This photo shows bed bugs trapped in a Nightwatch active bed bug monitor.

Flickr Photo: “Bedbugs in NightWatch trap.”

You can see another shot of the Nightwatch with bed bugs in it from a greater distance here.

All Rights Reserved by David P. James

Thanks, David, for allowing us to share your photos with Bedbugger readers!Similar Posts:

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The Australian show “The New Inventors”(ABC) features several new inventions in an episode, with a panel of judges choosing the best of the lot.

Inventor Tony Abrahams won episode 16 (20 May 2009) with his passive bed bug monitor, the “Bed Bug Barrier,” which either attaches above the feet of the bed, or sits under the feet of the bed, trapping bed bugs attempting to crawl up onto the bed in a glue. (Based on the placement of the glue under the rim of the device, it is not clear to me whether bed bugs would also be intercepted if they tried to crawl off a bed, rather than onto it, as would be true with the Climbup TM Interceptor.)

There’s some iffy science here (for example, I don’t think anyone can prove the inventor’s claim that bed bugs cannot harbor on a mattress encasement). One judge is concerned that bed bugs brought onto a bed via a suitcase (rather than climbling up the bed leg) will not be hindered by this tool, and this judge is apparently correct. Bed bugs can live on beds. This device will not get rid of bed bugs living in the bed frame, on the mattress, or for that matter, on chairs or in other parts of the room.

This does not mean the trap is useless, but it does mean it is not a total solution. I would like to see independent test data demonstrating the effectiveness of any bed bug monitors. And I would like to know whether bed bugs are 100% trapped while entering or leaving a bed, since from what I can see, there’s some possibility bed bugs exiting a bed could drop down without crawling on the underside (glued) region of the trap.

Clearly, the passive bed bug monitor is an idea that is blooming in lots of different forms, and time (and independent peer reviewed research, we hope!) will tell which is best.

You can read about other currently available bed bug monitors such as the Climbup TM Interceptors — which provide a barrier for bed bugs climbing onto or off of beds — here, or read about David Cain’s soon-to-be-widely-available bbalert monitors — which provide a harborage for bed bugs somewhere on the bed frame itself — here and here.

I love that a bed bug-related product won this contest. Interestingly, Tony Abrahams got the idea for this product because he was in the business of renting out accommodations to travelers. His invention beat out a device which weighs beehives and some kind of portable refrigeration/food heating device.

Let’s face it: bed bugs in the popular media are always a good thing: one of the judges notes she will change her hotel room behaviors based on this presentation (presumably, she won’t be leaving luggage on the bed anymore!) If news about the problem of bed bugs reached many other Australians via this show, that in itself is a very good thing.

Click below to watch!

Thanks to Paula for the tip!Similar Posts:

• Bed Bugs hit Johnson City Fire Station
• Fox Chicago engages with the tenants vs. landlords bed bug blame game
• FAQ: What is a Packtite?
• A tale of two bed bug-troubled cities: Cincinnati, Columbus
• S.F.’s bedbug battle a war without end

On May 21st, Biosensory, maker of the Nightwatch active bed bug monitor, distributed a recall letter to Distributors and pest control operators.

The letter, which you can download in PDF form here, reads,

This letter is to notify you that BioSensory, Inc. is voluntarily recalling its initial production run
ofthe NightWatch™ Bedbug Monitor and Dragonfly II mosquito trap for safety reasons.

BioSensory has decided to take this action as a result ofa potentially defective pressure sensor
manufactured by MAMCO Precision Switches. Although only 3 failures have occurred, it was
decided to voluntarily recall all units until the source ofthe defect can be positively identified
and verifiably corrected.

BioSensory tested NightWatch and Dragonfly II units without incident during two years of
product development. During manufacture each unit was 100% tested as a sub assembly and as
a final assembly with no reports of defects. BioSensory is working with MAMCO engineers to
study the three failed units in order to find and correct the problem BioSensory will replace all
potentially defective switches free of charge.

Distributors and PCOs are asked to

1. Immediately discontinue shipping of the NightWatch and Dragonfly II units to customers.

2. Bring back all units already shipped to customers and hold them at your location(s) until
further instructions are provided to you. Further instructions may include: a) lot # search of
the defective parts; b) information regarding a field repair; c) return to a repair facility.

And there’s a number provided for PCOs/Distributors to call: (860) 928-1113.

Note, if you’re a customer (not a PCO), you should probably call the folks who sold it to you, so they can satisfy steps 1 and 2 above.

The Biosensory website’s note about the recall provides a second number, (800) 261-2659.

Thanks to the reader who shared this information with us!Similar Posts:

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Check out this new and fascinating podcast from New York vs. Bed Bugs, where Renee Corea of New York vs. Bed Bugs and David Cain of bed-bugs.co.uk (and well known to our Bedbugger Forum users) talk about the recent Pestex 2009, new bbalert™ passive and active bed bug monitors, new treatment options (including oxygen depletion), and other fascinating topics.  Do take a moment to also watch the video of David demonstrating the new bbalert monitors.

We previously discussed bbalert’s passive monitors here.

