on staff should
help. After checking the headboard, check sheets and pillows for blood spots.
Next, pull back the sheets. Check the piping of the mattress and box spring.
Finally, look in and under the drawer of the bedside table. If all these places
are clear, enjoy the night. The next morning, look for blood spots on the
sheets—bed bugs poop soon after they feed.
If you find evidence, but no live bed bugs, the evidence may be
old and doesn’t mean that the hotel is dirty. Tell the front desk discreetly
what you found and ask for another room—one that doesn’t share a wall with the
room you just vacated. Bed bugs are a PR nightmare for the hospitality
industry. If you run to a competitor (who’s just as likely to have bed bugs) it
makes it less likely that the industry will become more open about this issue.
Communication is key. Ideally hotels and motels would pride themselves on their
bed bug programs and show customers how to inspect to keep all parties bed bug
free.
If you can avoid it, don’t unpack into drawers and keep luggage
closed on a luggage rack pulled away from the wall. Never set luggage on the
bed.
Launder your clothes before or as soon as these items are
brought back into the home. If you found bed bugs after moving into a hotel
room, you could ask the hotel to pay for laundering—and for steam-cleaning your
luggage. The hotel may refuse, but it’s worth asking. Regardless, once home you
should unpack on a floor that will allow you to see bed bugs—stay off carpets!
Unpack directly into plastic bags for taking clothes to the laundry. Suitcases
should be carefully inspected and vacuumed—freeze if possible.
It’s unlikely that a bed bug would travel on you or the clothes
you are wearing. You move too much to be a good hiding place. Bed bugs are more
likely to be spread via luggage, backpacks, briefcases, mattresses, and used
furniture.
YOU CAN STOP THEIR SPREAD
Adults are ¼”, reddish-brown and flat. You can see them without
magnification.
They like to hide in cracks and crevices.
Inspect sleeping areas—if you find a bed bug, STOP looking and
contact a professional.
Do-it-yourself pest control could make bed bugs to spread.
Launder and freeze when possible.
Live bugs or eggs may drop off while moving things from one
place to another—items with bed bugs should be sealed in a bag before moving
them.
Avoid used furniture and items left on the curb—they might have
bed bugs!
Tell your friends! Not warning others robs them of the chance to
avoid bringing bed bugs into their homes and businesses.
How to Deal With Bed Bugs
Step back a minute. Because several different kinds of insects
resemble bed bugs, specimens should be carefully compared with good reference
images and sent to a professional entomologist.
Next: make a plan. We’ll tell you how. You want to get rid of
bed bugs, limit your exposure to insecticides, and minimize costs. Don’t get
rid of stuff and don’t treat unless you have a plan. A big part of your plan:
hire an experienced professional. Trust us, it’ll save you time and money in
the long run. You’ll still have a lot to do—just leave the insecticides to the
pros. Working as a team with a professional is the quickest way to get bed bugs
out of your life.
Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is the way to go for pest
control. It’s cost-effective, it works, and it lessens reliance on insecticides.
Note: IPM doesn’t mean no insecticides. You should call a professional
dedicated to IPM so the least amount of insecticides can be used and still
work.
Here are the basics of bed bug IPM:
Inspection: ALWAYS inspect. Proper
identification helps you know what to do and where to target your efforts.
Along with looking, you should write down what you do and see. Use this
reporting form to track what you’ve done. Having a history will help if more
people become involved.
Educate yourself: find
out about bed bug biology and behavior to become even more effective.
Cultural and Mechanical Control: This makes your home unwelcoming to bed bugs, blocks them from
feeding, or at least makes finding them easier. Don’t skip these steps and go
straight to insecticides. Examples:
·
Choose furniture of plain
design. A metal chair offers fewer places for a bed bug to hide than a wicker
one.
·
Don’t buy or pick up used
furniture.
·
Choose light-colored
bedding—easier to see insects and blood spots.
·
Don’t store things under
beds. In fact, get rid of clutter anywhere near the bed.
·
Use tightly fitting,
zippered, bed-bug proof mattress and box spring encasements. Putting them in
place ahead of time (proactively) makes bed bugs easier to see since
encasements have no piping or tags and they’re light-colored. Putting them on
during an infestation means no need to throw away the mattress and box spring.
But … check periodically to be sure they haven’t torn.
·
Vacuum regularly. Use an
attachment to get in cracks and crevices.
·
Maintain a gap between
the walls and your bedroom and living room furniture.
·
Seal cracks in wooden
floors.
·
Repair peeling wallpaper.
·
Keep bedding and dust
ruffles from touching the floor. Better yet, remove the ruffles.
·
When returning from a
trip, unpack on a light-colored, bare-wood or vinyl floor keeping an eye out
for bed bugs. Put everything that traveled in a warm dryer for an hour or a hot
dryer for 60 minutes. Put things that can’t be heated in a freezer for two
weeks. Everything else … inspect carefully!
