Bed Bug TV » bed bug monitor

How Do I Know If the Bed Bugs are Gone?

admin — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 15:05:33 +0000

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.

DIY Bed Bug Monitors: Creating a Trap Around the Bed Leg

admin — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 13:53:03 +0000

In this episode Jeff will discuss how to make a bed bug barrier and/or interception device for your bed or couches at home. Many don't have the money to afford commercially available interception devices and this will discuss some ways to create your own. A bed bug barrier attempts to prevent bed bugs from gaining access to the bed but making the bed legs unable to be climbed. These monitors will only work if the sheets are tucked in, the bed is pulled away from the wall and no other items touch the floor. Bed bug interception devices catch the bugs as they travel to and from the bed. By using such items as soapy water, oil, sticky tape, glue and vaseline, you can created your own interception devices using a household container. Please remember that when creating a barrier device bed bugs should not be able to climb the outside of the container but when creating an interception device they should be able to climb the outside of the container. Also, remember that these devices should not be viewed as control tools and will most likely not control your bed bug infestation.

Related Topics:

BedBug TV: Climbup Insect Interceptor

The Bed Bug Beacon

admin — Mon, 17 May 2010 14:38:47 +0000

In this episode, Jeff will discuss the Bed Bug Beacon which is an active bed bug monitor that releases carbon dioxide to attract bed bugs to it. The Bed Bug Beacon utilizes a powder and water mixture to create carbon dioxide which is known to be attractive to bed bugs. Manufacturer directions claim that the monitor will release at least 5 days of carbon dioxide. In preliminary tests, the Bed Bug Beacon has been shown to have the ability to collect bed bugs in a high level infestation (lots of bugs present) and in one apartment caught a similar number of bed bugs as the Nightwatch bed bug monitor. Additional tests need to be performed to determine how effective the monitor is for detecting low level bed bug infestations and how long the monitor releases carbon dioxide for. If this monitor is found to be effective in collecting low level bed bug infestations, it could pose challenges for other active bed bug monitors on the market due to the fact that it has a much lower price point. Stay tuned for more information…..

CDC3000 Bed Bug Monitor

admin — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 14:12:31 +0000

In this episode, Jeff will show you the CDC 3000 active bed bug monitor, explain how it works and where he thinks it fits into a bed bug management program. The CDC 3000 is an active bed bug monitor that uses heat, carbon dioxide and a chemical lure to attract bed bugs to it. You can take this unit and place it in a home that bed bugs are suspected to be in and theoretically bed bugs should be attracted to it. We have placed the monitor in units where a large population of bed bugs existed and did in fact collect bugs. At this point there is still a lot of information that needs to be researched in regards to what the capabilities of the monitor are. Some of those questions are: Does the monitor out compete a human host? How close to an area that you want to monitor do you need to place the trap? If the monitor doesn’t collect bugs what does that tell you about the presence of bugs? Either way, we do think that the monitor is a great design and does hold value in monitoring for bed bug populations but to what extent is yet unknown. If an when you purchase a CDC 3000, please remember to follow all manufacturer directions on how to properly set and use the monitor. Also, if you have any concern about the unit being infested with bed bugs, it is highly recommended that you treat the monitor in a Packtite portable heating unit for the maximum length of time that the portable heating unit runs.

Climbup™ Insect Interceptor

admin — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 18:25:27 +0000

In this episode, Jeff will discuss the new Climbup™ Insect Interceptor and it’s potential uses in bed bug management plans. The new Climbup™ Insect Interceptor is a passive bed bug monitor that intercepts bed bugs as they migrate to and from the bed or couch. These can be installed on beds and couches (that fit the trap) and left in place to serve as an ongoing bed bug monitor to determine the presence and level of bed bug activity. As long as the talcum powder that is present in the wells of the device are fresh and still active and there are no natural bridges from the floor/walls to the bed are present (bed pressing against the wall, sheets or comforter touching the floor, etc…), any bed bug that falls in the monitor will be trapped and can be disposed of by flushing them in a toilet or disposing of them in an outdoor trash receptacle. This monitor should not be viewed as a control device but as a proactive, ongoing monitoring device for bed bugs and can play a very valuable role in many bed bug management and control plans.

Releated Links:

Order Climbup Insect Interceptors

Bedbugger.com – New (and inexpensive) passive bed bug monitors: Climbup™ Interceptors