You can read more about midmos solutions’ bbalert™ system of passive bed bug monitors, active bed bug monitors, and the O2PM treatment here.

Thanks to Renee and David!

Update (5/8):

Here’s a review from merlin on the UK PCO forum, from a firm that is field testing the bbalert™ Passive Monitor in a hotel with roughly 800 guests a month.

We have been making fortnightly inspections to check on progress and yesterday we had a result. In one room one of the monitors had spotting on the detection skirt, on closer inspection a bug could be seen in the monitor. The monitor was removed and dismantled, inside was a lone gravid female and two clutches of 4 eggs neatly cemented to the fill layer. A very thorough inspection was carried out in the infested room and surrounding areas with no further evidence found. We will be reinspecting again to ensure that no eggs had been laid elsewhere, but early indications suggest that the inoculating population was maintained within the monitor and was removed without chemical intervention.

Interestingly, merlin also notes,

The 8 groups of guest that used the room since the last inspection have been flagged on the booking system. One group are staying again in a weeks time, after their holiday and arrangements have been made for the increased risk they pose.

Similar Posts:

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Where else but Bedbugger.com do you see the phrase “cheap and cheerful” and “bed bug monitors” in the same sentence? Okay, we’re not Apartment Therapy, but we know a good thing when we see it.

Remember the Climbup™ Interceptors — the inexpensive bed bug monitors, developed by Susan McKnight, which you place under a bed or sofa leg?  The idea is that bed bugs will get stuck either crawling onto or off of the trap, and you will therefore not only be able to know if you have bed bugs, but which direction they’re coming from.  (One forum user whose PCO employed these referred to them informally as “coasters.”)

This is the view from above of a Climbup™ Interceptor with bed bugs caught in it.  (Your bed or sofa leg would go into the center.)

(Photo All Rights Reserved, Susan McKnight.)

This month’s issue of Pest Control Technology has an article by Changlu Wang, Timothy J. Gibb, and Gary W. Bennett detailing the study of the Climbup™ Interceptor. You can see the contents of the April PCT issue with a link to the article here. This is the same study I discussed in the previous post about the product.  To quote from the PCT Online article,

RESULTS. The inspections revealed that all 13 apartments were infested with bed bugs. The average bed bug count was 6.7 per apartment. Among the residents interviewed, only four of 10 said they noticed bed bug bites. After visual inspection and hand removal of bed bugs, we installed Climbup interceptors under furniture legs. After seven days, an average of 8.8 bed bugs per apartment was captured using the interceptors.

CONCLUSIONS.: Bed bug interceptors are more effective than visual inspections for determining the presence/absence of bed bugs and estimating bed bug numbers. In addition, they can effectively detect low levels of bed bug infestation. Because interceptors remove bed bugs, they also provide immediate relief to residents from bites and reduce the need for insecticide applications as they catch the bugs.

[Note the fact that 4 out of 10 residents reacted to bed bug bites.]

Update (5/6/2009):

Climbup™ Interceptors are now available from NorthShore Care (with free shipping if you enter the code in the ad below) and other online retailers, as well as from Residex and Oldham Chemical. In New York City, you can get them from Standard Pest in Astoria.

(Disclosure: Bedbugger has an affiliate relationship with NorthShore Care, which means that if you purchase through our links, it helps support this website at no additional cost to you. We’re grateful to NorthShore Care for offering our readers the best deals we know of on Protect-a-Bed AllerZip encasements and Climbup™ Interceptors, as well as free shipping with the BBFREE coupon code.)

You can also click the following links to download a PDF brochure about Climbup™ Interceptors, or instructions for their use.
—–

Meanwhile, also in the world of bed bug monitors, David Cain of bed-bugs.co.uk (who is well known to our Bedbugger Forum users) has been developing a different kind of passive bed bug monitor.  Again, this would be something which will be affordable to everyone and could be potentially used in every bed as an ongoing monitoring tool.

(Photo All Rights Reserved, David Cain, bed-bugs.co.uk.)

The March and April 2009 issue of Pest has an article on David’s passive monitor.  Click here to download a PDF.

Pest notes,

The monitor is roughly the size of a packet of cigarettes. Made of moulded plastic it consists of a seven layer sandwich. On top is a label to record the monitoring routine. This is stuck to the top layer of the plastic monitor, within which is the filler consisting of corrugated pulp-based tunnels – ideal hideaways for bedbugs.

The monitors are designed to be anchored to a particular spot on various types of beds.

According to Pest, limited quantities are currently available from bed-bugs.co.uk, “with large scale availability before the summer.”

These two passive monitors have different functions. The Climbup™ Interceptor can only intercept bed bugs which are climbing onto or off of legs of the furniture placed in the disks. They should remain trapped if they cross the interceptor.

David Cain’s passive bed bug monitor is a harborage for bed bugs in the bed itself (attached to the bed base or onto a bed slat, depending on the type of bed). Bed bugs are not forced to remain in the monitor, however.

