There are easy to see on white linoleum or marble floors, but very difficult to spot on brown wooden floors. This is so because bed bugs are rust brown in color and they even change into a deeper red brown when they finish a blood meal.

The fact that bed bugs are dorsoventrally flat assists their distribution. Since they are so thin, they can squeeze in and fit in very narrow cracks and crevices, oftenly ones that may be found on the floor. Because of their great skillful hiding, bed bugs are very hard to detect.

Bed bug distribution also adds up to the any pieces of information about the two main species of bed bugs that bite human beings.

First, is the common bed bug, more scientifically called cimex lectularius. This kind of bed bug is found in any crevice as long as it is around room temperature. They are of greater distribution in Australia. May it be remote or urban, common bed bugs do not care, only as long as they are distributed to an area that copes well with their needs.

Another kind of bed bugs is the tropical bed bug, or cimex hemipterus. This bed bug has been guessed to be distributed in the tropics a long time ago. However, it was only recently recognized by the medical entomology department. This department can tell you more information about the distribution of the cimex hemipterus in the tropics.

Bed bugs are also distributed finely in human dwellings, bat caves and bird’s nests. In truth, the habitats that have been recently mentioned are the ones found to be most suitable for these said bed bugs. Why? It seems to be quite obvious. Bed bugs are distributed to these habitats because of their offered warmth and hosts they can feed on.

However, you must always remember tht bed bugs are never evenly distributed throughout the environment. You will come to notice that instead of being distributed in the environment, bed bugs are distributed mainly in harborages.

When human dwellings is the subject, the harborages are inclusive of the crack and crevices that you can find, sometimes not find, in your house’s walls, behind your wallpaper, furniture and wood paneling, or even under your carpetting.

Bed bugs are more usually not so prone to activity during the night, but will feed on anything during the day, especially when hunger strikes them. So, most likely, these said bed bugs would be distributed to trees and leaves and roots and absolutely anything that they can land on and strike their fancy.

Bed bugs can also be distributed to clothing, in bedding or even your luggage. However, much to their dismay, they do not have appendages that could allow them to cling, possibly to hair feathers or fur. This would bring you to the conclusion that bed bugs leave to feast on their hosts but once done with that thing they do, they leave their hosts since they have nothing to cling with in the first place.

Adult bed bugs live exclusively as parasites that feed mainly on warm-blooded animals, the best example, and probably the most usual, would be human beings. Since bed bugs can be distributed to poor housing conditions, then it would be conclusive that the infestations o fbed bugs can be found in these places too. And if these said bed bugs do get distributed to domestic premises, then the room they will most probably attack is the bedroom.

You already know of the fact that bed bugs are distributed to cracks and crevices where they most typically hide, but you probably would find this quite surprising. Throughout this essay, have you ever wondered or asked yourself why these insects are called bed bugs? It is because they love to distribute themselves in bedrooms, specifically in the vicinity of where the host, in this case, human beings, sleeps. Oftentimes, they would even habitate in the host’s sleeping place itself, the bed. Its distribution in bedrooms are also inclusive of bed frames, behind skirting or wallpaper and the matress itself.

To read about silverfish bug and bug habitat, visit the About Animals site.

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Battling The Distribution Of Bed Bugs is a post from: Manchester Pest Control

Bed bugs are scientifically known as “Cimex lectularius”, they are wingless with a brownish ultra thin body. Various studies indicate these creatures originated from Asia but now can be seen in all parts of the world. Bed bugs thrive in areas with a warm and dry climate but they have been able to invade the northern regions because of the proliferation of heated buildings.

The adult bed bug is 1/4 to 3/8 in length when it is unfed but its size will expand considerably after a hearty meal. A starving bed bug looks far more different compared to one that is well fed. Young bed bugs or nymphs resemble the adults but have a yellowish color after molting. A nymph can develop into a fully grown bed bug for as fast as one month depending on how much it is able to eat.

When they become a pest

Bed bugs start to become a problem when they become hungry for blood. They typically stay in their homes in between meals and are only forced to go out if they are starving. The warmth of a nearby body is what attracts them but they cannot detect a food source that is around 5-10cm away.

