RI, MA EHS Pest Control Blog

The Real Truth About Bed Bugs

Everything you never wanted to hear, but need to know.

Bed bugs are back. Since 2000, bed bug infestations have risen 81 percent, according to The National Pest Management Association. This resurgence has consumers nationwide on high alert, seeking information on the pests and how they can protect themselves.

Gail Getty, a noted entomologist at the University of California Berkley, explains, "Bed bugs and their habits are actually very simple to understand. For the unassuming public, though, differentiating between fact and fiction is becoming ever so difficult with the amount of information available. Understanding the basics is the first line of defense a consumer has against the unwelcomed critters, which can take a toll both financially and emotionally on a victim."

Confirmed Facts:

Bed bugs can be found on bedside alarm clocks.

• True: bed bugs have been known to fester in alarm clocks and other appliances and within dark crevices like coffee makers.

Bed bugs like to hitch rides.

• True: bed bugs can very easily be transferred in suitcases and on clothing, putting travelers at extra-high risk; Bedbugs do have primitive wings, but they cannot fly.

Some people are not affected by bed bugs bites.

• True: Some people do not have a physical reaction to bed bug bites and may be unaware that bed bugs are in their home until they actually see them, but everyone is at risk for having infestations as bed bugs do not discriminate based on socio-economic class.

Bed bugs can live for many months without feeding.

• True: Bed bugs can live for many months without feeding. That is why it is imperative to encase mattresses, box springs, and pillows with bed bug proof protectors like the entomologist tested Allergy Luxe® bed bug collection with Arm & Hammer™ odor neutralizing technology. Bedding encasements effectively trap bugs that are in and on your mattress and box spring and cut them off from their food source indefinitely.

Insect foggers provide very little control of bed bugs and may even cause the bed bug population to disperse, making control more difficult.

• True: Insect foggers do not effectively control bed bugs. Most insect foggers contain a flammable propellant and some have been associated with accidental fires. The best way to control bed bug problems is to contact a pest professional, who will help with vacuuming, and steaming, laundering belongings, sealing areas and gaps where bed bugs can hide and encasing mattresses, box springs, and pillows with bed bug proof protectors like the entomologist tested Allergy Luxe® collection with Arm & Hammer™ odor neutralizing technology.

Bed bugs reproduce at alarming rates.

• True: Depending on conditions, bed bugs can produce three or four generations in one year; a female can produce one to five eggs a day, which are as big as a pinhead and can hardly be seen.

Myths Debunked:

Bed bugs spread deadly diseases.

• Wrong: Bed bugs do not transmit disease. Bed bug bites, however, can cause allergic reaction in some people similar to a mosquito bite. Frequent scratching of the bite marks or picking the scabs can cause infections. And people with severe and/or repeated infestations can feel anxious, worried or ashamed.

Chemicals/pesticides will kill all bed bug stages.

• Wrong: It is difficult to kill all bed bugs with only a pesticide application. Successful treatment depends on an Integrated Pest Management approach to bed bug control which involves, vacuuming, and steaming, laundering belongings, sealing areas and gaps where bed bugs can hide, homeowner, tenant, manager education and encasing mattresses, box springs, and pillows with bed bug proof protectors like the entomologist tested Allergy Luxe® collection with Arm & Hammer™ odor neutralizing technology. Do not use home remedies such as kerosene.

I can get rid of bed bugs by leaving my house empty for a few weeks.

• Wrong: Adult bed bugs can live as long as twelve months without a meal, so a long vacation won't provide you with relief. The only way to deal with the problem is to treat it directly and monitor results over the long haul.

Bed bugs feed off of dirt and other grime.

• Wrong: Bed bugs feed on the blood of human beings and other animals such as dogs, cats, birds, gerbils, hamsters, guinea pigs and mice.

Bed bugs are mostly found in beds OR found in shelters; only poor people or dirty people get them.

• Wrong: They're found close to where they feed. Typically they're found in a bed mattress, box spring, bed frames and around the bed. They're also found in electric outlets, switches and behind pictures. Bed bugs can be found in hotels, motels, dormitories, apartments, condos, private homes, and even in public places, such as retail stores, movie theaters, businesses and offices. Anyone can get bed bugs.

Bed bugs are too small to see with the naked eye.

• Wrong: The adult is about the size of an apple seed. The eggs and baby or nymph is about 1 mm long, almost entirely white and difficult to see with the naked eye. The nymph turns red as it feeds and fills with blood, making them easier to see.

Bed bugs come out only at night.

