As 2011 is nearing its end, you might have thought that you were becoming safer from bed bug infestations.  NYC pest control professionals warn residents to not let their guard down lest these creepy pests sneak in and wreak havoc in your home or business.  Published in August of 2011, the National Pest Management Association (NPMA) and the University of Kentucky released their 2011 “Bugs Without Borders Survey”.  The compelling information provides insight as to where we stand in the war against America’s bed bugs.

The new survey from the NPMA reveals that 99% of the pest control professionals that were surveyed confirmed that they have treated bed bug infestations during the past 12 months.  Of those who responded, 73% believe that bed bugs are they most difficult pest to treat.  Infestations are occurring in homes as well as public arenas such as college dorms, hotels, schools, retail stores, day care centers hospitals, movie theaters, airplanes, taxis, buses, and apartment buildings.

Nationwide, the increase in reports of bed bug infestations is staggering in comparison to information collected just one year prior.  According to the NPMA, examples of bed bugs increasing include:

• College dorms:  Current: 54% – Previous 35%
• Hotels/Motels:  Current:  80% – Previous 67%
• Nursing Homes:  Current:  46% – Previous 25%
• Office Buildings:  Current:  38% – Previous 18%
• Schools/Day Care Centers:  Current:  36% – Previous 10%
• Hospitals:  Current:  31% – Previous 12%
• Transportation (train, bus, taxi):  Current: 18% – Previous 9%
• Movie Theaters:  Current:  17% – Previous 5%

You may read these and more bed bug statistics from the National Pest Management here.

A NYC pest control expert like Stern Environmental Group can help you pin-point the exact location of your bed bug infestation problem.  We have multiple treatment options available and state-of-the art equipment to kill bloodsucking bed bugs with the greatest of ease.

Like New York City bed bugs, bed bug infestations in Canada have proven to be a difficult pest for home and business owners to eradicate.  Like NYC pest control professionals, Canadian pest control experts have had to come up with creative ways to try to combat the bloodsucking parasites to stop them dead in their tracks.

Many libraries in the United States and Canada have suffered from bed bug infestations.  Libraries are particularly susceptible to bed bugs because people often read books in their bed and place the book on the bed, nightstand, dresser or other nearby furniture piece.  If a home has an ongoing bed bug infestation, it is very easy for tiny bed bugs to crawl into the book binding area or between the pages of the books.  These books are then transported back to the library where they have infested books, pictures, tables, chairs, and upholstered furniture.  Additionally, females could easily lay eggs within the book that would not be detected by untrained personnel.  Those eggs would have the opportunity to be delivered back to the library, hatch, and then venture out to bite other library patrons, or even hitch a ride home with another host thereby spreading the infestation.

A Library System in Canada, which shares books and other materials among 18 libraries, spent several months battling bed bugs that were inadvertently transported from one library location to several other library locations.  In an effort to avoid that bed bug nightmare from occurring again, they have decided to use the NightWatch Bed Bug Monitor reported The Globe and Mail on December 12, 2011.  The monitors/traps will be used in the trucks that transport library books and materials between the different libraries within the system, but are not designed to work in a space as large as the libraries.  In addition to using the NightWatch Bed Bug Monitor, bed bug sniffing dogs will be called to root out the bloodsuckers if there are any bed bugs that the NightWatch captures.

Stern Environmental Group offers the NightWatch Bed Bug Monitor in our online Marketplace as well as many other fantastic bed bug products for both home and business owners.

The Bed Bug Summit for Pest Management Professionals in Chicago, Illinois was a huge hit once again this month!  The incredible summit may be over, but the information we learned is invaluable.  During the course of the summit, pest control experts were fortunate enough to see many new bed bug products that will be hitting the market in the upcoming months.  These interesting products will enter the market in hopes of helping consumers and businesses win the war against bed bug infestations.

One new product that will soon be available is the “Bed Bug Plug”.  Discreetly disguised as a typical looking electrical outlet, this interesting bed bug device is actually a bed bug monitor and trap.