Bed bugs use their highly developed mouthparts to bite and suck blood from the skin of an unsuspecting person. Engorgement time can last as long as seven minutes or as short as one minute. An adult bed bug can absorb around seven times of its own body weight in blood. The bed bug immediately retreats to its hiding place after feasting and then lays eggs again.

A person will only realize that he has been bitten by a bed bug once he discovers the large wheals in the affected part of the body. These wheals eventually develop into a tiny read mark that will stay for at least two to three days.

Bed bug bites can also be distinguished by the orderly way the wheals are formed, unlike mosquito bites that have a random pattern. It is always advised that the affected area should never be scratched to avoid infection and immediately washed with soap and water.

Bed bugs do prefer any part of the body that has good blood flow so the reproductive organs will always be included in their list of target spots.

Solving ‘em bugs

Treating bed bug bites is only a small part of solving the problem, as the next step is actually getting rid of these unwanted visitors. Those often traveling to areas with a tropical climate are very susceptible to bed bug infestations, as the luggage they carry might become their new home. Seeing bed bugs crawl into boxes, suitcases and belongings is very difficult, as they are tiny, agile and cryptic. Homes not yet infested could inherit this problem from the use of second hand furniture, couches or beds.

Those that want to get rid of bed bugs in beds will have a difficult task at hand. Fabrics with holes and tears are perfect locations for them to lay eggs. During the 40s and 50s the use of DDT was popular, as it helped minimize the spread of bed bug infestations but was eventually outlawed due to concerns over their effects to humans.

Pest control firms have a wide array instruments to help get rid of beg bugs ranging from pesticides, aerosols and other chemical agents. Beds in poor condition or heavily infested should be automatically discarded. Regardless if the bed is thrown out or not, encasing the box spring and mattress is very helpful especially if the bugs are still there.

Vacuuming could also help in getting rid of bed bugs and some pest control experts even use portable steam machines to treat beds. Whether the infestation is minor or major, bed bugs are always a pest especially for those that want to get a good night’s sleep. Perhaps, the most effective way to avoid a bed bug problem is to practice good hygiene and observe cleanliness.

For tips on oriental cockroach and cockroach infestation, visit the About Animals website.

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Die Bed Bugs Die is a post from: Manchester Pest Control

Bed bugs are insects that thrive on small holes, cracks or crevices in walls and floors. Generally, bed bugs like to live in dark and untidy corners or portions of the house.

Bed bugs suck blood. It is their primary means of making a living. Hence, they go out at night and suck blood from unsuspecting victims, who may be sleeping by that time.

Bed bugs do not transit or carry communicable diseases, bu their bites can get really really itchy. To some people, especially the more sensitive ones, bed bugs’ bites can pose serious health situations.

So the basic question you will have in mind for sure (assuming that your house is infested with bed bugs) is, ” How are bed bugs infestation controlled?”

There are a number of measures or means to control bed bugs. For a start, you may start by preventing the occurrence or existence of bed bugs in your house. If your home is still not infested, be sure to know how to avoid them.

Cleanliness is one key factor in controlling or preventing bed bugs from thriving in your house. Be sure to make your furniture, walls, and floor spic and span.

Bed bugs love to thrive in beds, so, make sure your bed is fully protected. Regularly change your bed sheets and make sure the bed does not contain unnecessary holes or tears.

If your house already has bed bugs on it, a simple way to control infestation is by applying pesticides or insecticides to the infested areas.

A number of commercially available pesticides especially formulated for bed bugs control are available and accessible in the market. In using one, just be sure to carefully read all labels and instructions before use.

Pesticides, of course, are made up of harsh chemicals that can surely knock out insects like bed bugs. These chemicals are so harmful, that aside from controlling bed bugs, they can also pose health hazards or threats to you.

Hiring professionals The best and probably the most intelligent solution to controlling bed bugs infestation is through seeking the professional help and services of experts—pest control companies.

Controlling bed bugs is not a ‘spur of the moment’ thing. A lot and thorough planning has to be conducted beforehand. Before seeking the expert help, be prepared to discard several materials and furniture, if ever the experts will advise you to.

There are a number of pest control companies in your locality. All you have to do is to pick up the phone, and wait for a few hours.

If you are living in an apartment, coordinate with your land lord or land lady. It is their responsibility to make all the necessary arrangements for pest control measures.