• Wrong: It's true that they are more active at night and in the early morning, but bed bugs sense the heat and carbon dioxide given off by humans and therefore may come out at any time of day.

Bed bug bites are easily felt.

• Wrong: You do not feel a bed bug biting because they inject their saliva first which contains an anesthetic, numbing chemical and an anti-clotting agent so your blood flows freely.

Walking into a room that has bed bugs means you will get bed bugs.

• Wrong: They spend 90% of their time hiding and are usually active at night. Bed bugs avoid light and do not like to be disturbed. So you will not necessarily walk away with bed bugs just by being in a room that has them.

If you have bed bugs you need to throw away infested clothing and furniture.

• Wrong: Clothing can be laundered to get rid of bed bugs. In most cases furniture can be treated and should only be discarded if there are no acceptable treatments that can rid them of bed bugs.

It's too cold where I live for bed bugs!

• Wrong: Even in the coldest climates bed bugs can still thrive. For starters, most bed bug infestations are located indoors. Bed bugs only need to be transported for short periods of time on clothing or luggage to find a new home to infest.

Sleeping in a metal bed will protect you from bed bugs.

• Wrong: Having a metal bed will not protect you from bed bugs. In some scenarios a metal bed may actually make it harder to detect a bed bug infestation because the hollow tubing of a metal bed is a great place for bed bugs to hide. The best way to prevent and control bed bug problems in beds is to encase mattresses, box springs, and pillows with bed bug proof protectors.

You can't get bed bugs from your neighbor.

• Wrong: Bed bug migration from one home or apartment to another is actually more common than most people think. In apartments or shared housing such as condos, the risk of migration is even higher. Bed bugs can travel through tiny cracks in the wall, through connected vents or spaces, or in the seams of floor boards or the edges of carpet. They have even been shown to travel out a front door, down the hall and into a neighboring apartment.

Bed bug bites all look the same.

• Wrong: They can be small and red or bigger like welts. Some people don't react at all to a bed bug bite. It is almost impossible to diagnose a bed bug problem solely on the presence of bites on a human host.

SOURCE: PRNewswire

George Williams,
General Manager - Staff Entomologist

Pest Control, RI, Pest Control, MA

Bob’s Discount Furniture Gets Bitten by Bedbug Ruling

Bob’s Discount Furniture could be on the hook for allegedly selling a bedbug-infested bedroom set.

A customer brought suit against the retailer after an exterminator found bedbugs harboring in the frame of the customer’s daughter’s bed.

A federal judge ruled in favor of Bob’s, but the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ordered a remand, finding that the judge had erred by preventing the exterminator from testifying as an expert witness.

“This opinion evidence, coupled with evidence that the defendant had no written policy regarding the prevention of bedbugs and that it used the same trucks for both delivering new furniture and retrieving used furniture, is sufficient to support a conclusion that the defendant delivered bedbugs along with the bedroom set,” Judge Bruce M. Selya wrote for the 1st Circuit.

The 21-page decision is Downey, et al. v. Bob’s Discount Furniture Holdings, Inc., Lawyers Weekly No. 01-010-11.

SOURCE = The Docket (Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly)

Pest Control, RI, Pest Control, MA

Waldorf Astoria is Haven for Bedbugs! Md. Tourist Third to Sue Famed Hotel for Bloodsucker 'Attack'

A Maryland woman is suing the Waldorf Astoria for $10 million because, she says, she awoke at the fancy hotel and found bedbugs all over her body.

Svetlana Tendler is the third tourist since last year to sue the famed Park Ave. hotel over a nasty encounter with the tiny bloodsuckers.

"I felt like I was eaten alive by bedbugs, which have attacked my body," she said.

Tendler, her husband, Jacob, and their two kids stayed at the hotel in August 2007, the suit says.

One morning, she awoke to a nasty bedbug attack.

Photographs released by her lawyer, Anna Carley, show bites on Tendler's arms and legs.

"The defendants did nothing to assist plaintiff, Svetlana Tendler, in treatment of ... bed bites or fumigation of [her] luggage," says the suit, filed in Manhattan Supreme Court.

Tendler, of Owings Mill, Md., initially filed a summons against the hotel in August.

She filed a new, detailed complaint this week.

A Michigan woman who says bedbugs attacked her during a family vacation sued the hotel in November.

The hotel also was sued in October by a woman whose 6-year-old daughter said she was victimized by bedbugs during a visit last February.

Hilton Worldwide, which owns the Waldorf Astoria, declined to comment.

