You’ve come to the right site if you’re looking for information on how exterminators are able to get rid of one of the most challenging household pests we have to deal with.
We’ll go over the three primary steps an exterminator would take to get rid of bed bugs from your home in this piece. Additionally, you’ll discover how bed bug treatment has evolved over the past 50 years. Some of the bed bug removal knowledge you previously believed you had may be out of date.
The three critical steps a professional exterminator will take before beginning the bed bug control process will be covered in our final section. Knowledge really is power. So let’s get you started so you can successfully fend off these obnoxious, humiliating, and astonishingly resilient little pests.
Also keep in mind that we can assist if you need Cincinnati bed bug extermination.
3 Common Strategies for Bug Removal
There are numerous bed bug treatments available. On YouTube and in forums devoted to pest control, you can find discussions about mattress covers, furniture interceptors, vacuuming, and steaming.
Customers frequently inquire about them to find out if they are good options. the quick response?
Every one of them has a place. We almost certainly mix a few of these techniques when helping a client get rid of their bed bugs. None of them, however, are powerful enough to make a difference on their own.
Only chemical treatment, cold treatment, or heat therapy can completely get rid of bed bugs. In this piece, we’ll go into greater detail about these three bed bug remedies.
Chemical Treatment
Needing quick cures is a quality that is both understandable and rather frequent. Ask the vast majority of sick individuals if they would rather undergo a course of physical therapies or a single medication for treatment. For obvious reasons, nine out of ten people will use the substance.
The same is true for pest control.
We’ll start with a little history lesson. In the past, a pesticide that was often sprayed through fumigation was used to exterminate bed bugs. We have relied on a wide range of dangerous compounds during the past century, from sulfur to mercury chloride.
Then came dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, which, fear not, we can also not pronounce. DDT has an impact on every aspect. We now had a substance available that would let us continue to get rid of future bug generations in addition to your current issue. Thanks to this remarkable material, bed bugs can be destroyed at every step of their life cycles, from eggs to fully grown adults.
Therefore, it is reasonable to inquire: Why aren’t we now utilizing this as our default solution?
Insecticide resistance, in two words.
We believed bed bugs were almost extinct in the US in the 1960s. But there is currently a significant outbreak going on.
Worry is the source of the issue.
Bed bugs that are DDT-resistant are spreading more widely. In an effort to stay one step ahead of the insects, science developed numerous waves of DDT substitutes, such as lindane, chlordane, and diazinon, but all of these eventually lost their efficacy.
Bed bugs have a wide range of behavioral, morphological, and biochemical resistance against chemical treatments because they are highly adaptive animals.
In other words, they continued to get more powerful.
They become more chemically resistant the more chemicals we poured at them.
This little background should help you comprehend why, despite the fact that we currently employ chemicals to treat the issue, they aren’t always the best option to get rid of a bed bug infestation. They are useful. To get rid of bed bugs, though, we had to find better tools.
Almost typically, the need for multiple treatments when utilizing chemicals causes additional damage to your home and increases overall costs.
Cold Treatment
Exterminators needed to come up with a new strategy once the full degree of chemical resistance was discovered.
We originated the idea of using cold treatment.
It actually doesn’t require much explanation. The exterminator’s objective is to instantaneously snap-freeze and kill all bed bugs and bed bug eggs on a treated surface using a device that disperses frozen carbon dioxide.
Cold therapy totally avoids the issue of chemical resistance and considerably minimizes the chance of bed bugs establishing biological resistance because it focuses on extreme environmental change.
The argument for going with cold over chemicals is strengthened by the fact that this is a non-toxic treatment. The environment will perform significantly better overall if there are no residues and no dangerous pollutants.
Do you anticipate a “but” to come next?
The main drawbacks of utilizing cold treatments are as follows: Bed bugs are naturally quite resistant to the cold, even if they might not be able to develop a resistance to it like they have with pesticides over time.
Have we already mentioned how difficult these tasks are?
Simply told, using cold is not the most effective way to get rid of bed bugs. Bed bugs may survive in environments as cold as minus 15 degrees Fahrenheit. Furthermore, until several days have gone with temperatures in that range, you won’t be able to say for sure that the population has been wiped out.
You are totally correct in assuming that would be challenging to carry out.
Are you aware that bed bugs can be discovered hidden in the cracks and crevices of pillows, mattresses, bed frames, clothing, and other items? All of that is insulation, by the way. It is more difficult to expose a bed insect to a deadly cold the deeper it is buried. Most bed bugs, the ones who should irritate you the most, are unaffected.
Not cool at all, or not cool enough.
The main idea is that while cold broadens our possibilities a little, it is not a guaranteed solution.
Heat Treatment
Heat comes next. Once more, you won’t require a challenging case to comprehend how this elimination method functions.
Fans are used in conjunction with a strategically placed battery of extremely strong heaters to move hot air around a damaged residence.
