Home Bed Bugs Bed Bug Bombs-Do Foggers work? Effectiveness & Reviews

Bed Bug Bombs-Do Foggers work? Effectiveness & Reviews

When opting for pesticides or insecticides that kill bed bugs, there are a variety of formulations that you can access. Apart from the common spray and powder form, there is another way to go about it; the foggers or as commonly called, ‘bug bombs’. Bug bombs target a number of bugs that wreck your comfort in your home. They are used to kill fleas, cockroaches and bed bugs among other insects. Find out how they work, how effective they’re in addition to reviews on the best in the market.

Table of Contents

What are Bed Bombs

The fogger acts like a gas bomb releasing gas when set. These foggers are products that have an aerosol propellant that acts as a carrier of the principle compound, the insecticide.

It is important to note that propellant chemicals used in the formulation have potential of being flammable and hence when not used in the correct manner, may be very catastrophic. There are reviews that point out to its not being effective but those who have used it successfully insist on using it correctly and repeatedly. That it can accomplish great results. Methods that are used to kill bed bugs are themselves not a guarantee of total eradication and neither should you hesitate from trying each method to find the best or decide on a cocktail of methods to use. There is a good chance that bed bug bombs could help you get rid of your nightmare. Therefore, this article expounds on how to use it and the level of efficacy based on reviews and studies conducted.

How do they work?

BBed bug foggers have been designed to aerosolize the chemical principle into the air that eventually settles on items in the household. The miniature particles have the capacity to enter spaces and settle killing bed bugs in those areas. Many insect foggers have the insecticide known as pyrethrin which is effective in the elimination of insects. It is best in fighting flying insects such as houseflies and less effective on crawling insects. However, there is still some efficacy in the former and that’s important. Foggers are normally placed at the center of the room of concern and may be multiple in the whole house. The location should be strategic to allow the contents to access virtually all areas of the room without any bias or loss. When you are ready, the bed bug bomb is activated by simply pressing a tab or button you’ll see at the top of the can. This product is not so different from using any other aerosol cans just that in this case, the aerosol continuously releases the content once pressed. You are required to leave the house at this instance for a period of about 2-4 hours. What happens is the contents that are in the can are now expelled and release upwards and you might be able to see the aerosol droplets suspended in the air space. Once much of the droplets have been expelled, the suspension settles horizontally onto floors and surfaces of your household items. The reason this method is very effective for flying insects is that it gets suspended for a long time in the airspace before settling. This is good when targeting insects that are winged. It is also limited to areas that are open and rarely interact with spaces in cracks and crevices where bed bugs hide. However, the exposed bed bug will surely face the music. It has also been mentioned that the contents in bed bug bombs are potent repellents that promote deeper movement of insects into walls and other areas making it even harder to reach them next time. Before using a bed bug bomb, you should consider a number of precautions so that the process is safe.

Choose a bomb that suits the space that you are considering to treat.
Make sure that you have read the label for instructions before using it. A rule of thumb; use 6 ounces of fogger in each room. Some labels provide information regarding how to calculate how much of a dose is required for a given space in length, width and height.
Do not use a bed bug bomb in the closet as this space is too small and the pressure might be too much that it may explode.
Avoid spaces with electrical appliances or igniters such as stove.
Make sure that you cover food, water and any other kitchen appliances that may pose a risk of contamination of food or water. Ensure that pets are not in the house at that time.
In order to prevent spreading of the fogger chemical into spaces in the air conditioners and fans, it is important that you switch them off.
Wear something protective such as gloves and a mask when you are doing the activation. Then leave the space.

Do bombs kill bed bugs? How effective are they?

Foggers or bed bug bombs are considered ineffective in the control of bed bugs. This is basically due to the inability of the droplets of chemicals from bed bug bombs to reach and access areas in which bed bugs are known to hide. This includes cracks, crevices, underneath carpets, along tiles, in door and window hinged, corners of beds and mattresses, in blankets, clothing, behind wallpapers, picture frames, inside wall sockets, behind switch plates, etcetera.

