How to get rid of bed bugs

How to Get Rid of Bed Bugs

Don’t Bed bugs are not life threatening.
Panic

Plan of
Action Choose a plan of action that’s right for you.

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Free! Execute your plan and be bug free!

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2 Plan of Action

This is a do-it-yourself, 8 step approach. It includes selective heat treatment
of your personal items, thorough cleaning of your residence, and use of
diatomaceous earth. It’s very effective if all of the steps are followed.

• Least Expensive
• 100% Effective
• Do It Yourself
• 8 Comprehensive Steps
• Time Consuming

2… Plan of Action

With this method, you hire professionals to heat treat your entire home.
Industrial heaters and fans are used to gradually heat up your entire
residence to bed bug killing temperatures.

• Requires Minimal Personal Time
• 100% Guaranteed (by select professionals)
• Expensive – As Much As $1000 Per Room

We’ll review this choice first because the majority of this lecture
focuses on the 8-Step Approach to get rid of bed bugs.

3 2: Professional HT

This involves bringing in a team of professionals who will use industrial
heaters and fans throughout your residence to heat up the entire structure to
bed bug killing temperatures. Because the electricity required is so high and
would blow the circuits in your home, the heaters and fans are linked to
cables that run out your windows and doors to portable generators
outside. With this method you are essentially making your entire home into a
giant bed bug oven.

The advantages of this method are that, if done correctly, it is a very effective
way to eliminate bed bugs and it saves you from putting in a lot of personal
time and effort.

3… 2: Professional HT

The main disadvantage is that this process is cost prohibitive for most
people. Prices can run over $1000 per room, depending on who you use for
the treatment.

Another potential problem is that if the heat treatment is done
incorrectly, bed bugs can easily return. All of the wall voids must be heated up
to killing temperatures, which is difficult to do. If this is not done
properly, bed bugs can survive in those wall voids and then re-infect your
home. So you really need to use competent professionals who are going to do
the job right. If you choose this method, we recommend that you get
a guarantee that if bedbugs return, your home will be re-treated for free.

If you live in an apartment, condo, or townhouse, bed bugs can re-infest your
home from units that were not heat treated. You must take additional steps
to prevent this. See Step 4, Step 5 and Step 7 of the 8-Step Approach.

4 1: 8-Step Approach

The 8 Steps are:

4.1 8-Step Approach
Step 1: Create a Safe Zone

Dealing with bed bugs is stressful and time consuming. It’s
important to maintain your energy and keep up a positive
attitude; and for this, proper sleep is vital. The first thing you
will want to do is make your bed a safe zone, completely free of
bed bugs and proofed against re-infestation.

1. Launder and Heat Treat All of Your Bedding
2. Encase your Mattress and Box Spring (and Pillows)
3. Use the Proper Bed Frame
4. Create a Safe Perimeter Around Your Bed
5. Observe Good Protocol – Keeping Your Bed Safe

4.1… 8-Step Approach

Step 1.1 Launder and Heat Treat All of Your Bedding

Remember to follow proper protocol when laundering your bedding:
• Put washables in one sealed bag. Put non-washables (comforters, pillows)
in a different sealed bag.

• Heat treat the bedding, either in ZappBug or your washer/dryer.

• Remember do not lift items out of the bags. Rather “dump” them directly
into the washer or dryer.

• After cleaning/heat treating put items into new, unused plastic bags.

Click here for a video of the proper laundering technique.


Step 1.2 Encase your Mattress and Box Spring (and Pillows)

It is essential that you encase both your mattress and box
spring. We also recommend encasing your pillows. If you
wish, you can also put diatomaceous earth inside your box
spring.

Here are the mattress encasements we recommend. Visit
our Amazon store for a full list of supplies.


Step 1.3 Use the Proper Bed Frame

We recommend using a metal bed frame, because it is more
difficult for bed bugs to climb metal. And you must make sure
your head board is bed bug free.

When you are putting your box spring and mattress onto the
frame, we recommend putting diatomaceous earth between the
box spring and mattress.

You can pick-up a simple, metal frame at our Amazon store.


