Disposal of Furnishings Questions

 

Photo credit: Vandana (Flickr)

Aloha, today I'd like to focus on another question I am often asked when bed bugs have been discovered in a home (or hotel or place of business, etc). The question is whether or not to throw away and replace the current furnishings and possessions. Most of the time, it is not necessary to dispose of things as successful treatment to eliminate bed bugs can be applied in many cases.

Much of the decision will likely be based on the level of infestation present and the instructions and suggestions by pest control company who is providing treatment. Be sure to follow your pest control operator's instructions carefully, to eradicate the infestation as swiftly and as cost effectively as possible. Another thing to consider is the value of the furniture or clothing. For example, an owner of antique furnishings would likely want to find a solution to clear the bed bug infestation and preserve the valuable and sometimes irreplaceable furnishings. 

About a year ago, when I attended a beg bug convention, there were several companies offering portable tenting devices in which furnishings and other items could be placed inside and then heat treated. While I have no personal experiences with such devices and cannot endorse their effectiveness or any certain manufacture of these devices over another, I think this is a brilliant and promising solution! 

 Obviously the gentleman in this photo would want to step out of the treatment tent before treatment begins!   (Photo from Zappbug.com)

Shelves with varied types of possessions can be treated at one time in these portable tent like "rooms"!    
(Photo from Zappbug.com)

If you do decide to dispose of things, please don’t put your furniture on the curb, or in the dumpster. Definitely don’t sell things on Craigslist or elsewhere, knowing (or even just suspecting) that it has bed bugs.

Pest World (Pestworld.org) has a great bed bug "Best Practices" outline, which among other things, addresses the question about disposal of possessions in much detail. Here are some excerpts from their suggestions (for the full report, click HERE)

• Disposal of beds, furniture, clothing, and other items should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis since the disposal of these items does not guarantee control of bed bugs, it can place a serious financial burden on people, and replacement items can become infested if brought in prior to control of the infestation.
• When disposal is necessary, steps should be taken to minimize the likelihood of spreading bed bugs, for example, prior to removal, items need to be wrapped to keep the bed bugs from spreading to other areas during removal.
  
  
  

Bed Bug Lawsuits - Tenant vs Landlords - Jury Awards $800,000 to Tenant!

The story provided below comes from Annapolis, Maryland today on Yahoo! News. We have mentioned many times on this blog that litigation will be increasing due to bed bugs and that landlords and property managers will need to have action plans in place to protect themselves from costly judgements. This story highlights the need that exists today to take proactive measures in documenting a building or a unit's bed bug history (whether or not bed bugs are found). 

The tenant in this story today was awarded $800,000 by a jury, $150,000 for loss and damages to her personal property and a whopping $650,000 in punitive damages! This is a hefty loss that could have been avoided. While the landlord in this case showed negligence in addressing the problems he certainly knew existed, landlords who are diligent in managing their properties are not immune from these kinds of lawsuits. Bed bugs can appear suddenly at anytime and lawsuits are sure to follow, especially after big awards such as these become more common in the news. 

If you are a property owner, manager or real estate professional, using the services of a bed bug scent detection dog gives you dated, detailed documentation about the inspection results. These inspection reports can be invaluable in proving due diligence in a court of law.

 Example of an Inspection Report, used by Kilohana K9s. 

 Aside from expensive treatments for bed bugs by a pest exterminator when bed bugs may not even be present, sweeps by a scent detection dog is currently the only way to show efforts to keep a property free of bed bugs on a regular basis. Keep your records in order and keep yourself free from exorbitant judgements against you!

Landlord Ordered to Pay Tenant $800K Over Bedbug Infestation
By Lylah M. Alphonse, Senior Editor, Yahoo! Shine | Healthy Living – 

Faika Shaaban started itching the same day she moved into her new apartment in Annapolis, Maryland, in September 2011. Later that day, she noticed a rash. Soon, 

her body was covered with hundreds of painful bites, scabs, and welts, all from the  
bedbugs she didn't even know were all over her home.