Neither of these items is going to trap all of your bed bugs or remove them from your home; they are just monitoring devices. But monitoring devices are very valuable where bed bugs are concerned, and both of these tools allow pest professionals and clients can work together to monitor whether bed bugs are present in a space.

We are most excited to see these tools being developed. Bed bugs are a most elusive enemy, and we need all the help we can get in determining they are present.Similar Posts:

• New bed bug monitor #2: the CDC 3000
• More bed bugs at Wilkes University (in University Towers apartments)
• Bed bugs bite Edmonton
• The ethics of bed bugs: the lies landlords and roommates tell
• Bed bugs in the media: David Cain on British radio, Dr. Susan Jones in the Plain Dealer

2009 is the year of the bed bug monitor. While some are thinking high-tech, it is also important to know that low-tech monitors are being improved.

This month, the CDC 3000 is starting to be used by PCOs and a few of the luckier people with bed bugs. The Nightwatch is also set to ship soon, we’re told. The devices cost in the $500 – $700 range, and so they really are not aimed at the consumer market. These active bed bug monitors use kairomones, CO2 and heat to attract bed bugs into the monitors, and then trap them.

But passive bed bug monitors are also evolving. Traditionally, we have had the glue trap, which really is not very useful at catching bed bugs. Think about it: they’re usually rectangular, and they just sit there. They sit there covered with a thick coating of goopy glue, and people commonly report waiting patiently and nabbing no bed bugs. There’s no easy way to surround the legs of your bed in glue traps.

Enter Susan McKnight, who has designed the Climbup ® Insect Interceptor, a passive bed bug monitoring tool which can be used in homes under the legs of bed frames, chairs, tables, and other furniture.

This is a tool for finding out whether you have bed bugs. It is not going to treat an infestation, but can help you determine if you have bed bugs, and when they are gone.

It looks simple, but seems quite clever: first, it has two wells: a center well and an outer pitfall. So you can actually tell from where the bed bug is caught whether it is coming onto the furniture or trying to exit from it. (The idea is they can’t hop over the wall in between. Neat, huh?)

This is a photo of bed bugs caught in the Climbup ®:

(Photo courtesy of Susan McKnight, All Rights Reserved).

Those bed bugs in the middle were trying to get off the bed / chair / etc. and the others were trying to get onto it.

You can imagine how some treatment plans could be improved if PCOs could see whether the bed bugs were coming onto the bed, or leaving from it.

Think also of the woman who reacts to bed bug bites, whereas her children and husband don’t. This monitor may allow a much better determination of who is actually being bitten.

The directions found in this PDF on the Insect Interceptor website note:

Climbup ® insect interceptor is ready to use with center well and pitfall ring prelubricated with talc to form slick surface to prevent bed bug escape. The talc will not kill bed bugs. With repeated wipeouts and prolonged use, relubrication with talc is advised. OPTIONAL: To avoid handling of live bugs, a dust (e.g. diatomaceous earth) or nonrepellent liquid (e.g. soapy water, mineral oil) may be added to in center well and outer pitfall ring.

Some bedbuggers have long placed a bed bug-free mattress and frame on top of risers or inside of margarine tubs and filled these with diatomaceous earth or mineral oil in an attempt to keep bed bugs from getting into the bed. The moat of mineral oil in a cup around the bed legs can backfire if there are any bed bugs living in the bed, because they become trapped on the bed, and will keep biting you there.

The approach suggested on the Insect Interceptor site is not an entirely different idea, but in my opinion is theoretically a better one: this product is designed to trap live bed bugs and to show which direction they are traveling in, both of which would be very helpful, moreso than simply trying to avoid bed bug bites.

A Pest Control Operator could, as the directions also suggest, “Count bugs by developmental stage from each capture area to determine efficacy of control treatment.” A resident could simply count bed bugs, and know if they needed a follow-up treatment, or not.

Dr. Mike Merchant of Texas A&M wrote on his Insects in the City blog about a presentation by Dr. Changlu Wang at November’s Entomological Society of America conference in Reno. Wang tested the efficacy of various spray-based and dust-based IPM programs for bed bugs (using chlorfenapyr, diatomaceous earth and Climbup™ monitors). Merchant noted that:

The traps caught more bed bugs than were observed by the inspectors in all apartments. Another interesting observation was that 94% of the trapped bed bugs were in the outer bowl, indicating that they were off the bed. This shows the importance of treating off-bed locations when controlling bed bugs. These devices might be especially useful for clients with low budgets and a high motivation to help with the elimination program. Of course the effectiveness of the bowls depends on eliminating contact of the bed and bedding with the floor and walls.

I understand that Changlu Wang’s research will be published soon (and we’ll let you know when it is). In the meantime, you can download a brief but interesting PowerPoint of his presentation at the ESA in Reno, 11/2009 by clicking here.

The PowerPoint stresses the usefulness of the product for low-level infestations and where residents do not respond to bed bug bites. We are told that only “4 of 10 residents noticed bed bug bites,” and that while visual inspection detected an “average of 6.7 bed bugs per apartment,” the Climbup™ interceptor after being used for 7 days found an “average of 8.8 bed bugs per apartment.”

