Bed Bugs

Overview

This bug gets its common name from its close association with human sleeping beds where they often seek refuge during daylight, only to come out to feed on the bed's occupant(s) at night. The common bed bug (Cimex lectularius Linnaeus 1758) is also known by a variety of common names, including wall louse, mahogany flat, crimson rambler, heavy dragoon, redcoat, etc. This cryptic bloodsucker is an ectoparasite (A parasite that lives on the skin but not within the body) of primarily humans but will also attack warm-blooded animals such as poultry, mammals and birds. Bed bugs have been a pest of man since ancient times and were introduced into the United States with the early colonials. However, their infestations were rare and unusual after the World War II until the late 1999, since then, the infestations with bed bugs have been dramatically and seriously increased in all kind of residences throughout the United States and the world. Adam's is fortunate enough to have successfully dealt the resurgence of bed bugs starting in 1999. It was a hotel room and was complex to solve.

Facts

Bed bugs characterized by piercing-sucking mouthparts.
There are about 92 known species of bed bugs species belong to the family Cimicidae found in the world. The most common species in homes is the common bed bug, C. lectularius, which is adapted to human environments.
Since their only food is the blood of warm-blooded animals, bed bugs are equipped with specialized sensors that detect CO2 and warmth. Studies have confirmed that CO2 is attractive to bed bugs, additionally, hungry bed bugs can sense the presence of asleep people by sensing their body heat via heat sensors located on their antennas. They also can follow a pheromone release and track it directly to a blood source.
Bed bugs have a very distinctive sweet or musty odor.

Identification

Adults are oval shaped, mahogany colored (reddish-brown after feeding).
Have a flattened body, measuring about 3/16-inch long.
Similar to Bat Bug or Swallow Bug.
Eggs are white slightly pear-shaped and about 1/32 inch long. Eggs are sticky when first laid.
Nymphs are nearly colorless when hatched, becoming brownish as they mature.

Biology

Bed bugs go through gradual metamorphosis: egg to nymph to adult.
Females lay 200 - 500 eggs in her lifetime, approximately 5-8 eggs/day.
Eggs are laid singly or in clusters and are cemented to wood, fabrics, or other surfaces in places where the bed bugs normally hide.
Eggs hatch in 6 to 17 days.
Nymphs go through 5 molts during a 35 - 48 day nymphal stage. They cast their shed skin each molt. Each nymph requires at least one blood meal to develop to the next developmental instar.
At room temperature, the complete bed bug lifecycle takes about two months. However, at optimal conditions (83-90°F and 80% RH), their life cycle may take four to five weeks.
Adults can live for almost four to ten months, providing they have a food source. Interestingly, the studies have shown that in colder temperatures, bed bug adults may live for up to two years even without a blood meal.
There can be up to 3 to 4 generations of bed bugs per year.

Habits

Bed bugs are normally nocturnal (feed at night), but they will seek blood meals during the day when hungry.
At each blood meal, bed bugs feed from three to 15 minutes, depending on their life stage. Furthermore, the size of fully engorged bed bugs can vary significantly; for example, the amount of blood taken by adults at each meal can reach up to seven times their body weight; whereas, nymphs can take from 2-1/2 to 6 times their original weight.
Bed bug bites are painless leaving the host unaware of their presence. However, in order to prevent blood from clotting, bed bugs secrete anticoagulant substances with their saliva into the wound while feeding. These substances will cause allergic reactions that vary depending on the individual been bitten. Some people will develop reddish, irritated itchy skin marks, while other may have blisters and necrotic spots of the skin. Conversely, few people do not react to bed bug bites.
After feeding, engorged bed bugs crawl to a hiding place in close proximity to the host to digest their meal before they feed again in five to ten days. Current studies indicate that bed bugs feed once a week.
Once in the home, bed bugs become established in any convenient crack or crevice, particularly along the seams or in the buttons of mattresses, in the coils and frame of the box spring, wooden bedsteads, bed framing, upholstered furniture, the backing of pictures, behind window and door molding/framing, behind wallpaper, between wooden floorboards, behind switch plates, conduit etc., as well as sofas and all sleeping areas.
In heavy infestations, they may be found in wall voids, attics or other enclosed places.
They can be introduced into a structure via used furniture, mattresses, bedding etc., or from the belongings of someone who has been living in a bed bug infested situation.
They have also been found in transportation vehicles such as boats, trains, airplanes and busses as well as in movie theaters where they typically harbor in seats and their framing.
They have an obnoxious sweet odor and you may find the presence of small reddish-brown to black fecal deposits on the walls or other areas where they might congregate or hide.
As aforementioned, bed bugs sense body heat, CO₂, and pheromones emitted by humans. They usually stay close to their hosts, but once bed bugs have reached to the point where there is no longer a food source (blood) that can nourish and support them, they start to break away and spread to the next unit through the wall voids, ceiling holes, as well as unsealed bottom plates and utility pipes attracted by food cues found in the adjacent units.
Bat bugs are often confused with bed bug. Make sure to consult with Adam's to confirm the pest ID. If you have bat bugs, you need to deal with the bats as well, or risk never solving the problem.