·
When you travel, inspect
rooms, keep luggage closed and use luggage racks away from the wall—don’t leave
things on the bed! Take along a traveler’s card to guide your inspection.
·
See non-insecticidal
control for more ideas.
Biological Control: No
known biological control agents target bed bugs well enough to keep them at
bay.
Chemical Control:
Insecticides supplement but don’t replace your work. Get a pest management
professional (PMP) involved. Licensed PMPs know what products, in what formulations,
should be used—and where. PMPs know how to be selective and effective—fewer
insecticides used and best results. Any insecticide used should be labeled for
the pest and location where it is being used. Many products are not labeled for
mattresses.
Hire only professional pest control companies with licensed PMPs
who are affiliated with a state or national association. This helps ensure that
the company stays up-to-date on the current practices and only uses legal
insecticides. PMPs are trained for sensitive situations: people who are ill,
children, pregnant women, pets, and more. They know how to properly apply
insecticides. They also know best how to find bed bugs. PMPs will not use
illegal insecticides. If you use insecticides but they don’t work and then you
still have to call in a professional, overall insecticide use will be higher.
Plus, what you used could drive bed bugs into new areas—making removal a longer
and pricier process.
Monitoring: This involves inspecting
regularly to be sure:
·
Control is working.
·
Bed bugs haven’t been
brought back in.
·
Encasements haven’t torn.
·
There isn’t any way you
could improve your cultural or mechanical control.
·
What is my obligation if
an infestation in my condo or apartment leads to an infestation next door?
The question, “Who’s responsible for a bed bug infestation?” has
no clear answer. It’s hard even to identify who’s technically at fault because
bed bugs can enter a space in so many ways. Landlords and property owners do
have legal obligations to provide safe and habitable accommodations for
tenants. Bed bugs may be an unacceptable condition. Tenants have an obligation
to cooperate with owners and landlords. This includes preparing the apartment
so the pest management professional can easily inspect rooms and treat if
necessary.
You are legally liable if you misapply an insecticide or apply
it without a license to the property of others—including common spaces in
apartment buildings. In most cases, landlords, owners and building managers
cannot legally apply insecticides unless they are licensed to do so.
Laws are changing and every situation is different. Local health
departments and law offices have the best answers to legal questions. The only
thing that’s for sure is that bed bug problems won’t just work themselves out.
Left untreated, they will spread. The best way to cover all bases is to inform
all who are potentially involved early on—managers, neighbors, friends…
And take steps to solve the problem:
·
Call the local health
department to find out what regulations apply.
·
Call a professional pest
control company.
·
Document everything.
Landlords and tenants should make sure bed bug work is specified
in their lease. For example, an agreement that requires tenants to do thorough
preparation for bed bug treatment and to leave the living space while a pest
management professional (PMP) works can go a long way if bed bugs arrive. The
PMP should visit all rooms or units that share a wall (including directly above
and below). Everyone needs to cooperate. Having a plan ready can save time,
frustration, and money.
If you are a landlord, inspection should be done often with the
permission of the tenant. Some tenants will not view bed bugs as a problem. It
can get ugly if their infestation spreads to other units and unhappy tenants
report that they have bed bugs. Inspect often to find infestations before they
spread.
Safety is always the #1 priority. Bed bugs aren’t known to
spread disease. Don’t put yourself or PMPs in danger on account of bed bugs.
Anyone who inspects apartments must be cautious of sharp objects or weapons
under mattresses or in furniture. Always look with a flashlight before
touching.
·
Do I have to throw out my
mattress and furniture?
Don’t panic. Although bed bugs can be annoying, you can get rid
of them if you adopt a well-considered strategy.
Don’t put the legs of the bed frame in kerosene or coat them
with petroleum jelly. Bed bugs have been known to climb on the ceiling and drop
down onto the bed. Plus kerosene is a fire hazard.
Don’t depend on thyme oil. Thyme oil may discourage bed bugs,
but it won’t kill them. Chances are it’ll spread, not fix, the problem.
Don’t leave the home unoccupied through a winter as a control
measure. Bed bugs have adapted to the unpredictable habits of humans. If given
time to go dormant—for example, in a vacation cabin that slowly gets cooler,
then cold over fall and winter—bed bugs can survive, living without a meal for
many months while waiting for humans to return. The quick penetration of
killing cold (or heat) is the key to any temperature treatment.
Don’t turn up the heat. Exposing bed bugs to 120 ºF or more an
hour will kill all life stages—and whole-structure or “container heat
treatments” do work. But the caution is similar to using cold. High heat must
be maintained at every point in the building: the outer walls, deep in the
sofa, etc. for the full hour. Professionals enclose the structure, using tools
to guarantee that it reaches the right temperature. If you go with a
full-structure heat treatment, consider if the heat could damage furniture,
appliances, and belongings.
