Wednesday - August 25, 2010

BedBugs

Ick!  I’ve spent the past several hours reading about the bed bug infestations around the country. New York City seems especially hard hit. Eww! And today there seemed to be bedbug articles everywhere!

Earlier this summer, the bedbug epidemic hit swanky Upper East Side apartment houses, then downtown retail shops in SoHo. Now, New York bedbugs--tiny, brown and bloodthirsty--have infiltrated the Empire State Building.

Employees reported seeing the dreaded bedbugs in an employee changing room in the Empire State Building basement last week, leading investigators to surmise that the bedbugs hitched a ride to New York’s most iconic landmark in workers’ clothing.

According to the CourierPostOnline, the AMC Empire 25 in Times Square received a number of complaints of patrons being bitten by bed bugs. The theater was closed overnight Tuesday and sprayed for infestation.

Another theater, the AMC Magic Johnson Harlem 9 Theater received one complaint of a bed bug bite.

The Empire theater even went so far as to have all the seats in their facility removed, and brand new ones installed. Unfortunately the bed bug epidemic that has plagued retail stores and buildings in New York City this summer is wreaking havoc in these theaters as well.
...
When you think about the cushioned, comfy seats in a movie theater, it’s really a wonder this type of infestation hasn’t occurred during previous bed bug epidemics. Almost all movie theater seats are now upholstered and create the perfect hiding and breeding spots for bed bugs, which are carried via people and their clothing from the site of infestations to wherever they may “drop off” and take up new residence.

Bedbugs are more prevalent in New York City than anywhere else in the U.S., but it is the Buckeye State that appears to be the most bedbug-infested state in America, according to the findings of a new study conducted by pest-control company Terminix.

Behind the Big Apple on the list of the 15 most bedbug-infested locales are the cities of Philadelphia and Detroit, with fourth-place Cincinnati marking the first of three Ohio cities cracking the top ten. Rounding out the list is Chicago; Denver, Columbus, Ohio; Dayton, Ohio; Washington, D.C.; Los Angeles; Boston; Indianapolis; Louisville, Kentucky; Cleveland; and Minneapolis.

Bedbugs travel on clothing, in luggage, and in bags, and they can drop down and breed anywhere. They prefer crevices, cracks, and upholstery. As long as there are human beings around to feed on, they will be content. Bedbugs feed almost exclusively on human blood and can survive up to a year without a meal.

The secret of eradicating bedbugs is to kill the creatures wherever they are found. Bedbugs are much harder to eradicate than cockroaches, mice, or rats, the vermin that prompted current housing regulation and enforcement policy.

In what some call America’s most bedbug-infested city, a man named Frank reluctantly discussed the high cost of his bloodsucking guests.

“I had a bedbug-sniffing dog come out and then exterminator treatment,” he said. “I spent $350 for the stupid dog and a few hundred dollars to send my clothing out for cleaning. That’s more than $1,000 just to be safe.”

Now the bugs were taking another bite out of Frank. He contemplated the ceiling-high display of mattress bedbug barriers priced between $59.99 and $99.99 at a Manhattan Bed Bath & Beyond store.

I know it’s perhaps foolish to mention “do it yourself” and “New York City” in the same sentence, but for about half the price of one of those exterminator visits you can treat your own home, and have enough left over to retreat it once or twice more if necessary.

Some web sites have lists of remedies, rated for what works and what doesn’t. Pesticide supply companies are even putting together kits for homeowners, even one that meets New York’s rather strict pesticide rules.

I like the first kit linked to above, not that we have had any bedbugs here. That kit includes a bottle of the wonderfully named Cyonara, a 9.7% Lamda-Cyhalothrin (artificial pyrethrin) concentrate you mix with water and put in a Hudson sprayer to spray the outside of your dwelling’s foundation, doorsills, windowsills, and pipe and wire entrance points. Remember, don’t just spray the bottom of the foundation. 2 feet up and 2 feet out is the rule.

Other products exist. Good old Drione dust, the powder I posted about a few weeks ago, will kill these bugs. I use it to kill yellow jacket nests, and to keep spiders and stink bugs at bay around windows. 2 or 3 puffs from the puffer in the above kits gets the job done. It’s expensive, but the 1lb jug will keep your house bug free for years. Malathion and DDT will work too, but few of us have either of those old school poisons on hand any more. And you can’t use them indoors.

The above kits include a couple of spray cans of Bedlam, a residual insecticide that you can spray on mattresses. At $17 per can it is very costly, especially when it takes a 13 second spray per square foot to get the job done. Far more cost effective, and much more efficient, is the universal janitorial spray called Microban. This stuff is a trip. It is safe to spray on mattresses. You can spray it with a hudson sprayer or with a ULV fogger. Not only does it take down bedbugs, it kills fleas, ticks, lice, eliminates mold and mildew, bacteria, takes away sewage odors, and even removes the stink of rotting carcasses.

Microban Formula X-580 is an anti-microbial, bactericide, deodorizer, disinfectant, mildewcide, fungicide, germicide, insecticide and sanitizer.

Anti-microbial action kills allergy and disease-causing germs, bacteria, fungi, mold, and mildew. Provides long-lasting residual protection. Excellent product for treating sewage backups.

The insecticide in Microban kills ants, bedbugs, carpet beetles, centipedes, fleas, flies, gnats, hornets, lice, mosquitoes, moths and their larvae, pill bugs, roaches, silverfish, spiders, termites, ticks and wasps. Protects textiles against destructive insects for six months.

Effective in decontaminating the treated exposed surfaces of bedding, mattresses, textiles, drapes, upholstered furniture, rugs, carpets and in storage areas to control mold, mildew, fungus, insects and odors wherever they are a problem.

Excellent in water damage restoration and harmless to surfaces unharmed by water.

Yup, that’s the shiz alright. Kills all the bedbugs and their eggs on your mattress or your couch, and then you use the rest to spray your carpets. One gallon treats 1500 square feet. It works because it’s made from pyrethrins, just like Drione. Made from daisies. Flower power! Mix in a vial of Gentrol IGR to screw up the larval development of the little rotters while you’re at it. I do not think the stuff can be used on clothing that you are planning on wearing soon.

Once cleaned, it’s probably a good idea to get bug proof covers for your mattresses. The good ones are not cheap but they put a layer between you and any bugs the spray treatments missed. They stop dust mites too.

Now if someone could figure out a safe way to treat our clothes, this infestation could be stopped cold. Steam works, but who has a steam cabinet? Heat works ... so I guess wash and bake dry your clothes the moment you get home?

More info here.

Bedbugs. Ick. Bleeeh! I’m going to go make some insanely hot curried chicken and try and get my skin to stop crawling from all the reading. And you betcha, I’ll be checking the mattresses tonight.

But on the other hand ... you know, I’m starting to like this bug killing thing. I wonder if Terminex is hiring? 

Posted by Drew458     on 08/25/2010 at 02:59 PM   
Filed Under: • Miscellaneous •  
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