Turn Up the Heat On Bedbugs With These Steam Powered Solutions
Restored from the Empower Network archive (2011–2017), lightly edited to meet our current advertising standards. Views are the original author’s.
Of the many pests and insects that can pester our home, bed bugs are one of the hardest to track down and eliminate. This is largely because these cunning critters can easily adapt to any kind of living conditions so long as they can find a way to feed on human blood.
As with other pests, bed bugs also choose to live near their source of food (which in this case would be us. Gross!!). As such, these blood thirsty crawlers are found near areas where we sleep or rest, such as the bed, sofa, recliners, and any chairs in our homes. Apart from these areas, they choose to hide in tiny cracks and crevices along the walls, behind furnishings, and even in electrical outlets.
But if there is one thing that these resilient insects are afraid of, that would have to be extremely high temperature. In fact, temperatures as hot as 120°F can be fatal to these critters.
Where to Look?
Before you can even try to vaporize these creepy unwanted guests, you first need to identify where they hide and live. This is where many homeowners find the most difficulty, as they are excellent at keeping themselves out of sight.
The thing with bed bugs is that they stay hidden during the day and only come out when everyone else is sleeping, around 2 – 5 in the morning.
To seek them out, you need to individually inspect your bedding, mattresses, wall paintings, sofas, furnishings, and the like. As they also hide in crevices, make sure to also check for cracks or holes in your walls.
Once you have identified their locations, you can now use steam to eliminate them all.
How to use Steam to Treat for Bed Bugs?
While prevention methods like using bed bug mattress covers can be very effective, steam is your best friend when you know that you have an infestation. Steaming is a method wherein you infuse heat on specific areas to eliminate bed bugs and their eggs. When using this specific method to rid your bedroom of its unwanted invaders, you can simply opt to buy the same kinds of steamers used for floor drains. Low moisture steamers are likewise available today to better deal with these pests. As they emit less humidity, they are well suited for treating mattresses, sofas, and cushioned seats. It is also best to directly apply heat onto precise locations to hit them on the first try. Otherwise, they can just scurry off and hide elsewhere.
Here are other pointers to keep in mind when using low moisture steamers.
- Opt for the lowest pressure available, as high pressure ones can just as easily spread these bugs around.
- Make sure to read the instruction manuals and carefully follow them to the letter.
- Make good use of the additional accessories that often come with a standard steamer. Generally, small wands are more appropriate for baseboards, while the broad steam wands are more appropriate for sofas, mattresses, and rugs.
- Always direct the steam away from your electrical appliances and devices.
Using steam to kill bed bugs is easy and effective. The important thing is to know where these critters are and how to cleverly direct the heat directly towards them.
Carla is a writer for BedBugs.org, where she talks about several important infestation topics like how to get rid of bed bug bites once they’ve decided to make a meal out of your family.