Don’t sleep with a light on. Bed bugs feed when hosts are
inactive. Usually that’s when it’s dark—but they’ll feed under lights if
they’re hungry.
Don’t sleep in a different room. Bed bugs will move to a
neighboring room if they can’t find food. And they can live months between
meals. Sleeping in a different room, staying at a hotel, or moving in with
friends won’t solve the problem. And the chances of carrying the bugs to a new
place are good. Keep sleeping in your bed. If you have awful reactions to the
bites, try to get someone to sleep in the bed.
Don’t throw a bed bug-infested mattress away and buy a new
mattress. Buying a new mattress won’t solve the problem. Bed bugs hide in more
than just mattresses. New mattresses might be transported in the same trucks
that pick up used and possibly contaminated ones. If you need a new mattress,
wait until the infestation is eliminated before buying a new one. (Remember: A
bed bug-proof mattress and box-spring encasement kept in place for 1 ½ years
will starve them to death. Inspect often for torn spots in the encasement (and
evidence of bed bugs).
Don’t dispose of good furniture. Infested furniture can be
cleaned and treated. Placing infested furniture (particularly mattresses) into
common areas or on the street could spread bed bugs to other peoples’ homes. If
you’re getting rid of infested furniture, deface it: make it less attractive to
other people. Paint a picture of a bug on it and write “bed bugs” or
“chinches.” Building managers should make sure disposed furniture is in a
dumpster or taken to a landfill or waste facility right away.
Don’t wrap items in black plastic and leave them in the sun: it
needs to get hotter than that to kill bed bugs, and heat needs to evenly
penetrate the entire item.
Don’t move infested items out of the room without wrapping them
in plastic. Bed bugs or eggs could be knocked off into an uninfested area.
Don’t apply insecticides unless you fully understand what you
are applying and the risks involved. You are legally liable if you misapply an
insecticide or apply it without a license to the property of others—including
common spaces in apartment buildings. In most cases, landlords, owners and
building managers cannot legally apply insecticides unless they are licensed to
do so.
Pest management professionals (PMPs) have seen bed bugs feeding
on pets, but no one knows if they prefer pets. The bugs might get caught in a
pet’s hair, but they won’t live on pets the way fleas do. Still, a pet could
carry a bed bug from one room to another.
Since bed bugs rarely feed for more than 10 minutes and their
feet don’t grip onto hair, Twenty minutes of grooming outside lets you rest at
ease. All bedding and cage items should be inspected and washed and dried (60
minutes on hot) or frozen (for 2 weeks). Inspect furniture, floors, and walls
near the pets’ areas.
It will take at least three weeks to be rid of bed bugs. Here’s
why:
Preparation usually takes about a week
Two weeks in a freezer kills the crawling bed bugs
Insecticides don’t kill the eggs, which take about two weeks to
hatch—the pest management professional (PMP) should re-inspect and apply more
insecticides if needed two full weeks after the first treatment.
The fastest IPM fix relies on the team effort of a PMP and the
owner. The owner must do the necessary preparation and do the cultural and
mechanical control work while the PMP handles the insecticides.
Fumigation and full-structure heat treatments work after one
treatment, but are very costly. Fumigation is not the same thing as fogging.
Customer Preparation
Pest Management Professionals (PMPs) should be knowledgeable
about bed bugs, educating you so you understand why time-consuming and thorough
preparation is so important. If the company doesn’t require you to do prep
work, call the next company on your list.
PMPs may ask you to launder all clothing, bedding, and
draperies; buy re-sealable bags for all possessions in drawers, closets, etc.;
clean rooms thoroughly; and vacate rooms on all treatment days. One thing that
differs by pest control company is whether callers should do anything to the
bed ahead of time. There’s no right way. Still, the company should be able to
explain the why behind their methods.
The time and money it takes to battle bed bugs will be easier to
grasp if you understand:
Clutter makes it harder for PMPs to find and treat all likely
hiding spots of loner females that could restart an infestation.
Bed bugs aren’t found just in beds. Any space a credit card edge
could slide in is a possible hiding spot. PMPs need to treat baseboards,
picture frames, bed frames, dressers, drawers, and tables. Because preparation
will disturb the bugs, you should choose a pest control company and learn their
operating procedure before doing much to the room.
Treatment
Technicians who inspect and treat should be able to answer
questions about bed bug biology and behavior as well as explain their plans.
Even if someone has already come to inspect and quote the job (some companies
will quote over the phone, others inspect first and quote at that visit),
technicians should always inspect before treating. At the very least, they
should use a flashlight when inspecting. Proper inspection takes time and
shouldn’t be rushed.