Source = NY Daily News

George Williams,
General Manager - Staff Entomologist

Pest Control, RI, Pest Control, MA

Bedbugs Discovered in Two University of Pittsburgh Dorms

Pittsburgh Post - Gazette

The University of Pittsburgh said today it found evidence of bedbugs in two campus dorms -- Sutherland and Lothrop halls -- and has treated the affected areas.

Reports of bugs were verified through visible inspection in three rooms, Pitt said. Two are located in Sutherland, and one in Lothrop.

A university statement said that because two of the rooms were on the same floor of Sutherland East, the rest of the rooms on the floor and ultimately all of Sutherland East were inspected.

As a result, 28 more rooms were deemed to have bugs, "although most of these showed no visible signs of bugs," said the statement released by Pitt spokesman John Fedele.

Pitt said follow-up treatments to affected areas will be given as a precaution.

“Lowest Responsible Bidder” is often how state, city, & town bids go out in efforts to find a new vendor for a particular contract for services. Pest control is no different than bids for plumbers, electricians, painters, etc. The system is fine for commodities BUT NOT FOR service companies. Why? Choosing the lowest price with service means you get what you paid for & that is not much of anything! Below is a scary & disturbing news story about the ramifications of this process. A company named “Joe’s Extermination Company” does not exactly seem cutting edge! Worse yet is $100,000 to treat a few classrooms??? It is obvious this firm was bilking the system!

EHS is a Quality Pro school certified company and we take sensitive environments like schools very seriously. A situation such as this would never have happened with EHS!

Bed Bug Chemicals Improperly Applied at NYC Elementary School

Source: NY Daily News

They may not be as deadly as DDT was found to be before it was banned by the U.S. in the 1970s, but the professional pest control products currently being used to kill bed bugs in New York and New Jersey are potent enough to be hazardous when improperly applied. A New York City elementary school is paying the price for the negligence of a pest control firm that multiple news reports say is listed on its website as Joe’s Extermination Company. The NYC Board of Education paid the private contractor not quite $100,000 to treat a bed bug infestation at P.S. 197 in Midwood in Brooklyn. To the shock of school officials, teachers and students’ parents, the exterminator left behind a nasty mess that could cost the school district more than a quarter of a million dollars to clean up, more than twice the cost of the original extermination.

Because of the risk posed by the improper application of chemicals, news reporters were not allowed to enter the building; but teachers reported children’s and teachers’ desks covered with a smelly liquid pesticide, books and papers soaked with bed bug killing chemicals, and puddles of insecticide pooling on floors. Teachers were outraged by the exterminator’s lack of regard and concerned not only about the health risk posed by exposure to these chemicals, by also about the cost of replacing soaked textbooks and school supplies.

The NYC Department of Education told reporters it plans to bill the pest control contractor for the clean up and replacement of damaged school materials. Authorities are testing the pest control chemicals used by the exterminator, but it will be two weeks before results are available. Until then, teachers and the parents of the children who attend P.S. 197 are waiting anxiously to find out what chemicals they may have been exposed to and what the repercussions of that exposure might be.

George Williams,
General Manager - Staff Entomologist

Pest Control, RI, Pest Control, MA

Bedbugs Found at 3 Library Branches

Bedbugs have been found at three Edmonton public library branches over the past several months.

The pests have been spotted at the Sprucewood, Londonderry and Stanley Milner branches.

Bedbugs were found in the Milner library in November. An environmental health officer was notified and an exterminator and a sniffer dog were called in to handle the problem.

"There was a piece of furniture that, in fact, had a bed bug in it, or a number of bedbugs, so the piece of furniture was removed," said Joanne Grenier, the executive director of management services for Edmonton Public Libraries.

It was the first time bedbugs had been discovered in an Edmonton library, Grenier said. No bedbugs have been found in the Milner library since then.

Bedbugs were also seen in the Sprucewood branch just before Christmas. The pests were discovered in the Londonderry branch a couple of weeks ago.

The library did not notify the public because the risk was considered low, as each outbreak was considered to be minor, Grenier said.

"We didn't feel it was significant enough an issue or unique enough, I guess, to the library, to do a public communication," she said.

The discoveries have prompted library staff to check borrowed materials for bedbugs before they are reshelved.

Grenier said a provincial environmental health officer told her bedbugs tend not to thrive in libraries, as there is no one around for them to bite at night, when they tend to come out.

