Are Bed Bugs affecting your Business?
Bed Bugs are a problem in the Accommodation industry not just in Australia but throughout the world. Carried by travelers they can invade the best and cleanest kept commercial accommodation. In many cases when a bed bug infestation is discovered it may take 2 to 3 weeks to get rid of the problem and get the rooms back into public occupancy again. This is clearly unacceptable to most owners of accommodation and something that had to be addressed.
Trimec Pest Control, based in Richmond, Melbourne, has developed a process that can get bedrooms back in business in 24 hours. This is a huge improvement on the service provided by most other Pest Control companies and is saving the owners of the accommodation a fortune.
What are Bed Bugs?
This picture shows you what they look like. They are parasites that live on the blood of humans and leave nasty bites which can become infected and need medical treatment.
There are three main problems with Bed bugs:
- They can survive for three months without a feed.
- Their eggs are not killed off by chemical insecticides.
- They can move and live up to 4 meters away from their source of food.
The most common way in which they are transferred from one location to another is on the luggage of travelers. Backpackers being one of the key transporting agents.
How do you avoid Bed Bugs?
Very difficult due to the fact that the Bed Bugs may be introduced to your premises as eggs carried on the luggage of your customers. You can inspect all luggage looking for the tell tale signs of the eggs or perhaps you can insist that all bags and back packs are kept in a separate area and not brought into bedrooms. Perhaps the most effective way of preventing the Bed Bugs getting established and biting your customers is to train your cleaning staff into being able to spot the Bed Bugs.
How are Bed Bugs treated?
Treating bed bugs is a difficult process and involves very close co-operation between the Trimec Pest Control manager and the client. All clothes and material in close proximity to the affected area must be removed by the client and washed or placed in a drier. It is essential that the temperature is kept above 60 degrees for at least 15 minutes. Trimec will explain in detail what is required prior to the treatment commencing. The next step is to steam treat all the areas in the room affected, including the mattress. Simply chemically treating the area does not kill the bed bug eggs as they are resistant to insecticides and this is why a lot of time is spent steaming all the affected areas. Lastly the areas are sprayed with a suitable insecticide. We strongly suggest that the client does not try to use an insecticide available from retail outlets to treat the bed bugs as this doesn’t kill the bed bugs or their eggs but drives them to hide in other areas.
Bed Bugs are very good at finding places to hide. It is often necessary during the treatment to take apart furniture where they may have established harbourages. They love to inhabit the wooden lathes in beds and other damaged timber where they can lay their eggs. Behind pictures is another favourite harbourage. The advantage of using steam is that the mattress can be treated to get rid of bed bugs and eggs. Mattresses cannot be chemically treated due to the possibility of the chemical being transferred from the mattress to the sleeper.
It is not a cheap treatment process and typically it takes about 2 hours to treat a room. What is essential in Bed Bug treatment is to use a Pest Control Company that knows what they are doing and have proven expertise in the treatment process.
Measurement of Success:
The key measurement of success in treating Bed Bugs is how quickly the room with the Bed Bug infestation can be got back into full use. Bed Bugs are a problem but it is possible to treat them satisfactorily and not let them disrupt your business.