My College Bed Bug Nightmare!

College life, new and exciting, you are on your way! You get to your new dorm room, home and life and begin to settle in. Life is exciting and wonderful, that is, until you start to notice a rash. You change detergents and soaps thinking that maybe you have become allergic. You wonder if it is poison ivy or if you are just coming down with a virus. You finally begin to put two and two together and find your dorm room is infested with bed bugs. Let me rephrase that, your dorm. These critters have invaded your personal belongings. They are in your book bag or purse, they are in your clothing, they are everywhere. The most disturbing thing to deal with is when you begin to realize that you have visited friends and family over the several months you have been trying to figure out what this mysterious rash was. You friend now has bed bugs, and when you go home for spring break you find them in your bed there. They have spread like the virus mentioned earlier except there is no easy way to get rid of them. The pure expense and physical labor that is involved in eradicating bed bugs is enormous. What was supposed to be the beginning of a bright future has become a nightmare. The mental anguish is overwhelming, your grades start to suffer, you relationships are strained and the embarrassment of the bed bug problem has made you an outcast, after all, you can't risk any more of your friends or relative getting this problem because of you.

Now wake up...was it really a just a nightmare?

Bed bugs are reported to affect one in five Americans. It is a problem that is going to become way worse before it gets any better. Your best defence is a strong offense. Be educated and diligent and use preventative measures.

2011 Bed Bug Summit

In three days the second Bed Bug Summit is being offered by the US Environmental Protection Agency in Washington DC. Pending snow and ice predicted for my area those days, I plan to be there. I attended the last summit a few years back and found it to be extremely interesting, and as the months and years went by and the ideas that were born at this summit grew, productive. The last Summit was about ideas, a national brainstorming if you will, but this one I hope is a Summit about solutions. We have protocol and procedure in place. We know about the chemical resistance and crazy genes these bugs have. We know about the research and we know about the turmoil these bugs are bringing to cities across the country. Now it is time for action. The government needs to understand we need solutions. We need a relaxing of the rules if you will to introduce effective chemicals to the market. We need research dollars. We need answers.

Bed Bugs For Christmas

Did you get bed bugs for Christmas? Hopefully not. The reason I ask is because of all the news reports of bed bugs that were found in all the department stores in New York and how these bugs travel and spread on trucks. Think Deliveries. It is a sad day when you have to fear getting bed bugs via presents received during the holidays, but it is a legitimate fear. We need a solution to this epidemic and hopefully we will receive that next Christmas!

Moving Day and Bed Bugs

Over on my other blog, Pest Control Info, I wrote about a system for moving out utilizing a specially fit out moving truck that is insulated and fitted with commercial heaters. I also spoke of tenting and fumigating the truck to kill the little buggers. The problem that we are facing is the transport of these bugs from place to place. Delivery trucks, moving trucks, mattress delivery trucks, postage trucks, any means of transportation can be manipulated my bed bugs to get from point A to point B without our knowledge. Is there any way to stop this migration? It seems almost impossible. The industry would need to come up with processes and this costs money that they are not willing to spend. It is the biggest catch 22 in recent history. With the ingenuity and money that America has with the brightest minds in the world you would think that we'd have the problem beat by now. Instead we are meeting with agencies like the EPA trying to come up with solutions when what we need is funding and less stringent rules that the chemical manufacturers must follow to come up with safe and effective bed bug killing chemicals.
Just some ranting and raving for a Sunday morning.

Holiday Bed Bugs

Giving the gift of bed bugs this year? You might be if you are traveling to the many holiday cities that are famous for Christmas time cheer. Cities like New York or Philadelphia are notorious for bed bugs problems, and going to see a Christmas show can leave you feeling in the Christmas Spirit and full of bed bugs. It seems like bed bugs are impacting the economy as many people have already decided not to visit these attractions for just this reason. People are not visiting theaters, they are not going to the movies, concerts, they are even worried about visiting attractions like the empire state building. Aside from that, even if they do go, it is only for the day, because who would stay at a hotel in these bug cities? It seems like these bed bugs are everywhere, when will the government step in and start the ball rolling to get some new chemistry produced to begin the eradication process. Happy Holidays!

Housekeeping and Bed Bugs

Is your housekeeping service spreading bed bugs? Hotels, businesses, offices, dorms rooms, sea shore houses, they all have housekeeping services. In hotels they have carts that carry all the cleaning materials they need, and as we know bed bugs are notorious hitch hikers. As they cart goes from room to room, it is possible to spread these critters. Same goes with the house keepers that travel from office building to office building. All the supplies they bring with them can be spreading bed bugs from place to place. It is important to have your pest control inspector check these housekeeping supply carts and housekeeping supply closets and be diligent with training the housekeepers of what to look for and report what they find as soon as they see a bed bug. Training and education will be your best defense.

Start Your Bed Bug Fund Today!

Can bed bug treatments be covered by home owner's insurance? This is the questions that has been asked across the country and the unfortunate answer is no. This is tragic, especially since a basic bed bug treatment can cost close to twelve hundred dollars and if you get a heat treatment for your home you are looking at three thousand or more, depending on the size of your home. This is just the treatment cost. What if you are unsure if you have them and you want a definite yes or no answer? Hire a dog. This service where a dog goes through your home to inspect for bed bugs can run a few hundred dollars. How about mattress and box spring covers at a couple hundred bucks? How about laundry and dry cleaning service? How about the bed bug sequel? Sometimes you need to get another treatment after all the follow up services. After all is said and done, you can wind up spending close to five or six thousand dollars. Yikes!

One thing I have started to do is put money aside in case bed bugs rear their ugly head. It is a good idea to have such a rainy day fund because when bed bugs hit home, you are going to want to get rid of them sooner than later, and you may not have the funds to treat the bed bugs properly. It's a simple message. Invest in your future.