July 2007
At home
UNWANTED GUEST Though small, the bedbug can be a major pest and make for many a sleepless night.
Make sure they're really bedbugs. Take a look at the Most Unwanted poster so you have an idea what you're seeking, and then start your inspection with an obvious hideout--the bed. Check the bed frame,
mattress, headboard, and other furniture for signs of bedbugs and their eggs. The Harvard University Web site provides extensive information and pictures to help you learn how to accurately identify and deal with bedbugs. For a $20
fee, you can send your sample to the Harvard School of Public Health for confirmation.
Make a clean sweep. Thoroughly clean infested rooms. Expose hard-to-access hiding places by dismantling your bed frame, removing dresser drawers and moving furniture. Then use a stiff brush and vacuum to dislodge bedbugs and eggs from surfaces and cracks. To find a powerful vacuum, see our comprehensive vacuum-cleaner buying guide.
Barricade your bed. Enclose your mattress and box spring with airtight cases. Inspect regularly for holes or tears, which you should seal completely with heavy-duty tape. Any bugs trapped within the cases will eventually die within a year. Pull the bed frame away from the wall and coat the legs with petroleum jelly. Keep sheets and blankets tucked and away from the floor.
Find a knowledgeable and experienced licensed pest-control company. The NPMA Web site offers a search tool to help find a pest-control professional in your area. The Environmental Protection Agency offers Citizen's Guide to Pest Control and Pesticide Safety, which includes tips on choosing a professional.
Request a written contract plan, which should include the methods and insecticides used by the company and include details on what the company will do if bedbugs reappear after treatment.
Contact several references and ask about their experience. If past customers rave about the company's work but add that the pros have to return every week for more than a month for more treatment, it's a sure sign that the job isn't getting done, says Pollack. He also warns against companies that advise throwing away possessions, such as your mattress, your books, and even your clothes. Those companies aren't up on the latest bedbug-control information, he says.
Don't get rid of good furniture. You don't need to get rid of your mattress if your home was infested--you can safely have it treated and cleaned. If you do decide to throw out bedding or other furniture, be sure to tag it as having been infested--you don't want others to end up with your problem.
Make a clean sweep. Thoroughly clean infested rooms. Expose hard-to-access hiding places by dismantling your bed frame, removing dresser drawers and moving furniture. Then use a stiff brush and vacuum to dislodge bedbugs and eggs from surfaces and cracks. To find a powerful vacuum, see our comprehensive vacuum-cleaner buying guide.
Barricade your bed. Enclose your mattress and box spring with airtight cases. Inspect regularly for holes or tears, which you should seal completely with heavy-duty tape. Any bugs trapped within the cases will eventually die within a year. Pull the bed frame away from the wall and coat the legs with petroleum jelly. Keep sheets and blankets tucked and away from the floor.
Find a knowledgeable and experienced licensed pest-control company. The NPMA Web site offers a search tool to help find a pest-control professional in your area. The Environmental Protection Agency offers Citizen's Guide to Pest Control and Pesticide Safety, which includes tips on choosing a professional.
Request a written contract plan, which should include the methods and insecticides used by the company and include details on what the company will do if bedbugs reappear after treatment.
Contact several references and ask about their experience. If past customers rave about the company's work but add that the pros have to return every week for more than a month for more treatment, it's a sure sign that the job isn't getting done, says Pollack. He also warns against companies that advise throwing away possessions, such as your mattress, your books, and even your clothes. Those companies aren't up on the latest bedbug-control information, he says.
Don't get rid of good furniture. You don't need to get rid of your mattress if your home was infested--you can safely have it treated and cleaned. If you do decide to throw out bedding or other furniture, be sure to tag it as having been infested--you don't want others to end up with your problem.