George Williams,
General Manager - Staff Entomologist

Pest Control, RI, Pest Control, MA

Bed Bug Bites Drive Indian Train Passengers to De-board and Demand a New Train Carriage

After complaining about bed bug bites for just under a hundred kilometers, twenty-two passengers in a bed bug-infested railway compartment in India got off their train yesterday, and demanded railway officials provide them with a new train carriage. Tormented by bedbugs, passengers in one of the air-conditioned coaches of the Jammu Tawi Express from Mangalore got off the compartment here early on Tuesday and forced railway authorities to replace the carriage.

The 22 passengers in the compartment said they had been continuously bitten by bedbugs ever since the train passed Shoranur. In Coimbatore, they left the compartment with their luggage and demanded a replacement coach.

The train was delayed at Coimbatore for three-and-a-half hours. The travellers shouted slogans, and the issue was resolved only after station deputy superintendent M Chandran intervened. The train was delayed at Coimbatore for three-and-a-half hours. The travellers shouted slogans, and the issue was resolved only after station deputy superintendent M Chandran intervened. An air-conditioned coach from another train was taken from the maintenance yard and attached to the Jammu-bound train. The compartment with bugs was disinfected and later attached to the same train.

A ticket examiner said passengers had started complaining at Shoranur about the bugs. In Palakkad, they were told to wait till the train reached Coimbatore. "It was sheer luck that we were able to find an AC coach in the maintenance yard. Otherwise, things may have gone out of control," said a railway official here.

Source = India times

George Williams,
General Manager - Staff Entomologist

Pest Control, RI, Pest Control, MA

If dreaded bedbugs invade, don't make a run for the store pesticide aisle. Bedbugs have developed resistance to almost half of the 300 pesticides listed for their control. And even the pesticides that do work can make infestations harder to beat if they are not applied correctly.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Centers for Disease Control, Florida's surgeon general and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services recently issued public warnings urging people not to tackle bedbug problems on their own.

Rampant misuse of pesticides in Ohio, New Jersey and New York, where bedbug infestations are skyrocketing, has led to home explosions and illnesses from over-exposure to toxic chemicals.

"What we're trying to do is make sure Florida is aware of those kinds of issues so that people don't do things that are harmful to themselves," says Michael Page, chief of the Bureau of Entomology for the FDACS.

Instead, they advise working with a pest control company with a strategy to eradicate the bugs.

"This pest is not like roaches or flies or fleas, where you can treat once or twice and the problem is gone," Page says.

Largely absent from public dialogue four years ago, bedbugs have become a common pest problem throughout the United States. International travel and the bug's ability to swiftly build resistance to even the toughest pesticides, including banned DDT, has allowed the irritating bugs to spread rapidly. In desperation, homeowners dangerously are setting off multiple bug bombs in their homes or buying outdoor pesticides on the Internet to spray in their bedrooms.

"Typically, in the consumer world, if one is good, two is better and five is really good," says Wayne Walker, senior pest control technician at the University of Florida Department of Housing and Residence Education. "They don't understand the ramifications of over-applying the pesticide."

The problem has become so immense that Congress has held forums to develop a national bedbug strategy and last year considered passing a bill -- the Don't Let the Bedbugs Bite Act -- to fund state inspection of hotels.

Improper use of pesticides can be much worse than a bedbug's bite. Instead of trying to manage infestations alone, which rarely works, people should hire outside help, says Fred Santana, entomologist with the Sarasota County Extension Agency.

SOURCE: www.heraldtribune.com

In desperation, homeowners dangerously are setting off multiple bug bombs in their homes or buying outdoor pesticides on the Internet to spray in their bedrooms.

"Typically, in the consumer world, if one is good, two is better and five is really good," says Wayne Walker, senior pest control technician at the University of Florida Department of Housing and Residence Education. "They don't understand the ramifications of over-applying the pesticide."

The problem has become so immense that Congress has held forums to develop a national bedbug strategy and last year considered passing a bill -- the Don't Let the Bedbugs Bite Act -- to fund state inspection of hotels.

People are downright terrified of bedbugs because of the high cost, the difficulty of treatment and the social stigma. According to a recent survey funded by a major pesticide company, 30 percent of people say they would rather have a root canal than find bedbugs at home. Bedbugs, though icky and annoying, are not known to transmit disease to humans.

Improper use of pesticides can be much worse than a bedbug's bite. Instead of trying to manage infestations alone, which rarely works, people should hire outside help, says Fred Santana, entomologist with the Sarasota County Extension Agency.

It is important, however, to make sure the professionals know what they are doing. Santana says experienced companies will use an integrated approach, combining methods such as heat treatments, fumigation and strategically placed powders.

