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“THE BED BUG GUYS” do not use Pesticides with Heat Treatments. “Bed Bug Guys” successfully eradicated over 99% of Bed Bug infestations treated with Heat, with failures attributed to the tenants/owner failures of proper preparation which is the #1 cause of treatment failures and tenants re-infesting the units repeatedly. During a recent Bed Bug infestation, the exterminators were at Mr. Ball’s unit in Alamance County, NC using a heat treatment, which is the preferred way to kill bedbugs. Mike Waldvogel, extension specialist and extension associate professor at N.C. State University’s department of entomology, said Heat Treatment is a pricey procedure, but effective without using harsh chemicals. Alamance County Health Department say’s Bed Bugs are not considered a public health threat but a nuisance by state laws and public health officials. A new law in Arizona requires the Tenants to notify the land lord of Bed Bugs and the land lords are not able to sign leases of infested apartments. Waldvogel said bedbugs die at 113 degrees Fahrenheit, and treatment heaters are used to heat homes from 125 to 130 degrees Fahrenheit. He said exterminators have residents open their closets and prop up their mattresses so the heat can penetrate all clothing and furniture in the home. But that’s not what’s happening at Ball’s unit, said Oates. She’s concerned because she said Woodridge Apartments is demanding Ball remove the infested furniture and clothing, and they’re only exterminating the actual living space. Could you imagine throwing away thousands of dollars and everything you own. You can prevent throwing away anything, saving you thousands of dollars and not using Harsh chemicals by hiring “THE BED BUG GUYS”. We do not use Pesticides with our Heat Treatments. We have successfully eradicated over 99% of Bed Bug infestations treated with Heat, with failures attributed to the tenants/owner failures of proper preparation which is the #1 cause of treatment failures and tenants re-infesting the units repeatedly. read the rest of the Alamance County article...

Of all the bugs that can bug a person, bed bugs may be the worst, due to their biting and ability to invade furniture. One Maryland woman had to face this nightmare, but was handsomely compensated by a court for the pain. 69-year-old Faika Shaaban was awarded $800,000 last week in a lawsuit against the landlord of an Annapolis apartment she rented. The Baltimore Sun has more: In the Shaaban case, the lawsuit alleged that the infestation had not been cleared up when Shaaban rented the apartment at the end of September 2011, and that Barrett, the landlord, did not respond to another tenant’s complaints about bedbugs. Annapolis records show Barrett was taking steps in August 2011 to remedy a mice and potential bedbug infestation When Shaaban went in April 2012 to Anne Arundel County housing officials for help in finding a new apartment, [her attorney, Daniel W. Whitney] said, she was told the rash was from bedbugs. The landlord’s effort to deal with the bedbugs worsened the infestation and damaged her personal property, Whitney said. When Shaaban was evicted, scavengers took her belongings from the curb — despite her short-lived sign advising people not to, Whitney said. “All of these items went into the community infested,” he said. Shaaban’s award breaks down to $150,000 in compensatory damages and $650,000 in punitive damages. This is one of the highest sums of money ever awarded to a bed bug victim, according to the Sun. Contact the author of this article or email tips@dcist.com with further questions, comments or tips Article from:...

SOUTH COLUMBUS — An extermination attempt may have caused a house fire in South Columbus early Wednesday morning. The family was trying to get rid of bedbugs. “My grandson came running in telling me he seen bugs in the couch,” Janet Estep said, homeowner. Estep’s fiancé, Chuck Adams, sprayed their couch with bug spray. Estep had no idea, and when she lit a lighter in her own home, it sparked. Fire crews got to the home before 4:00 a.m. Estep lives with Adams and her four grandchildren. What started as a bug problem turned into a mad rush for the door. Now, bed bugs are the least of her worries. “Everybody was trying to throw water around, saying lets get it out. It hadn’t caught fire to anything yet.” Estep said. Family members tried to get the couch out of the house. When that didn’t work, they all just got out of the building. Estep said it’s a close call that could’ve been much more than bugs.Read More at:...