She asked her landlord, Cornelius J. Barrett, what could be causing the horrible rash, 
and he allegedly told her that he had no idea. It wasn't until months later, when she 
went to county housing officials to try to find a new place to live, that she learned 
that the bites were from bedbugs.

Last week, a Maryland court ruled that Barrett had known about the bedbug 
infestation all along—even before he rented the apartment at 1000 West Street 
to Shaaban, now 69. After deliberating for just 45 minutes, the jury awarded 
Shaaban $800,000 in damages—more than twice the amount she had requested.
"The jury was asked to send a message," her lawyer, Daniel W. Whitney, told 
the Capital Gazette. "I think they have."

Bedbugs aren't simply a local problem. According to the National Pest 
Management Association (NPMA), 99.6 percent of pest-management
professionals in the United States have dealt with bedbugs in the past year. 

That's up from just 25 percent back in 2000.  Bedbugs are tiny bloodsucking bugs 
that feed at night. They can hide in mattresses, box springs, furniture, clothing, and 
bedding, and can live inside the floors and walls of an infested home. Travelers may inadvertently pick them up in a hotel room and bring them home. Signs of a bedbug infestation include dark spots or rusty-looking stains on sheets and mattresses, tiny 
white eggs and shells, and flakes of bug skins. If moving into a furnished hotel or 
apartment, its important to inspect the mattress, especially along the seams, as 
well as upholstered furniture. However, they can survive on hard surfaces—like 

cracks in a headboard or even in a tool box—as well as on soft, fluffy ones. 

"Controlling, let alone eradicating, this pest is extremely difficult," the NPMA 
says on its website. Bedbug traps exist, but are rarely enough to stop an infestation 
from getting worse. Bedbug-infested homes must be steam-cleaned and vacuumed repeatedly but, even then, bedbugs can cling to rough surfaces, and vacuuming with 
a regular household machine can actually spread the bugs from one area to another.
After she fled the bug-infested home, Whitney said, her landlord put all of her 
belongings, including displays and inventory for her small business, out on the curb. 
By the time she was able to come to retrieve her stuff, most of it had been stolen, 
spreading the infestation to wherever the goods ended up."She lost practically 
everything due to this," Whitney told the Baltimore Sun. 

About $150,000 of the award was compensation for her lost and damaged belongings. 

The rest—$650,000—was in punitive damages, aimed at making other landlords 
think twice before foisting a problem apartment off on an unsuspecting occupant. 
It's one of the largest awards in history, more than three times the amount given to 
another Maryland woman who, in 2010, was awarded $250,000 after her son's 
new bunk beds were found to be filled with bedbugs. 

According to city records, Barrett had not responded to a previous tenant's complaint 
about bedbugs. The Baltimore Sun points out that city records show that Barrett 
had been notified of both a bedbug infestation and a mouse infestation more than 
a month before he rented the apartment to Shaaban, but he did not disclose that to 
her when she signed the lease. The city records show that he was "taking steps 
to remedy" the bedbug and mouse problems.

But instead of calling in a professional pest-control service, as he had been 
ordered to do by city officials, Barrett opted to try a few home remedies instead, 
which made the problem worse.

"He defies the order of the city," Whitney told the Capital Gazette. "He decides
 to pick up some propane heaters and do it [himself], not knowing what he's doing. 
The bedbugs move away from the heat and that night she wakes up and they 
[bedbugs] have basically invaded her bedroom." 

Calls to Barrett's home went unanswered. Shaaban is now living elsewhere in 

Anne Arundel County, Maryland, in an apartment that is bedbug-free; 

Whitney said that she does not want to be interviewed. 

Home Made Dog Cookies - Carrots and Meat

 Carrot and Meat Dog Cookies in Heart Shapes

Here is a Kilohana K9s healthy dog cookie recipe. Sometimes we get tired of talking about Bed Bugs! These cookies are loved by Zoey and Daisy anytime we make them. We are sure your dog will love them too!

This recipe calls for shortening, but we use butter. Butter seems to work just fine but you may prefer shortening for your dog.

