As nature would have it, bed bugs are one of the most difficult pests to control. You can blame this on their ability to multiply quickly, hide in extremely tiny spaces and go without their preferred meal (human blood), for a long period of time. In just one year, bed bugs can produce three to four generations. If you’re not a bed bug exterminator in Winnipeg, attempting to eliminate bed bugs could turn into an apparition hunting expedition that never comes to an end - as soon as you think you just got rid of them, they come back again. 

Complete eradication calls for professional pest control services and even for this to be successful, the right process must be followed.  You, the homeowner must play a very crucial role in the complete eradication of bed bugs in your house. This role is to properly prepare before the actual extermination. These are some of the prep activities to undertake:

The first thing to do is to expose potential hiding places. Pull all the furniture and baseboards away from the walls; 2 feet away should be enough. If you have bookcases and desks, you will need to empty them to expose all the joints and also give space for treatments. In the bedroom, lift the mattress off the bed frame and stand it against the walls. Then for all your closets, empty them and put the clothes in plastic bags then move them to a central place, again away from the walls. All the wall hangings must also all come down for inspection and treatment so remove any art pieces or mirrors hanging on the wall. This may feel like you’re turning your house upside down but all these things are critical in preparation for treatment, something as simple as flinging bed sheets onto the floor can relocate bed bugs.

Laundering is a critical step in preparation for bed bug treatment. Laundering everything that can be laundered, at the highest allowable heat setting in the washer and dryer has been proven to kill all of the bedbugs’ stages- from the eggs to mature bed bugs. Some critical things to launder include drapes, bedding, and stuffed animals. Of course, you also want to stick to the manufacturer's labels in regards to allowed heat because again you don’t want to damage your laundry. Once clean and dry, all laundered items should be placed in clean/ new plastic bags - not the bags used to transport laundry before cleaning. Ensure you seal all these plastic bags.

Also, to give the exterminator even more access to hidden areas, unplug all the electronic devices in the rooms being exterminated.

You should also do some vacuum cleaning. Vacuuming is a mechanical way to get rid of bed bugs making it an important part of preparation. Vacuum floors, carpets and area rugs, mattresses, bed frames, sofas - practically vacuum everything that can be vacuumed. After you’re done, discard all vacuum bags

At GL Pest Control, we issue all our customers a list of specific preparation activities to complete before our team arrives. Yours is just to follow the recommendations. These activities may seem daunting but they are critical as lack of preparation could cause re-infestation of your entire home.