Bedbugs are a growing public health issue in the United States and around the world, but their resurgence in recent years may have been aided by humans who unwittingly helped the pests evolve numerous ways of thwarting a common insecticide, scientists say. In a new study published online today in Scientific Reports, researchers examined the genes of bedbugs from different U.S. cities and found that several of the populations had multiple means of resisting a class of insecticides called pyrethroids. Pyrethroid insecticides are commonly used in bedbug control because of their relative safety for humans and pets, effectiveness, and low cost, but their use has also led to widespread development of resistance in the pests. (Learn about bedbugs and how to tell if you have them.) To investigate how some bedbugs were defending themselves, scientists compared the genes of 20 pyrethroid-resistant populations of the insects from around the country against a susceptible colony from Los Angeles, California. The team identified 14 genes that coded for proteins that were expressed at higher levels in the resistant insects, compared with the nonresistant Los Angeles population. Insecticide Armor Further investigation revealed that all of these “overexpressed” genes were active in the tough outer shell of resistant bedbugs, and either helped neutralize pyrethroid insecticides before they could take effect or prevented them from entering the insects’ bodies in the first place. “Many mechanisms of resistance seem to be in play in these various populations simultaneously,” said study co-author Kenneth Haynes, an entomologist at the University of Kentucky. The study also revealed that despite sometimes being separated by hundreds of miles, resistant bedbug colonies utilized many of the same genes to protect themselves against pyrethroid insecticides. Bedbugs by themselves aren’t very mobile, but Haynes suspects the bugs are catching rides with humans—or rather, their furniture. “The transcontinental transport of furniture is likely a major source of [bedbug] movement,” he said. Long-Distance Relations Human involvement would also explain another puzzling pattern, recently discovered by scientists at North Carolina State University, in which bedbugs from different cities were sometimes more closely related to one another than to other populations from the same city. “We see isolated pockets where bedbugs across town may not be closely related...

By TONY BLAIS, QMI Agency EDMONTON — A Calgary exterminator held responsible for sparking a massive fire at a downtown Edmonton condo while battling bedbugs is being sued for nearly $4 million. According to a statement of claim filed in Edmonton’s Court of Queen’s Bench on Sept. 5, Bed Bug Task Force Ltd., company owner Andrew Holden, employee Steve Throndson and c, the condo tenant who hired the exterminator, are among the defendants. Trying to quell the infestation of bedbugs led to the downtown fire that forced scores of people from their homes at the Royal Scot building near 105 Avenue and 92 Street. (AMBER BRACKEN/QMI AGENCY) Several U.S. companies linked to the ThermaPure Heat pest extermination process are also defendants in the $3.95-million lawsuit which was launched by the Royal Scot Condominium Corp. and some condo owners. The pest-control company was working at the Royal Scot Condominium, 10514 92 St., on July 12, 2011, when they started a $3.5-million blaze that injured five people — including three children — and displaced 50 others. Investigators at the time said the fire was sparked by a propane heater the company was using to exterminate an infestation of bedbugs on the fourth-floor of the condo complex. On Monday, Bed Bug Task Force was fined $10,000 after pleading guilty in provincial court to one count of conducting hot works in an area not free of combustible and flammable contents under the Alberta Fire Code. According to the statement of claim, Bed Bug Task Force went to unit 408 at the condo complex to perform bedbug extermination services at the request of Spracklin. As a result of the use of the heat process and related equipment on the unit’s balcony, a fire broke out and spread to other units, according to the statement of claim, which also alleges the fire led to the evacuation of the entire complex and resulted in the complete reconstruction of a large portion of the building. The lawsuit alleges Bed Bug Task Force and Holden failed to properly train its employees in the heat process used to exterminate pests, failed to perform services in a skilled and competent manner, failed to use proper techniques and used equipment that...

It truly is hard to sleep tight when the bed bugs bite, since these insidious creatures are very real, and very nasty. You’ll have to be persistent to get rid of them. View How to Get Rid of Bed Bugs on...