7 Myths About Bed Bugs

The thought of bed bugs can strike fear and shame into anyone. Let’s go through some myths.

Upon seeing or believing you have bed bugs, you can start to lose your sanity trying to figure out how you got them and how you are going to get rid of them. There are a lot of myths and misconceptions about bed bugs. Along with that comes shame and shunning. You don’t want to have anyone come over to your house and you don’t want to visit others in case you bring the bed bugs with you.

Myth 1: I won’t get bed bugs if I have a clean house.
Bed bugs are the least discriminating of any pest out there. They don’t care if you have an impeccably clean house or if you sweep the dirt under the carpet. Mike Potter Mike Potter, an entomologist and extension professor at the University of Kentucky, confirms that bed bugs don’t care whether or not you’ve vacuumed.
“They’re not cockroaches,” Potter says. “They don’t feed on debris. You could have a pristine environment and they could still get introduced.”
Myth 2: Bed bug mattress covers will protect you.

Often, one of the first things people do is to buy a bed bug mattress protector or encasement that zips up. This will protect you from any bed bugs that got zipped up inside the mattress protector but will do nothing for any bug that fell off in the process or any bugs living in the bedframe, baseboards or books on your night table.
Mike Potter says, “Bed bugs might not be able to live inside the encasement, but they can live outside of it for sure.”

Bed bug mattress covers are good for covering any stains left by the bed bug infestation and will make you feel better about keeping your mattress. I believe bed bug mattress protectors are a good investment. They will last you a lifetime, can be taken off and washed and will aid in the discovery of any new bed bug infestations.

Myth 3: Bed bugs travel only by hitchhiking.
It is true that bed bugs are fantastic hitchhikers, but it is not their only mode of transport. They are six-legged creatures and can walk around just fine. “They can crawl through electrical outlets, up through walls, down hallways,” says Potter. “They can go right out the door and into other rooms or units within a building.” Adrienne of Bed Bugs Dead Bugs recants stories of customers who watched the bed bug crawl up the wall, onto the ceiling and then drop onto the bed. Often bed bugs will be in only one room but it can be a good idea to treat adjoining rooms as a precaution.

Myth 4: If you find bed bugs, you’ll need to throw out everything.
Most of us have seen piles of furniture on the curb that looks really good and you wonder why it is there. The most like case is that the homeowner has found bed bugs and thrown everything out, except perhaps for the TV and computer. “Generally, bed bugs do not go into items like TVs and computers as they run hot and bed bugs don’t like heat. Adrienne business model is based on heat and steam as the best treatment for bed bugs. The heat and steam will penetrate everywhere bed bugs are hiding so that you can, “Save your money. Save your mattress. Save your sanity.“
You can use professional bed bug heating equipment by renting from Bed Bugs Dead Bugs to raise the temperature in your home to between 45C and 60C to thoroughly penetrate everywhere bed bugs are hiding and save almost all your possessions.

Myth 5: A sniffer dog is the best way to find bed bugs.
Bed bug dogs are one of the best ways of sniffing out an infestation where you are having trouble identifying what is biting you, but bed bugs sniffer dogs also make mistakes and the money you spent is down the drain. The best way to tell if you have bed bugs is by finding a live one or dead bug. Identifying their tell-tale black marks on the bedsheets is also helpful. Adrienne believes that you are getting bug bites, you should save your money but going straight to renting a bed bug heater or steamer. The cost of having a sniffer dog come in is just shy of what you will need to pay to rent a heater or steamer. Whatever is biting you, the heat will kill it.

Myth 6: Lavender, alcohol and diatomaceous earth can kill bed bugs.
Mike Potter has conducted, natural oils or sprays, cayenne pepper, alcohol, and diatomaceous earth weren’t effective at killing the pests. While they may be effective at reducing the population of bed bugs, they generally will not completely eradicate the infestation.

You can spend hundreds of dollars on all these products and still have live bed bugs hiding in places where you can sprinkle the powder. Adrienne suggests that, after a heat or steam treatment, you can sprinkle your bed frame or sofa with diatomaceous earth and leave it there to give you a bit of peace of mind that you have done everything you can to prevent a future infestation.
Heat and steam treatment by best the surest way to kill bed bugs.

Myth 7: DIY Methods don’t work.
As I mentioned above, home remedies of oils, sprays, and alcohol do nothing to kill bed bugs, there is one DIY treatment that does work and that is by renting a heater from Bed Bugs Dead Bugs on average costing around $200 for a one-day rental. You can also rent a bed bug steamer to add that extra level of sanity by blasting your mattress, bed frame, sofa, baseboards, etc. with the searing heat the bed bug steamer produces of 160C for as little as $69 per day.

Professionals can cost thousands of dollars. The treatment is based on the size of your home, generally starting at around $1.25 per square foot with a minimum of $1,500. They will heat your entire home to a minimum temperature of 45C. You will have to prepare your entire home for the treatment, including removing anything that is going to melt, all house plants, anything explosive. You will also need to vacate the premises, with your pets in tow, for the entire day. It can sometimes be impossible to figure out where you are going to take your cat or pet iguana for the day in the middle of winter.

If you decide to hire a professional to heat treat your home, make sure you have good recommendations and reviews. Adrienne had three customers last summer who spent, on average, $3,000 for whole home treatment and still had bed bugs after the fact. They tried to get the company to come back and honor their guarantee but to no avail. In the end, they rented from Bed Bugs Dead Bugs and treated just the rooms that were infested with excellent results.