Bedbugs spread quickly and are difficult to eradicate. Because of all the preparation and cleaning required to get rid of the pests, eradication can be even more difficult for seniors or those with limited mobility.
Louise Burton has been throwing out belongings and packing up for the pest control company over and over again. Now, she’s tired of the seemingly endless battle.
“I’ve done everything I’ve been told to do. I’m vacuuming every other day.”
“The clothes that I have to wash downstairs, dry for 60 minutes, they go straight into that bag… nothing really helps,” she explains. Bedbugs have been infesting her apartment since September. Companies have come in to spray six times, and every time, she has to pay for a hotel room.
“I’m really out of money there’s no doubt about it,” Burton admits.
Every time the fumigators come, she has to pack up and clean everything she owns, and still, the bugs keep coming back. So, she decided to ask for help.
“We went through all the closets and everything and everything that was paper or cloth had to go, I think we threw out 26 of those black garbage bags full,” reveals Doug Wadlow with pest control company Orkin.
Orkin Canada hears stories like Burton’s often, and many involve low income Albertans.
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“A lot of people are afraid to say something because landlords are blaming them and kicking them out. That’s not fair; we should be helping them,” says Wadlow.
Bed bugs do not cling to people but they can accidentally get caught up in our belongings (i.e. suitcase, purse, laptop bags). From there they can move from their current home into new ones in homes, hotels, offices, hospitals, or any other building as well as modes of transportation. Sanitation and cleanliness of a property is not an issue as bed bugs are notorious hitch hikers and can show up almost anywhere.
There is no way to prevent bed bugs entirely; however, experts agree that early detection is the best way to prevent them from establishing themselves and becoming a serious infestation.
“It’s traumatizing when you have to box up your items over and over again and still the bedbugs are not being taken care of, it really is becoming very stressful on people,” says Wadlow.
Once bedbugs are suspected, do not remove anything from the suspected area until the “bugs” have been positively identified. Have the area inspected thoroughly, as well as all other areas in close proximity. All clothing or linens to be cleaned need to be sealed in plastic bags and taken immediately to the laundry area. (Typical laundering and tumble drying on HOT will kill bed bugs). Empty all closets, wardrobes & drawers… and, if free of bed bugs, place contents in sealed plastic bags. Vacuum thoroughly, especially along carpet edges, baseboards, shelves, mattress seams and bed frame & headboard. (Dispose of vacuum bag immediately) A treatment with dry steam will kill bed bugs on contact or utilize a properly labeled, and approved, insecticide to treat all cracks and crevices where bed bugs have been found, or are suspect. NEVER treat mattresses, or other contact surfaces with an insecticide. Instead, utilize a bed bug certified mattress encasement to protect your mattress.
“When people go and buy things like RAID, or something off the shelf, if it doesn’t specifically say the pest on the label you probably shouldn’t be using it because you’re going to spread them and make them worse,” says Wadlow.
If you suspect a bed bug problem, for best results, you should immediately contact a professional pest control company.
Bed Bug Info and Prevention Tips
With files from Julie Matthews
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