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Page 4 of 4 What to Expect From a Pest Control Professional continued... "The bed is ground zero, but it's not the only place they live," says Mannes. "What takes longest is finding out where they live. They can hide in picture frames, headboards, upholstered furniture, and baseboards. Treatment depends on how serious the infestation is. "It could be anything from industrial vacuuming to using heat treatments to applying products in various places." The person you hire will also advise you on what you can do to manage the problem, such as eliminating clutter or encasing mattresses in plastic covers. She adds that bed bugs are like termites, not something the homeowner can find or treat on his or her own. You can also expect that the professional will have to come back to inspect and/or do follow-up treatment. "It's not a once-and-you're-done kind of thing," she says. To confound this perplexing problem, Pollack says there's a well-known phenomenon in which lesions re-appear long after someone has been bitten. "They look and feel just like bed bug bites." Don't Bring Stowaways Home Pollack says most hotels and hotel rooms aren't infested. But regardless of the number of stars a hotel boasts, he says he takes certain precautions when he enters a hotel room. First, he sets his suitcase off the floor on the luggage holder provided, leaving the suitcase zipped unless he's taking something out or putting it in. Then he inspects the bed. "I pull back the covers, the sheets, and mattress pad and look for telltale signs -- the dark spots left by bed bug feces. If I found something, I'd go ask for another room." Don't apply pesticides to hotel mattresses. "If you apply a product other than according to the label's instructions, you could be putting yourself and other people at minor or fairly extreme risk," says Pollack. "If you apply it to a hotel mattress, chances are no one will know, but there are specific laws about who can apply pesticides and where." If you suspect that critters have hitchhiked home, launder clothes on high heat or dry clean them, and inspect suitcases before taking them inside. Use a stiff brush to remove eggs, and vacuum. Leaving luggage for several hours in a closed vehicle in full summer sun may destroy bed bugs and their eggs. What About the Bedtime Rhyme? Bed bugs have been bugging humans for years. They're mentioned in ancient Greek and Roman writings and the Talmud. Most of us grew up hearing, "Good night. Sleep tight. Don't let the bed bugs bite." Where did it come from? No one is sure. One popular theory is that "sleep tight" goes back to the days when a mattress was supported by ropes that could slacken and make the bed uncomfortable, but according to the Oxford English Dictionary, it means to sleep "soundly, properly, well, or effectively." Bed bugs probably migrated to North America in the seventeenth century and thrived until the mid-20th century when they were eradicated with pesticides. But other bloodsuckers, like fleas, could also attack the hapless sleeper. You might presume that to "sleep well" meant getting through the night without providing a banquet for bloodsucking insects. © 2007 VitaDocs.com All rights reserved.
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