For this reason, it would not be a bad idea for everyone to have these under their beds and chairs, sofas, etc. Wang’s finding that only 40% of the residents had bed bug bites reminds us that everyone needs an early warning system that they have a bed bug infestation. Those receiving bed bug treatment need to know when bed bugs are gone.

My only concern is that this product might have to be used creatively to work for some — for example, people who have platform beds with broad bases, or big clunky sofas — I am not sure how the product would work with items of furniture which don’t really have “legs.”

The Insect Interceptor website states that Climbup ® Insect Interceptors can be obtained from Residex and Oldham Chemical (by PCOs only from those outlets, I assume). We also see that Bed Bug Central is selling these monitors to the public. I have not actually seen them yet, but the research sounds promising. We look forward to reading Wang’s research results and to hearing from people who have used the product.

Update 4/23/2009: This month’s issue of Pest Control Technology has an article by Changlu Wang, Timothy J. Gibb, and Gary W. Bennett detailing the study of the Climbup ® Interceptor. You can see the contents of the April PCT issue with a link to the article here.

Update 5/12/2009:

Climbup ® Interceptors are now available from NorthShore Care (enter code in ad below for free shipping) and other online retailers, as well as from Residex and Oldham Chemical. In New York City, you can get them from Standard Pest.

(Disclosure: Bedbugger has an affiliate relationship with NorthShore Care, which means that if you purchase through our links, it helps support this website at no additional cost to you. We’re grateful to NorthShore Care for offering our readers the best deals we know of on Protect-a-Bed AllerZip encasements and Climbup ® Interceptors, as well as free shipping with the BBFREE coupon code.)Similar Posts:

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Pest Management Professional’s articles are often so good, but in the past, you had to know to look for them. (Thank goodness they added an RSS feed so we can subscribe.)

Mark Sheperdigian brings the bed bug information in three “new to us” articles: the first is on what consumers need to know about bed bugs.

In short:

• They’re not microscopic. (Lou Sorkin always helpfully reminds us, and the authors of run-of-the-mill newspaper stories that bed bugs come in a range of sizes and colors depending on life stage and whether they’ve eaten or not (lovely, yes?)
• You can’t get an infestation from a single egg (though you can get one from a single pregnant female).
• You can’t clean them away.
• And you can’t prevent them.  (You can reduce the risk, but never 100%.)

You’ll want to read the rest of this article here.

The next article is about choosing pesticides, and is really for the bed bug pros among us, but is enlightening to us laypeople too.  In particular, the beginners’ guide to pyrethroids.  And neonicotinoids? New to me.

The choicest nugget here, though, was the suggestion that PCOs test a bed bug population as to its pyrethroid-resistance.  Simple, not foolproof by any means, but really smart:

If the bed bugs are resistant to pyrethroids, you should either know this going in or ensure that pyrethroids are not your main line of defense. How can you know if your bed bug population is resistant without having to send them to a researcher somewhere? You could try this procedure, which has been suggested from a number of sources:

At least a day before the treatment, collect some bed bugs and hold them overnight in a jar on a cloth or paper towel that has been treated (and dried) with your pyrethroid of choice. If all of the bed bugs are dead in the morning, you may fire when ready. If half the bed bugs are dead, be sure to incorporate other non-pyrethroid materials into your program. If the bed bugs are all alive, you should rethink your strategy — leaving pyrethroids out of the mix altogether.

This is not real science and will not lead to dramatic headlines that rock the pest management world, but it may help you avoid a follow-up treatment or two…or three.

Up until now, this might have only worked in large infestations, where “collecting a sample of bed bugs” is simple.  However, new bed bug monitors like the CDC 3000 will mean that even smaller infestations can be tested in this way.

Cool, huh?

(As always, I do not recommend you self-treat for bed bugs.  I am not a PCO but I think a good one is going to get rid of your problem more quickly and more fully than you ever will.  A good PCO will be able to do so safely and will know how to avoid making the problem worse.)

Finally, I found this PMP article enlightening.  In it, Sheperdigian pokes some holes in common theories about bed bug resurgence.

His point appears to be not so much that an end to baseboard spraying or the survival of bed bugs in chicken houses (for example) did not contribute to the resurgence of bed bugs, but that no one theory alone fully accounts for bed bugs’ reappearance, in such numbers, at this time, and their degree of pyrethroid resistance.

Read this one for the sub-headings alone.  (”Harlan hears a who?”  Priceless.) 

And know just how indebted we are to Dr. Harold Harlan, who kept his bed bug colony all those years before there seemed an obvious need for one.  And boy, do we ever need them as research subjects now.

Thanks to Renee for article suggestions!Similar Posts:

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We heard some time ago that there was more than one bed bug monitor in development. Nightwatch is expected to ship mid-November.

But a second bed bug monitor, the CDC 3000, or Cimex Detection Case, so named because it comes cleverly packed into a portable (!) non-descript black handled case, will be launched in a limited fashion at this week’s National Pest Management Association meeting in Washington. It won’t be released on a broad scale until the new year, according to Sean of the Bed Bug Resource, who goes more into detail here on what we can expect from this second device.

