August 17, 2018
Do chemicals work to kill bed bugs? Seems like a straight-forward, yes or no question, right? The answer is a confusing “sometimes”. Here are the reasons why the answer isn’t a simple yes or no.
In order for a chemical to work, the bed bugs need to walk across it and have the chemical stick to its exoskeleton. Seems simple enough right? Spray some chemicals around the house and wait. Oh no, it’s not that easy. The active life of most chemicals is only about two weeks. What if all of the bugs don’t cross the chemical in two weeks? Well, the infestation lives on. What if the chemical doesn’t get where the bugs hide? Again, the infestation lives on.
Don’t forget that tomorrow’s biting bed bugs are unhatched eggs today. Most chemical sprays and powders won’t kill the eggs… and even those that will probably won’t come in contact with all the eggs. Once the eggs hatch, the young bed bugs will bite you and your family, grow, and potentially lay more eggs. These new bed bugs need to come in contact with the chemicals before they can be killed.
This is why there needs to be reapplication every two weeks. It’s kind of like taking ibuprofen every four hours — it starts losing its potency so you take more every four hours. Chemicals have the same challenge — they only last a few weeks before losing efficacy. Ok, no problem! Re-apply every two weeks. How hard is that?
Well, that can be a waste of your time because of a growing problem called resistance. Over the years, bed bugs have become resistant to some chemicals that contain the active ingredient Pyrethroid, which is very commonly used. So, now what? Change it up! Use a chemical with a different active ingredient every two weeks.
This means you’ll need at least three different chemicals to get through the process. That’s not the easiest thing to find unless you are a professional pest control company. Yes, the chemical approach can work. You just need to understand the challenges and realize that it is a 6- to 8-week process when done correctly. Oh wait…. I forgot to mention the extensive preparation needed for a chemical application. You can find that here on the website. Thermal Remediation (Heat) is the easiest, most-thorough, and only 1-day treatment for bed bugs. Call us to see how a bed bug heat treatment can kill bed bugs and eliminate your bed bug infestation without chemicals or pesticides and help you sleep better at night.
Heat is different. Bed bug heat treatment technology is the only methodology that can effectively kill 100% of hatched insects and 100% of eggs, 100% of the time, every time. In just one treatment. As you consider your options, be open to the idea of heat. You may actually end up saving time and money. Call us at 423-458-2867 and we will help you get rid of bed bugs today.
Don’t take our word for it
About two weeks ago I noticed that I had bites on my skin. After some research I realized it was from bed bugs. I must have accidentally brought them home after my last traveling trip. I called Cody and he arranged to fit me in the same week. He was able to treat my home in about 4 hours or so and I haven’t had to worry about it since.
Sam
5 Stars: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
December 15, 2020
