BED BUGS: ACTION ITEMS
Prevention
- Train staff and contractors and educate residents about bed bugs
- Encourage residents to avoid second hand furniture or to check it before bringing it onto the property
Identification
- Look for bed bugs near seams and tags of mattress and box spring; cracks in frame and head board. Also, curtain rods, baseboard heaters, and behind chipped paint or loose wallpaper.
- Look for physical signs of bed bugs: dark spots, smears or reddish stains on bedding or mattresses; tiny white eggs or eggshells; molted skins; live bugs
- Bed bug sniffing dogs can be used to find bugs in various stages of development.
Treatment
- Heat infested articles and/or areas to at least 113F (45 C) for 1 hour. The higher the temperature, the shorter the time needed to kill bed bugs at all life stages.
- Cold treatments (below 0 F) (-19 C) for at least 4 days) can eliminate some infestations. The cooler the temperature, the less time needed to kill bed bugs. Home freezers usually are not cold enough to reliably kill bed bugs.