What degree of heat are we referring to?
The objective is to raise the air’s temperature over 130 degrees Fahrenheit.
According to the research, a bed bug population will begin to fall at temperatures of roughly 110 degrees. The biological tipping point, over 120, is where bed bugs start to almost instantaneously die.
At this moment, a workable solution is at last within grasp.
Although bed bugs are resilient, heat appears to be their biggest—and possibly only—easily exploitable weakness.
Another advantage is that heat is easier to access than cold.
130 degrees Fahrenheit seems excessively warm right now. Do not misunderstand us; you would not want to be outside in that heat. It is far easier to raise the ambient temperature of a house to this degree of heat than to lower it to – 15 degrees Fahrenheit.
Additionally, did you know that bed bugs frequently lurk in insulation? It can withstand cold better than heat, though not by much. Heat can enter places that chemicals and cold are less likely to access.
The question is thus raised by everything mentioned. Is the easiest way to get rid of bed bugs boiling them to death? Is it the solution that we have all been seeking?
I suppose the answer is ambivalent.
Management of bed bug infestations is still challenging. In terms of creativity, tenacity, and spreadability among insects, bed bugs are the absolute best.
On the other hand, one of the best remedies we have for attacking the little irritants where they are most exposed is heat.
Chemical treatments that are added are part of the solution in the great majority of cases. However, given our extensive experience, heat is by far the most effective method for getting rid of bed bugs. Although it isn’t a complete remedy, it ought to be a part of every bed bug extermination plan.
Think of some basic logistics as well. Heat therapy is:
- Chemical use results in less disruption.
- Simpler to put into practice than cold therapy.
- The cost-effective and secure solution that the market has to offer.
How to Pick a Reputable Exterminator
You now know more about bed bugs and the approaches we can use to eradicate them. The individuals eradicating the bed bugs are a crucial additional component of the bed bug dilemma.
How do you choose a decent person?
This is a really significant query.
There are many persons who claim to offer professional services, but it might be difficult to identify the real deal — companies with state-of-the-art machinery, years of combined extermination expertise, and supported by passionate entomological knowledge.
Before everything else, it’s important to know what a good exterminator isn’t.
3 Important Facts About Pest Control
No, a skilled exterminator just carries out removal. Killing is insufficient.
A good exterminator’s main objective is to stop the complete bug life cycle, beginning with reproduction. The only method to prevent bed bugs from infiltrating your home, not just tomorrow but also in six months, is to take that action.
#1: An exterminator’s finest tool is their understanding of pests.
A knowledgeable exterminator will only employ one technique:
It’s a typical saying to say, “This guy’s great because he has all the nasty, deadly chemicals.” Chemicals play a role in the situation, but they are not the only one for the reasons we mentioned above.
Rarely does one bed bug elimination technique work well on its own. A skilled exterminator would, however, focus on integrated pest control, which meticulously combines a variety of eradication techniques to attack bugs from several angles.
#2: A combined treatment-control method is frequently the best course of action.
A skilled exterminator will virtually never opt for the “nuclear” method. Many of our clients think we’ll show up at their house in biohazard gear and with poisons fit for weapons strapped to our backs.
This concept unnerves certain people. Some people find it comforting.
But in reality, the dreadful chemical bed bug treatments are a thing of the past. It is unsuccessful. The environment is harmed by it. Did we also say that it completely fails? There are considerably more efficient ways to get rid of bed bugs (like our pal heat therapy).
#3: Greater effectiveness does not necessarily imply greater harm.
Extermination that is effective entails:
- Questions – Where have you discovered bug evidence? Have you just lately bought used furniture? What transpired in your house prior to your becoming aware of their presence? Are you bitten at all? Do you own any animals? Allergies? Determining a treatment plan that will work for you will be greatly influenced by the answers to all of these questions.
- Investigations – And when you think of Sherlock Holmes, think of an investigation! A skilled exterminator will do a forensic inspection of your house to determine the precise nature of the issue you’re experiencing.
- Combinations – Heat treatment should be a part of every bed bug extermination strategy, as years of experience (and a considerable amount of outstanding research) have consistently shown. A skilled bed bug exterminator will know how to delicately apply additional chemical treatments in addition to the heat treatment.
In Conclusion
There you have it, then. The quick version is as follows (too long, didn’t read):
The techniques used to get rid of bed bugs have evolved significantly over time. Heat treatment is the industry norm nowadays. You now know that it also has the advantages of being cheaper and safer than chemical therapy alone.
Make sure the exterminator you choose inquires, investigates, and integrates to eventually get rid of these revolting little gremlins from your house. You’ll be well on your way to a home free of pests (and bug bites!) if you bear these tips in mind.
Want to know more? Consult our thorough guidance if you’re undecided whether to treat bed bugs with heat or insecticides. If you live in California and are having trouble with a bed insect infestation, send us an email or give us a call.