Meat and Carrot Dog Cookies
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups sifted whole wheat flour
4 Tbs Powdered Buttermilk
1 cube of bouillon, crumbled or 1 tablespoon powdered bouillon
1 cup cooked ground pork or pork and beef mixed
1 cup grated carrots
6 tablespoons shortening or butter
1 xtra large egg or 2 medium eggs
1/2 cup cold water, if or as needed

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (or 180-190 C) depending on your oven. 

In a large bowl, mix the flour, powdered milk and bouillon. Add the cooked meat, grated carrot, shortening and egg, while adding water gradually until you get a firm ball of dough. You may find you don't need the entire 1/2 cup of water.

Lightly flour your rolling surface and then roll out the dough to about 1/4 inch (0.5 cm) thickness. Use what ever design cookie cutters you desire, I use 'hearts' or 'dog bone' shapes. Cut out the shapes of dough and place them on the baking sheet. Use a Silpat baking/cookie sheet or lightly oil a plain cookie sheet. Silpat works the best. You can put them fairly close together, but not touching. They do not spread during baking.

When you make heart shaped cookies, I have found that pressing my finger lightly and making indentations at the top of the hearts makes them formed better (after peeling them off the rolling surface and placing them onto the Silpat in which they sometimes get malformed a bit) and it adds a cute texture when they are finished baking.

 Dog Bone shaped cookies on the Silpat baking sheet.

Add Some Cheese!

Here is a photo of some cookies made in the shape of stars with cheese.  I added just a pinch of shredded cheese on top of each cookie before baking for an extra flavor treat (click on photo to enlarge and see the cheese more closely). You can see the cheese melted nicely while baking. I used a cheddar and jack cheese mix on these cookies, but you could put almost any kind of semi-hard cheese such as cheddar, mozzarella, gruyère, edam or jarlsberg.

Bed Bug Eggs - Often Blamed for Failed Eradication

 Magnified photograph of viable (unhatched) bed bug eggs. You can see the little end 'plug' which is where the nymph crawls out of the egg upon hatching.  

(photo by Brittany Delong from Virginia Tech)

This post will focus on the eggs of the bed bug. Often times bed bug eggs are cited and blamed as a reason for failed treatments for bed bug infestations. Not all insecticides used on bed bug infestations are capable of killing the eggs. Additionally, many eggs seem to survive heat and cold treatments, but this is not necessarily due to the eggs being stronger than a live bed bug. Research suggests that instead, bed bug eggs often survive treatments due to their placement in very protected locations. 

The female bed bug deposits her eggs in protected places, even very tight places such as tiny crevices and cracks no wider than the thickness of a razor blade. Some of the most common places eggs are laid are the inside the box springs and the coils of a bed, also behind peeling wallpaper, in closets and along or behind baseboards. In such areas, an exterminator's treatment may not reach the hidden eggs well enough to kill them. 

An adult female typically lays up to 5 eggs per day depositing them in a wide variety of locations, both on and away from a bed. An adult female may lay up to 500 eggs during her lifetime. 

 Adult bed bug on a shred of paper, with 3 unhatched eggs next to it.

(Photo by T. Nakamura, Kilohana K9s)

There is not alot known about the make-up of bed bug eggs. However we do know the following facts; 

• Eggs hatch approximately 7-10 days after being deposited by the female, but the timing of the hatching depends quite a bit on the air temperature. The eggs do not need a mother around to hatch.
• When the eggs are laid, a glue-like material covers them allowing them to adhere to the surface they are laid on. They are attached quite well, requiring the use of a stiff brush to dislodge them. After hatching occurs, the eggshells frequently remain stuck in place.
• The eggs are very tiny and sort of whitish, almost clear in color. They are very hard to see without magnification, especially on light-colored surfaces.  

Bed bug eggshells, after nymphs have hatched. 

Research has shown that with 'cold treatments' it may take 15 days at 32 degrees Fahrenheit (0 degrees Celsius) to kill bed bug adults and 30 days to kill bed bug eggs.  The use of a steamer kills both bed bugs and eggs on contact. Once again, if the eggs are not able to be reached due to their placement, then the steam cannot kill them. All life stages of bed bugs (adult, larva, and eggs) die within minutes at an air temperature of 122 degrees Fahrenheit (50 degrees Celsius). At this high temperature they will 'dry up', so to speak. 

