Bed bugs can travel along pipes, infest bathrooms
By nobugsonme on Jan 27, 2007 in bed bugs, bedbugs, canada, ontario, tools and weapons, treatment, treatment in hotels
A common myth is that bed bugs only infest the bed and the bedroom. Most of us have had them in our living rooms too. We often have to insist our PCOs treat the living room. And some of us have found bed bugs in the kitchen or bathroom or other areas– and less experienced PCOs will tell you this is impossible. It’s not the most likely place, and by no means do most of us need to worry about these areas, but it does happen. Canine bed bug sniffer Inspector Kody found bed bugs in an Ontario resort’s bathroom: they were using the pipes as a conduit to go from room to room.
Nobugsonme
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Bugalina | Jan 29, 2007 | Reply
i hope that people are reading this…my exterminators told me that bed bugs weren’t found in bathrooms….Yet I saw one on my shower curtain…So hopefully people will INSIST that their pipe chases are treated …this is where your pipes enter underneath your sinks..kitchen and bathroom, and where there are any pipes coming out of your walls for heating purposes…so please make certain these areas are treated…Bugalina
nightshirt | Jan 29, 2007 | Reply
I was also going to blog aabout this b/c my pco came this past weekend for my final treatment and when he took off the switchplate behind my bed he found quite a few dead ones. In October of 2005 the apartment above me was totally demolished down to the beams and totally redone. then last september 2006 i had the bathroom off my bedroom demolished and remodeled. RIGHT AFTER THAT THEY INFESTED. He thinks they came from above and had the opportunity to enter when my bathroom was done. they slowly crept along the pipes (bug is right about getting sprayed there) until they reached me. remember - they can live 12-18 months in the walls waiting for an opportune moment to attack.
i would therefore also auggest if you have any remodeling done in your home have the area totally sealed and do the procedures of changing clothes, washing clothes, no two room contamination until the project is finished. then, as a precaution have your place sprayed. may be a bit crazy and costly but much better than an infestation, and less costly. add this cost to the amount of the renovation.
then amortize your sanity!
ICHEUMON | Feb 6, 2007 | Reply
I will tell you from professional experience that I
have several times found bed bugs migrating along bathroom steam risers in that era building.The combination of warmth and humidity created by these pipes in a bathroom as well as the fact that they are usually adjacent to the hamper makes sense. You would want to seal these holes well, or use duct tape and check it to see if their is any activity. It might also be a place to dust but do not apply liquid or spray insectides as the heat will volatilize them,
break them down and create by products.
nobugsonme | Feb 6, 2007 | Reply
Icheumon,
Thanks for posting that–we do appreciate your professional angle on this.
Just out of curiosity, is it safe to apply a dust like drione to heating pipes? Or just DE? (I am not into doing my own pest control, but am curious because another bedbugger said the PCO dusted lots of drione all over their radiator.)
Thanks!