Part 3 of this year’s Bed Bug Awareness series is: bed bug control and bed bug prevention! Be sure to check out our previous Bed Bug Awareness Week posts, Welcome to Bed Bug Awareness Week and Part 2: Bed Bug Information and Inspection before continuing with Part 3: Bed Bug Control and Prevention.
BED BUG CONTROL
Bed Bug Control, or Bed Bug Treatment, focuses on the best methods for you to deal with current bed bug infestations as well as preventing future ones. Over the years, Rose has developed a tried and true 3-tier system to combat everyone’s least favorite pests using environmentally-friendly Integrated Pest Management best practices. To successfully eliminate a bed bug situation, both you and your Rose Pest professional need to work together because there is no silver bullet when it comes to dealing with bed bugs.
Here’s what you should expect when you contact Rose for help with bed bugs:
-
Inspection and survey
During this phase, the severity of a bed bug infestation is assessed. Visual inspection, monitors, traps, and protective bed coverings are used to tell us exactly how to go about treating for that particular situation. Your technician will provide you with an instructional sheet at this time to make sure you’re properly prepared for treatment. -
Treatment
Using the monitors put in place during our initial inspection, a determination will be made as to what type of treatment method would be the most effective in gaining control of the active infestation. Rose uses Thermal Remediation (heat treatment for bed bugs), conventional, and non-conventional techniques for the proper control of bed bugs. The right method for your situation will be discussed prior to treatment date to ensure everyone is on the same page. -
Monitoring and Reporting
Follow up inspections are necessary to evaluate the effectiveness of the treatment performed. At this time, using our monitoring methods in step 1, we reassess the situation, determining if additional treatments will be necessary. A detailed report is provided, explaining our findings, recommendations, and next steps.
TREATMENT OPTIONS
Here at Rose Pest, we’re all about options. We don’t want to keep telling you the same things over and over, but education really is the most important aspect of a truly effective pest control treatment. Our certified professionals will work with you to create a personalized bed bug treatment plan from our combination of conventional and non-conventional treatment optionsthat run the gamut from Thermal Remediation® and Fumigation to Integrated Pest Management treatments and bed bug sniffing dogs! Read on for more information!
THERMAL REMEDIATION
Thermal Remediation® is a reduced-pesticide use of controlling and eliminating bed bug infestations. Using special electric heaters and powerful fans specifically designed for pest control use, rooms are heated to what is known as the bed bug “killing zone”, which is between 120 and 135 degrees. This heat range kills bed bugs at any life stage, including eggs.
How does it work? Use heat to kill bed bugs. The heat causes the bed bugs to come out of hiding. But once it gets too hot, they die quickly. Before our Rose Pest experts arrive, they’ll provide you with documentation to help you best prepare for and understand the extermination process, including instructions you need to follow before, during, and after the visit. The cooperation of our clients is absolutely cruical for the success of the treatment. Using this state-of-the-art method, your infestations are not only effectively eliminated, but the use of pesticides is significantly reduced.
FUMIGATION
If you picked up any awesome finds from your latest garage sale hunt, or you’re importing or exporting some rare gems, you might be interested in an alternative Bed Bug Prevention measure that Rose Pest offers–Fumigation. Fumigation is a treatment in which specially formulated gas is introduced into a sealed area, and left to evaporate. In that time, any insects in the area will have been killed and any remaining components of the gas are dried out and pose no danger to you. Rose Pest has a large fumigation facility at O’Hare Airport that operates around the clock. Here’s a list all of the items we can fumigate for you!
- Perishable items (produce, flowers, etc.)
- Shipping crates
- Dunnage
- Household Items
- Furniture
- Wood
- Luggage
- Mattresses
- Box Springs
- Storage Items
- Artwork, antiques, and artifacts
- Carpets, area rugs, and Oriental rugs
- Clothing and Furs
Taking care of a bed bug problem with conventional or non-conventional treatments–whether it be Thermal Remediation, our bed bug dogs or Fumigation–is great, but what do you do once the problem is solved to prevent it from happening again? That’s where bed bug prevention comes in.
BED BUG PREVENTION
Here are some great bed bug prevention tips from Rose Pest, the National Pest Management Association (NPMA) and the Professional Pest Management Alliance (PPMA):
- Vacuum suitcases after returning from a vacation.
- Check your sheets for tell-tale blood spots the size of black pepper flecks.
- Bring a large plastic trashbag to keep your suitcase in during hotel stays, or keep it in the bathtub.Carry a small flashlight to make quick visual inspections. Never bring second-hand furniture, especially mattresses and box springs, into a home without thoroughly examining for signs of a bed bug infestation. You might consider having a pest control professional inspect the furniture as it is difficult to detect an infestation without training.
- Regularly inspect areas where pets sleep for signs of bed bugs.
- Eliminate clutter as best as you can to prevent hiding and breeding opportunities.
- Bed bugs are elusive creatures, so it is imperative to seek professional pest control assistance if you suspect a presence.
- If you have a bed bug infestation, consult a pest management professional before disposing of infested or previously treated furniture, clothing, or other items. Properly mark any items that will be disposed with clear notification of bed bug presence to prevent further spreading of the bed bugs.
- Although bed bugs are typically thought to be a household pest, they can hitchhike with people to their places of employment. Check seams of office chairs, crevices of desks, and report any suspicions to management.
- When shopping, using dressing rooms, or trying on clothing, inspect behind mirrors, under benches, look for tell-tale signs on clothing while in the store and upon returning home, immediately launder the clothing in hot water or steam/dry clean delicate items.
Whether you’re at home or abroad, it’s important to be vigilant and check for bed bugs wherever you’re going to rest for the evening. Check out our previous post about how to Prevent Bed Bugs From Coming Home With You This Season to make sure you’re educated about what to look for at home, in the office, at a hotel or even in an Airbnb. These annoying little buggers are everywhere, and all it takes is a few to hitch a ride on a backpack or suitcase to make their way into your home.
This concludes Bed Bug Awareness Week, but the Rose Chicago Pest Control Blog is regularly being updated with all kinds of helpful pest information and tips.