Treatment

A thorough inspection is imperative. The key is finding and treating all hiding places.
Because applications are made on beds and furniture, only EPA insecticides labeled for bed bug management should be used. Great care should be taken when treating mattresses, box springs and upholstery to keep pesticide exposure to a minimum. Allow for thorough drying before re-use. Infant's and infirm person's bedding and bed frames should not be treated. They should be replaced with un-infested items.
In homes, most bed bug infestations can be controlled with a single application to mattresses, bed frames, sofas, baseboards, window/door framing, cracks/crevices, picture frames, edges of rugs, dressers, and any other suspected areas. In apartment buildings and hotels it's advisable to also inspect units to either side and above and below the infested unit and treat as needed.
Due to the cryptic and resilient behaviors of bed bugs, along with the lack of bed bug education by public, elimination bed bugs from homes can be challenging, particularly in heavy infestations, where bed bugs have been found hiding in hard to reach places, such as in the ceiling fixtures, cracks and voids. To overcome these demanding situations, pest management professionals (PMPs) have had to fumigate beds, furniture, furnishings, and in some severe cases, the entire structure, to eliminate heavy infestations of bed bugs. As a result of various challenging reasons involving the eradication of bed bugs, especially their eggs from a structure, we have established a comprehensive bed bug elimination plan and managed to always have a lead bed bug expert, which has certainly helped us over the years learn from others, from our experiences, and quickly improve our techniques and communications regarding these tough pests.
WHEN TREATING THE BED, DO NOT treat the bed linens. They should be washed or dry-cleaned. Mattresses and box springs should be treated selectively, not covered with insecticide. You want the insecticide to contact the bed bugs, not the people. Concentrate your efforts on tufts, folds, buttons, and edges where bed bugs could hide. When possible, treat inside box springs, around the springs and coils. You will be more effective if you can take apart the bed frame and treat inside any hollow framework, cracks, and crevices. Again, the mattress should be thoroughly dried and if possible covered with a bed bug mattress cover before use. We usually recommend our clients to use mattress and box spring encasements approved and designed for bed bug prevention. This because these encasements will prevent direct contact with the residual insecticide on treated mattress and box spring. Additionally, due to the fact that these encasements can be removed, washed and reused, there is no need to throw infested mattresses and box springs away. The encasements are also designed to trap any bed bugs that may have been missed or will hatch after the treatment. Furthermore, since these encasements neither have complex hiding places for bed bugs to exploit nor they allow them to get inside the mattress and box spring, the efficacy of the treatment will be increased and inspection time will be reduced. Besides, bed bug mattress and box spring encasements will expand the lifetime of the mattress and box spring (bed bug encasements can be purchased through Adam's).

Vacuuming and cleaning bedding and draperies, steam cleaning rugs and furnishings, and caulking cracks and crevices can help control bed bugs. When vacuuming, pay particular attention to bed bug's hiding areas. Be careful, if not properly handled, vacuum contents will spread bed bugs throughout the facility. DO NOT use the same vacuum in rooms adjacent to the infested once. Immediately collect the vacuum contents and carefully place them in tightly sealed double trash bags. These bags should be disposed of outside the building in a proper dumpster.

Treatment Alternatives

Since bed bugs are a growing problem, new products and techniques, such as heat are improving our results and become a need in bed bug elimination program.

