Do You Have Bed Bugs?

Do You Have Bed Bugs?

If you are finding strange bite marks on yourself you may have an infestation, but how can you be sure and what do you do about it

First, understanding a little about the bedbug and their habits will help Bed Bugs hide in cracks and crevices during daylight hours. You will normally find them in the folds and tufts of mattresses, coils of springs, cracks and hollow posts of bed stands, bed rails and headboards. They may be found in the mattress box springs, inside furniture and the bottom and sides of drawers or even in upholstery of chairs and sofas. They will hide in and under carpet, in cracks of hardwood floors, wall voids, outlets, and luggage. They also can be found behind seams in wallpaper, behind pictures on the walls, under door and window casings, and behind baseboards.  They aren’t restricted to these places but they generally like to stay close to their food source, namely you!

And although the preferred host is human, they will feed on other animals, such as birds, mice, dogs, and cats if necessary. They normally feed at night, but may feed in the daylight in rooms that are not used at night. Bed bugs are small, brownish, flattened insects that feed solely on the blood of animals.

Bed bugs can live anywhere!

Bed bugs can readily survive for many months without feeding, and they may already be present in apparently ‘vacant’ and ‘clean’ apartments. These pests can wander between adjoining apartments through voids in walls and holes though which wires and pipes pass.

Now that you know a little about them, the first thing we need to do is a good inspection.
Look in any place that offers darkness, isolation and protection. These bugs will often wander. Inspect adjoining rooms where an infestation is found. Even when the bed bugs themselves cannot be found, their hiding places can be located by looking for the spots of fecal material they often leave behind. Fecal spots and the bloody spots (looks like rust) left on sheets and pillowcases when engorged bugs are crushed serve as sure signs of infestation. Adult bed bugs are about 1/4-inch long and reddish-brown, with oval, flattened bodies.
Inspection Check List:

• Cracks and crevices in head and foot boards, attached side railings and supports
• Inspect mattresses top, sides and bottom. Check all buttons, seams and rips.
• Inspect electrical switch & outlet plates, pictures on walls, wall posters
• Inspect cracks in plaster or seams in wall paper.
• Inspect electrical appliances-radios, phones, televisions, etc
• Inspect tack strips under wall-to-wall carpeting and behind baseboards
• Inspect secondhand beds, bedding, and furniture. The newer better built mattresses do not offer as much shelter and protection for the bed bugs to hide.

Ok so you took the time out to actually inspect the cracks and crevices and you found something… now what?
Well, Bed bugs are challenging pests to control. They hide in many tiny places, so treatments must be thorough. In most cases, it will be prudent to enlist the services of a professional pest control firm. Experienced companies know where to look and have an assortment of management tools at their disposal. Owners and occupants will need to assist the professional in some important ways. Affording access for inspection and treatment is essential, and excess clutter should be removed.
Often we can remove the bedbugs from mattresses and seal the bed with a covering.  We do carry a line of mattress covers and box spring covers that are bedbug certified to place over your mattress or box spring so you won’t have to dispose of either the mattress or box spring.
It often takes hours to properly inspect and treat a bed bug infestation. Since bed bugs can disperse throughout a building, it also may be necessary to inspect adjoining rooms and apartments.
As mentioned, owners and occupants have important pre-treatment responsibilities. Reducing clutter is a necessity. Belongings strewn about rooms afford many places for bed bugs to hide, and impedes inspection and treatment. Infested bedding and garments will need to be bagged and laundered, in hot water since these items cannot be treated with insecticides. Smaller items that cannot be laundered can be dry cleaned. We offer an alternative to dry cleaning all your clothes. Please ask about our clothing fumigation program which costs less than the dry cleaning alternative. Bed bugs also succumb to cold temperatures below 32° F, but the chilling period must be maintained for at least two weeks. Attempts to rid an entire home or apartment of bed bugs by raising or lowering the thermostat will be entirely unsuccessful. Vacuuming can be very useful for removing bed bugs and eggs from mattresses, carpet, walls, and other surfaces
It’s not unusual for the typical afflicted family to spend $5,000 or more on inspections, exterminator fees, cleaning and storage, according to Jody L. Gangloff-Kaufmann, an urban entomologist with the New York State Integrated Pest Management program at Cornell University. Landlords of large apartment buildings have been known to spend as much as $80,000 to get rid of the pests, she said.
Here, then, is some calm advice from experts on what you can expect to spend and what you should — and shouldn’t — pay for.
Some companies use specially trained dogs that can sniff out live bed bugs and/or bedbug eggs. Well-trained dogs can be amazingly accurate, letting you know exactly where the bugs are so you can concentrate your efforts.
But the dogs’ services are more expensive than a human inspector. You’ll pay $300 to $600 for a canine inspection. If you go this route, ask about the dog’s credentials and research where the canines are trained.
Ms. Gangloff-Kaufmann advises finding an established company that has been in business at least five years and routinely battles all types of pests, including bed bugs.
Exterminators charge $250 to $900 a room to get rid of bed bugs, depending on the level of infestation and the types of treatments used. Some companies may charge by the bed if there are multiple people sleeping in the same room. There are 3 methods of Bed bug Treatments available to Pest Control Companies. They are Chemical Treatment, Heat Treatment, and Freeze Treatment. Positive Pest Management provides all 3 treatments depending on the needs of the customer.
Exposure to high temperatures is the only sure way to kill bed bugs, a freezing agent that kills bed bugs on contact, can add considerably to the cost of an exterminator visit, she said, and isn’t 100 percent effective against bed bugs.
Whatever an exterminator uses, it must directly contact a bed bug to kill it. Pesticides have no residual effect on bed bugs. That’s why you or your exterminator should never use bug bombs or foggers, which are completely ineffective with bed bugs.
Should you decide to hire an exterminator, call Positive Pest Management for a thorough inspection and bug elimination service.
Bed Bug Control — Controlling Infestations
Preparation
Successful treatments begin with access and this can only be accomplished with preparation. Positive Pest Management has developed a comprehensive preparation sheet for our customers; our goal is to form a partnership with our clients. We have learned from experience that an educated and prepared consumer will be a satisfied and bedbug free customer.
We are available 24 hours 7 days a week. Emergency Same Day Service.  Contact Positive Pest Management  and get the finest exterminating services in NYC. We specialize in exterminating bed bugs as well as cockroaches, mice, rats, water bugs and rodents, We will send an experienced licensed exterminator out to control the problem.