Newsletter Article: Using a clothes dryer to kill bed bugs

Note: This is my most popular post! If you like the information here, check out www.stoppests.org/pest-solutions or find us on Twitter or Facebook!

This morning it was -13°F here in central NY. For those of you who aren’t familiar with inhumane, cold temperatures…-13°F is really cold.  I hope you never have to experience it.

So I thought today was as good a day as any to talk about heat.

In February 2010, two British scientists from the University of Sheffield, R. A. Naylor and C. J. Boase, published their studies on "Practical Solutions for Treating Laundry Infested with Cimex lectularius (Hemiperta: Cimicidae)" (aka Bed Bugs) in the Journal of Economic Entomology. For a more detailed summary of their findings, see fellow entomologist Mike Merchant’s blog: http://insectsinthecity.blogspot.com/2010/03/guidelines-for-killing-bed-bugs-in.html 

Naylor and Boase used freezing, dry cleaning, washing, and drying to kill all life stages of the bed bugs. I’m only going to report to you what worked 100% on all life stages (the eggs are hardest to kill).

Weight of dry laundry	Appliance	Target temperature	Time needed
5.5 lbs	Freezer	1.4°F*	10 hours*
---	Dry cleaners	---	---
7 lbs	Washer	140°F	30 minutes
7 lbs	Clothes dryer	120°F	30 minutes

*Update (10/2012): Research out of UMN found that it takes 4 days at 0°F to kill a bed bug!

Keep in mind that appliances and building-wide water temperature settings will vary. Be mindful of whether your freezers, washers, and dryers are capable of reaching the target temperatures. How can you know? Hot water temperature should be set for the building. The temperatures of dryers and freezers can be determined fairly accurately using an infrared thermometer. Purchasing one of these instruments may be overkill if you’re going to use it for this application alone, but there are all sorts of great uses for infrared thermometers (both fun and practical). Look into it and see for yourself.

Below you’ll find this month’s newsletter article for you to share with residents. I only included dryer recommendations based on this study because this seems to be the most practical recommendation for low-income housing in the US. And I didn’t want the article to be too long.

On a related note: one product you may have heard about is the dissolvable laundry bag. I do know of some housing authorities that are supplying dissolvable laundry bags to residents who are working to get rid of bed bugs. They are an option that you may want to make available to reduce the likelihood that residents will re-infest their belongings and homes by using the same container to transport fabric from and back to their homes.

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Did you know: you can kill bed bugs and their eggs with a clothes dryer?

You will need: 2 trash bags for each load of laundry.

1. Put about 7 pounds of laundry in a trash bag. Any fabric that can take high heat can be put in the dryer. Consider bags, pillows, and curtains as well as clothes and bedding.
2. Empty the bag of laundry into a dryer.
3. Tie off the empty trash bag and throw it away.
4. Run the dryer for 30 minutes on the hottest setting.
5. Take laundry out of the dryer and put it into the other, unused, trash bag.
6. Bring home the bed bug free laundry in the bed bug free bag.

Bed bugs like to hide in more than just fabric. If you find a bed bug, call [ENTER PHA WORK ORDER #]. [PHA] will pay for pest control services if you report the problem and cooperate with control efforts. For more pest control information, check out StopPests on Facebook or Twitter.

Comments

[Sam Bryks]

good information...
there is always a concern about whether the heat in the dryer is reaching the kill point.
if the system is controlled by thermostat, and there is a licenced heat and air conditioning tech to confirm it is reaching that kill temp, then that's great, but i have found some systems just don't deliver the temperature. One could check by using an infrared thermometer to do spot checks by stopping the cycle for a few seconds, opening the door and taking a surface reading on the clothing towards the end of the cycle when it has lost most of the moisture. Surface readings when the clothing is not at end of cycle can be deceiving as the surface is hot but the mass of clothing may not be at the kill temp at the end of the cycle. Taking the reading at the end of the cycle gives a more accurate confirmation. Another way to measure the temp is using a datalogger temperature sensor that takes readings on a set frequency and the data can be downloaded into a computer by a usb cable.
The loggers have to be well protected (I put the ones i used into a thick sock and leave them in the dryer for the full cycle). It absolutely confirms the kill temp.
the infrared thermometers are pretty good and not expensive, and easy to use. We learned some of the nuances by using both during a trial run and that is how we know that the infrareds are not accurate early in the cycle as the core temp of the laundry load is not at kill when the infrareds show kill on surface early on.
Most dryers reach the kill temp without an issue, and the commercial laundry driers are pretty good, but if there was a deficient system, and heavy infestation, it won't kill the eggs.

