“Be on lookout for bedbugs, ready to combat them”

Be on lookout for bedbugs, ready to combat them

Posted: 03 Sep 2010 11:40 AM PDT

Thomas Scott, operations manager for Orkin Commercial Services in Bridgeville, isn't likely to cost himself any business by telling folks how to prevent bedbugs. He and his workers already have more calls than they can handle.

"We've seen about a 300 percent increase this year, and that's on top of a 400 percent increase last year," he says. Orkin has exterminated bedbugs in private homes, apartments, college dormitories, industrial properties and rental vans, Scott says.

"We are having to put on special crews just for this issue."

Bloodsucking bedbugs have lived side by side with humans for thousands of years. But the tiny biting pests, which range in size from an appleseed to a pencil eraser, have mounted a disconcerting comeback.

"Based on many of the reports that have been shared with us by public health officials, there has been a marked increase throughout the country," says Bernadette Burden, spokeswoman for the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta.

Last month, health officials in New York City reported that one in every 15 New Yorkers dealt with bedbugs in 2009. This week, the city of Boston issued warnings to incoming college students discouraging the use of second-hand furniture that could harbor bedbugs.

Some blame the infestation spike on global travel and the ban on chemical insecticides such as DDT.

Bedbugs leave small red welts on the skin. Their bite is harmless, but scratching the welts could lead to a skin infection. They don't fly, but they can hitch rides on luggage, clothing, shoes and pets. In addition to bedding, they can nest in furniture, baseboards, picture frames, clock radios and cracks in floors. And while many may associate them with cheap hotel rooms and third-world countries, bedbugs can infest affluent residences.

A child who sleeps over at a friend's house could bring bedbugs home, says Orkin's Scott. He recommends checking children's clothing and belongings.

As for hotel rooms, bedbugs can lurk in any, from the cheapest fleabag to the poshest luxury suite.

When checking for bedbugs, look for tiny reddish brown stains on sheets. Bedbugs also excrete tiny droppings that often are visible as small black or brown specks.

"If you're going to a hotel or you're going to spend the night somewhere, it only takes a second to look at the seam on the box mattress," Scott says.

Debugging a home takes patience and persistence, says Bill Todaro, entomologist with the Allegheny County Health Department. But forget using "bug bombs."

"These total-release aerosols aren't fumigants," he says. "They don't penetrate the cracks and crevices. The bedbugs are in the cracks and crevices. They're hiding. That's what they're good at."

To check for bedbugs, Todaro recommends buying a can of compressed air, the kind used to clean computer keyboards. Place a piece of white paper on the floor. Spray the air in cracks and crevices. If bedbugs are present, their waste product should be visible as tiny black fly specks on the white paper.

Other methods include renting portable heaters and heating the room to at least 130 degrees for four to five hours. Pesticides can be used, but repeat sprays will be necessary to kill eggs, Todaro says.

Those with free-standing homes have the best odds of eradicating bedbugs, Todaro says. Apartment dwellers should contact their landlords, because the infestation will likely spread to other units.

Those who want to sleep soundly might want to contact a professional pest control company.

"That's what the commercial people do so well," Todaro says. "They're trained to put the commercial stuff in all the right places."

Bedbug bites can be treated with an over-the-counter cortisone cream or antihistamine such as Benadryl, says Douglas Kress, chief of pediatric dermatology at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh.

"The skin infection is rare. They are terribly itchy," he says. "The bigger issue is that this really traumatizes people. Just the concept that while you're sleeping there are bugs in your bed, or worse, there are bugs in your child's bed, it's terribly upsetting."

More Home and Garden headlines

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: "Peace Envoy" Blair Gets an Easy Ride in the Independent.

Bedbugs Bite

Friday, September 3, 2010