Bed bugs have always been a nuisance and a public health concern for many people. As a matter of fact, they’re pretty common, especially in larger and more populated cities. When bed bugs are discovered, treating bed bugs is the first thing that comes to mind. You might try to get rid of the situation yourself, but eventually, you’ll realize that the infestation has gotten out of control. That’s when you’ll decide to contact a professional to take care of your bed bug problem. However, before the pest control company arrives, you have to prepare your home first. Preparing your home will not only make the bed bug expert’s job easier but it’ll also make the whole process go a lot faster and smoother. Let’s figure out what steps you need to take in order to prepare your home for a bed bug treatment.
Why Do You Need To Prepare Your Home?
If you are dealing with bed bugs, I’m sure you’ve already noticed how tiny they are and how elusive they can be. They can hide in clothing, carpets, and furniture while some might even hitch a ride on your pets. Usually, that’s why a few bed bugs can quickly turn into a full-blown infestation. Not to mention they’re really only visible when they’re active, and they’re only active for a short period of time. During the night, they’ll appear to feed but by day, they’ll scurry off to hide in any nook and cranny they can find. It’s why treating bed bugs can be somewhat of a difficult task for traditional pest control treatments. There are a lot of places bed bugs can hide hence why you need to prepare your home first for the best results.
Different Ways To Prepare Your Home For Treating Bed Bugs
Here are some tips to prepare your home for treating bed bugs. Keep in mind, that these tasks should be completed before your pest control company visits your home. Following these methods should ensure successful bed bug removal.
1. Remove & Relocate Household Items
Depending on the treatment, you may want to relocate certain household items. Heat treatments, for example, tend to be really hot. To completely get rid of bed bugs and their eggs, the temperature needs to be somewhere between 48⁰C to 50⁰C. Certain household items can warp, melt, or be completely destroyed in this kind of heat. Some household items you should look out for include:
- House Plants
- Pressurized containers (hair spray, soda cans)
- Flammable material (lighters, solvents)
- Wax products (candles, makeup)
- Other items that don’t do well in the heat (printer cartridges, fire extinguishers)
On the other hand, if you’re not getting a heat treatment, you’ll still probably want to move some things around to provide easier access. For example, laundry hampers, any clutter lying around, children’s toys, and so on.
2. Notify The Exterminator of Valuable Big Bulk Items
When we say valuable items, we don’t mean expensive jewelry or cash. We’re talking about instruments, antiques, some ridiculously expensive furniture, and so on. You may not have to necessarily move these items but giving prior notice will allow the exterminators to properly prepare. Whether that’s providing some kind of protective gear or staying clear of the item altogether. Regardless, these items are precious to you and there shouldn’t be any risk of damaging them when given proper notice.
3. Launder Clothing, Bed Sheets & Other Linens
Unfortunately, clothing, bed sheets and other linens are the most common places to find these little critters. With that being said, that’s pretty much why you should launder any dirty clothes laying around in your hamper, used bed sheets and so on. Your dryer should be hot enough to completely eradicate any remaining bed bugs. However, you don’t have to wash everything. If your clean clothes are folded and tucked away in your drawers make sure it’s not densely packed. Especially if you’re doing a heat treatment. You want the heat to be able to permeate through your clothes, treating bed bugs that found their way there.
4. Other Preparations
Besides removing household items, informing your exterminator of important details and cleaning your clothes, here are other preparations you should consider before you’re ready to exterminate the bed bug infestation at your home.
- Remove any curtains and carpets (any window and floor coverings)
- Clean up clutter and vacuum around the house
- Unplug any unnecessary devices
- Remove anything hanging on your walls (art, pictures, decorations)
- Make sure you’re schedule is free for that designated time period
Treating Bed Bugs? Contact Action Pest
When it comes to treating bed bugs, Action Pest is top of the line! Action Pest’s process includes first, inspecting and analyzing every inch of your home. This is where the experts identify all the problem areas and where the infestation is the worse. Once that’s all done, it’s time for the actual removal. With over 40 years of experience, Action Pest knows exactly what to do to solve your bed bug problem. They’ll discuss the best strategies and solutions to completely remove the bed bugs from your home. After that, they’ll monitor your home and make sure the treatment has done its job. If you’re currently in need of a bed bug treatment, contact Action Pest today!