Step 1.4 Create a Safe Perimeter Around Your Bed

You must create a perimeter around your bed, blocking out bed
bugs. To do this, you must:

1. Thoroughly clean the area around your bed, making it bed
bug free.
a) Spread diatomaceous earth around where your bed will go.
b) Vacuum up the diatomaceous earth.
c) If it’s a carpeted area, then shampoo the carpet.
d) After carpet has dried, put more diatomaceous earth down.


Step 1.4 Create a Safe Perimeter Around Your Bed (continued)

2. Prevent bed bugs from re-entering your bed area, using a
layered defense.
a) Use Bed bug interceptors / cups on the feet of the bed frame.
b) Make sure your blankets do not touch the floor.
c) Lay down a thick line of diatomaceous earth, encircling the bed.


Step 1.5 Observe Good Protocol – Keeping Your Bed Safe

It is extremely important to observe very strict protocol in regards to keeping
your bed a safe zone. Never cross the bed perimeter without first stripping
off all of your clothes.

Do not sit on your bed to remove your clothes or take off your shoes.

This is to prevent you from inadvertently transferring bed bugs to your bed.

Within the perimeter only put on clothes that have been properly launder /
heat treated and sealed in plastic bags.

4.2 8-Step Approach
Step 2: Personal Belongings

Deal with Your Personal Belongings.
First, put all of your personal belongings into sealed plastic bags. This will
stop bed bugs in their tracks and keep bed bugs from spreading.

Once everything is in a sealed plastic bag, you need to kill the bed bugs. Bed
bug eggs are small and nearly impossible to detect with the naked eye. So
you need to assume that all of your personal belongings are infested. This is
critical. You must assume that everything is infested and treat it accordingly.

To kill bed bugs in your personal belongings, you have 3 options:
• Heat Treat
• Store for Over 18 Months
• Dispose


Heat Treat Your Belongings
This will be the most common choice for your personal belongings. The goal of
heat treating is to kill bed bugs. To do this, you simply need to ensure that your
personal belongings reach a temperature of 120 degrees Fahrenheit (or greater)
for one hour.

Heat treating can be done with a household clothes dryer set on high and a bed
bug oven such as the ZappBug or the Packtite Closet. Use caution when heating
your personal belongings. Some methods can be dangerous and we do not
recommend any specific methods other than a clothes dryer (set on “high”) or the
ZappBug. Use common sense and proceed with caution.

Common Tools for Heat Treatment:
• Clothes Dryer
• Bed Bug Oven


Store Personal Belongings for 18 Months
If you choose to store some of your personal belongings make sure that you
can live without these item for at least 18 months. Bed bugs can survive for
one and a half years without feeding. It is possible for bed bugs to re-
infest your home if items are not stored for the proper amount of time. This
is a great option things you want to keep but don’t use such as old
files, records, pictures, books, etc…

Bags & Bins for Storage
It is important that all items are stored in a sealed, air-tight bag or storage
bin. There are several types of bags and storage bins on the market. For
storage bins, we recommend either using a bins with an airtight gasket or
encasing the bin in a large plastic bag.


Dispose of Your Personal Belongings
As you go through your belongings, you will probably find things that you no
longer want or need. Now is a great time to get rid of the clutter in your
home. Think of it as a bed bug inspired spring cleaning! When you find
something that you want to get rid of, simply seal it in a plastic bag and then
throw it away. Make sure to seal in it a plastic bag before you throw it away
because you don’t want to inadvertently spread bed bugs.

Reminder: Get rid of all of the cardboard in your home. Bed
bugs love to live in the corrugation.

4.3 8-Step Approach
Step 3: Large Furniture

Deal with Large Furniture
Small pieces of furniture can be heat-treated in ZappBug. For large pieces of
furniture that won’t fit in ZappBug, you could, in theory, construct a giant
home-made bed bug oven (see our blog post about this). However, for most
people this is not practical. Instead you will want to take one of two
approaches, depending upon whether or not the piece of furniture is
upholstered.

Upholstered Furniture
Upholstered furniture is the most challenging because it’s especially easy for
bedbugs to hide in the upholstery. Despite what some pest control
professionals will tell you, steam cleaning is usually not effective, because it’s
difficult to get the steam to penetrate deep enough and thoroughly enough
through the upholstery.