 Close up of 3 eggs laid on a shred of paper. The tip of the pencil is pointing towards them and is shown for size comparison. 

(Photo by T. Nakamura, Kilohana K9s)

Here are newly hatched nymphs (the pencil tip is pointing to them) next to the egg shells (now empty due to the hatching). As you can see, when they first hatch, the nymphs are nearly transparent and just slightly larger than the eggs (these nymphs are about 4-5 days old). Until they feed for the first time, they will be very difficult to spot with the naked eye.

(photo by T. Nakamura, Kilohana K9s) 

 Development of the newly hatched bed bug (called a nymph) to adulthood takes approximately 1 ½ - 2 months but it can take longer depending upon the environmental conditions and food availability. 

Electronic Bed Bug Repellent Devices Don't Work

One type of Ultrasonic device on the market today.

 

Today the NPMA printed a story from Sciencecodex.com, which provides information on another recent study of a product that is now for sale, which claims to deter bed bugs. ("Bed bugs are not repelled by commercial ultrasonic frequency devices", Posted on Sciencecodex.com: December 10, 2012) 

The story points out ultrasonic frequency pest control devices are available and marketed to the public now and that "despite the lack of evidence for the efficacy of such devices, they continue to be sold and new versions targeting bed bugs are readily available". Here are some excerpts from this story, showing once again, bed bugs are not a do-it-yourself problem.

"According to a soon-to-be-published article in the Journal of Economic Entomology, commercial devices that produce ultrasound frequencies are NOT promising tools for repelling bed bugs. In "Efficacy of Commercially Available Ultrasonic Pest Repellent Devices to Affect Behavior of Bed Bugs (Hemiptera: Cimicidae)," , authors K. M. Yturralde and R. W. Hofstetter report the results of their tests of four commercially available electronic pest repellent devices designed to repel insect and mammalian pests by using sound."
 
"The devices, which were purchased online, were used according to manufacturers' instructions. A sound arena was created for each ultrasonic device, in addition to a control arena which featured no sound. However, the authors found that there were no significant differences in the number of bed bugs observed in the control (no sound) and sound arenas, and that bed bugs were neither deterred nor attracted to the arena with the sound device".

These types of devices often claim to repel many different types of pests. 

They do not help with bed bugs.

 

What Do Bed Bug Bites Look Like?

 An adult bed bug feeding.

When people get bit by a bed bug for the first time, they may not know it. Many people do not know what bed bug bites look like and the reactions to bed bugs bites are very individualized.

Not realizing you have been bit by a bed bug is common when the bed bug infestation is at a low level and when traveling or staying somewhere other than your home. In these cases, people may notice they have been bitten by something, but think that it might have been something like a spider or mosquito. Often times, two people can be in the same bed but only one person seems to be suffering from bites. This causes people to conclude that the person with the bites must be getting bit somewhere away from the person who appears to be free of bites. However, this is not the case.

The truth is that people show varied reactions to bed bug bites, including no reaction at all! Each person reacts (or doesn't react) differently. Just because one person doesn't seem to be bitten does not mean they are not getting bit. And for those that have reactions and know they have been bitten, there are many different ways they will show a reaction to the bites. Additionally, some people do not show a reaction until they have been bitten repeatedly over a period of time, such as after 6 months.

Typically, bed bug bites will appear in little groups of 3-6 raised bumps that are red or pink and they can be itchy or not. Most of the time, the bumps do not appear right away, usually about 48 hours after being bitten! If the infestation is at lower levels, there may be only one place showing such little groups of bites, such as a hand or an elbow, but when larger populations of bed bugs are present, you may see such groupings of bites all over an arm, leg or one's back or neck and shoulders, or anywhere else on the body. Some reactions are severe and cause large swelling areas that are extremely itchy and red, even with just one bite. These types of reactions are believed to be due to an allergic reaction to the bed bug. 

So as you can see, if you are not acquainted with a bed bug bite in the past, it can be hard to know if you have been bitten by a bed bug or not.

