Preventing Bed Bugs While Working in Homes

In this post I will give suggestions for how people who do work in bed bug infested settings can prevent hitchhiking bed bugs.

When I took this job—coordinating IPM trainings in public housing—I knew I would be pulling together resources and developing training materials for PHA staff and residents (available at www.stoppests.org). The trainings we put together bring everyone involved in an IPM program on the same page. Then the real work begins.

It takes a team to stop pests using IPM and, although we always anticipated their involvement, we didn’t develop materials targeted at health educators, inspectors, and social workers. These folks are invaluable to our implementation efforts. They can help inspect, motivate residents through enforcement, and effectively work with residents who have limitations.

So what’s in it for them?
In exchange for doing their part in helping residents work towards healthy homes, hopefully I can give advice that prepares them to work despite the threat of bed bugs. Those who do work in our residents’ homes have been asking me what they can do to prevent bringing home bed bugs. I want to respond not only to keep their homes bed-bug-free, but also to keep them from spreading bed bugs throughout the day.

Before I get into the how-to, I want to stress that we should not deny someone service because they have bed bugs. These insects do not jump or fly and generally remain hidden. They aren’t going to make an extra effort to get on us as we walk around. Also understand that introduction and infestation are different. It takes multiple bed bugs, a food source, and time for an infestation to establish and grow. Understand that bed bugs like to be where they can hide near where people regularly rest. In homes, living rooms and bed rooms are most at-risk.

My advice is to print out, read, follow, and share the factsheet that Drs. Stephen Kells and Dini Miller put together for The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

http://www.vdacs.virginia.gov/pesticides/pdffiles/bb-healthcare1.pdf

Based on their guidance, when I work in homes...

• I wear simple, light colored clothing that doesn’t have places where bed bugs could fall or crawl in and hide—no cuffs or folds. I wear leather clogs because there are no laces and fabric for bed bugs to get stuck in.
• I keep a bag in my car containing two plastic bags, an extra set of clothes, and an extra pair of shoes. If I end up working in a unit where I see bed bugs crawling around and I think one got on me, before going into another home I change into this extra set. I put the clothes and shoes I wore into the plastic bags. Once home I put the clothes in a hot dryer for 30 minutes on high heat. I inspect the shoes carefully and then keep my bed bug clogs in a freezer or in the tied bag in my car.
• I only carry what I’ll need into the home and I keep these items in a bag I can carry. I never sit on upholstered furniture or set my bag down. If I have to move an infested item, I am very careful and inspect my clothes immediately after.

I don’t worry too much about my vehicle. It’s not an ideal place for an infestation to establish and anything I think has bed bugs on it gets sealed in a plastic bag before going in my trunk.

I hope that this helps! Feel free to ask questions in the comment section below.

To learn more about bed bugs and their control, explore…

Bed Bug TV:
http://www.bedbugcentral.com/tv/

Central Ohio Bed Bug Task Force:
http://centralohiobedbugs.org/

Illinois Department of Public Health:
http://www.idph.state.il.us/envhealth/pcbedbugs.htm

National Pesticide Information Center:
http://npic.orst.edu/pest/bedbug.html

NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene: http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/bedbugs/html/home/home.shtml

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency:
http://www.epa.gov/bedbugs/

Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services:
http://www.vdacs.virginia.gov/pesticides/bedbugs.shtml

Comments

[Michael MacArthur]

Good information specially pinpointing where they live/ hotspots. We can also use vacuum to clean them out. As I've read from your recent post. Thanks

[Annanimiss]

My husband has been working at a HUD building that is infested with bed bugs. He is there daily for 8hrs a day. He says he's seen one crawling on his shoe at one point. I want to prevent him from bringing them home to us. I found recipes for Clove/Black Walnut Sachets and using a Neem oil blend in a spray bottle, will they work? Right now, he's taking a spray bottle full of 91% isopropyl alcohol to spray both himself and his work area. What can we do to prevent him from bring them home to us?

[Allie]

Hi Annanimiss,
Feel free to e-mail us at [email protected] to discuss this further! Maybe our consultants can work (for free) with the property where your husband works to get rid of bed bugs at work.
In the meantime, I suggest having your husband bring a change of clothes to work in a plastic bag. If he has worked in an infested home (moving furniture or doing something that may have caused a bed bug to get on him) have him change at work and put the clothes that he's been working in into the plastic bag. When he gets home, empty the bag into a dryer and put it on high heat for 30 minutes. (You can wash the clothes too, but it's not necessary for the bugs.) Isopropyl alcohol won't repel bed bug and doesn't do anything once it's dry. In fact, there aren't any repellents that we know work and are labeled by EPA for use against bed bugs.
Here are some links that you may find helpful:
http://www.bedbugs.umn.edu/home-visitors/

At home, install interception devices (bed bug monitors) and mattress encasements. These increase the chances that you catch an infestation early!