State and civil laws mandate them to make sure that their building is safe and pest-free. Talk to them and know the arrangements for pest control service fee payments.

When you plan to control bed bugs infestation in your home with the help of professionals, also be sure to inform or notify your neighbors.

It is because some residues or stink of the pest control chemicals might reach their homes. If ever, that will post serious health risks for them.

Because bed bugs are so persistent, expect the process of controlling them to be really tedious. Insects have that general characteristics—they are so resilient and their systems are so strong.

Normally, controlling bed bugs the professionals’ way can take a few hours, because the experts have to check for any crevices, small cracks or holes where bed bugs might be hiding.

Furniture and home accessories will also have to be checked to make sure the treatment will not miss on any single bug.

At times, pest control experts might advise you to discard several furniture, especially beds. Is because, most beds are made up foams or materials that have tiny holes on it, which is very ideal for bed bugs to hide in.

In disposing or discarding beds, be sure that it can never be used by other people again. Otherwise, bed bugs will transfer from your house to another’s.

Because environmental concerns will rule out burning, you will surely have to put the bed into a special encasing or bug, to make sure all bed bugs on it are trapped inside.

Want to find out about kill roaches and cockroach control? Get tips from the About Animals website.

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How To Control The Bed Bugs is a post from: Manchester Pest Control

You cannot get bed bugs out of your clothes simply by avoiding the mentioned hotspots. These places are unavoidable. They are part of our lives. But if you want to keep your house clean and free from bed bugs infestation, check out these Tips on How to Get the Bed bugs Out of Your Clothes. Simple Tips on How to Get the Bed Bugs Out of Your Clothes. In a hotel, you can get bed bugs out of your clothes if you shake off your clean and used clothes for bed bugs the night before you check out. Having bed bugs in your things or clothes does not mean that you are filthy and stinking. Bed bugs do not stay on a certain area or place because it is clean or filthy. They stay in a place because they are attracted to carbon monoxide, of which humans exhale, and they feed on human blood.

To get the bed bugs out of your clothes, you must make sure that the suitcase on which you will encase it is bed bugs free. Even if you shake your clothes just to get bed bugs out of your clothes, it won’t do good since the very suitcase that will carry your clothes with has bed bugs inside. The night before you leave your hotel, remove any items that you have and the clothes inside your suitcase. Buy a water based insect killer and spray on the insecticide around the suitcase. Don’t spray on inside. Then place your belongings and other items inside a clean, dry, bath tub. Bed bugs don’t like ceramics and marbles much, so they won’t be present anywhere near the tub. However, all the wood furniture near your bed are undoubtedly infested. Surer way to get bed bugs out of your clothes is to have your clothes, clean and used, to the laundry. Ask the laundryman to soak it in warm water for twenty minutes. Clinging nymps on your used clothes, especially the clothes you used on bed, will die when soaked in warm water.

You can get bed bugs out of your clothes if you will resist the urge to sleep on the bed before you leave. The bed bugs may cling onto your sleeves as its last shot to draw blood from you and stay there before you leave. When you get home, remove all your clothing, and even socks, and soak them in warm water for twenty minutes. Do this immediately to avoid speading bed bugs around your house in case a female bed bug hitched at your collar or sleeve. A single female bed bug lays 300 eggs. And adult bed bugs can last for eighteen months even without feeding. You might think that following the tips abovementioned will make you look like a person sufferring from obsessive compulsive. This is untrue. This is the best measure to do to avoid having your house getting infested with these nasty bugs. They are very hard to terminate once they invade your household. The best remedy for a bed bug infested home is to throw away every furniture around and abandon the place for three years. So which is easier and better to do? Prevent the bed bugs from coming your house or exterminate them instead?

Find tips about bug guide and cinch bugs at the About Animals website.

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How To Get The Bed Bugs Out Of Your Clothes is a post from: Manchester Pest Control

Until a few years ago, most pest control companies said it was unusual to receive even one or two calls a year about bed bugs. Since 2004, however, bed bug complaints have grown exponentially with pest control companies nationwide now averaging between 10 and 50 calls a week. In major metropolitan areas, some companies are fielding 100 or more bed bug complaints each week. Some experts are predicting that 2008 will be the Year of the Bed Bug. Cindy Mannes, spokesperson for the National Pest Management Association, said bed bugs have become a serious problem in every state, noting, “There are some who call it the pest of the 21st century.”

