KILLING BED BUGS
WITH STEAM
by Mark Rosenberg, Steam Australia
For a wingless insect Bed Bugs can sure get around. They would have to be the experts on hitch hiking from anywhere in the world to anywhere else in the world and with their main host, humans, can do it faster than any other animal or insect.
B
ed Bugs have now ranged further than our beds and can be found anywhere humans congregate. Motels, backpackers, B&B’s, cinemas and aircraft are just some of the places they are found. They can change hosts mid transit hopping from clothing and baggage in the search of your blood. There are plenty of clinical reports and information on Bed Bugs including identifying the two main species found in Australia, their preferred habitats, feeding and breeding cycles here. Bed Bug infestations can be treated either by an expensive pest controller using approved insecticides, mainly synthetic pyrethroids that have a residual activity and they may not be effective and can even repel the bugs without killing them. They simply up stakes and move to an untreated area. Other chemicals used are carbamates and organophosphates that are far more effective but may not be recommended for use on mattresses and in most cases need several follow up treatments to break the breeding cycle. Some people may not be tolerant to chemicals like asthma and allergy suffers (like myself) and will need a chemical free approach to the problem. I personally clean all my bedding including blankets, pillows and doonas with steam and vacuum on a regular basis. Not only to remove dust and pollens, dead skin and smells but also any bed bugs, fleas and other little nasties I have picked up in my travels. I have found myself more venerable
62