There is a lot of misleading information around about bed bugs which can cause treatment failures, frustration and cost you money.
Lets straighten out some common misconceptions.
THE LATEST RESEARCH TO COME FROM THE USA HAS ONCE AGAIN VERIFIED A LONG TIME CONCERN OF MINE ABOUT BED BUG HABITS AND TREATMENT. THIS RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS A COMMON ERROR IN THE TREATMENT OF BED BUGS THAT I HAVE LONG AVOIDED. IF YOU CHOOSE A PEST CONTROL COMPANY THAT IS NOT UP TO DATE, YOU MAY HAVE TO GET USED TO LIVING WITH BED BUGS FOR A LONG TIME, AS MANY HAVE DISCOVERED.
Bed bugs cause disease: There is no evidence of any disease being passed by bed bugs at this time. If this ever occurs ( some researchers are saying WHEN this occurs) it will become a massive health issue.
Bed bugs are due to poor hygiene: Bed bugs aren't fussy and will happily infest the cleanest home or hotel or a hovel. If there is a host present then the bugs will party.
You can pick up bed bugs by visiting an infested house: Generally, only if you spend the night. Bed bugs are usually active in the wee hours of the night and it is then that they can get into your clothes or luggage.
I got bitten by a bed bug today: The bite of a bed bug starts to itch at some point AFTER the actual bite (it can take ten days for a reaction). This often causes confusion about where and when a person is bitten.
My bed had bed bugs so I put it in the sun: There was a time when it was recommended to put stuff in black plastic and leave it in the sun but they also said once the world is flat, IT DOESN'T WORK!
Freezing will kill bed bugs and eggs in my goods: This would work if the temperatures were extremely low for quite a long period which rarely occurs. Sites or pest controllers who say this are not up to date with current research.
My bed had bed bugs so I was told to throw it away: Beds can be treated with steam and if you have bugs in the bed, they are probably elsewhere and throwing your bed away is a waste of money as they will just re-infest the new one. Also, you can spread them by moving the bed.
BED BUG NESTS AT THE JUNCTION OF THE CARPET AND SKIRTING BOARD.
Bed bugs will not infest a metal bed: Bed bugs prefer wood or material but will take whats available. I have found bugs in metal bed frames and in springs.
"It definitely said, served on wooden slats" "You just can't trust these restaurant guides!"
I have bed bugs in my couch: Unlikely, and only if you actually sleep all night on the couch on a regular basis. Bed bugs are active between approximately midnight and four am so it is where people regularly sleep at this time that bed bugs gather.
If I just use steam I can get rid of bed bugs: Steam ( steam vapour cleaners that is, don't confuse this with carpet steam cleaners as few of them will help) will kill every life stage of bed bugs including eggs however, the first life stage or instar is 1.2 mm long and transparent, so is virtually invisible. Add this to the ability of bed bugs to wedge into the tiniest of spaces and I think claiming to get every bed bug with steam is a bit ambitious if not ludicrous. It will, on a positive note, kill them without making things worse so if you have a steamer, go for it.
If I vacate I can starve them out: Bed bugs have been known to survive for twelve months without a blood meal.
You just need to spray a couple of times to get rid of bed bugs: At least and with the right pesticide making this a random method of control. Pesticides do not kill the bed bug egg, so controllers who can't be bothered with steam, recommend a second application after a couple of weeks to try and break the hatching cycle. Occasionally this is affective but it's costly and can fail. Add to this the variation in hatching times (below 18 degrees Celsius they go dormant and wont hatch) and you can imagine the problems of timing.
My regular pest controller sprayed and the bed bugs were gone for a couple of months, but are now back: The application of an unsuitable pesticide may kill some bed bugs but, due to the high sense of smell of the bed bugs, surviving bed bugs will move out of range of the pesticide and wait until it fades before returning and, while the population is reduced, you will probably not react to the bites. There are specific pesticides which are residual and are undetected by the bed bugs thereby ensuring a total eradication.
UPDATE: BED BUGS DON'T RETURN ONCE FORCED INTO INACCESSIBLE AREAS, THEY REMAIN NESTING IN CAVITIES AND FEED ON YOU FROM THERE, MAKING TREATMENT MUCH, MUCH HARDER. SOME EXPERTS MENTION A TRAVEL RANGE OF 5 METRES FOR BED BUGS, I HAVE TWICE NOW SEEN SITUATIONS WHERE THEY ARE TRAVELLING IN EXCESS OF 7 METRES FOR A BLOOD MEAL, AND HAVE BEEN DOING SO FOR LONGER THAN TWELVE MONTHS.
PYRETHROIDS, THE COMMON CHOICE OF MOST PEST CONTROLLERS AND THE INGREDIENT IN PRACTICALLY ALL THE PESTICIDES AND BOMBS YOU CAN BUY OFF THE SHELF (DELTEMETHRIN, PERMETHRIN TETRAMETHRIN ETC), HAVE BEEN SHOWN TO BE INEFFECTIVE IN MOST CASES (SEE CONTROL PAGE). I HAVE JUST READ OF A RESEARCH FINDING OF BED BUG RESISTANCE TO DDT AND PYRETHRUM. THIS RESEARCH WAS IN 1959 (BUSVINE)! WHICH RAISES THE QUESTIONS, HOW DID WE GET RID OF THEM IN THE 6O'S AND WHY, SIXTY YEARS ON SOME ENTOMOLOGISTS AND MOST PEST CONTROLLERS ARE STILL SUGGESTING PYRETHROIDS AS A SOLUTION???
