Pest Management Professional, February 2019

TIPS TRICKS BED BUGS Control Solutions Inc By Dr Janis Reed BCE Technical Services Manager Product Development Team It seems every day a new product method or tool is being introduced for bed bug infestations How does a pest management professional PMP separate the good products from the not so good ones When evaluating new products it is important to ask a few important questions such as Were there scientific studies completed by independent labs If so how were the tests conducted Can I see all the generated data When you decide to try a new product use it exclusively for 60 days See how your callbacks are affected Taking a more scientific approach to product selection will help you make decisions based on product performance rather than other factors Catchmaster By Ed Dolshun Technical Director and Vice President Business Development Studies from Rutgers University have shown bed bugs inhabit areas of least disturbance first Areas of least disturbance can include voids behind dressers hidden corners and any area with dust bunnies In short dust bunnies are bed bugs best friends The first step in addressing a possible bed bug infestation is monitoring If you are diagnosing a possible bed bug infestation we recommend using glue based monitors wherever dust bunnies are found For optimal deployment we suggest folding a glue based monitor into a triangle to form a double sided pitfall monitor J T Eaton By James Rodriguez ACE Technical Director Preventing bed bugs requires continual vigilance and good communication skills Controlling bed bugs to prevent migration to adjacent rooms requires skill in the selection and use of proper insecticides and or proper heating equipment Eliminating bed bugs requires a skillful inspection and understanding of pesticide resistance Yet the success of any of these strategies can be hindered and complicated by a customers emotion based decisions or requests How can you mitigate these hindrances Here are four suggestions 1Train your team in empathy and listening skills 2Evaluate your customers expectations before doing the job 3Stay positive with your customer throughout the process 4Offer customers tools like monitors and encasements to give them peace of mind Mattress Safe By Andrea Hancock Vice President When your customers and friends families and employees are preparing for a trip tell them to place all their luggage in the hotel bathroom either on the tile or even in the tub Bed bugs do not travel across slick surfaces In the event of a bed bug infestation you can prolong your customers purchase of new upholstered goods by using a furniture encasement short term They are bite proof and look like slipcovers MGK By Sandra Sleezer Entomologist and Technical Service Coordinator If you can make sure customers arent taking bed bugs out with them when they leave before a treatment and bringing them back in afterward This is especially important before a heat treatment only with no residual insecticide used We had an instance where bed bugs were harboring in a laptop The customer would take the laptop out with him and bring it back in afterward He would put the laptop on the nightstand every night CONTINUED ON PAGE 68 66 February 2019 Pest Management Professional mypmp net