15 Bed Bug Tips from an Industry Pro
This year, I celebrate 11 years in the pest control industry. This article is my gift to anyone caught in the grip of a bed bug infestation, but it's not meant to discourage you from hiring a professional. Whether or not you choose to seek professional help, there will always be critical maintenance steps that you must perform on your own, including vacuuming rituals and routine spraying of beds, carpets and furniture.
|
1. There's no "best" bed bug product. Different products have specific purposes.
When assembling your arsenal of supplies, note that some sprays are designed to be contact killers, while others are simply repellents. Still others are designed to kill when wet and repel when dry. At the most powerful end of the spectrum, there are strong residual pesticides that continue to control insects for months after application. These types of pesticides aren't contact killers, and they aren't labeled for direct application to skin, pet fur, couches or beds. They are mostly intended for floors, crevices and baseboards. If you have babies who spend a lot of time on the floor, you might consider choosing pesticides within the organic realm. Here are some of my favorite products, both organic and chemical.
Example of a gentle organic contact killer that doesn't repel or leave fumes when dry. The best option for baby cribs!
Kleen Free is a natural, odor free enzyme cleaner that causes insects to molt (shed their outer coating) prematurely. By contrast, chemical pesticides attack the nervous system of an insect. Multiple studies have shown that insects can develop a resistance to standard chemicals. This doesn't happen with pesticides that work by physically attacking the exoskeleton. The best and worst thing about Kleen Green is the lack of fumes. That makes it a beautiful choice for the treatment of baby cribs, hospital beds and floors that toddlers craw upon. When the formula dries, it won't leave scents that continue to kill or repel bedbugs that wander over sprayed surfaces, but that's not a criticism. There will always be places and spaces where you can't spray traditional pesticides, and if you're naturally concerned about using pesticides in your baby's bedroom, this wonderful product can be your best friend.
|
Example of an organic contact killer that repels bugs for days after it dries. Great for beds, couches, carpets, skin and fur.
Dr. Ben's Evictor is an organic formula that can safely be applied to humans, dogs, couches, carpets and furniture. It contains hydrated silica to dry out the insect's exoskeleton and cedar oil to shut down the insect's breathing pores. It works by attacking the insect's exoskeleton, respiratory system and central nervous system at the same time. It also dehydrates and dissolves insect eggs, larvae and pupae on contact. This product leaves behind a fresh cedar aroma to repel bedbugs and mites from sprayed territory. It's a nice skin repellent for biting insects, a safe flea treatment for dogs and a popular leave-on treatment for skin mites. This product won't stain clothing or furniture. When used with a fog machine sold on the company website, the dry formula will settle upon walls, coat ceilings and penetrate unseen crevices that typical spray protocols don't reach. It's a great option for folks who want to avoid chemicals but still need a safe and aggressive alternative.
|
Example of a chemical pesticide that controls bugs for MONTHS after application. Great for baseboards, hard floors and crevices. Not approved for beds, human skin or pet fur.
Onslaught Liquid Insecticide is micro-encapsulated, meaning that after the product is sprayed, the active ingredient is released slowly over time, producing super long-lasting residual control. It's a great formula for treating cracks, crevices, window frames and door frames. This is not the type of pesticide that's labeled for application to beds, humans or pets, but it can be an indispensable tool when used as directed. Be sure to read instructions and apply this formula only where directed and intended!
|
Example of a pesticide formulated to combat bed bugs that have developed resistance to old school chemicals.
Bedlam is a standard "go-to" chemical spray for pest control companies providing a non-staining option for bed bug treatment. It's ingredients are specifically formulated to target pyrethroid resistant bed bugs that might be unphased by old school chemical products. Since you can't buy this stuff over the counter at your local garden store, you'll have to turn to online sources. Bedlam is a great product for treating floors.
|
Example of a pesticide that works by disrupting growth and reproduction cycles. (Does not kill adults.) Best for floors.
Insect growth inhibitors (IGRS) don't kill adults, but they can prevent reproduction, egg hatch and molting from one stage to the next. Growth regulators are sometimes used along with traditional contact killers for long term control. If you choose this type of product, you'll still need a good insecticide for knockdown and immediate control.
|
Example of an organic pesticide that controls bugs for YEARS after application. Great for sprinkling under beds!
