Bed bugs are a resilient pest and can build resistance to chemical treatments. Additionally, they hide in hard to heat locations that may be missed by home remedies and traditional treatment methods.
Introducing extreme temperatures, such as those found in heat treatment, can eliminate them. However, attention to detail is key to successful elimination.
Heat Treatment
The best way to eliminate bed bugs is by super heating a home and the areas within it with specialized electric or propane-based heat treatment systems. The goal is to bring internal temperatures to a level above the thermal death point of adult bed bugs and their eggs – this temperature is typically 118 degrees Fahrenheit. When this threshold is reached, the bed bug population in a residence will die out completely.
This is unlike traditional chemical treatments that require countless sessions and cannot guarantee complete eradication of these pests. In addition, the minuscule size of bed bugs allows them to hide in hard to reach places that are unaffected by conventional chemical treatments. This includes behind wall cavities, in electrical outlets, in the folds of clothing pieces, inside shoes and more.
As part of the preparation process for a heat treatment, an extermination company will provide a list of items that need to be removed from a dwelling prior to a session. While this may seem like a large task, it is essential for the success of the procedure. It allows the technician to focus on a space that needs attention without worrying about damaging other valuable belongings.
In addition, it also provides a chance for the homeowner to take care of any items that need extra attention before heat treatment is completed. This may include a thorough cleaning of a room and the removal of items that are easily damaged by high levels of heat.
Clutter should also be moved during the pre-treatment process to promote air flow and ensure that all areas of a room are exposed to lethal temperatures. Leaving clutter in a space will only drive bed bugs into other areas of the dwelling that are not yet up to the desired temperature, creating the risk for re-infestation once the treatment is complete.
Experienced heat treaters have found that opening all closet and cabinet doors during the initial heating process is helpful as well. This allows the heated air to get into spaces that are difficult to access and will help ensure that the cracks and crevices that the bugs are hiding in are brought up to a deadly temperature as well.
Heat Sensitive Items
If you’re considering a bed bug heat treatment to rid your home of these pesky pests, it’s important to understand what you can and cannot safely keep in your home during the process. There are several items that are likely to be damaged by the extreme temperatures used during heat treatment, and many of these items can be destroyed or harmed irreparably if they’re exposed to excessive heat for extended periods, such as when laundering clothes at high temperatures eliminates bed bugs.
Before the start of your bed bug heat treatment, you will need to move anything you don’t want or can’t risk damaging into another area. This will typically include luggage, boxes, totes, and other storage containers that aren’t in the main living areas of your home. Be sure to open up the containers and create space so that air can freely move through them, reaching all areas of the container as well as the walls and ceiling above.
During the initial heating process, it’s also best to open up all closet doors and cabinet doors in bedrooms and living rooms. This will allow the heat to reach inside closets, book shelves, and dresser drawers where bed bugs may be hiding. These locations will begin to heat up gradually as the rest of the room is heated, and they’re much more likely to reach the lethal temperature needed for a successful treatment.
Other locations that should be monitored throughout the treatment process are hard-to-heat spaces like floor/wall junctions and spaces under baseboards. It’s important to ensure that these areas are getting up to the temperature required for an effective treatment, as they’re frequently overlooked and can be difficult to get to with standard equipment.
Those who own or plan on purchasing furniture that may be difficult to access for other treatment methods should consider buying a heat chamber. These small, portable devices can fit your furniture, and they’re designed to be heated to the point that bed bugs die. They’re an excellent option for pieces that you can’t otherwise treat with chemicals, steam, or Cryonite. You can purchase or rent these heat chambers from many pest control companies.
Preparation
The process of heat treatment involves specialized industrial heaters that are placed throughout a home to reach every crack and crevice where bed bugs may be hiding. It is important to prepare a home before the bed bug heat treatment process starts to ensure it can be as effective as possible. This includes a thorough cleaning, removing items that cannot be washed and preparing furniture for the treatment. The best way to do this is to unstack mattresses, flip them over and stand them on end, and remove couch cushions to allow airflow underneath them. This allows the internal space of the mattresses and furniture to be reached more effectively by the intense heat that is used during the process.
Before the heating process begins, it is crucial to vacuum and wash all bedding items, including pillowcases, shams, sheets, blankets and comforters. This helps to eliminate any lingering bugs and their eggs that may have survived other treatments. It is also important to remove any clutter from the home to prevent it from blocking access to hard-to-reach areas where the insects may be hiding. Additionally, it is important to remove any personal items that may be sensitive to intense heat, including fine electronics, delicate clothing, and cosmetics. Extreme temperatures maintained for a long period of time can soften plastics, denature proteins, and expand gases.
One of the biggest problems that can arise during a bed bug heat treatment is the ability of the pests to escape the intense heat that is applied to their home. This is due to the complex design and structure of many pieces of furniture. In addition, a lot of these designs make it difficult to reach and treat all areas of the furniture with chemicals, steam, vacuuming or Cryonite.
For this reason, it is a good idea to consider utilizing a heat chamber for these pieces of furniture. These are large containers that are designed to hold furniture and can be heated to a temperature that is lethal to bed bugs. The rate at which these temperatures are applied is much faster than the rates applied during a full-room treatment, which can help to avoid acclimation of the bed bugs.
Post Treatment
Unlike standard dryers or commercial steamers, bed bug heat treatments are designed to expose items to high temperatures for long periods. This allows the temperature to penetrate all cracks and crevices where bed bugs hide and kill them at all life stages. Typically, the treatment will last between 6 and 9 hours. The resulting high temperatures also effectively kill many other household pests.
Professionals use specialized equipment to conduct heat treatments for bed bugs in homes and other commercial properties. They will set up sensors throughout the property to ensure that each area reaches a bed bug thermal threshold. After the temperature has reached this threshold, it will be maintained for several hours to ensure that all areas are fully exposed and that any remaining bed bug eggs will die.
Before the heat treatment starts, the technician will conduct a final walkthrough to make sure that all sensitive items have been removed from the property. They will also inspect each room for any lingering bed bugs and their eggs. If necessary, they will reposition furniture items (e.g., re-stack boxes, remove clutter from around couches and recliners) to promote proper air flow and heat circulation during the treatment.
Some companies may suggest that their clients move or remove certain items from their home before a heat treatment, such as removing all clothing from closets and exposing bed bugs hidden inside lounge chairs by flipping them over. This is not always recommended, as extreme cleaning and clutter movement can actually reduce the effectiveness of a heat treatment. The reason is that it can cause bed bugs to scatter into new hiding places.
It is also important to note that the rate of heating and initial temperature used in these studies was significantly higher than the rates of heat and exposure times often cited for successful control of bed bugs using whole-room heat treatments. This might explain the discrepancies between these studies and other published results.
If a home cannot be treated with heat, other options for controlling bed bugs include hot water washing and freezing items. Unlike chemical treatments, these methods do not require the homeowner to leave the house during treatment, making them an attractive alternative. If these approaches do not succeed, the best option is to hire a licensed pest control company for a full-scale treatment of a home or other property.