You can also read more about the CDC 3000 here.

Both devices have the potential not just to detect whether you have bed bugs, but to capture them. We hope to have access to data on the CDC 3000 soon. And once the Nightwatch is released, I hope we will start to see some comparative test data.

Exciting times for Bedbuggers. Things are looking up.

Update 4/28/2009:

Here’s a video review by Jeff White of the CDC 3000:

Similar Posts:

• More information on cheap and cheerful bed bug monitors!

While most claims of an effective bed bug trap have to date been much ado about nothing, a new product which seems to be the real deal is only a month or two away.

The trap I am talking about is the NightWatch by Biosensory, Inc.

In the past, this innovative company has produced an effective mosquito product and some other units which use inhibitors or attractants or both. This new unit attracts bed bugs via CO2 heat and a 7-part kairomone lure. The results have been studied for over a year by independent housing authorities and respected individuals and now the trap is scheduled for distribution early October.

The price for a unit which covers a 16×16 room will be around $400 [editor's note: we're not sure of the price at this time]. Overnight, the trapped bed bugs will be contained in a pit which you empty each morning. This trap sounds like a great step forward but remember they themselves state that the unit is for detection, monitoring and as part of an Integrated Pest Management program. In addition the manufacturers state, “If the premises have not been treated with additional EPA-registered insecticide(s) and/or steam heat, this protocol should be considered.”

Having been involved in trying to develop a prototype trap not associated with this one, as well as having dealt with bed bugs from an educational and control standpoint, I think this will be a great tool in the war against bedbugs. Sleep tight.

Editor’s note: Thanks, Winston!

Winston O. Buggy is the pseudonym of a bed bug professional. Read more about the science behind NightWatch here.

Update 10/5/2008:

Editor’s note: Sean of the Bed Bug Resource points us to a Canadian distributor offering pre-orders. (I don’t know anything about the store, personally.) For $100 CA or $95 US down (out of the total cost $400 CA / $380 US), they say your Nightwatch trap will ship when released (11/15 is the expected date). They will be sold to anyone, apparently. The protocol on the Nightwatch website does appear to be something laypeople could do.

Note: They haven’t been released yet so we can’t really say much about them (but I do know someone with bed bugs, if Nightwatch wants to send me one to review (hint, hint!)

The data looks promising, but read all the info. on the Biosensory site, and caveat emptor.

Update: 5/2009: the Nightwatch has been available for several weeks and has now been voluntarily recalled, so the manufacturer can fix a potentially defective switch. Similar Posts:

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There are three different theories as far as what to do about your bed.

1. Protecting your bed from bed bugs

This means you make sure bed bugs are not harboring in the bed frame, headboard, etc., and that you encase mattresses and box springs in high quality bed bug-proof encasements.

Bed bugs can crawl onto the bed and bite you, but you are taking steps to ensure they do not live there. If they cross poison on the way to you, any meal will hopefully be their last. You may use Climbup ® Interceptors to catch any bed bugs climbing onto or off of the bed.

2. Isolating the Bed

Here, you are trying to get bed bugs out of your bed, and keep them out.

Isolating the bed is very controversial, and though it may help people who are being bitten very badly or who have serious allergic reactions or distress may to try and avoid being bitten by bed bugs while in bed, it also may actually mean you are fighting bed bugs longer. This is so because bed bugs may spread further around your home (they will still bite you outside of the bed).

The theory is that bed bugs will still try to get to you, but they should be trapped on the way, and you should be able to avoid bed bug bites.

In a few cases, however, bed bugs have been seen dropping down from the ceiling to bite people in “isolated” beds. It seems to be a rare occurrence, but can happen. More often, beds not thoroughly isolated have allowed people to continue to be bitten by bed bugs. If you’re going to isolate, you must be meticulous and thorough.

And remember, if bed bugs cannot bite at night, they will bite during the daytime, as you sit in chairs or go about your day. For this reason, many would recommend instead that you simply “protect” the bed, but do not isolate it.

Many people prefer to “protect” rather than “isolate” the bed because having bed bugs biting you in bed, or finding evidence they were there (cast skins, blood spots, etc.) is a sure sign you still have bed bugs and require further treatment. If you “isolate” and don’t react to bites you get during the day, it may be harder to verify bed bugs’ continued presence. Isolating may also mean bed bugs spread further around your home, since they may have trouble reaching you in the bed, where they used to feed. Protecting the bed instead, and using Climbup ® Interceptors as a tool for catching bed bugs as the wander onto or off of the bed legs, may be a better option for most people, and would be my preference.

3. Do not encase

We are aware of one highly regarded bed bug expert who does not recommend encasing mattresses or box springs. British PCO David Cain of Bed Bugs Ltd., well known to forum users, does not recommend encasements. It should be noted that David has a very hands-on approach to removing bed bugs from homes, and claims to take a long time inspecting and removing bed bugs. If your pest control operator uses such methods, and tells you not to encase the mattress or box spring, by all means, do not do so.