Diatomaceous earth is the preferred insecticidal dust for bedbug and mite infestations. It may be messy and difficult to vacuum out of carpeting (it clings), but it's perfect for applying under beds. If you don't have the time or energy to move your bed for routine inspections, DE will provide much peace of mind. Just set it and forget it! Made of the fossilized remains of marine phytoplankton, this moisture leeching dust causes insects to dry out by absorbing the oils and fats from the exoskeleton. The sharp edges of the particles are highly abrasive, slashing at the cuticle and speeding up the process. On the bright side, diatomaceous earth is an inorganic material that will be effective for many years when kept dry. On the down side, these particles are like fiberglass when inhaled. Don't pile it onto carpeting or spread it throughout the room. Sprinkle it under beds, along baseboards or inside crawl spaces. The primary concern is to keep the dust contained so that it doesn't make its way into the air humans and pets breathe.
|
Example of a "puffer" used to inject diatomaceous earth into tight spaces and difficult-to-reach areas.
2. Steam clean beds, floors and couches before applying pesticides.
Use a super heated and pressurized steam cleaner to clean beds and couches. Specialized attachments will allow you to make wide passes over the whole bed or target the crevices between seams. Pay close attention to seams and zipper flaps, as this is where bedbugs love to hide. Allow the bed to dry for at least a few hours before applying pesticides or encasing mattresses.
Example of a super hot, high pressurized steam cleaner with attachments for beds, couches, seams and crevices.
3. Vacuum thoroughly!
If you feel a little confused about the best vacuum for bedbugs, note that the most important feature is powerful suction to remove sticky eggs that cling to floors, carpets, mattresses and bed frames. The Kenmore Elite 31150 combines three motors to give you 20% more air power than a conventional upright vacuum while never loosing suction. This ultra powerful vacuum was rated number one by Consumer Reports Magazine, a publication that does not accept advertising dollars. The vacuum also earned Amazon's prestigious Editor's Choice award for 2019. Additional features include triple HEPA filtration to reduce allergens and a bagged design, which is essential for trapping bugs.
4. Encase BOTH the mattress and boxed springs.
Bedbugs don't just hang out on the surface of your bed. They can invade box springs, where they'll hide until they need a blood meal. Don't just encase your mattress to trap bedbugs. Encase your box springs as well. Since it can be expensive to double encase every bed in the house, you might consider choosing budget encasements. If there's only one bed requiring protection, you may wish to go with a premium encasement that's extensively lab tested, noiseless and certified. The premium encasement offers a generous ten-year warranty because it's built to be more durable over time. The budget encasement will also do the trick.
Example of a premium encasement that's lab tested, noiseless and certified.
Price: $39.95
|
Example of a budget encasement that's good enough to do the trick! Great for homes with multiple beds.
5. Use bowls or interceptors to prevent bedbugs from crawling up bed legs.
Bedbugs can't jump or fly. In order to infest your mattress, they must crawl up bed legs and bed posts. With a little creativity, you can cut them off at the source. If you don't have access to specialized interceptors like the ones pictured below, you may insert bed legs into plastic bowls filled with cooking oil. Bed bugs can't swim across heavy oils. The important thing is to apply the interceptors BEFORE you begin spraying floors. After floors and crevices are treated with pesticides, you may see an increase in activity for many days. Survivors driven out of their hiding places will be walking around looking for new places to infest, and you must do everything possible to keep them from crawling up bed legs and furniture legs.
A typical bedbug interceptor looks like this. You may fill the outer channel with pesticides.
Some interceptors are wider for differently sized furniture legs. You may wish to include both types in your arsenal.
6. Minimize labor with a fog machine.
A fog machine is not necessary to resolve a bedbug infestation, but it can help minimize labor in many ways. Here are some advantages of owning or renting a quality fog machine.
A. You can fog into closets with Dr. Ben's Evictor, an organic bedbug killer that smells of fresh cedar.
Be sure your clothes are spread apart. If they're packed too tight, the fog won't travel between garments. You should also remove clutter from the floor before you begin. Fogging is not a replacement for direct spray application to floors.
Be sure your clothes are spread apart. If they're packed too tight, the fog won't travel between garments. You should also remove clutter from the floor before you begin. Fogging is not a replacement for direct spray application to floors.
B. You can fog directly into the spring cavity of your couch.
Flip your couch, remove the flimsy dust cover and point the nozzle of the fog machine into the spring cavity. Bedbugs don't just hide in cracks and crevices of your sofas, love seats and easy chairs. They can infest the spring cavity and come out when they need a blood meal. Blast them with a lethal dose of cedar oil!