And what’s their plan for treatment? If it’s to treat
least-infested areas first, working toward most-infested areas, the plan is
good. PMPs should use a range of formulations and methods, both liquids and dusts.
The PMP should target cracks, crevices, and behind electrical sockets. Not
every company uses a vacuum or steamer—that might be your job. Vacuuming just
before the PMP arrives will get dirt out of cracks so the insecticide can get
in. The PMP must take care not to spread the problem. Anything that needs to be
removed from the treatment area should be covered with plastic. Once an area
has been treated, only treated items should be moved back in.
If people or pets are present, they should be in a different
room. Don’t enter a room that has been treated with an insecticide for at least
4 hours—or whatever the insecticide label states, whichever is longer.
Children’s and sick people’s mattresses shouldn’t be treated.
Follow-Up Treatments
Count on at least one follow up treatment. Bed bugs should be
gone after 2 – 3 visits. Unless the structure is fumigated (this is different
from bombing!), one visit won’t get rid of bed bugs. Follow up treatments
should still include a full inspection, followed by insecticide if bed bugs are
found.
Because complete elimination is hard to achieve for any pest,
most bed bug contracts don’t guarantee it. Bed bugs can be reintroduced.
Companies with a good business sense can’t guarantee bed bug work for a long
period of time. This doesn’t mean the company won’t go to great lengths to help
you. And yes, it is possible to eliminate bed bugs from a home.
·
Can cold kill bed bugs?
·
Can heat kill bed bugs?
·
Can steam kill bed bugs?
Cleaning: Thoroughly clean
infested rooms as well as others in the residence. Scrub infested surfaces with
a stiff brush to dislodge eggs and use a powerful vacuum to remove bed bugs
from cracks and crevices. This won’t ensure that you’ve got all the eggs since
they can be cemented deep in cracks. But it will help. Dismantle bed frames to
expose additional hiding sites. Remove drawers from desks and dressers and turn
furniture over, if possible, to inspect and clean all hiding spots.
Vacuuming: A vacuum is not a
stand-alone solution. But it will suck up some bed bugs and, used frequently,
help keep their numbers down. The narrowest attachment should be used along
seams, cracks, and crevices. There’s no guarantee it’ll suck all bed bugs out
of hiding. Immediately after, the bag or canister should be removed. Bed bugs
in that bag will still be alive! Put the bag or canister contents into a
plastic bag, freeze for two weeks, then dispose of properly. Wash the
canister—be sure it’s unplugged! Inspect the vacuum to be sure no bugs remain
inside.
Steam: Research is underway on
how well steamers work. A good steamer will kill eggs, nymphs, and adults on
contact. But we’re not sure how deeply killing heat penetrates wood and
fabrics. And it offers no defense against reintroducing bed bugs. When using a
steamer, move extremely slowly (1 foot in 15 seconds) and methodically. Don’t
use a small nozzle that blows bed bugs away from the treatment area—they will
survive. The heat needed to kill bed bugs will burn skin. Manufacturer’s
instructions take priority over anything that anyone tells you. Afterward, let
things dry completely. This prevents moisture or mold damage. Steam can carry
electricity. Stay away from switch plates, electrical outlets, and plugged in
appliances.
Heat: Extreme heat will kill
bed bugs. 60 minutes on the hottest setting in a dryer kills eggs and insects.
If taking belongings to a laundromat sort at home and put loads in a
bag—dispose of the bag once empty. Don’t use the same bag to bring clothes back.
Dry cleaning kills bed bugs, but tell them that the item might be contaminated.
If the clothes won’t be damaged by heat and stains won’t set, put them in a
dryer before going to the dry cleaner. Blankets, pillows, some shoes,
children’s plush toys, curtains, rugs, seat cushions, and fabric bags—if the
item can survive heat and tumbling and it won’t damage the dryer, it can go in
a dryer. Check the lint filter for bed bugs afterwards. It’s another way to
confirm their presence.
Freezing: More research is needed
on how well freezing works. Quickly expose items to 32 ºF or below and leave
them there for at least two weeks. All crawling life stages will die. To kill
the eggs, 30 days is needed.
Mattress Encasements:
Mattresses and box springs can be permanently encased within bed bug proof
zippered mattress encasements. They must stay on for a full year and a half.
Inspect them often to be sure they don’t have rips. If you find holes or tears,
seal these completely with permanent tape or buy a new bag. Any bugs trapped
within these sealed bags will eventually die.
What are the dangers of
using insecticides to fight bed bugs?
Unless you have a pesticide applicator’s license, you shouldn’t
apply insecticides to treat bed bugs. Why? If you try to get rid of the bed
bugs on your own and it doesn’t work, then you call a pest control company
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