Steam can be used to destroy bed bugs, although you need to be extremely thorough, yet be careful not to get burned, electricuted, and be careful not to damage things with the very high temperatures. While steam can penetrate cracks and crevices up to a few inches, it is inconsistent and will simply not be used everywhere for fear of damaging various surfaces. The real problem with steam is quite the same as with pesticide treatments. It is hard sometimes to reach to the tricky/tough places where bed bugs may be hiding. If 93% of them are on or near the bed or sleeping area, where are the remaining 7%? Behind the picture on the other wall? In the medicine cabinet? In the book binding? Inside the speaker? If you spent hours and were extremely thorough, could you even deliver steam to all those locations? Steam is very hot at one point, and cool to the touch just a couple of inches away. We don't find it practical as a complete solution.
Heat guns and applications involving freezing temperatures (decompression of CO2) have concerns similar to those of steam applications mentioned above.
One new technique is heat treatment or thermal remediation. Adam's lead the multi-housing industry with the first heat treatment for bed bugs in Minnesota (as far as we know) when we treated an apartment in November 2006. This really is the best treatment for bed bugs, in that the results are better, faster, with less preparation for the tenant, and they can keep their furniture. For more information, check out our Heat Treatments page.
During a heat treatment process, temperatures are raised to a lethal level and then maintained at that lethal level or higher for a period of time so that the heat can penetrate objects, accomplishing what applications like steam, heat guns, and freezing cannot do as well. Because these alternative treatments may not always be 100% effective, and because they offer no residual effect if you reintroduce bed bugs, pesticides are often used, to a lesser extent, to supplement these treatments.
Bed bugs are resilient pests and their management requires cooperation. In order to successfully destroy bed bugs inside a structure, the PMP should establish a partnership with homeowners, building managers or their agents. The most important thing to keep in mind with regards to bed bug remediation is the preparation step before treatment. Otherwise, there is a greater chance of treatment failure. Adam's has easy-to-follow preparation checklists for both heat and traditional bed bug treatments, yet it is still important that people with bed bug infested premises follow these checklists prior to treatment.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Do bed bugs spread disease?
A: Bed bugs are not known to spread disease. They inject a small amount of saliva into the skin while feeding. An allergic reaction to the saliva may cause the area around the bite to become red, swollen and itchy. Do not scratch bites, as this may worsen the irritation and itching and may lead to a secondary infection.

Q: Why are bed bugs resurging?

A: Bed bugs are common in many parts of the world. International travel and changes in modern pest control are believed to be responsible for the resurgence. These pests were common in the 1940's and 1950's. Harold Leyse, co-founder of Adam's, remembers a house his parents rented while he was in elementary school in the 1940's had bed bugs and needed to be treated before they moved in. While in the Navy, Harold's brother-in-law had his barracks treated for bed bugs. DDT was commonly used in the 1940's and 1950's for many insects and was quite effective against bed bugs, almost eliminating them within the U.S. Since then, not a lot of research has been done. In the 1970's DDT was banned, and pest control has evolved into less frequent applications of more targeted products, often pest specific, such as cockroach baits. Many products since the 1950's have not been tested on bed bugs and do not list them on the label, and worse yet, they don't allow the treatment sites where bed bugs harbor, like the mattress and box spring. Only since 2000 have researchers and manufacturers been researching, testing, and training on these difficult pests.

Q: I'm a frequent traveler. How can I protect myself from bed bugs when I travel?
A: Be aware when you first get to your hotel/motel room. Bed bugs can be in low-end places and high-end places. They don't know how much you paid for your room. Check the mattress seams. Check around the headboard. Check the luggage rack. Yes, you can see them, or sometimes their blood stains or fecal matter. If you don't see them, chances are you are good. If you wake up with bites, particularly in a line (where they probe multiple times to find a good spot to feed on your body part that is touching the bed), you might be in a room with them. Some frequent travelers pack their return clothes in a large plastic bag they can seal. On the last day, after packing up, they shower and change into their fresh clothes. Upon returning home, they bag their clothes in the garage and bring it straight to the wash. Their suitcase goes in a freezer in the garage for several days to a week and the dirty clothes are immediately washed, where the dryer will typically destroy any bed bugs. See our Bed Bug Traveler Tips.

Q: I manage a hotel. How do I eliminate bed bugs from a hotel room?
A: Hire Adam's! The first step is to train your housekeeping staff so they know what to look for. They are in these units every day, changing linens, etc. If they spot the signs, it is a lot easier to address when the problem is small. If a guest complains, take it seriously and get it addressed. There are many ways to eliminate them. We can use pesticide treatment or our preference is to use heat so you can get the unit back in operation more quickly.

Q: I manage an apartment building. How do I eliminate bed bugs from a unit?
A: Similar to hotels, you want your property managers, staff, and maintenance staff knowledgeable. Unfortunately you don't get in to your units very often, if at all. Try to perform a cursory inspection when you are in, and consider an annual inspection. Unfortunately many tenants don't report they have pest problems for fear they might get kicked out, or for some, it just isn't a big deal. Try to create a culture where tenants can approach the property management staff without fear. They'll report problems quicker and you can solve them quicker. We can use pesticide treatments or heat treatments, which provides better results much more quickly.