Most pest professionals we’re aware of do recommend encasements, and so, in general, Bedbugger does too. We also feel that a carefully-encased mattress (with encasement sealed and kept free of tears) may help many people to eliminate bed bugs in the rest of the home sooner, avoid bed bug bites, and save or protect an expensive mattress.

Note on products mentioned:

You can buy Climbup ® Interceptors from NorthShore Care, using the coupon code in the ad below for free shipping. You can also get them from Amazon.com (Climbup Insect Interceptor Bed Bug Trap, 12ct), or from many of your friendly, local pest control operators, including Standard Pest in New York City.

For mattress and box spring encasements, see our Encasements page. All other items below are available widely. You can also see or purchase them on Bedbugger’s Useful Stuff page.

What to do

Both protecting and isolating the bed require you to eliminate bed bugs from the mattress, box springs, headboard and bed frame, and then encase the mattress and box springs. So let’s start there.

Important:

The advice below assumes your home will be professionally treated by a Pest Control Operator who has experience with bed bugs. Protecting or isolating your bed, on their own, will not get rid of bed bugs. However, a PCO will tell you that you need to sleep in your normal spot in order to get rid of bed bugs, and protecting or isolating the bed will likely work well with the PCO’s treatment plan, which will likely include laying down residual pesticides that bed bugs will cross while trying to get to you.

You should wait to carefully clean your mattress, frame, bed, and home until a Pest Control Operator has verified you have bed bugs. Some have cleaned away evidence and been refused treatment by professionals or landlords.

Also, once bed bugs are verified to be present by those who need to see them, you should wait to encase your mattress until the Pest Control Operator has treated your home, because most PCOs can treat areas of the mattress (side, seams) and box springs as well as the bed frame / headboard with certain pesticides which are labeled for this purpose. Doing so and then thoroughly drying and sealing the mattress and box springs in encasements is best.

For protecting the bed or isolating the bed, everyone will need:

1. A zippered mattress encasement that has been tested to keep bed bugs in (or out), and that completely encloses your mattress (and box springs, if you insist on keeping them), the best you can afford. They are not all the same. Vinyl and cloth encasements are sold by a wide variety of suppliers, but few have actually been tested to keep bed bugs out (or in).

I would recommend Protect-A-Bed AllerZip encasements. They have been tested to keep bed bugs within the mattress even if the zipper is opened slightly — which gives you some insurance against accidents. Mattress Safe and National Allergy Elegance encasements also did well in Rick Cooper’s tests. Click here to read about encasements and to purchase them.

2. New pillows

3. Pillow encasements; buy with mattress encasements from same source. As for mattress encasements, they should be designed and tested specifically to keep bed bugs out (or in).

4. White sheets and pillow cases, cotton blanket (if you need to replace a comforter or other blanket). Cotton sheets and a cotton blanket are easy to wash and dry. (Comforters may harbor bed bugs even after a long stint in the dryer, and non-cotton blankets do not hold up well to dryer heat.) White color is not mandatory but may help you spot stains; I’d avoid small patterns for this reason also.

One blanket option would be this cotton blanket from National Allergy which is reasonably priced and holds up well to lots of time in a hot dryer (follow the link for a discount of 7% on orders up to $174.99 or 10% on orders over $175).

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If you want to “isolate” the bed, read the following items 5-13.

If you only want to “protect” the bed, skip down to “Steps for Everyone” under the next dotted line below.

5. Bed risers — they raise the bed, to help keep sheets and blankets off the floor, a must if you are trying to “isolate the bed.” They can be found at Bed, Bath and Beyond (or Bed Bugs and Beyond, as Bedbugger Bugzinthehood termed it, long before a company providing Vikane treatments appeared with the same name) or (like the other items below) on Bedbugger’s Useful Stuff page.

In 2009, the Climbup ® Interceptor passive bed bug monitor became available. You can read about them here. This product replaces and is, in my mind, preferable to the use of items 6-8 below. If you obtain Climbup Interceptors, you can skip the mineral or tea tree oil, vaseline, and bowls. You may still want to use bed risers, to help keep bed linens off the floor, but make sure they fit inside the Climbup well.

Climbup ® Interceptors — one per bed leg. These will catch any bed bugs climbing onto or off of the bed, and are vastly preferable to items 6-8 because they catch samples, rather than deterring bed bugs.

If these are not available, you may use items 6-8:

6. Mineral oil or tea tree oil (more expensive but some people enjoy the idea that bed bugs hate it).

7. Vaseline

8. 4 bowls for holding mineral oil or tea tree oil under the legs of the bed frame. Stainless steel is the best
choice, but other sturdy unbreakable bowls will do. If your bed risers have a little reservoir, you can simply keep that filled instead.

9. Thick garbage bags (contractor bags) and XL and XXL Ziploc bags. Check the hardware dept of your favorite big box store for the contractor bags. They are usually not sold with the household trash bags. In the USA, XL / XXL Ziplocs are sold in Target stores (look near the storage section and/or the section with bags), Home Depot (near the home cleaning supplies) or here.

