How to Build Your Own Bedbug Detector
TIME – Researchers at Rutgers University in New Jersey have created a homemade
bedbug trap using a plastic cat-food dish, an insulated jug and some dry-ice pellets …
Read more »

Doggie Sniffs Out Bed Bugs
MyFox Phoenix – The blood eating pests, bed bugs, are found everywhere from movie theaters to mattresses. Now a local pest control company has a dog to help sniff
them out… Read more »

Don’t let the bed bugs bite
Grand Junction Free Press – BY SHARON SULLIVAN Cathy Palmer breeds and raises Beagles in Cedaredge and more recently has gone into the bed bug detection business as well… Read more »

Bed Bugs 101 Provides a Free Information Resource on Bed Bugs
PR Web (press release) – Bed Bug Central Entomologists have Created New Content to Make Bed Bugs 101 Among the Most Comprehensive Information Resources on the Web About Bed Bugs… Read more »

Bed Bugs Beware: There is a New Sheriff in Town!
Send2Press (press release) – CT Bed Bug Dogs (www.ctbedbugdogs.com) announces
this week the launch of a new business serving Connecticut residents and…
Read more »

Family shares bedbug horror
Regina Leader-Post – Now they get at least six bedbug calls per day and thousands of bedbug calls across the province each year. Gage believes increased travel and second-hand … Read more »

Bedtime comes early in the day for racers
Kenosha News.com – The Bed Bugs’ bed also featured a bathtub-sized inflatable bug surrounded by pink and yellow balloons. “It was Adeline’s dream,” explained Debbie
Hawes of … Read more »

Quigley Begbug Bill to be Considered by Assembly Panel Monday
The Jersey City Independent – “Renters should not have to live silently with bedbug infestations,” Quigley says in a statement. “Tenants who want to live in a clean and
safe environment … Read more »

While this tactic won’t work for large items, it could be a practical (and cheap) method of treating smaller items that are infested with bed bugs. Items like certain electronics, books, clothing and accessories that can’t be washed and children’s toys.

You will have to use good judgment. But this could be a workable piece of a larger bed bug extermination effort.

In fact, going to an extreme temperature in either direction is a well-known way of killing bed bugs. That is why steamers are a good tool for bed bug extermination. Bed bugs are thought to be growing more resistant to bed bug insecticides so manipulating temperature shows a lot of promise as an extermination method. The challenge is finding ways to develop techniques that are practical and non-destructive to your home and belongings.

It’s not practical for somebody that lives in Florida to keep their mattress and box spring at 0°F for four days. However, in some climates or at certain times of the year, this is entirely practical. If you have access to a large enough refrigeration unit or freezer, treating belongings of various sizes is practical as well. As long as you can keep the temperature low enough for a long enough time, you can kill bed bugs with cold.

I live in the state of CT and we are seeing a definite increase in bed bug problems. My PCO friend said that bed bugs are actually becoming a bigger and bigger problem for businesses. People have bed bugs at home and then they bring them to work on their clothes and belongings. From there they spread. So they are doing more and more work with offices and other places of business.

At the same time, he said a majority of the times when they are called out to people’s homes to do an assessment, the home does not have an infestation. That must be a relief to many people! Although recently a house he worked on was so bad they had to fumigate. He said it cost about $16,000 with a crew of 20 people to fumigate a 3000 sq foot house. Big. Bucks.

Bed bug prevention is so important. It really isn’t that hard to protect yourself. It just requires that you learn what to do and take the time to do it. Please read more about bed bug control and prevention to make sure you’re doing everything you can. You don’t want to end up with a $16,000 fumigation bill and I don’t want you to either.

The writer hits on all the important topics. A few bits stand out:

If I have them, am I a lousy housekeeper? Bedbugs have been found in even the nicest homes, but cluttered environments do provide more locations for these pests to hide.

Spot on. Dirty conditions are harder to clean, make it harder to spot bed bugs and create more places for bed bugs to hide. They don’t cause bed bugs however. This is an important point fact that doesn’t get enough attention.

If people think that having bed bugs means they are dirty, then they are more prone to cover up or deny a bed bug problem rather than tackle it head on. This is especially important in multi-unit dwellings.

What should you do when you find them? Bedbugs cannot be effectively eliminated with do-it-yourself approaches such as washing all the bedclothes.

I have a new article in the works on this. Pest control professionals (aka bed bugs exterminators) I’ve spoken to are all in agreement: DIY bed bug extermination is not advised.

This may remind you of the cowboy proverb: “Never ask a barber if you need a haircut.” Fair enough. But do one thing before you decide to skip down the DIY path: use Google to find and read the stories of people that have done the same. That’s what you have to look forward to.

The article also goes on to give several good home protection and travel protection tips.