Removing bed bugs with heat

t8769

Has anyone removed bed bugs with heat? I'm looking to buy  a heater or rent one to do this as I hear they are killed at high temperatures.

Thanks

ElephantBoy57

t8769 said:

Has anyone removed bed bugs with heat? I'm looking to buy  a heater or rent one to do this as I hear they are killed at high temperatures.

Does that kill the eggs too, how long are you hoping it takes?

neilmcl

You'd be better off buying a steamer instead and using that on your mattress.

JIL

I agree with the steamer.
Theres also a flea bomb thing the pet shop sells. My son got one for his house when he moved in due to a flea infestation from the cats. Although I was upset to see it also killed the spiders.

clive0510

I think I saw a program on the telly once where there was a infestation of bed bugs, and the department of the enviroment sent a team round  with equipment and they sorted it for no charge. so might be worth asking your local council first.

531063

Would a couple of sulphur candles work

Apodemus

What are you trying to heat?  In most domestic settings, short of burning the house down, there is no way you will get everything up to a sufficient temperature to kill an infestation of bed bugs.

chrisw

Google suggests it is a valid way of getting rid of them without using chemicals.

However, it would appear you have to heat the whole house/room to 50C/120F for a minimum of 1 hour. And that's the entire structure and contents, not just the room air temperature.

I don't think it's quite as simple as buying a heater, plugging it in and leaving it. 

t8769

Thanks for the info - useful.

Alter_ego

In Yemen at above 40 celsius bedbugs thrive- believe me I was that soldier!

kdotdotdotdot

When I worked in a tropical country, with daily temperatures of 30c, then bagging everything up and leaving it out in the sunshine for a day or two would 'probably' deal with bed bugs.  In this country?  Not a chance you'll get a temperature up high enough for long enough to do the damage.  

Despite the name, you can find BB in many things, so a combination of chemical treatment and steaming for large items such as mattresses, carpets and soft furnishings in the affected house (not just the one room you may have seen them in - they spread!), done weekly or bi-weekly along with washing everything else possible in the washing machine at highest temperature possible will help.  Then keep an eye out for reinfection.