You may need to treat the areas where bedbugs live two or three times with a bed bugs steam cleaner to kill all of them. Adults cannot tolerate the heat from steam pressure for more than 15 to 20 minutes, and you can feel sure that your steamer can kill them with repeated exposures.
Fortunately, bed bugs have one true weakness: heat. As resilient as they seem, all it takes to kill them is exposure to a steam temperature of at least 120°F / 48°C (the higher the better).
Spray on areas where bed bugs are hiding. These areas include box springs, mattress seams, dressers, closets, nightstands, carpet and rug edges, molding, and any place bed bugs would be hiding. Repeat in 2-4 weeks.
To lure bed bugs out of their hiding spots, you can use a steamer or a hairdryer to heat areas such as mattresses. Neither of these is hot enough to kill the bed bugs, but it can trick them into thinking a human host is near. You can also keep an eye out at night to locate their nests when they are most active.
Bed bugs are generally considered to be nocturnal and prefer to forage for a host and take a blood meal during the night. They also will come out in the daytime or at night when lights are on, in order to take a blood meal, especially if there were no human hosts in the structure for a while and they are hungry.
Check in the places where you found them before and look closely to see if any are still moving. If you see no movement, it might mean that the treatment was 100% successful, but don't assume. It's still wise to check every day for the next few days to ensure they have been completely eradicated.
You may have them for a while, but may not notice them until weeks, or even months later. Bed bug eggs take anywhere from six to 12 days to hatch, and the adult life span can be anywhere from six months to a year. That's why it's important to know these early signs of an infestation.
You may continue to sleep in your bed after treatment. Encasements should be put on mattresses and box springs. Any surviving bed bugs in the mattress or box spring will not be able to escape the encasement or bite.
The Pesticide Specialist explained that some bed bug populations have developed resistance to common insecticides, so certain sprays may be ineffective, no matter how much is used. Over-use or daily pesticide applications should be avoided to prevent the bed bugs from spreading out or developing resistance.
Wash everything on a high temperature or sanitary cycle for at least 30 minutes. Placing everything in the dryer on the hottest setting for 30 minutes will also kill bed bugs and larvae. Immediately after you're finished putting clothing in the washer, tie up and throw out the empty garbage bag in an outdoor trash bin.
Showering using soap and water is sufficient to remove bed bugs from your person. Wash your work clothes and dry them completely in a clothes dryer. Once dry, run the clothes on high heat for an additional 30 minutes to make certain that any bed bugs transferred from the washing machine are dead.
Often a great indicator of how long an infestation has been around is the number of adult bed bugs present. Generally it takes at least seven weeks for a bed bug to grow from an egg to an adult, so there should be no new adults from eggs during that period.
In most cases, a bed bug infestation will go unnoticed for a few months following a bed bug's initial introduction into a home.
Pyrethrins and Pyrethroids: Pyrethrins and pyrethroids are the most common compounds used to control bed bugs and other indoor pests. Pyrethrins are botanical insecticides derived from chrysanthemum flowers. Pyrethroids are synthetic chemical insecticides that act like pyrethrins.
Bet you never thought one of the uses for a garment steamer could help you sleep better! For a deep, healthy clean, strip those sheets, warm up your steamer and steam clean your mattress. A garment steamer is great for getting out old stains, deodorizing and even minimizing bacteria and germs.
A bed bug cannot fly, they can only crawl, so chemical treatment makes the most sense. The University of A&M has shown that chemical vs. heat when properly prepared for and carried out by a proficient certified applicator both have a 97% kill rate leaving 3% behind to proliferate.
As bed bugs live for over a year without feeding, it can take months before they disappear completely. You will need bed bug extermination to deal with the infestation right away. Pest control professionals will know how to get bed bugs out of your bed and off your bedding quickly.
It is not normal to see bed bugs after treatment especially the same ones. If you still have bed bugs after 3 treatments it is most likely because they are coming into your home again from you frequently visiting a place that has a bed bug infestation.
You may be thinking, can you get bed bugs from not washing your sheets? No—bed bugs have absolutely nothing to do with cleanliness levels. However, washing your sheets regularly gives you the opportunity to look for and remove any possible bed bug infestations.