Bed bugs are an equal opportunity pest. Infestations have occurred across the country in the tony co-ops of the rich and famous, in fashionable condominiums, in luxury apartments and in upscale suburban homes. Contrary to popular belief, bed bugs are not caused by filth or dirt. Like lice and fleas, bed bugs are creatures of convenience. A nuisance insect, they are not known to carry disease, but they can cause considerable discomfort, both mental and physical.

All but eradicated in the U.S. following World War II, the banning of powerful DDT-based pesticides, coupled with increased international travel, has brought about a nationwide resurgence of the annoying insect. Potter, an urban entomologist at the University of Kentucky, calls bed bugs the pre-eminent household pest in the U.S., on a par with cockroaches and rats. “This is one serious issue,” he recently told the New York Times. “This will be the pest of the 21st century – no questions about it.”

If you’re buying a house or looking for a new condo or apartment, take to heart the old adage Buyer Beware. You may be moving into a home that has been invaded by bed bugs. Most states require home sellers to provide buyers with an accurate statement disclosing the property’s condition, including pest infestations. However, there are loopholes that should serve as a red flag to home buyers and their realtors.

Most real estate disclosure statements are fairly broad and do not specifically ask about bed bug infestations. If any pest disclosure is specified, it’s likely to be termites. Because bed bugs haven’t been a problem in the United States for so many decades, few current state or municipal codes address them specifically. In many states, sellers can choose not to fill out the disclosure statement and instead pay a penalty which is credited to the buyer. For sellers with a bed bug problem, a several hundred dollar penalty may seem an acceptable price for making the sale.

Buyers and realtors should be aware that real estate disclosure laws that apply to home sales often don’t apply to co-op and condo owners. Before you buy, check with the local building and health departments to find out what the regulations are in your area. Although some states are now considering adding specific bed bug regulations to their realty laws, at this point common law is generally on the side of the seller. As real estate attorney Edward Sumber of New York told the New York Times, “Under the doctrine of caveat emptor — let the buyer beware — the seller has no affirmative obligation to reveal circumstances about the apartment to the buyer.”

However, disclosure laws in most states require the seller to answer honestly if specifically asked whether his home or apartment has been infected by bed bugs or other pests.

Additionally, real estate brokers are usually obligated to reveal a bed bug problem to the buyer if they know about it. Unfortunately, in most states sellers are not required to tell their real estate brokers about bed bug problems. Essentially, that means buyers must rely on the integrity of sellers and landlords anxious to make a sale.

Many buyers shopping for a new home, apartment or condominium are now hiring a pest control company with an expertise in bed bug elimination to inspect the property before they buy. Some realtors are recommending that sellers have their homes inspected for bed bugs before putting them on the market as both a reassurance and inducement to buyers.

What are bed bugs?

Evolved from bird and bat nest parasites, Climex lectaularius, the common bed bug, is a tiny nocturnal insect that hides in dark crevices during the day and feeds on human blood during the night. Their oval bodies are flattened and wingless and a light to reddish-brown in color. Adult bed bugs are 1/4 to 3/8 inch long or about the size of an apple seed. Before feeding, the bed bugs are as flat as paper, becoming dark red and bloated with blood as they feed, much like a tick. As they puncture the skin to feed — usually for 3 to 10 minutes — they eject an anesthetic that can cause an allergic reaction and the symptomatic itchy, red welts that bedevil their hosts. However, welts may take a day or two to develop and not all bed bug sufferers react to their bites, which can delay detection.

A female bed bug can produce up to 500 eggs during its average one-year lifespan, laying about 5 eggs per day. Difficult to detect without magnification, the eggs are whitish, pear-shaped and about the size of a pinhead. The female lays her sticky eggs in bedding and carpets or cements them into cracks and crevices near the bed to ensure a food source when the nymphs hatch. Nymphs, which are lighter in color and look like slightly smaller adults, hatch in 4 to 12 days and begin to feed immediately. Bed bugs progress through five nymphal stages, molting after each stage. The whitish carapaces they shed are a telltale sign of bed bug infestation. It takes 5 to 8 weeks for nymphs to reach maturity. Since several generations of bed bugs can be produced in a year, all stages of growth can be found in an infested room.