4.4 8-Step Approach
Step 4: Diatomaceous Earth

Using Diatomaceous Earth
Diatomaceous earth (D.E., for short) is an extremely helpful tool in both
eradicating bed bugs and proofing a home against re-infestation.

D.E. is a chalky substance that is derived from fossilized sea creatures. It acts
as a desiccant, disrupting the waxy shell of bed bugs, making them more
prone to eventual death by dehydration. Remember that d.e. does not kill the
bugs immediately—it can take up to 7 to 17 days. Also if you use a thick
enough bead of D.E., it acts as a mechanical barrier and bed bugs will avoid
crawling through it.

There are two types of diatomaceous earth on the market:
1. Regular diatomaceous earth (which is pesticide free).
2. Pesticide impregnated diatomaceous earth.

Step 4: Diatomaceous Earth

Be sure to only use regular, pesticide-free diatomaceous earth in this step.
Pesticide-free D.E. is non-toxic and safe to handle. However, if you are
spreading D.E. around and getting it airborne, then you will want to wear a
dust mask to prevent it from entering your lungs.

How to use diatomaceous earth:
1. Pull everything away from the walls.
2. Work diatomaceous earth into the crevice between the wall and floor as
well as where the molding meets the wall.
3. Work diatomaceous earth around the edges of wall-to-wall
carpeting, where the carpeting meets the wall.
4. Put diatomaceous earth behind all the electrical face plates and light
switch face plates.

4.5 8-Step Approach
Step 5: Seal Cracks

Seal Cracks and Crevices
Bed bugs can reside in wall voids. So, as much as possible, you want to seal
with all holes, cracks and crevices in your home. To do this, you can use
caulk, wood filler, tape, or anything else that provides an airtight seal.

4.6 8-Step Approach
Step 6: Clean Floors

Clean Floors and Rugs
With vacuuming and carpet washing, you are not killing bed bugs, rather you
are trying to mechanically remove any bed bugs that might be lurking. You
should only use a vacuum that has disposable bags. Do not use a bag-less
vacuum such as a Dyson.

Clean Floors and Rugs
• Remember to ONLY use a vacuum with disposable bags. Do not use a bag-
less vacuum.
• Before you begin vacuuming your floors and carpets, first vacuum up some
diatomaceous earth.
• When changing the disposable bag, take the entire vacuum
cleaner outside, remove the bag and dispose of it in a sealed plastic bag.
• After a vacuuming session, change the bag immediately. Do not leave the
vacuum sitting around for long periods of time without changing bags.

4.7 8-Step Approach
Step 7: Consider Pesticides

Consider Using Pesticides
It is important to realize that pesticides are just one weapon in the arsenal
against bed bugs. Pesticides alone will not get rid of bed bugs –
you must take the additional steps. That said, we feel that they do have a
place, so long as the proper pesticides are used. Also, we realize not
everyone is comfortable with their use.

Proper use of the right pesticides is helpful as one more tool in eradicating
bed bugs. But it’s important to realize that using pesticides alone will not get
rid of bed bugs. Pesticides are only effective as one component of an overall
plan.

Pesticides are potentially unhealthy for humans. But you have to weigh that
risk against the additional help they have in getting rid of bed bugs.

4.7 8-Step Approach
Step 7: Consider Pesticides

If you choose to use pesticides, you should educate yourself and be a
knowledgeable consumer. Know what pesticides should be used, whether you
apply the pesticides yourself or hire a professional to apply them.

Using the Correct Pesticides
Should you decide to use pesticides, we recommend getting a professional to
apply them. But be sure they are using the correct pesticides. Unfortunately
there is a lot of misuse of pesticides in the pest control profession. Be a
knowledgeable consumer. In this video, we arm you with all the information
you will need.

4.8 8-Step Approach
Step 8: Visiting Friends

How to Ensure that You Do Not Spread Bed Bugs
Getting bed bugs can feel isolating. Unfortunately there is some social stigma
attached to bed bugs. Friends might be worried that if you visit you will
inadvertently bring them unwanted guests.

We feel it’s important to maintain your social contacts and support as you go
about eradicating bed bugs – you are going to want to keep up a positive
attitude.

4.8 8-Step Approach
Additional Material

Visit ZappBug’s Website for More Information:
How To Get Rid of Bed Bugs

How to get rid of bed bugs

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