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Bed Bugs Are Back!

Curious to see a bed bug in action then watch our video!

Visit our Photo Gallery for more pictures and video.

Our Program is been approved by Bed Bug Central and their staff of leading entomologists.

 

 

 

History

Bed bugs were a common problem in the US through the WWII era. Use of products such as DDT and Malathion caused this pest to be virtually eradicated in the US starting in the 1940’s and 1950’s. Bed Bugs started to reemerge in the US and other countries in the 1990’s. They are believed to have reintroduced through people traveling internationally more frequently. The changes in pest management practices since the WWII era and chemical resistant bed bugs have helped to fuel the resurgence. Bed bugs hitchhike from one place to another on people, bags, luggage, and other items. They are also spread through rental furniture, second hand furniture, old mattresses/ box springs, and infested delivery vehicles.

Biology and Lifestyle

 Bed bugs live in furniture, mattresses, boxes springs, sofas, chairs, pictures, baseboards, and anywhere else they can fit. Most infestations are not found until the people notice bites on their body although you can get bit without knowing it. Bed bug bites are not usually felt by the person. Bed Bugs can lay and wait for their next meal for long periods of time. Some adults have been known to go 1 year without feeding. Bed Bugs typically like to live near their food source (you or a loved one) and will most likely be found in the bedroom or where you spend a lot of time asleep. Bed bugs tend to congregate together but do not live in a colony like ants or termites. Bed bugs are most active at night because that is when the host is asleep.

 Females glue their eggs to hidden areas and take 3-5 days to hatch. The eggs are white in color and hold one bed bug per capsule. A female can lay 200-500 eggs in a 10 month period but only lays 3-8 at a time. They reach an adult stage in 35-48 days. Bed bugs can survive cold temperatures but succumb to heat over 113 Fahrenheit after 30 minutes. Steam applied properly and at the right temperature can kill bed bugs on contact. Bed bugs are ¼ inch long, are very flat, and can be identified by their fecal matter, skin casts, eggs, or a specimen. They can be found in one stitch of sewn fabric on a mattress.

Bed Bugs lay and wait in hiding for the host to arrive which is usually you but in a pinch they will bite the family pets.

What treatment for Bed Bugs are available from Gene's?

Our treatment protocols were developed with the help of our consulting entomologist Paul Bello who has worked all over the US getting rid of bed bugs.

1.       Immediate Reduction of the population through vacuuming and steam treatment of the infested areas and certain contents such as the mattress, sofas, chairs, carpet areas, and other furniture.

2.       Placement of dusts into electrical outlets and other voids.

3.       The use of pesticides with residual effect to kill other adults. Different products will be used in different ways. Different products have different purposes and application methods. The specific setup and contents of your area to be treated will tell us which products need to be used. Some of the products that may be used are Bedlam, Suspend SC, and Exciter. None of the products alone will kill all of the bedbugs but together and with the vacuuming and steam they are very effective.

4.       We will disassemble the bed and frame in order to treat it properly. We will remove pictures and move other pieces of furniture as needed. We will move and disassemble certain pieces of furniture in order to treat the area.

5.       All of the products that we used have a low odor. If you can smell the products please open a window to air your home out.

6.        We will place mattress and box spring encasements on the bed(s). These are mandatory. These are included in the cost of the treatment. We require all mattresses and box springs in a treated room to be covered in an encasement. Encasements stop bed bugs from leaving your mattress and box springs to feed. These encasements are a fraction of the cost of a new mattress or box spring. At the initial inspection it will be noted what type of mattresses you have and the number.

7. We also will place climbup interceptors® on the bed posts and other areas. These interceptors will trap bed bugs as they move allowing our inspector to insure you are bed bug free. These are also available for installation to aid in confirming the presence of bed bugs before a treatment.

8. Our Guarantee - We provide additional follow up services ,that are included in our price, to make sure we have eliminated your problem. We believe that after 50 days if you do not report any bites and we do not find any new evidence, we consider the population eliminated. If we continue to find evidence or have reports of bites we will reapply the treatment as necessary and continue to moniter.

This treatment does take several hours to complete and we use  a minimum of a 2 person team. This treatment may vary depending on your unique situation. Please contact our office for a free bed bug inspection.

What Can I Do To Not Get Bed Bugs?

1.       Be careful about picking up second hand or discarded furniture.

2.       You can place your clothes in a dryer for a min. of 30 minutes to kill the bed bugs that may be present.

3.       Try to find out where you could have picked up a bed bug. Were you out of the county? Run a taxi? Had international visitors? Been to someone’s house who had been out of the country? Work with someone who complains of being bitten at night?  

4.     Place encasements on your mattress and box springs before you get an infestaion.

5.       A cluttered or dirty area is harder to treat and gain elimination that a clean tidy one. Please clean out your closets and do not store items under your bed after the treatment. If removing items from an infested room (including clothes) place them in white plastic garbage bags so you do not “drop” bed bugs in other areas as you walk. Do not store these bags in other rooms.

6.       Poor sanitation or social status does not exempt people from getting bed bugs. Bed Bugs are found in the best hotels in the world, multi million dollar estates, homeless shelters, and everywhere in between.