Flip your couch, remove the flimsy dust cover and point the nozzle of the fog machine into the spring cavity. Bedbugs don't just hide in cracks and crevices of your sofas, love seats and easy chairs. They can infest the spring cavity and come out when they need a blood meal. Blast them with a lethal dose of cedar oil!
C. You can fog under your bed to blast bugs that cling to the underside of your box springs.
Bedbugs can cling to the underside of your bed and wait for you to fall asleep. It's quite difficult to flip the entire bed and spray the underside as part of a weekly or monthly maintenance routine. To solve this dilemma, you can point the nozzle of our fog machine under your bed whenever you feel the need to blast this hard-to-reach area.
Bedbugs can cling to the underside of your bed and wait for you to fall asleep. It's quite difficult to flip the entire bed and spray the underside as part of a weekly or monthly maintenance routine. To solve this dilemma, you can point the nozzle of our fog machine under your bed whenever you feel the need to blast this hard-to-reach area.
D. You can fog entire rooms and perform maintenance rituals.
If you live in an apartment building, you're probably aware that tenants share infestations through walls. Just when you think you're free and clear, bed bugs can wander back into your unit, especially if your neighbor has begun using pesticides that make his home less hospitable. If your apartment building is affected by chronic bedbug drama, you'll love having professional tool that can be used whenever you need it. Your landlord might even agree to reimburse you for the cost of the machine, especially if it will keep you from calling him every time you need help!
If you live in an apartment building, you're probably aware that tenants share infestations through walls. Just when you think you're free and clear, bed bugs can wander back into your unit, especially if your neighbor has begun using pesticides that make his home less hospitable. If your apartment building is affected by chronic bedbug drama, you'll love having professional tool that can be used whenever you need it. Your landlord might even agree to reimburse you for the cost of the machine, especially if it will keep you from calling him every time you need help!
7. Insert your couch into a giant furniture storage bag
You can insert your couch into a giant furniture storage bag and fog into the bag. If you don't have access to a fog machine, don't despair. The important thing is to generate pest controlling fumes within the bag. To accomplish this feat, you can toss in some mothballs, but I prefer chemical free solutions for couches and beds. For a fresh organic alternative, make your own sachets from cedar granules or menthol crystals. (Instructions below.) If you'd prefer to avoid using any products at all, keep the bag sealed for a few months. At normal room temperature, bedbugs can only survive two or three months without a blood meal. Their metabolisms may slow down in colder climates, and they may live up to a year without feeding.
Giant Furniture Storage Bag
8. Make your own organic pest controlling sachets for drawers and couch crevices!
Bedbugs hate cedar fumes and menthol fumes! To drive bugs away from intimate spaces, you may toss organza bags filled with cedar into drawers, closets, cabinets, couch cavities and more. Normally, sachets are used to repel bugs from specific areas, but they do have killing power when enclosed in sealed spaces. For example, you may toss sachets into sealed plastic laundry containers or giant furniture bags designed to encase couches.
Organza bags can be found at craft stores, but it's usually cheaper to order bundle packs online.
Menthol crystals are expensive. A pound will cost around $45, but the fresh scent is priceless.
A 20 pound bag of cedar granules costs $45. Use them to make sachets or spread them in your yard to kill fleas and ticks!
9. The advantages of getting a platform bed
It's not necessary to discard your old bed if you've employed proper encasement and leg protection measures, but some folks just want a fresh slate. The psychological discomfort of knowing that live bugs could be living within the encasement leads many people to start over. Platform beds are a great transitional option for folks who don't want to invest in traditional beds until they're certain that the bedbug crisis is behind them. Such beds are easy to manage, and many are tall enough to run a vacuum underneath. Beyond that, a good foam mattress is more difficult for bugs to infest. Below you will find the sleep system I bought for my elderly mother when her home became infested with bedbugs. I made the decision to buy a new bed because her 25-year-old queen mattress was difficult for her to flip and evaluate during routine inspection rituals. The entire system ended up costing me around $350, and it felt so good to know that I'd given her a fresh start.
This inexpensive platform frame is tough enough to support heavy people yet light enough to move easily.
This super inexpensive foam mattress scored more than 20,000 favorable reviews!