[Steph Reitmeier]

The target temperatures for the washer and dryer correspond to what I've heard from other reputable sources, but I've heard various things about the amount of time they need to be sustained at that temperature.

This is what I've been wondering for awhile though: if someone were to wash and dry their clothes to get rid of the bedbugs...where do the bed bugs go? should we also be instructing people to clean out the washer and dryer after use - to prevent the dead bed bugs from getting on the next person's laundry???

[Allie Taisey]

Hi Steph,

With washing, the bed bugs should just go out with the water. In a dryer, the dead bugs may get caught in the lint screen.

I think the risk of dead bed bugs getting on the next person's laundry is low. Plus, one shouldn't treat for bed bugs until a live bed bug or viable egg is found. Finding a dead bed bug in clean laundry would not warrant further control, just continued vigilant inspection.

Thanks for your creative thinking!

[Elizabeth]

Can I kill the eggs of bedbugs if I just use the dryer and not the washing machine?

[Allie]

Elizabeth-
Absolutely. 30 minutes on high heat will kill bed bugs and their eggs if the clothes are dry going into the machine.

[Bed Bugs Exterminator Gramercy Nyc]

I really like your post. I found it incredibly usefull. I have to visit your website again some day.Thanks for posting your insights and experiences.

[Bee Exterminator GreenwichVillage Nyc]

This is a problem that effects a lot of people from all walks of life, bugs, all bugs can invade someones home and more or less take over without intervention.

[Best Washer And Dryer Reviews]

Some really helpful info here. I was looking exactly for the temperature to kill these bugs. I already use a clothes dryer and it seems to work good for me. Thanks again.

[donatella]

could you please tell me is a washer/dryer machine (combined) has the requested drying temperature to kill bedbugs (at all life stages)? I can choose the temperature for the washing but there is no choice for the drying - you can only set the cycle to drying only and choose the time.
I have tried to find these information on the internet but could not find it anywhere. thank you so mych for your help in adavance. Donatella (from UK)

[Allie]

Hi Donatella,

It's my understanding that your combination machine probably uses a condenser dryer (rather than venting to the outside). These systems still use heat and often take longer to dry clothes. I couldn't find information on the temperature of the drying cycle either.

30 minutes in a dryer that reaches 120F (~49C) will kill bed bugs. To determine if your dryer meets this standard, I would get a rapid-read thermometer (infrared or one used to take a child's temperature), open your machine after 30 minutes in the dry cycle, and take the temperature of the middle of the pile of (probably still damp) clothes. If the temperature is 120F or above, you should be able to reliably use your dryer for bed bug management.

Please let us know what you find out!

Thanks for the great question,
Allie

[Sally]

I have two bed bug questions...

If you put something like a pillow or stuffed animal in the dryer will the temp at the center of the item get hot enough to kill a bed bug, or could they potentially burrow into the center of the item to avoid some of the heat?

Also about 24-48 hours after staying at a hotel I noticed several cluster of bed bug bites. It took a few days for these bites to show up. Will each bite take approximately the same length of time to show up or will some of the less severe bites take an extra day to appear? I've had a couple of random bites appear a couple days later so I'm in panic mode right now.

