Must be placed in the dryer on high heat for a minimum of 20 minutes.
How to prepare for bed bug heat treatment.
Wash bedding and washable excess clutter on high heat followed with a high heat dry cycle.
Be prepared to leave the home during treatment and for the number of hours afterward as recommended by the pco.
Do not move items to another room in your home.
Linens bedding need to be removed from the bed cleaned and dried.
To start prepping your home for the bed bug heat treatment process you will need to declutter your home and pull furniture away from the walls.
However we may still need to remove the drawers from dressers to help with the air movement.
Remove all pets from the home during the time of treatment except for fish tanks.
You will also need to make sure that closets and spaces in your home are not jam packed full of items.
Wash and dry all bed sheets blankets liners and pillow covers on high heat that were on the bed when treated.
Preparing for bed bug treatments 2 ent rsc 40 updated july 2012 store cleaned and dried items in plastic bags until your home has been treated and the bed bugs eliminated.
To avoid re introducing bed bugs any clothing removed during heat treatment must be treated before being returned to the treated area.
This allows the heat to circulate throughout your home and allows the heat to penetrate all areas and your furniture.
Look for bed bugs eggs and other bed bug evidence e g shed skins hatched eggs on furniture and remove this will also help in evaluating treatment success.
In many cases this will be at least four hours.
Then continue heating the dried clothes for a minimum of 30 minutes after they have dried or reach a core temperature of 130 degrees.
Loosely packed clothing may remain in dresser drawers and laundry baskets to avoid clutter on floor in small rooms.
Place in trash outside.
Eliminate bed bug habitats.
Seal the vacuum bag in a plastic bag.
Vacuum thoroughly then remove and dispose of the vacuum bag.
After drying remove and immediately place the clothing in a heavy duty garbage bag and seal the bag by twisting the excess bag and wrapping the twist with tape.
Clothing in drawers can be left in place.
To prevent bed bugs from escaping be sure to.
Bed bugs will often seek shelter within or under piles of clothing.
While your pest management professional should provide any necessary instructions north carolina state university also recommends completing the following actions prior to treatment.
Before heat treatment is done.
You can help your pco rid your home of a bed bug problem with the following 12 steps.
Again we need to have the heat circulate so that it can keep getting hotter throughout the entire home to get to those bugs.
Do not overstuff the load so that dryer heat can heat completely.
If your home is about to undergo heat treatment for bed bugs preparation is vital.
Think loaf of bread.
Bed bugs often seek shelter on and in clothing.
Vacuum and wash all floors.