Bed bugs feed every 3 to 5 days and must feed at least once to develop to the next stage and to reproduce. They often void while feeding, leaving telltale rusty or tarry spots on sheets and in hiding places. Bed bugs can survive for 1 to 7 months without a blood meal and have been known to live in an abandoned house for as long as a year. They give off a distinctive musty, sweet odor often likened to ripe red raspberries or coriander.

Bed bugs will readily travel 10 to 15 feet to feed but have been observed traveling more than 100 feet from their established harborage to feed on a host. Once established, infestations can spread rapidly to adjoining rooms or units through crawl spaces, wall voids and electrical and plumbing conduits. Adept hitchhikers, bed bugs can easily enter your home on clothing, bedding, luggage, used furniture, cardboard boxes, etc. They can be brought home from a hotel stay or by sitting in a car, cab, bus, train or plane recently inhabited by an infested person.

What to look for

Bed bugs may be tiny but they leave telltale traces. Look most closely near beds and in bedrooms where bed bugs feed. Look for these telltale signs of bed bug activity:

A heavily infested room may have a characteristic musty or sweet odor like the scent of fresh red raspberries or coriander; however, the odor may not be obvious.

Look for active, crawling bugs on bed linens, carpet and furniture near the bed.

Look for dark fecal and blood stains on bed linens; carpets and carpet welting; and in the seams, creases, tufts and folds of mattresses and box springs.

You should also look for fecal smears or pea-sized pearly egg deposits behind headboards; along baseboards and door and window casings; around electrical plates; in plaster cracks; and under loose wallpaper, paintings and posters.

Look for whitish nymph molts and old exoskeletons under area rugs, at the edges of carpets, and in under-the-bed storage containers.

Beware of bats in the attic or eaves. Quite often bed bugs feeding on bats in the attic of a house will migrate to the living area in search of an easier food source, humans.

Buyer beware!

Bites, odor and voiding smears are indicators of a bed bug problem. However, these insects often go undetected when symptoms are not obvious. Bed bugs are also easily confused with other nuisance bugs like carpet beetles, bird and rodent mites, shiny spider beetles, parasitic wasps, even lint by the more paranoid, making definitive diagnosis a job for bed bug experts.

Before you buy a new home, ask the owner if there has ever been a bed bug problem. In co-ops, condos, apartments and any multi-unit residence, ask the property owner whether bed bugs have been reported in any unit. Before they buy, many home buyers are now requiring a pest inspection by a bed bug expert in addition to the traditional home inspection. When it’s buyer beware, it makes sense to protect yourself.

Douglas Stern is the managing partner of Stern Environmental Group and a bed bug extermination expert. His firm serves commercial and residential clients in New Jersey, New York City, New York, and Connecticut. His firm is located at 100 Plaza Drive in Secaucus, New Jersey. You can reach him toll free at 1-888-887-8376. Please visit us on the Web at www.SternEnvironmental.com.
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Buyer Beware: Bed Bugs Can Squash Real Estate Deals is a post from: Manchester Pest Control

Read the headlines and you get the impression that bed bugs have invaded our shores in force and are chomping their way down Main Street USA. Until five years ago bed bug reports were virtually non-existent in the U.S. Then the blood-sucking insects started cropping up in homes, apartments, hotels and college dorms across the country fueling a media frenzy. Chastising fellow journalists, David Segal of the Washington Post pointed out in a February article, “more than 400 articles have wriggled into print, all making roughly the same point: The bloodsucking critters are back, and in numbers that amount to a scourge.” Segal claims that “the scale of this ‘swarm’ has been overstated, maybe wildly so. … ‘The bugs are back’ is so perfect a trend story that it seems hand-forged by the trend-story gods. It’s what happens when you combine a creepy villain, primal fear and squishy statistics.”

In the March issue of Pest Management Professional, editorial director Frank Andorka made this rebuttal to Segal’s story: “Of course, many reporters are rooting for the bed bug: It’s great copy – a cryptic, bloodsucking insect that feeds on people when they are sleeping and is difficult to control. What could possibly be a better story than that? But just because it’s good copy doesn’t mean the stories aren’t true.”

