Bed bug heat treatment vs chemical treatment

How heat treatment works

Portable heaters and fans bring each room up to a temperature that kills every life stage, then hold it while heat soaks into mattresses, furniture, walls and clutter. Temperature probes in the hardest-to-heat spots confirm it worked.

How conventional treatment works

A technician treats seams, frames, furniture joints and voids with residual products and dusts, adds a growth regulator and returns about two weeks later, and again if needed, to catch bugs that hatched after the first visit.

Side by side

Neither method is magic. Both depend on a careful inspection and treating every hiding spot.

• Heat: usually one long visit, kills eggs directly, more prep
• Conventional: two or three visits, less prep per visit, lower cost per visit
• Both: encasements and interceptors help catch survivors
• Both: a follow-up inspection confirms the job is done

Virginia Tech entomologists point out that bed bug heat treatment results depend on the heating system, the size of the structure, how long active heating runs, air movement from fans and the focused attention of a trained technician, and that many homes cannot be treated properly in a short four-hour window. In Salt Lake City, where about 20 percent of housing units sit in buildings of 50 or more units, that planning also has to include the units next door.

Prep for each

Heat prep means removing anything that melts or is pressurized, like candles, aerosols and some medications, and opening drawers and closets. Conventional prep means laundering and bagging bedding and clothes and clearing clutter so the technician can reach every seam and baseboard.

Apartments and shared walls

In apartment buildings, bed bugs move between units through shared walls and outlets. Whichever method you choose, the neighboring units need to be checked or the problem comes back.

Sources

• spes.vt.edu
• point2homes.com
• angi.com