10. Murphy’s Oil Soap (for wooden bed frames), which is a contact killer for bed bugs and is good for cleaning wood and rendering it bed bug-free. Regular strength works fine. It is sold in ready to use spray bottles and a concentrated formula.

11. Quality duct tape: Use duct tape to ensure there are no sharp edges on a metal frame before you place an encased mattress on it.

12. You may need a new metal bed frame, if you are unable to get bed bugs out of your wooden bed.

13. Some have actually decided to discard mattresses and isolate an Aerobed upon a metal bed frame. Use duct tape to ensure there are no sharp edges on a metal frame before you place an Aerobed on it. (Please use caution with discarding items; seal them completely in plastic before moving them through or out of your home, label them carefully, and realize that if you live in a building or in a house which is attached to others, your neighbors may take them in and use them and become infested and you may be right back to square one — another reason to encase instead.)

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Steps for everyone:

(See “Important” note at top.)

1. Strip the bed. Put all of the dirty linens into a garbage bag and tie it off well. Some suggest using plastic cable ties. You can also knot the bag’s top in one single knot (it must be airtight; push the bag. If air can escape, you are tying it wrong). Launder your bedding as soon as you can in HOT water, and dry on HIGH HEAT until completely dry and then some. When you take it out of the dryer, put it immediately into another garbage bag and tie it off, or use an XL Ziploc.

2. Vacuum the mattress and springs really well. Especially in areas with stitching, piping, tufts and the plastic corner guards. You might want to take the corner guards off. You may also want to take the gauzy covering off of the bottom of the bed spring and vacuum inside. (Though box spring encasements are available, many people will want to discard box springs; be sure to seal in a bed-sized bag before moving through your home.) Used vacuum bags should be sealed in a ziploc and disposed of after use. If you have a bagless vacuum, empty into a ziploc and clean the bagless container right away. Otherwise, bed bugs or eggs may remain in the container/bag.

3. Put the mattress and springs into the new encasements and seal. If you use a Protect-A-Bed AllerZip encasements (with the BugLock Zip), you do not need to tape the zipper. Mattress Safe encasements also have a lock to keep the encasement closed.

If you use another encasement, you should probably tape the zipper and where the zipper closes on your encasement. This tape must not be allowed to come off; keeping it on can be very difficult. People have used Scotch Blue Painter’s tape, and National Allergy sells this along with their encasements, to be put over the zipper. Other types of very adhesive tape may work better, but none are foolproof.

4. Vacuum your bed frame. If you have a metal frame, put DE down in the legs and cover over all of the holes and spaces with duct tape.

Wooden bed frames, and fancy headboards and foot boards are very problematic and need extra considerations. These are addressed in another area of this FAQ.

5. Move the bedframe away from the wall.

6. Vacuum under and around the bed frame very thoroughly.

7. Put the mattress set back on the frame, very carefully, so you don’t rip the covers. (See comments above about duct tape; this can be used to reinforce corners.)

(Note: even though they are not necessary for protecting the bed, you may want to use Climbup ® Interceptor passive bed bug monitors under each bed leg in order to detect bed bugs climbing onto or off of the bed.
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The following steps are only for those “isolating” the bed. If you are only “protecting” the bed, skip to step 12.

8. If using Climbup ® Interceptors (preferred method; see above): Put bed legs (or bed legs on risers) inside Climbup Interceptors — one per bed leg. These will catch any bed bugs climbing onto or off of the bed, and are preferable to items 6-8 because they catch samples, rather than deterring bed bugs.

If Climbup ® Interceptors are not available to you, put the bed on the risers, and put mineral oil (or tea tree oil) in the depression in the castors are resting in. If your bed is already high off the floor, or if the bed risers have no wells to put the oil in, put the legs in bowls of mineral oil.

Note: some people have traditionally recommended placing a row of vaseline and a separate row of double sided tape around the bed legs, above the mineral oil cups. I am not sure of the value of this if you are using cups of mineral or tea tree oil. People tell us double sided tape does not often catch bed bugs. However, if you are using Climbup ® Interceptors as recommended, do not place vaseline or double sided tape on the bed legs. You want bed bugs to walk into the Climbup discs and be trapped; you do not want them to be deterred by barriers.

9. Vacuum again, to hopefully pick up any strays that fell or crawled off of the mattress and box springs in the process.

10. Remember not to let your sheets and blankets drag on the floor while you sleep. Realize also that you may carry bed bugs into the bed, for example, by simply sitting on a chair where a bed bug was able to crawl onto your clothing. If you isolate the bed, try to hop in bed clean and wearing clothing which was itself isolated and kept in sealed plastic bags.

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Everyone should:

11. Break out the new pillows and put encasements on them. See step #3 above and duct taping the zippers if necessary.

12. Put on clean white linens (so you can see blood or other stains more easily).

Change and launder them (and blanket, if used), preferably about every 4-7 days. Check the sheets every day for bugs, molted skins, blood spots (tiny to inch long smears), and black poppy seed-sized spots or what look like black ink spots.