So what’s the real story? Are bed bugs a genuine threat or is this so much media hype. Some argue that journalists are feeding the frenzied paranoia of a panicked citizenry. Others point to very real statistics that show a 70% increase in reported bed bug infestations in the U.S. in the past five years. In a national survey conducted for Pest Management Professional, University of Kentucky entomologist Michael Potter found, “A whopping 91% of respondents reported their organizations had encountered bed bug infestations in the past two years. Only 37% said they encountered bed bugs more than five years ago.” Pest control companies that for decades had received no calls about bed bugs are suddenly receiving dozens. In large urban areas it’s not uncommon for companies to field 100 to 150 bed bug complaints a week, according to a National Pest Management Association survey.

After near eradication by DDT-based pesticides in the 1950s, bed bugs (Cimex lectularius) are on the rise. A worldwide scourge throughout human history, bed bugs, fleas and lice used to be regular nightly bedmates. Your grandmother’s bedtime mantra — “Sleep tight; don’t let the bed bugs bite!” – was rooted in the reality of pre-World War II life when bed bugs were commonly found in beds across the U.S. In the 1930s, people wallpapered their bedrooms with arsenic-laced wallpaper to kill bed bugs. Metal bed frames, considered less likely to harbor bed bugs, were the rage. Twice a year bedsteads were completely dismantled and scrubbed to keep bed bugs at bay. Until the insect-killing properties of DDT were discovered during World War II, no effective pesticide existed to eradicate bed bugs. Development of DDT-based insecticides after the war allowed America and most industrialized countries to stamp out bed bugs.

Discovery of DDT’s cancer risk to humans and lethal threat to wildlife led to its banning in the early 1970s. By the mid-1990s, reports of bed bug infestations began to surface in the U.S., Canada, Australia and Western Europe. With no lethally effective pesticide available, bed bugs have multiplied and spread. “Since the mid-1990s, numbers of reported infestations have almost doubled annually,” said Clive Boase, author of a bed bug study published by the Institute of Biology in London. Bed bug infestations in London have risen tenfold since 1996, Boase reported. According to National Geographic News, bed bug complaints to pest control companies increased 700% in Australia between 2000 and 2004 and 500% in the U.S. While these figures seem astonishing, keep in mind that if a pest controller received two bed bugs calls in 2000, an increase of 500% would equal 10 calls in 2004, not quite the “invasion” trumpeted in news reports. Still, last year bed bug infestations were reported in every state in the U.S., and reports are increasing exponentially each year. “This is a serious issue,” Potter recently told the New York Times. “This will be the pest of the 21st century.”

Scientists haven’t pinned down a single cause for the bed bug proliferation, but cite a combination of factors, including the increased ease of international travel, lack of potent insecticides, and discovery of pesticide-resistant bed bugs. The size of an apple seed, these wingless insects are nocturnal, hiding in tiny cracks and crevices on mattresses and near beds, and coming out at night to feed on human blood. Females typically lay 500 eggs during their six- to 12-month lifespan. Eggs hatch in four to 12 days, and larva begin to feed, reaching adult status in about a month. Three or more generations can be produced in a year. A few bed bugs can lead to a major infestation in just a short time. Easily transported, bed bugs often enter a home on luggage, clothing or used or rental furniture. They spread through multi-unit properties like apartments and hotels through air ducts, electrical and plumbing conduits and wall voids. New York City recently launched an education campaign when serious bed bug infestations in the immigrant community were linked to the sale of infested secondhand mattresses.

Not all bed bug complaints turn out to be bed bugs. “I get samples every day,” said Harvard University entomologist Richard Pollack, who noted that “fewer than half” turn out to be bed bugs. Carpet beetles, lice, fleas, ticks, chiggers, mites, even lint are often mistaken for bed bugs. False alarms are part of the territory, said New York City housing authority spokesman Howard Marder. “Experience shows that residents may have heard rumors about bedbugs, so if they wake up with a rash or an itch, they think they’ve got them. … If you make people aware of a problem, reports about it are likely to go up.”

