The number one requirement landlords should remember in bed bug do’s and don’ts is to hire a licensed specialist to remove bed bugs.
It is highly unlikely that you will be able to remove bed bugs without special chemicals and training. In fact, typical roach and ant bombs will cause them to scatter and reproduce at a faster rate.
What landlords need to know about bed bugs
Bed bugs are a difficult problem for rental units, according to the University of Minnesota. It can be very expensive to treat an infested property. However, not addressing the problem will only make the infestation worse and more costly for you. One of the most important things property owners/managers can do is to educate their tenant about the bugs.Talk to your residents about how to prevent bugs from entering in the first place.
Encourage your tenants to immediately report any problems with bed bugs, or suspected bugs. Make information on how to identify them readily available to your tenants.
Remember that the person reporting the issue may not have been responsible if they picked up bed bugs from somewhere else or the bugs dispersed from an unreported infestation. Consider having an amnesty program for tenants who report bed bugs.
If tenant are afraid to report bed bug infestations, or are held financially liable, then they may try to treat the infestation themselves, just live with the pest, or break the lease and move to another location. This will cause the infestation to spread and become more difficult and more expensive to treat. Worse, tenant may take control measures themselves which can leave you with a damaged rental property or cleanup costs that are substantially more than a proper control procedure would have cost in the first place.
Facts about bed bugs
- Their diet consists of blood from humans, animals and insects—they do not eat typical food.
- Ant and roach baits are ineffective
- Aerosol bombs for insects (i.e. fleas, etc.) cause them to scatter but do not eliminate them
- You can bring them home from a cruise ship, airplane, train, bus, vacation home or any other dwelling with a high rate of turnover
Eradicating requires the landlord and tenant to work together and includes:
- An Integrated Pest Management Plan which emphasizes education, inspection and other preventative measures
- Early detection and application of treatment will significantly prevent them from spreading
- An inspection of the property should be conducted prior to each new tenant’s occupancy
- Bed bugs do “hitch hike” on resident’s possessions
- Maintenance staff and other employees should be trained to know how to identify bed bugs
An infestation can be recognized by
- Blood stains from crushed bugs or
- Rusty (sometimes dark) spots of excrement on sheets and mattresses and walls.
- Fecal spots, eggshells and shed skin may be found near their hiding places.
- An offensive, sweet, musty odor from the bed bug scent glands may be detected when infestations are severe
“We have more people affected by bed bugs in the United States now than ever before,” Orkin Entomologist and Director of Technical Services Ron Harrison, Ph.D., said in a press release. He added that bed bugs are a growing issue. “They were virtually unheard of in the U.S. 10 years ago,” he says.
According to a 2015 “Bugs without Borders Survey” by the National Pest Management Association, nearly all (99.6 percent) of pest professionals nationwide have treated for the bugs in the past year. That is up from five, 10 and 15 years ago.
Bed bugs are great hitchhikers. They travel from place to place with ease, including luggage, purses and other belongings. They can be found anywhere, from single family homes, apartments and hotel, to public places like movie theaters, public transit and libraries and offices.
Anyone can get them in their home
“Anyone can get bed bugs in their home. They are not a sign of uncleanliness. They only need blood to survive. We have treated for bed bugs in everything from million dollar homes to public housing,” Harrison says.
Bed bugs can be difficult to detect and treat because of their small size and ability to survive up to a year without feeding. They are about the size of an apple seed when fully grown, and can hide around seams of a mattress, behind headboards and in cracks and crevices, usually within a five-foot radius of the bed. The first signs of a bed bug infestation are often the bed bugs themselves or small dark stains bed bugs can leave behind.
“People may have bed bugs and not know it, because many people have no physical reaction to bed bug bites,” Harrison says. “That’s why it’s important for people everywhere to inspect for bed bugs regularly.”
Top 50 bed bug cities in the U.S. In 2016
