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Bed Bug Preparations

admin — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 12:41:50 +0000

In this episode, Jeff will discuss what the typical recommendations are for bed bug treatment that most of the pest control industry is requiring and what Bed Bug Central's position is on preparing for bed bug treatment. Please remember that regardless of the information provided in this episode, you should also follow what the pest control company is asking you to do for bed bug treatment. Typical bed bug preparations include: emptying dressers and closets and laundering all clothing contained within those areas, stripping the beds of their bedding and laundering those items and standing the beds on end. Most pest control companies require you do perform these tasks because there may be a bed bug in personal clothing and the pest control company cannot treat those items with pesticide. By laundering them you kill any bugs associated with those items and if you strip the bed and stand it on end, it makes the treatment easier the day of treatment. Bed Bug Central's position on bed bug preparation is to clean your home so that the pest control company treating the home can move freely in the house. Outside of cleaning the home, we will ask you to empty closets and dressers only if we find evidence in those areas. Emptying dressers and closets and laundering all of those items because there may be a bug contained within them we feel is unnecessary and an unfair amount of work when finding bugs in these areas is only common in very high level infestations (only about 10% of bed bug infestations). We also don't want homeowners/renters to strip the bed and stand it up because we want to see the infestation as it was originally and performing these tasks will distribute bugs into unpredictable locations. Please remember that this is Bed Bug Central's position on bed bug preparations and you should always follow whatever your pest control company is asking you to do.

What is biting me? Unexplained Bites

admin — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 13:29:47 +0000

In this episode Jeff will provide some options that may explain what the source of an unexplained reaction may be. Jeff will cover the common symptoms of bed bugs, fleas, a few species of mites, mosquitoes, lice and spiders. As it is a surprise to many, there are actually very few insects that infest the home that can be the source of repeated reactions on the skin. It is always recommended that if you are experiencing unexplained reactions that you either hire a knowledgeable pest control professional to inspect your home or visit your family doctor or dermatologist. These professionals will assist you in identifying your problem. Please be aware that it is virtually impossible to definitively identify the source of a reaction by just looking at the reaction.

Related Links:

Invisible Itches Article – http://www.ca.uky.edu/entomology/entfacts/entfactpdf/ent58.pdf

Products to Treat Personal Belongings for Bed Bugs

admin — Thu, 06 May 2010 19:26:20 +0000

In this episode, Jeff will discuss Hot Shot No-Pest Strips and Nuvan Prostrips. These strips are very similar to each other in that they use the same active ingredient, dichlorvos or DDVP, in the same percentage and are to be used in similar settings. The difference between the two products is that bed bugs is listed on the Nuvan Prostrips label which makes it available for use in states where the pest is required to be listed on the directions for use. These strips primarily fit into bed bug control plans in that if you have a bag of belongings that you cannot treat with pesticides and cannot launder, if the items in that bag are listed on the label as able to be treated by this pesticide, you could place a strip in that bag treat the belongings for bed bugs. Recent research indicates that belongings should be left for at least two weeks, and maybe more, to be effective against bed bugs and their eggs. Please be aware that research found that bed bugs survived in certain items even when you left them exposed to Nuvan Prostrips for more than two weeks. These products provide you with another option to treat items you cannot launder or treat for bed bugs.

Taking the Bite out of the Holidays

admin — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 17:38:38 +0000

In this episode, Jeff will discuss a Holiday Bed Bug Charity he has been working on. For more information regarding “Taking the Bite out of the Holidays”, please visit http://www.bedbugcentral.com/holidays/

Bed Bug Treatment by Structure

admin — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 15:42:48 +0000

In this episode Jeff will discuss the differences in bed bug treatments when the infestation is in a stand-alone, single family house vs. an apartment vs. a townhouse or condominium. From a treatment perspective, the manner with which a pest control company treats bed bugs shouldn’t differ depending on a structure. For the most part, the way a company treats a bed in an apartment shouldn’t differ from the way it is treated in a house. Where these treatments start to differ is when you start to consider surrounding unit concerns. In a stand-alone, single family home, surrounding units aren’t a concern. In an apartment, the property management will need to be involved in order to gain access to the surrounding units to make sure that the known infestation wasn’t caused by one of the surrounding apartments. In condominiums, townhouses and row-homes, this process can become more complex due to the fact that the surrounding homes could be owned by different people and different management companies and they may not be interesting in allowing you to inspect their home. If that is the case, and they do have bed bugs, it may be almost impossible to eliminate the bugs in the known infestation if they are originating from a surrounding unit that the pest control company is unable to address.
Related Links:

Bed Bugs 101 – Surrounding Units

Chicago vs. Bed Bugs

New Jersey Apartment Association

Bed Bugs and Personal Belongings

admin — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:25:51 +0000

In this episode Jeff will summarize the different options that exist for treating items that you cannot launder or directly treat. Such items could be: electronics, books, paintings, pictures, dvd players, radios, alarm clocks, boxes and just clutter in general. The three main options you have in order to deal with these items are: the Packtite portable heating unit, DDVP pest strips (Hot Shot No-pest strips or Nuvan pest strips) or commodity fumigations. Please watch episodes 32, 28, 22 and 5 for additional information on these 3 options. In regards to commodity fumigations, the Bed Bugs in Cars episode talks about the technology but in order to use this technology you would need to load all of your personal belongings into a truck and drive the truck to a fumigation company to perform the service.

Episode 5: Hot-Shot No-pest strips

Episode 28: Bed Bugs in Cars

Episode 22: Nuvan pest strips

Effectiveness of Steamers on Bed Bugs

admin — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 17:51:36 +0000

In this episode Jeff is explains how to determine if the steamer you have purchased or have at home will be effective in killing both bed bugs and their eggs on contact. One thing that we know about bed bugs is that they are susceptible to heat and if they are exposed to temperatures in excess of 180oF both bed bugs and their eggs should be killed on contact. In previous episodes we have also discussed how steamers can be effective for killing bugs and their eggs on contact and good be a good tool to address resistance concerns in a bed bug population. If you have purchased a steamer and would like to determine if it will be effective in killing bed bugs and their eggs on contact, you should first purchase an instant read thermometer (similar to the one you would use to cook food in an oven). If you then take the steamer and turn it on and move the steamer over the thermometers sensor you can see if you are achieving temperatures in excess of 180oF. If you do achieve temperatures in excess of 180oF then that steamer should be sufficient to kill bugs and eggs on contact. Please be aware that steamers can damage fabrics and finishes on different surfaces, so always use caution when steamer different items.

DIY – Introduction

admin — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 04:15:16 +0000

Bed Bug Central always recommends that you hire a knowledgeable pest control professional to assist you in your bed bug control efforts. This “Do It Yourself” or “DIY” series of videos is intended to provide people who can’t afford to hire a knowledgeable professional or purchase the products mentioned in our other videos the best possible methods to better their situation in regards to bed bugs. Please be aware that attempting to control bed bugs on your own comes with the potential to worsen you problem and cost you more money in the future. Bed bug control can be very difficult and is best left up to pest control professionals. If you have any questions about the information contained in these videos please e-mail Jeff White at jeff.white@bedbugcentral.com

Bed Bug Heat Treatment Demo

admin — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 16:53:56 +0000

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In this episode, Jeff will perform an actual heat treatment for bed bugs and explain the basics of how the Temp-Air mobile heating system works. In recent months, using heat to control bed bugs has become an interest for both the pest control industry and bed bug sufferers. Heat presents the opportunity to eliminate a bed bug infestation in just one treatment and at a minimum, drastically reduce the number of bed bugs present in a home. With this increased interest, Bed Bug Central has been evaluating the effectiveness of using this heating system to control bed bugs. This episode demonstrates the use of the Temp-Air mobile heating system and some of the concepts and techniques of heat treating a home.

Bed Bugs in Cars

admin — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 14:28:25 +0000

In this episode, Jeff will explain how, although uncommon, bed bugs can infest your automobile and what to do if you suspect your automobile may have an issue. If you think your car is infested, you can first complete and inspection of the car but due to the large number of cracks and voids in a car, it may not yield any reliable results. Due to the complex nature of automobiles, the only true solution to the problem is to get your automobile fumigated by a licensed fumigation company. If this is done properly, is will be 100% effective on all stages of bed bugs.