10. Protect your dog with an elevated bed and a good repellent
Bedbugs generally prefer to bite humans because it’s difficult for them to extract fluid through fur. Nonetheless, you may find them clinging to your dog's belly or hiding around his bed. Any warm blooded animal living in your home can act as a magnet to lure bedbugs out of hiding and disperse them to areas they normally wouldn’t go. Make it a priority to spray your dog's bed and fur with a good organic repellent that's approved for use with animals. You might also consider buying a pet bed that's elevated from the floor. Insert the legs into bedbug interceptors.
Example of an elevated dog bed.
Use bed leg interceptors to protect your elevated dog bed.
Use clear, super adhesive glue to fuse interceptors to the dog's bed legs.
Here's a great way to ensure that your dog doesn't move the bed and disrupt the placement of interceptors.
11. Prevent assaults from above!
Stray bedbugs can crawl across the ceiling and drop down into your bed. It's their way of reaching you when you've cut off access from the floor. To prevent this from happening, be sure to treat the molding along your ceiling with a good, strong residual pesticide such as Onslaught. You can also apply strips of double sided tape along the area where the top of bedroom wall meets the ceiling, but this drastic measure may only be necessary in heavily infested homes.
12. Wash clothing in Borax
If you're tired of drying--and shrinking- clothes on high heat to be sure bedbugs don't survive, I have good news. Borax is a universally recognized product used to kill bacteria, fungus, fleas, mites and bedbugs in the laundry. Boric acid is the "secret ingredient" found in many powders sold to kill bugs, but it's harmless to humans. Just add 1 cup of Borax to every wash load. Be sure to dissolve your Borax in warm water before adding your clothes, as it will just form clumps if you dump the granules on top of a full wash load. Borax will not stain, fade or otherwise ruin casual clothing.
Borax is available at most grocery stores. Don't face a bedbug infestation without it!
13. Stop using wicker wash hampers! Store clothing in air tight plastic bins.
Bedbugs clinging to clothing can easily get through cracks in your wicker wash hamper and re-infest the home. Bins designed for pet food storage are air tight, and many have wheels that will enable you to transport laundry more easily. You should keep one plastic tub to store dirty laundry and one plastic tub to store the clean clothing you wear most.
Example of an air tight plastic bin with wheels.
14. Double sided tape can be your best friend!
Bedbugs can't cross over fresh, sticky tape! Note that tape eventually dries out and loses its power. Refresh as needed.
Door Frames: Apply double sided tape along the inside of your bedroom door frame to prevent bedbugs from leaving your room and infesting the rest of the house. Be sure to stretch the tape across the floor as well. Bedbugs can walk through the doorway just as easily as you can! Refresh the tape when it no longer feels sticky.
Office Chairs: Most office chairs have a swivel base with a pole leading up into the seat. Wrap double sided tape around this pole to prevent bedbugs from crawling up to you. Refresh the tape when it no longer feels sticky.
Furniture Legs: Wind double sided tape around furniture legs! Refresh the tape when it no longer feels sticky.
Door Frames: Apply double sided tape along the inside of your bedroom door frame to prevent bedbugs from leaving your room and infesting the rest of the house. Be sure to stretch the tape across the floor as well. Bedbugs can walk through the doorway just as easily as you can! Refresh the tape when it no longer feels sticky.
Office Chairs: Most office chairs have a swivel base with a pole leading up into the seat. Wrap double sided tape around this pole to prevent bedbugs from crawling up to you. Refresh the tape when it no longer feels sticky.
Furniture Legs: Wind double sided tape around furniture legs! Refresh the tape when it no longer feels sticky.
15. Important background information about eggs, nymphs and breeding cycles
If your goal is to store or encase specific items and wait for bed bugs to die, it helps to know about bed bug life cycles and breeding habits. On average, adult female bedbugs will lay 1-5 eggs per day. They can be laid on almost any surface, but you'll typically find them around mattress seams or couch crevices. Eggs will hatch in about one week. A female bedbug will lay about 200 to 250 eggs in her lifetime, but she can lay up to 500 eggs. Each bedbug egg takes 10 days to hatch and another five or six weeks for offspring to develop into adults. In order to reproduce, adult males and females must take regular blood meals. At normal room temperature, bedbugs can only survive two or three months without a blood meal. Since they're cold blooded, their metabolisms may slow down in colder climates, and insects may life up to a year without feeding.