Sometimes the power of suggestion results in delusory parasitosis, or Ekbom’s Syndrome, in which real environmental elements such as static electricity or dry skin cause severe itching that is incorrectly perceived to be caused by insects. Scratching can cause bleeding welts that only serve to “validate” victims’ claims of an insect infestation. Most incidents are related to seasonal changes in humidity triggered by the start up of heating or air conditioning systems.

For those who actually do have bed bugs, the experience can be traumatic. Bites leave red, itchy welts that can bedevil bed bug victims. While scientists assure us that bed bugs are merely a nuisance pest and do not transmit diseases, the thought of being nibbled on while they sleep is enough to send many victims screaming from their beds. “It’s horrible. They’re feeding on your family, your skin; their main meal is a human body,” a horrified Atlantic Beach bed bug victim told NBC 12 First Coast News in Jacksonville, Florida. She said her two-year-old would wake up crying from the bites. Shannon (who refused to give her last name) spent hours shuttling her welt-covered children to different doctors before an entomologist correctly diagnosed the problem as bed bugs. In a typical reaction, Shannon threw out mattresses, beds, sofas and linens. She moved her family out and hired a pest control company to “tent” and fumigate their house. New technologies like Cryonite which freezes and kills bugs and eggs using non-toxic carbon dioxide vapor can be applied without going to such extremes. But when bed bugs bite, most people panic. They don’t care whether there’s a bed bug invasion sweeping America or not. One bug in their bed is one too many.

Douglas Stern is the managing partner of Stern Environmental Group and a bed bug extermination expert. His firm serves clients in New Jersey, New York City, and New York. You can reach him toll free at 1-888-887-8376 or by email at info@sternenvironmental.com or at www.SternEnvironmental.com
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Bed Bug Invasion: Fact or Media Frenzy? is a post from: Manchester Pest Control

The old adage there’s no such thing as bad publicity doesn’t carry any credence with hoteliers. They know that even a whispered rumor can have a disastrous effect on business. Websites that detail horror-laced reports of being eaten alive by bed bugs during an overnight stay in a hotel or motel play on growing public hysteria about these blood-sucking parasites. Fanned by a blitz of media attention, an accusation can instantly damage a hotel’s hard-earned reputation and frighten away guests.

According to the National Pest Management Association (NPMA), bed bug infestations have been reported in all 50 states. Nearly unheard of since near eradication by DDT-based insecticides in the 1950s, bed bugs are back and in ever-increasing numbers. Bed bug reports increased by 71% from 2000 to 2005 according to the NPMA. Most pest control companies now field dozens of calls a week each week. “The last 12 months have been particularly active,” said Cindy Mannes, NPMA director of public affairs. “They are showing up like never before in hotels, hospitals, college dormitories, and multifamily housing units as well as single-family homes.”

“Most hotel chains don’t keep track because the number is so insignificant,” said Joe McInerney of the American Hotel & Lodging Association said at the 2006 International Bed Bug Symposium when asked about the growing number of bed bug complaints in the hospitality industry. He noted that there are more than 4.4 million hotel rooms in the U.S., adding “you could count the number of cases per day on one or two hands.” Yet according to a 2004 survey of pest control professionals by Pest Control Technology magazine, hotels and motels were the most common sites of bed bug infestations, accounting for more than one-third of bed bug complaints. In a recent survey, one company reported that 24% of their 700 client hotels required bed bug treatments between 2002 and 2006. Brooke Ferencsik, spokesman for popular hotel review site TripAdvisor.com told USA Today, “We get a steady stream of bed bug reports and have hundreds of reviews” mentioning them. “Even if travelers aren’t experiencing [bed bugs], they’re becoming more aware and are looking out for them.”

The resurgence of bed bugs has created a particularly vexing problem for the hospitality industry. Rooms that were pest-free one night can be infected by a guest the next. Legal experts have noticed a boom in bed bug litigation with guests suing hotels for millions of dollars. “Not only can a hotel get a terrible reputation for allowing the creepy crawly bed buddies to exist, but they can also lose out on a lot of dough,” wrote a blogger on HotelChatter.com. Some lawyers are actually trawling for bed bug clients. A notice on InjuryBoard.com reads: “If you have been the victim of bed bug infestation, it may be important to contact an attorney who can help you protect your legal rights.”