If you “protected” the bed, this is evidence you still have bed bugs (helpful to know, especially if you do not react to bites). If you “isolated” the bed, this is evidence that the bugs are still in the bed.

Consider repeating the steps above of cleaning the frame and having it treated with pesticides, to ensure bed bugs are not living in the bed. And in any case, continue professional treatment approx. every two weeks until bed bug bites and all other signs are long gone.

13. Unless you are doing more cleaning immediately, take the bag out of the vacuum,and put the bag in a Ziploc bag or a securely tied garbage bag and put in an outside garbage receptacle. If you use a bagless vacuum, empty it into a bag and seal and dispose of this, and clean the bagless container. This prevents bed bugs and eggs from remaining in the container and potentially reinfesting your home.

14. Examine all of your precautions often. Encasements can get holes; try to avoid this. If it happens, promptly duct tape or replace them.

If you have a cat with claws, ensure the cat cannot make contact with the encasement (or even the encasement covered in bed linens). Keep the cat away from the bed if at all possible.

15. Optional steps:

AeroBed

Some Bedbuggers have used an AeroBed or air mattress, with or without a new cheap metal frame. You can’t encase the raised AeroBeds, so you will probably want to isolate the bed (per our FAQs) with bed risers and a cheap metal frame (see below). Remember to make sure there are no sharp edges on the frame (wrap with some duct tape if there are).

Wood Bed Frames:

If you have a wood bed frame, take it completely apart, if you can, and wash it down (every inch) with Murphy’s Oil Soap. Spray the Murphy’s on and wipe it off. Don’t just spray it on a rag and wipe. The Murphy’s will kill bed bugs on contact, if you douse them. I don’t know what a light spray will do.

Since you are cleaning, you can pay close attention to all the little cracks and crevices in the wood and joinery, looking for all of the signs listed in step #13. The Pest Control Operator may spray the bed frame all over before you reassemble it. You may also consult the PCO about a pesticide you can use all over the frame if s/he will not do it. Take precautions and use pesticides only as labeled.

Captain’s beds (with drawers underneath a wooden platform) can be a bed bug nightmare. Consider destroying and carefully removing them. Otherwise, every piece will need to be disassembled, cleaned and sprayed with pesticide (by a PCO). A PCO who knows bed bugs will be able to advise about which items you should discard and which can be treated successfully.

Upholstered Headboards and Footboards:

Any upholstery is very difficult to treat successfully. Others may have different answers, but I would say to remove them from your frame, and vacuum and have the PCO treat them (or cautiously spray them with an upholstery safe insecticide). Let it dry completely, then seal the item in plastic wrap (ie. heavy painter’s tarp or shrink wrap plastic), duct tape all of the edges of the plastic and store it for a year to 18 months.

Another option that may or may not work is steaming with a very good quality steamer. A professional may do this as part of a PCO service. You may do it also. The steam may not reach deeply enough in heavily upholstered items without cooling and may only serve to drive the bugs in deeper. Some people have simply given up and tossed them out, frankly, as upholstered head- and footboards are hard to treat successfully. Again, ask the PCO whether the item can be salvaged.

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The FAQ on isolating the bed was originally written by Dee in Colorado, from information she compiled by asking the members of the Bedbugger Yahoo Group, a great source of support and information, in your war against bed bugs. It was edited and revised several times by Nobugsonme based on information we have since gathered about the downsides of isolating, and about products which were not available when the original FAQ was written.

Note from Nobugsonme: I have made a number of significant changes as of June 2008, including removing recommendations that people use the mechanical killer diatomaceous earth (DE) around the bed and on the floor.

I also strengthened the warning that “isolating” is controversial among bed bug experts. Many people would recommend you “protect” but do not isolate.

In June 2009, I added information on Climbup TM Interceptors, a new invention which is inexpensive and much preferable to cups of mineral or tea tree oil being placed under bed feet. I changed the directions to note that if this tool is used, people must NOT use vaseline or duct tape on bed legs, as it will prevent samples going into the monitor and being trapped.

If you choose to use DE in your home, read the DE FAQ, and ensure that your pest control operator approves of this self-treatment and where you’re doing it.

Among other things, I also changed the recommendations about mattress encasements. When this FAQ was written, few encasements were available, and few studies had been done about their effectiveness. Eighteen months later, it’s a completely different ballgame.

We have better products available now, and they can be more costly than the cheapest encasements which don’t work. But the best encasements can also be comparable in cost to ones that do not work.

If these pests are living in your bed and not crossing poison in order to bite you, you will never get rid of bed bugs. For this reason, I personally believe the quality of mattress, box spring, and pillow encasements are very, very important.

Thanks to Dee in Colorado, and all the other Bedbuggers who’ve contributed to this wonderful FAQ!

We learned everything we know by trial and error and advice from others. If you have had success with something other than what has been listed, please add it to the comments. Also, please feel free to add any other reputable sources for products.

If you need information on other aspects of your bed bug war, go back to the FAQs by clicking here. To read about or buy mattress encasements click here, and to buy DE, bed risers, metal frames, or any of the other stuff recommended above, you can click here to go to the Shop for Useful Stuff page.

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