Q: How do I eliminate bed bugs from my home?
A: Similar to hotels and apartments, we can provide a pesticide treatment or heat treatment for faster results.

Q: Do mattress encasements work?
A: Encasements seal the mattress and box springs. It is important to get one that fits the exact size you have, otherwise you'll have lots of creases bed bugs will find useful for harborage. Don't get a regular encasement - they aren't good enough to seal in our seal out bed bugs. Rick Cooper, a bed bug expert worked with two manufacturers and ultimately developed the encasement we sell today. Essentially it is an allergy/dust mite encasement that has been improved for bed bugs. For example, the zipper teeth are very small so the first stage nymph cannot get through the zipper teeth. There are fewer folds and seems. And lastly, the zipper has a zipper stop so the end of the zipper doesn't leave an opening. They've also been tested to ensure the bed bugs cannot bite through the encasement. This is far less expensive than replacing an infested mattress or box spring.

Q: Where can I buy a mattress encasement?
A: Contact us for an order form, complete with the various sizes all on one page.

Q: What are pesticide treatments like?
A: First off, you must prepare your room. Each company may have different preparation instructions, but they are usually non-trivial. Clutter is the enemy; so the more you can prepare and reduce clutter, the better. Treatments vary by company too. We could write a book here, but simply put pesticide selection is important, communication is important, and follow up treatments and/or inspections are important. Because Adam's has 30+ technicians and services many apartments and hotels, we've dealt with bed bugs going back to 1999 when they were emerging. We treated literally hundreds of locations last year. Additionally Adam's learns and shares best practices with 63 other Associated Pest Services member companies, who largely do not compete with each other. This has allowed us to learn and hone our product selection, application techniques, communication, and most importantly our processes.

Q: Does freezing destroy bed bugs?
A: Yes. A sudden freeze can destroy eggs, nymphs, and adult bed bugs, however a slow change in temperature, such as putting a pillow in the freezer, may take days to weeks to destroy them. They, like many insects, can acclimate to slow changes. The problem with applying freezing techniques, often with Carbon Dioxide, in a living space is similar to that of steam. Can you get it everywhere it is needed? Does the technician have the skill to perform it properly?

Q: What is Thermal Remediation (sometimes call heat treatment)?
A: Thermal Remediation is a service Adam's provides where we raise the temperature in a structure to temperatures lethal to the target pest. In this case, bed bugs, but in other cases, it could be flour beetles at a food processing plant. The temperature, and the duration, may vary by pest. While these treatments have been used in food processing for a century, it is still an emerging procedure for bed bugs. The equipment needed is substantial, and being a new application of an old technology, many companies have yet to invest and know very little about this. Since the process is part art, part science, and the fact that the applicator really needs to know the bed bug's biology, habits, and harborage, you really should consider hiring Adam's. Without going in to too many details, we not only raise the temperature to a lethal (to insects) level, but we hold it there to penetrate inside furniture, mattresses, etc.

Q: Does heat/thermal remediation destroy bed bugs?
A: Yes. Some companies use heat guns, like blow dryers, but it has the same problems steam or spot freezing does. It requires the technicians to find all bed bugs, hit them, and perform the service flawlessly. No doubt these companies are destroying bed bugs and offering relief, but are they removing 90 bed bugs, leaving 10 bed bugs to reproduce back into 100 bed bugs in a month? Are they building in an ongoing revenue stream for themselves? Ideally, you want elimination, and that's why Adam's has invested in Thermal Remediation.

Q: What are the benefits to Thermal Remediation?
A: Less prep work. Fewer pesticides are used, if any are used at all. You don't need to throw out your furniture. Some heavily infested items may need to be thrown out with conventional treatments. The results are fast. The proper temperatures destroy bed bugs in minutes. A typical heat treatment is completed within 6-12 hours, and when we leave, you and your tenant will "sleep tight", as the bed bugs won't bite. Compare this to a conventional treatment, which requires subsequent treatments and regular follow ups, and in few cases, could require months of follow up.

Q: Will heat damage things?
A: Never say never, but so far, we've not seen it damage anything. Of course part of our prep instruction sheet tells you and your tenants what must be removed, such as wax candles, but otherwise we keep temperatures within a lethal, yet not damaging range.

Q: Will heat set off my sprinkler heads?
A: This is a question based answered on a case-by-case basis as their trigger points vary. In most cases, we protect the sprinkler head from the heat.

Q: How do I get a proposal?
A: Email sales@adamspestcontrol.com or call us at 800-227-2214. We service Minnesota and Western Wisconsin. We may be willing to travel further if you are willing to pay for our travel and travel time.