Any advise would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[Susannah Reese, StopPests in Housing]

Sally, Research shows stuffed animals (and clothing, bedding, shoes, rugs etc) can be put in the drier for 30 minutes (full load)on a high setting. Drier temp should reach 175 degrees.
Since everyone reacts differently to bed bug bites I can't say for sure how long it would take for them to appear on you. Best to be safe and monitor and inspect for bed bugs. There's monitors you can place under the legs of your bed (ClimbUp interceptors are one example).
Good Luck!
-Susannah

[Elizabeth]

Of the "whites and colors", "perm. press", or "delicates", which has the hottest temperature?

[PC]

The whites and colors setting would be the hottest setting.

[JK]

Dear Author,

We came back from a holiday in the USA recently, and although we checked the beds for bed bugs we still found a bed bug 5 nights into our stay. Our belongings were heat treated there - we were told for 2.5 / 3 hours at 140 degrees (at a textile laundry facility), but when sorting our belongings afterwards we had more bites. Now home and trying to decide what to do with our stuff.

Do we have cause for concern? Is it possible some bugs survived the treatment e.g. during transportation (to and from the treatment facility)?

We are terrified of infesting our house, so are planning to wash and dry the clothes and freeze the rest, but would like to minimize damaging our clothes - some care labels say only low heat tumble dry, so what are our options? Is it worth washing and drying them on high heat once hoping that after 1 time they won't be damaged? If the clothes survived the treatment facility will they survive the dryer?

Is freezing in a normal household freezer at 0 degrees F effective?

Thanks

[Susannah Reese]

Hi JK, Sorry about your troubles with bed bugs. I will answer your question more fully in an email reply but just to share a few tips with other readers. Any items that can be put in the clothes dryer (dry clean only items can go in dryer) should be put in for 30 minutes on highest setting. don't over stuff the dryer. Any items you are unsure of put in plastic bags until you have time to inspect or throw in the dryer. Freezing is iffy and can get mixed results. But, in a pinch you can use a freezer set at zero and leave for at least three days. Remember one straggler won't necessarily mean you will get an infestation. you would need a mating pair or a pregnant female. ~Susannah

[jay]

my kids have been geeting bite marks on them for the past 6 weeks and we assumed it was fleas the other day i discovered it was bed bugs and so in a quick panic I threw the bed out. we have been cleaning both bedrooms and the living room my question is how long should I hold off before I put my clothing the stuff back into the bedroom and use my dressers again?

[Susannah Reese]

Hello Jay, I’m sorry I can’t go into much detail in response to your question but I can share links for you to figure out the best treatment strategy for your home. There are too many difference in each bed bug case for me to say for sure if you’ve gotten rid of them all. They are really good at hiding. I would suggest using monitors like these:
Monitor Suppliers
Passive bed bug monitors suppliers: (ClimbUp Insect Interceptors: www.insect-interceptor.com, SenSci Volcano Bed Bug Detector: www.bedbugcentral.com or LightsOut sold by Protect-a-Bed

just examples, you can find these types of monitors sometimes at walmart or other retail stores. If you don’t have bed legs just putting them next to the head side of your beds will work too. I’ve also put a DIY video on how to make your own out of recycled containers from the university of FL on our stop pests Youtube https://www.youtube.com/user/StopPests

Also, mattresses can be saved by thorough vacuuming and/or steaming and then putting a mattress encasement on it and the box spring.
I would suggest hiring a professional. But if you are determined to do this yourself your best bet is inspection inspection inspection, monitors, vacuuming, mattress and box spring encasements, clothes dryer (even things that are dry clean only can be put in the dryer) 30 min on high kills bed bugs, and one product you could use that works is usually in the gardening section of most retail stores w a garden section. This is diatomaceous earth. Apply Lightly! I would stay away from bug bombs – they are ineffective, and over the counter sprays. They only work when you spray the bugs directly and bed bugs hide really well.
For more info see these links:
https://www.bedbugs.umn.edu/homeowners-and-tenants/successful-treatment
https://www.bedbugs.umn.edu/homeowners-and-tenants/understanding-treatments
https://www.bedbugs.umn.edu/bed-bug-control-in-residences
Good Luck,
Susannah

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