Here are some photos that might help you with identification. You can also do a Google Images search to see many photographs of bed bug bites. 

 A small group of bites, probably delivered by one bed bug on one day/night. Even these little bites from just one instance of being bitten, 
can be incredibly itchy!

 Another small group of bites on someone's hand, probably 
delivered by one bug at one feeding time.

 A severe reaction to what appears to be one instance of being bitten 
(one bug and delivered on one night or day). 

This person has large reactions to bed bug bites as well as probably being bitten by multiple bugs on multiple occasions. You would typically see such bite patterns, covering more areas on a person's body, in someplace that has a larger population of bed bugs present and the person is 
constantly being bitten, night after night.

Bed Bug Traps?

Recently I have been asked by quite a few people "what about traps for bed bugs"? In this post I will discuss some points on the use of traps and some of the various types of traps that are available.

Traps for bed bugs are mostly simple in design and there are very few types. However many people are trying to create a trap solution that could be effective against bed bugs and in the future we are likely to see more of these becoming available. It is important to keep in mind that using traps for bed bugs is not a method for eradication. At this point in time, it is merely a tool to be used in the effort to detect the presence of bed bugs.

Some studies have been done on what attracts bed bugs, in an attempt to attract the bed bug to a trap. There are 3 attractants identified so far. They are CO2, heat and chemicals. The research has shown that C02 is the most effective attractant, while heat alone is also effective. Chemical lures show weak results.

The type of traps to be used depends on the circumstances, for example where there is furniture without legs or the furniture legs are not shaped a certain way, traps such as the "Climb-Up" will not work. This type of trap is known as an 'interceptor'. Interceptors do not completely prevent bed bugs from accessing sleeping and resting areas, the inner well is prone to breaking under weight of furniture when carpet is present and they require maintenance (cleaning and re-lubrication) on regular basis. Additionally, interceptors need to be placed for at least a week or longer to detect bed bugs at very low numbers. These may not be suitable for a hotel situation where seeing such traps may alarm guests (especially if a bed bug or any other insect has wandered into one).

 An interceptor type 'trap' for bed bugs (made by Climb-Up).

Dr. Changlu Wang at Rutgers University has developed a bed bug trap that utilizes dry ice to produce C02. This is not available commercially but might give you an idea of some of the work that is being done to create effective traps. PLEASE NOTE; there are some inherent safety risks that are associated with dry ice. DRY ICE REQUIRES SAFE HANDLING. Please do not try to use dry ice yourself at home if you have not been trained to handle it properly.  The carbon dioxide (C02) it creates can suffocate and be deadly for you and your loved ones.

C02 traps are known as "active monitors". At this time, there are 2 commercially manufactured C02 traps available, the NightWatch® Bed Bug Trap (manufactured by Biosensory) the CDC 3000 (manufactured by Cimex Science).

There are also several types of 'monitors' available, some claim to use attractants and other simply provide an attractive hiding place for bed bugs. These can be placed in suspect areas and routinely checked for the presence of bed bugs.

Is is important to state again that while these types of monitoring tools and methods exist, and they have improved recently, there is no tool or method that is completely reliable in detecting bed bugs. Therefore, regardless of what method or device is used, the failure to identify bugs cannot be used as an indicator that no bugs are present. Low level infestations can escape detection regardless of the detection methods implemented, although a well trained scent detection dog has the highest accuracy rates (about 90-98% in clinical research).

If you are serious about early detection, a bed bug dog is more likely to be money well spent and trained bed bug dogs are certainly the best bet when large areas are to be searched. As KILOHANA K9s always stresses, bed bugs are not a do-it-yourself problem, please contact trained professionals to assist you safely!

3 types of active monitors; 1) CDC 3000, 2) NightWatch 
and 3) a trap utilizing C02.

Here is someone's home-made idea. The person utilizing this method is apparently attempting to stop the bed bugs from coming and going from the bed (a somewhat futile exercise in my opinion), however it may help after a period of time has passed, to identify the presence of bed bugs, simply because if one did get into this container it might have a hard time climbing out (bed bugs are not very good climbers on really smooth surfaces).