Bed Bugs Facts

• Bed bugs have 3 life stages. Egg, nymph and adults.
• The eggs are milky white in color and are usually found attached to small cracks or crevices such as a screw head or a seam in the bed frame.
• The nymphs which are adolescent bed bugs are translucent most of the time. They will turn a darker shade of red once they feed. The bed bug nymphs will molt 5 times before they are adults.
• Adults are the most visible because of their size.
• Bed bugs like to hide. They feed when a meal or person is sleeping or sitting quiet for a short time.
• Bed bugs are either feeding or hiding. So Inspections are very important.

Bed Bug Inspections

Bed bugs are great at hiding. They seek tight crevices to hide. This is why inspection are very important. There are 3 types of bed bug inspections that we offer: a technician bed bug inspection, a technician bed bug inspection with monitors or a canine inspection. A technician inspection is our trained technician performing a complete bed bug inspection in areas we normally find them. This inspection is only about 25% accurate because the bed bugs are better at hiding then people are at finding them.

The second option starts with the first type of inspection and when completed the technician will install a simple monitoring device that resembles a small plastic saucer. This device will capture any bed bugs that climb into them. Climbing is the bed bugs first reaction to feeding because people are always above them. After 2 weeks we will return to inspect the monitors for and trapped bed bugs.

The third option is a canine inspection. Dogs have a keen sense of smell and once they are trained to alert on the presence of bed bug odors then the rest is simple. The canine and the handler train and work as a dedicated team. They will inspect quickly and about 95% accurately. This inspection combined with our technician is fast and reliable for detecting bed bugs in the work place, vehicles or home.

Bed Bug Treatments

There are 3 primary treatments that have a proven track record for bed bugs. Each has advantages and disadvantages. They are traditional treatments with chemical, heat treatment or thermal remediation or a combination of both. Traditional treatments require significant preparation on the part of the occupant. For this reason Freedom Pest Control offers a concierge service for bed bug treatments. If chemical treatments are requested and completing the preparation is an issue we can complete this service for you. Chemical treatment is a series of 3 treatments spaced out over 14-21 days. Bed bugs develop a resistance to some pesticides over time so we rotate our pesticide classes over the 3 rounds. The first round the technician will treat bed frames, wall voids like outlets or switch plates on the head board wall and all the interior baseboards of your home with one class of a pesticide. The second round the technician will use a different class of pesticide to treat most of the same areas treated on the first round except the wall voids. The last treatment is a different class on the baseboards only.

Heat treatments or thermal remediation is a one day treatment for bed bugs. Our technicians arrive early in the morning with a generator and portable heaters. The heaters are wheeled into your home and set up so that the temperature in the house will reach 135F. The preparation required for this treatment is simply to remove items that can melt and unplug electrical items. All of the items in your home are moved and rotated so that fans can move the hot air with our high powered fans and kill the bed bugs.

The last method is a combination of both the heat and traditional treatments giving the longest coverage and warrantee.