Bed bugs are small in stature and are notorious for their bite and hide activity.  Additionally, it is estimated that approximately 50% of people have the allergic reaction to the bite of bed bugs that result in painful itching, swelling, and redness.  Absence of the irritation and the lack of seeing the bloodsuckers typically will allow the infestation to grow unnoticed for a good period of time.

The Bed Bug Plug attracts bed bugs by the low level heat and moisture that it emits.  This innovative device not only attracts cowardly bloodsucking bed bugs that like to slurp, run, and hide, it also serves as a trap to keep bed bugs away from you!  Once bed bugs enter the “electrical outlet”, bed bugs are trapped on the sticky glue traps that are on the inside.  You even have the option of purchasing this unit with a real operational electrical outlet, making it even more versatile.  The Bed Bug Plus is economical because each glue trap remains effective for 3 months before a replacement trap is needed.

These new monitor/traps are economical and are perfect for college dorms, homes and hotel rooms too.  They are perfect for travelers who are concerned about picking up bed bugs while they travel and homeowners concerned about guests bringing bed bugs into their abode.

Watch for this new item in Stern Environmental Group’s Marketplace soon!

Could you imagine living with bed bugs attacking you each night for six very long years?  Residents in a Brooklyn apartment building claim that they have been living a hellish bed bug nightmare, with little relief provided by their landlord.

According to reports by the New York Daily News on August 30, 2011, tenants in the Bay Ridge building in Brooklyn have been battling the bloodsucking pests since 2005.  Long-time residents claim to have spent huge amounts of money replacing mattresses and furniture in an effort to escape the nighttime nibblers.  Residents have been forced to keep their belongings in plastic bags so that they can remain free of bed bugs.  Tenants claim that on occasion, pest control experts have been called to provide treatment to a unit here or there in the building, but the bed bug problem persists because the entire building has never received bed bug treatment at the same time.  “The landlord currently has 43 open housing code violations, with the most recent bed bug violation issued August 16th.”  The residents also complain of trouble with rodents running amuck in the building.

You may read the article here.

It’s important to educate yourself about bed bug infestations if you want to win the war against them.  Mattresses can be saved with the help of Protect-A-Bed Mattress Encasements.   These amazing covers will trap any remaining bed bugs and their eggs inside of the encasement and keep any new bed bugs from being able to infest the exterior of the mattress. The special bite-proof cover guarantees that you won’t need to worry about any existing bed bugs biting through the fabric or escaping into your home.

There is a variety of bed bug monitors that can help trap and control bed bug infestations.  Working in conjunction with pest control services, these devices will help get an infested building or room under control in no time at all.

If you live in a rental unit, communication and cooperation with your landlord about how bed bug preparations, treatments, monitoring, and follow-up will occur is paramount to the successful elimination of any bed bug infestation.

Incoming college students have many things to prepare for as they plan for their upcoming school year.  New Jersey pest control experts say that in addition to worrying about moving themselves into on-site student housing facilities and off-site campus housing units, all students should be mindful of the risk of encountering bed bug infestations at their college.

Their ability to hitchhike with great ease, their propensity to hide, and their slight stature, makes the college environment quite suitable for nasty bed bugs.  College students come from all walks of life and bed bugs know no socio economic difference.
Some people may have a bed bug infestation in their home, but never know it because they do not suffer the allergic reaction to the bites of the bed bugs.  Some students may be bed bug free when they left on their college journey, but unwittingly may have picked up the critters at a hotel while traveling to their college destination.  It is not unheard of for people to even pick up the bloodsuckers while traveling on airplanes, trains, buses, taxis or subways.

The bad news for students is, that once you have bed bugs, their bites are usually painful and they will spread throughout a residential facility like wildfire.  Once a student has bed bugs, the bloodsucking hitchhikers can easily be transferred to other university locations such as libraries, classrooms, student centers, or even taken home to their own family when they visit.  Bed bugs are an extremely difficult pest to eradicate.

A new study from the National Pest Management “Bugs Without Borders” revealed that pest management professionals think that college dorms are the number one place to find bed bugs.  The study showed that 35% of all pest management professionals treated dorms in the United States last year.  This year, the numbers have risen to 54%!

Please check back on Wednesday for the conclusion.