Bed bug complaints rise in the Flathead
If you notice a nice new mattress at the green boxes, don’t even think about taking it home.
You may end up with some tiny, blood-sucking guests who won’t leave short of chemical and cleaning warfare.
Dan “the bug man” Keyser of Complete Pest Service Inc. said bed bugs have been “ramping up” in the Flathead Valley in the last couple of years.
“Mostly you see them in motel rooms, apartments and a few dwellings,” Keyser said.
He confirmed what the Flathead City-County Health Department has heard from residents recently.
In a press release, health officials provided advice on recognizing, preventing and treating bed bugs — described as rusty red with oval, wingless, flat bodies adorned with antennae and small eyes.
Joe Russell, city-county health officer, had at least a little good news: “Bed bugs are not known to transmit disease.”
Russell said they do have a negative impact on people who wake up with large, itchy welts that last up to two weeks from the bed bug’s painless bite. People may speed up recovery by using over-the-counter anti-itch or anti-inflammatory remedies and antihistamines.
Jody White, community health director, said bed bugs always have been around this area. Complaints and inquiries about them cycle up and down.
Bed bugs often sneak into homes on used furniture, luggage and clothing. They travel from unit to unit or room to room along pipes or wiring.
White said bed bugs often evade homeowner attempts to evict them. The tiny insects snuggle deep in mattresses, sofa and chair cushions or hide in obscure places such as electrical outlets and cracks or crevices around baseboards.
Even cold weather won’t get rid of them. White said a camp in the Flathead Valley found bed bugs in the early spring after the buildings went through the winter with no heat.
“Usually, you have to have a professional exterminator come in,” she said.
Keyser, a veteran of 30 years, said even exterminators find getting rid of bed bugs a challenge. He uses a combination of insecticides, flushing agents and thorough deep cleaning and vacuuming.
Steam is effective in eliminating bed bugs, he said. According to Keyser, cold doesn’t get rid of them because the eggs survive a long time in a dormant state until the weather warms up.
The cost of exterminating varies because infestations and houses vary. Keyser said inspection plays a key role in effective control because bed bugs hide in unexpected places such as cracks in picture or bed frames and dresser drawers.
If a mattress is very infested, Keyser recommends throwing it out. It takes steam and laundering at high heat to get bed bugs out of curtains and bedspreads.
The health department recommends prevention activities such as washing clothing and bedding immediately after returning from a trip and inspecting all used beds, sofas and bedding for signs of bed bugs before bringing the furniture into your home.
For a light infestation, health officials said people can wash all bedding, draperies and clothing in hot water on a regular basis; steam clean and vacuum carpets and use pyrethrin-based insecticides labeled for home use to kill bed bugs hiding in walls and other large objects.
The health department urges care when applying insecticides around children, the elderly or immune-compromised people.