In this episode, Jeff will talk about a recent study that was released online that demonstrated that bed bugs chose to feed on a subjects arm that was shaved rather than feed on an arm covered in hair.  This study suggested that bed bugs do not like to feed on bodies covered in hair.  This has long been a theory of many experts in the industry because a bed bugs has a difficult time getting access to blood when hair covers the body and walking on body hair also makes it more likely that the person may wake up.  That being said, this is a warning to those reading this study and thinking of ways to use this information to help in the battle against bed bugs.  Just because a body has hair on it does not mean bed bugs will not feed on a person.  Therefore letting your body hair grow or wearing a hairy costume to bed will not protect you from bed bugs feeding on you.  This study is intended to shed light on the behavioral ecology of bed bugs and suggest that bodies covered in hair (dogs, cats, etc…) may be less likely to be fed on by bed bugs if they have a hairless body close by.

In this episode, Jeff will answer one of the most popular e-mail questions he receives which asks if the pesticides being applied for bed bug infestations  are “safe”.  The first concern many home owners have when they find a bed bug infestation in their house is if pesticides are applied, are my kids or pets safe around those pesticides.  Many experts in the pest control industry will try to avoid using the word “safe” when referring to any pesticides applied in the home.  The bottom line with this topic is that many of the pesticides used in homes these days, if used consistently with the label directions and applied in the manner listed, have a low-risk of adverse effects on human than what many people traditionally believe.  If you have any further questions about the safety of pesticides being applied in homes, it is highly recommended that you talk to your pest control company and acquire the MSDS (Materials Safety Data Sheets) sheets for the pesticides being applied and provide them to your doctor or physician for them to review and provide recommendations. 

In this episode Jeff will discuss how sprays that you can apply to your luggage during travel to keep bed bugs off may not be 100% effective but may be worth considering if you are concerned about encountered bed bugs during your travels.  There are many sprays that are claiming that they can be applied to luggage to keep bed bugs off of your luggage.  The first item to check is that the label on the spray states that luggage can be treated with the spray and that you follow the directions on the label when applying the spray.  Also understand that luggage sprays are not 100% guaranteed to keep bugs off of your luggage.   Therefore it is still important to launder your clothes before you unpack them inside your home and to either store or treat your luggage when you return.  That being said, many of these sprays use ingredients that are in fact repellent to bed bugs and therefore, as long as you understand they aren’t 100% effective and need to be applied periodically depending on label directions, using them during your travels may not be a bad decision. 

In this episode Jeff will discuss the pesticides that he and BedBug Central are using in their bed bug treatment protocols.  Please keep in mind that it is not his intention to sell anyone on a specific pesticide.  There are many pesticides available that may have similar effects to the examples mentioned in this video and a company not using these pesticides does not mean they have chosen poorly.  Also, most of the products mentioned in this video are intended to be used by pest control professionals.  If a non-licensed individual decided to purchase any of the examples mentioned and apply them on their own, please follow all label directions carefully and review any laws that are specific to your individual state.   For a liquid residual we are currently alternating service to service Transport GHP and Demand CS in an effort to optimize the effect of these products while trying to manage and resistance concerns.  For dusts, we use Tri-Die and Diatomaceous Earth.  Please watch the video for more information on why we chose each product and any concerns we have with each.

In this episode, Jeff talks about different ways to help you determine if bed bugs are present in your home.  Many times people are dealing with infestations, their homes are treated and they want to know how to tell if the bugs are gone.  BedBug Central uses the “50-60 day rule” in that we want to see the people in the homes go 50-60 days without seeing any bugs or receiving any bites.The reason we use 60 days is that bugs feed every 10 days or so and eggs take about 10 days to hatch.  What we’re starting to see is that when you apply pesticides to control bed bugs, it can cause the bugs to act “odd” and sometimes not feed at their regular interval.  It has been documented that bugs may go into a “non-feeding”  period after pesticide exposure due to adverse conditions.  This 60 days allows the bug time to come out and feed, even if it has been affected by pesticide exposure.  You can also consider using interception devices or other monitors to help you determine if you still have a problem but keep in mind that there is no 100% definitive way to determine if you still have a problem.  That being said, if you know you react to bed bug bites and perform inspections on the beds in the home and use the 50-60 day rule, there is a good chance that the bugs have in fact been eliminated.

In this episode Jeff will discuss a few easy steps you can take to help protect yourself from bed bugs in the office you work in. With the increase in bed bug infestations in residential homes, there has been an increase in bed bugs being reported in offices. In an office environment, someone is dealing with an infestation at home and bringing bed bugs into the office. The bugs walk off of their personal belongings or clothes and "infest" the work space. One step is to bring less personal items into the office which will decrease the chance bed bugs hitching a ride home with you. You can also seal your personal belongings in Ziploc bags or sealed Tupperware containers while working to protect those items from being infested. Lastly, you can launder your clothes in a hot wash and/or a hot dry cycle when you return home to kill any bed bugs or their eggs that may be on them. If you follow these few simple steps you should drastically reduce the chance that you take bed bugs home with you if they are found in your office.

In this episode Jeff will talk about how to avoid staying in a hotel room that is overly infested with bed bugs and how to avoid taking bed bugs home with you.  With bed bugs on the rise it is becoming more common to encounter bed bugs in hotels.  While a basic inspection of the headboard and box spring in the room may help you avoid staying in an overly infested room, it would be almost impossible to find a bed bug in a light infestation and therefore addressing your belongings when you return home is critical.  Simple steps such as bringing either dissolvable laundry bags or garbage bags to separate your clothes into launderable piles before you leave can reduce the chance that you introduce a bed bug into your home.  Also, knowing how to address your suitcase when you return is extremely important as bugs may have hitched a ride on the outside of the suitcase.  Follow these simple steps and you can drastically reduce the chance you take a bed bug home during your travels.

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PackTite Portable Heating Unit

BedBug Travel Protection

 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/

In this episode Jeff will discuss what people should and shouldn't do after a bed bug treatment has been performed in their home. Viewers have submitted several questions that have asked what they can and cannot do after a bed bug treatment has been performed so that they can avoid deactivating any pesticides that have been applied. The truth of the matter is that is a question that is best answered by the pest control company who performed the treatment. Without knowing what the company applied and where they applied those pesticides, it is impossible for anybody to comment on what you should do other than the pest control company who performed the work. If you have bagged and laundered clothing you can either choose to live out of those bags until the bugs have been declared eliminated or unload those bags and put the clothes back if evidence was not noted in the closets or dressers. Please be aware that if you choose to unload those bags that if the closet or dresser is found to have evidence, you may have to launder the clothes again. That being said, bed bugs are not typically found on the clothes in closets and dressers so typically you can put the clothes back after they are laundered. But please remember, before you do anything you should always contact the company who performed the treatment.

In this episode, Jeff will discuss mattress and box spring encasements and the roles they play when dealing with bed bug infestations. Bed encasements play a critical role when dealing with bed bug infestations. The intention of encasements are to lock bed bugs inside of the encasements in an effort to make beds easier to treat and limit the amount of pesticide being applied to mattresses. In addition, encasements are designed to keep bugs out of the bedding to protect your bedding and limit bed bugs to the outside of the encasements. This can ease future inspections of the bedding because the encasement make bed bugs much easier to see. When shopping for encasements it is important to ask for research that backs the companies claim that they are effective for bed bugs. There have been encasement companies that say they are good for use with bed bugs but the encasement zipper fails to keep bed bugs inside the encasement. Encasements are a great option when dealing with bed bugs from both a proactive (protecting the bedding and making inspections easier) and reactive (assisting with treatment) perspective.