The financial impact of a bed bug suit can be substantial. In the 2003 landmark case (Matthias v. Accor Economy Lodging); Toronto siblings who stayed in a bed bug-infested motel room received a jury award of $382,000 in their suit against Motel 6. In 2006, a Chicago couple sued a Catskills resort for $20 million, saying they were physically and mentally scarred after suffering 500 bed bug bites. “I was horrified to see all of those bites all over my body,” said plaintiff Leslie Fox. “I was miserable. My skin felt as if it was on fire and I wanted to tear it off.” In 2007, New York opera star Allison Trainer sued the Hilton hotel chain for $6 million claiming she suffered more than 100 bed bug bites at a Hilton Suites in Phoenix. Her story was widely reported in the press: “They were all over the bed and the comforter and the pillows and I pulled the sheets off and they were just everywhere.” Her attorney documented 150 bites and 23 scars. Just last month a New York Supreme Court judge ruled that two Maryland tourists bitten by bed bugs during a 2003 stay at the Milford Plaza could proceed with their $2 million negligence suit, though punitive damages were denied.

What you don’t see is hotels suing guests who bring bed bugs with them. Adept hitchhikers, they enter hotel rooms in guests’ luggage or on their clothing. Most won’t leave with the guest; they’ll nest in and near the bed awaiting the next occupant and their next meal. Bed bugs are not a sanitation issue. About the size of an apple seed, the tiny nocturnal pests are nuisance parasites that feed on human blood. They do not transmit disease but can cause considerable emotional distress. In about 50% of their victims, bed bug bites produce itchy red welts that may take two days to develop, complicating detection. Many hotel guests check out before an infestation is discovered. Prolific breeders, females can produce up to 500 eggs during their one-year lifespan.

Infestations can spread rapidly to adjoining rooms and those above and below an infested room. Bed bugs travel easily through vents, ducts, wall voids and electrical and plumbing conduits. They can be spread by housekeeping staff on clothing or carts. “A lot of people would be surprised by the hotels we’re finding bed bugs at these days,” said Dean Henry, a Seattle pest control technician. “People don’t expect to see them at the higher end places.”

Notoriously difficult to locate, bed bugs hide in tiny cracks and crevices on and near beds to be near their food source. They may harbor in the seams of mattresses; on furniture and drapes; behind wall hangings, baseboards and headboards; under the edges of carpeting; and inside light fixtures, electrical outlets and switch plates. Your best defense against bed bugs is daily inspection by a trained and knowledgeable housekeeping staff coupled with regular pest control inspections by a firm with an expertise in eliminating bed bugs.

1. Bed bugs are tough to kill. They have a hard cuticle for protection. Traditional treatment is to fumigate the room with chemicals known as pyrethroids, but pest control companies have come out with an arsenal of new services and products to fight bed bugs:

2. Specially trained dogs are being used to sniff out bed bugs. K-9 services provide initial detection and follow-up but not extermination. A trained dog can thoroughly investigate a room in two to three minutes, indicating areas to treat.

3. Cryonite kills bed bugs by freezing them with a non-toxic, environmentally-safe carbon dioxide vapor. The vapor is particularly effective in penetrating under furniture and into cracks and crevices where bed bugs hide. Unlike traditional pesticides, Cryonite kills bed bugs in all stages of development, including eggs, and is effective against pesticide-resistant bed bugs, German cockroaches, meal moths and other hard-to-kill pests. Since it leaving no poisonous residue, rooms can be used immediately after treatment.

4. ThermaPure uses giant heaters to heat rooms to a constant 120 to 140 degrees for several hours in an effort to bake bugs to death.

5. Bed bug proof mattress and box springs encasements protect your bedding investment from bed bug infestation.

The best way to keep bed bugs from getting your property listed on BedBugRegistry.com is through comprehensive education of housekeeping and support staff and professional pro-active prevention and through rapid treatment when bed bugs do appear.

Douglas Stern is the managing partner of Stern Environmental Group and a bed bug extermination expert. His firm serves commercial and residential clients in New Jersey, New York City, New York, and Connecticut. His firm is located at 100 Plaza Drive in Secaucus, New Jersey. You can reach him toll free at 1-888-887-8376. Please visit us on the Web at www.SternEnvironmental.com.
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What the Hospitality Industry Needs to Know About the Bed Bug Threat is a post from: Manchester Pest Control