People should interview three to four companies before settling on one. Ask to see licenses and ask questions about their experience, strategies and pesticide choices.

In other states, unscrupulous or unlicensed companies have put clients at risk by over-using pesticides or using outdoor products indoors, exposing people to chemicals that can cause nerve damage and cancer.

"If there's a least-toxic approach, try the least toxic first," Santana says.

Heat has proven to be one of the best controls. Professionals place special fans or heaters in a room to bring temperatures to at least 113 degrees, hot enough to kill all stages of bedbugs, from adults the size of apple seeds to their nearly invisible eggs.

Most companies inspect for free and provide an estimate, which usually ranges from $500 to $1,500, depending on the size of the house and the level of infestation.

People will need to work with their pest company and follow instructions that range from throwing clothes and sheets in the dryer to packing items in plastic. They also should be prepared to live with the problem for several weeks before the bugs are successfully eliminated, says Cindy Mannes, spokeswoman for Arrow and Hughes exterminators.

"Pest control may have to come back three, four, five times, depending on the infestation," Mannes says. "It can be controlled; it's just not an easy process."

Bedbugs are extraordinarily tough to control and a lot of over-the-counter applications can make problems worse. Many products claim effectiveness, but have only been tested in lab situations.

"It leads the consumer into false beliefs that it will do things that it may not do," Walker says.

Bedbugs are so hard to control because they hide easily in small crevices, develop chemical resistance quickly, their population can explode exponentially in months and they can go long periods without food.

Foggers often make bedbugs disappear from sight, but the insects escape the poison by moving to other rooms or taking refuge behind light switches, picture frames or baseboards. They can travel 15 to 20 feet to feed, so a new hiding spot will not keep them from their sleeping prey. Repellant sprays, such as those containing pyrethrins, have the same scattering effect that in the end makes the problem harder to combat.

Contact sprays can work, but only on those that actually get sprayed. Also, it is not guaranteed that all bugs that come in contact with the spray will actually die. When insects survive a dousing, they produce resistant offspring.

A female bedbug lives six months to a year and lays an average of 500 eggs, at a rate of three to five per day. Eggs hatch in 10 days, with the young reaching sexual maturity 30 to 45 days later.

"They develop resistance really fast because their life-cycle is really fast," Walker says.

Further, a female only mates once and afterward moves several feet away from her original colony.

It only takes one fertilized female to start a full-blown infestation. And that single bug can live for more than six months on just one meal.

"It's a challenge for the pest management industry and if you know it's a challenge for us, what does the homeowner do when he gets ahold of the pesticides?" Walker says.

People resort to extreme measures to eradicate bedbugs because it is a frustrating and demoralizing experience, Walker says.

For many people, the bed is a safety zone, the place where they hid from lightning storms as children.

"Here is an insect that invades that safety zone and feeds on you at night while you sleep," Walker says. "People do some really drastic things to deal with this issue."

Part of the problem is the high cost of treatment. Many people, including minimum-wage hotel and motel workers who are most at risk, cannot afford to pay $500 to $1,500 to get rid of their pests. They either live with the problem and spread it, or try, usually unsuccessfully, to control it themselves. When homeowners do not have the financial means to hire pest control, they should at least consult an bug expert with the county extension service for advice before attacking the problem on their own.

"The solution is they've got to find some cost-effective method of dealing with this insect," Walker says. "Right now there's not a cost-effective method that's available to the general public that is also effective on the bedbugs."

Pest Control, MA ,  Pest Control, RI

Just another day in the world of bedbugs! This is a massively infested box spring loaded with thousands upon thousands of bedbugs in all stages. If I had to guess I would say there were over 50,000 eggs on the mattress plus  box spring and another 5,000 live bedbugs! Now you are probably asking yourself “WHY IN THE HELL WOULD SOMEONE TOLERATE THIS?” The honest answer is that I have zero clue!

The infestation was over a year old and they did not report it at all, they tried treating it themselves. Obviously quite unsuccessfully! Two adjacent apartments were getting bitten and that is how we uncovered this. In our company training we are taught that “pests do not know property lines” and we should always inspect adjacent units and areas. This does give you a glimpse into why bedbugs are such a major problem in society, a population grows out of control for one plus years then this person inadvertently shares the infestation wherever they go, then the bedbugs spread to adjacent units/areas, and before you know it you have a major outbreak.

With bedbugs it is like when you are sick, early detection & treatment are vital to beating the issue!