Macomb and St. Clair Counties
Bed Bug Preparation Checklist
To treat for bed bugs, Aapex Pest Control uses a high temperature steam and chemical treatment. A typical service can range between 4 and 6 hours.
Cooperation is crucial in bed bug infestations. Please DO NOT move items from one room to another or between homes while getting ready for service. This may spread bed bugs to other areas of the home or reintroduce them to your newly treated home later when retrieving your belongings. Treatment alone does not result in elimination. To achieve satisfactory results, the following steps must be completed by the customer prior to our arrival:
- Everything that can be laundered should be laundered. Gather all bedding (sheets, pillows, comforters, bed skirts), clothing (from drawers, closets, under beds), stored linens (blankets, towels), etc… (curtains, stuffed animals) from around the home. Wash in the highest allowable water temperature and then dry on the hottest allowable heat setting (only high heat eliminates all stages of bed bugs including their eggs). Place all clean items in new, unused, thick plastic contractor bags and seal them tightly. Leave everything bagged until after our treatment. Once our service is complete and the chemical we apply has dried, these items can be placed back around the home. All items that cannot be laundered should be dry cleaned.
- Eliminate all clutter. Place all belongings such as shoes, toys, books, CD’s, DVD’s, photos, knick knacks, personal effects, etc… from the rooms to be steam treated in plastic storage containers or thick plastic contractor bags with a ‘no-pest strip’. This includes all items in closets, vanities, drawers, underneath beds, on and/or in furniture (dressers, night stands, desks, filing cabinets, shelves, coffee tables, TV stands), etc… Remove everything attached to the walls such as headboards, pictures, artwork, wall clocks, shelves and decorations. Blinds do not have to be taken down, they can remain in place. If an item is too large to store in a container or bag, leave it in the center of the room to be inspected and treated as necessary. All these stored belongings should remain enclosed with the ‘no-pest strip’ for at least 3 weeks before being placed back around the home.
- Vacuum home completely. Thoroughly vacuum flooring including hardwoods, carpet, area rugs and the insides of closets. Use the crack and crevice attachment tools around the baseboards. Vacuum the seams and general surface areas of mattresses, box springs, furniture and cushions. Don’t forget the underside of box springs and furniture. If a sofa contains a fold out bed, vacuum and remove the mattress for treatment. Vacuum bed frames, shelves and drawers. Seal vacuum contents in double plastic bags and discard outside immediately.
- Remove animals from the home. Pets such as birds, cats, dogs, etc… must remain out of the home during treatment and after for at least 1-2 hours or until the chemical has dried. Reptile and fish habitats should be covered with a plastic bag and the filtration systems turned off if they cannot be removed from the home.
Service cannot be performed until the home is completely prepped as stated above. It is imperative that we all do our part to ensure a successful treatment.