Since the droplets settle after a long time and if they do, on surfaces of items that are in open space, bed bugs win at the end of the day. These fumigators mainly kill insects that fly or those that are exposed in which bed bugs may be part. Elimination is entirely not possible with fumigators or bed bug bombs. Another aspect that comes into play is the finding that pyrethrin and pyrethroids are not as effective in the killing of bed bugs as they do with cockroaches and other insects. As noted by most field-collected bed bugs, there is an existent resistance to the chemical and hence not enough to kill bed bugs. Again, it wouldn’t rub you too well when you allow pesticides to interact with your food, tables, bedding and children’s toys. Unfortunately, you will not be able to secure everything from the pesticide while at the same time in need of efficacy. This is what bed bug bombs do. You may not also have read the instructions that you should cover and clean your household items before use which may be detrimental to the general health of your family. It is also important to note that if you have asthma or any other respiratory illness, you could react to the pyrethrin (Entomology at the University of Kentucky).

Bed Bug bomb reviews

Hot shot bed bug bombs

A product of Spectrum Brand Holdings Inc., Hot Shot bed bug bomb is both a bed bug and flea fogger. It has chemicals that are toxic to bed bugs, fleas, lice and ticks among other insects. This product is one of the foggers that have been voted ineffective in the treatment of bed bug infestations. However, reviews state that the bomb should be used with a spray to be able to reach areas where the droplets are not able to reach. It is said to work and the two combined have shown good efficacy. Reviews have also shared on the impressive information they have availed at the disposal of the customer defining how the entire process works proving that they really care about their customers. Among the contents that Hot Shot bed bug bomb contains is an Insect Growth Regulator (IGR) known as Pyriproxyfen which has shown a broad-spectrum effectiveness against a variety of arthropods. In this product, it is referred to as IGR Nylar and is the active ingredient. Fortunately, the chemical is able to remain stable both out and indoors inhibiting the growth of bed bugs among other roaches and fleas. Indoors, it can reside for about 3-6 months while taking 30 days outdoors. However, according to Cornell University experts, they recommend not relying on IGRs as they don’t kill bed bugs quickly.

Pyrethrins
N-Octyl bicycloheptene dicarboximide
Piperonyl butoxide

The span of room space that can be treated by this product goes up to 16 ft. x 16 ft. with an 8 ft. ceiling of 2,000 cu ft. of unobstructed space There are however displeased reviews concerning the product with mentions of the gaining pesticide resistance seen when using Hot Shot bombs. There have been concerns too, regarding their efficacy with use in homes that have had a long-standing infestation of severe bed bug infestations.

Raid bed bug bomb

This is another product that is only meant for indoor use and no outdoor option as in Hot Shot bomb. The product has chemicals that are considered effective insecticides.

This productis said to bear optimum efficacy in the treatment of infestation of bed bugs, lice, ticks, carpet beetles, bed bug eggs, dust mites and cloth moths. Well, their website certainly lists the following chemicals and indeed, they can kill the said arthropods.

3-phenoxybenzyl-(1RS,3RS,1RS,3SR)-2,2-dimethyl-3-(2-methylprop-1-enyl)
Cyclopropanecarboxylate
N-octyl bicycloheptene dicarboximide
Other ingredients accounting for 98.07%

They also have a good information system and customer care as they have provided instruction on how to use them. You should check out their website well categorized for easy navigation and cap it all with a good customer care service to all the ‘it doesn’t work’ reviews. There have been claims pertaining its ability to kill the said arthropods on contact. This has been proven to be far-fetched and results are not instant. Reviews form Walmart and Amazon indicate an equal review number for both best and poor reviews. This could mean that the way people use it is different with different factors affecting the efficacy of the product. One downside is however for sure, that the product is not effective in reaching out to bed bugs in cracks and crevices and neither is it for moderate to severe infestations.

Smoke bomb bed bugs

Another fogger that is indicated for the treatment of bed bugs and other crawling arthropods. It is also effective for the elimination of flying insects. It does this through the chemical ingredient, permethrin in appreciable quantities lethal to the critters. The fogger acts by emitting a smoke of the chemical compound. Unlike other products that have a residual effect and this may be both advantageous and disadvantageous. The residual effect may be handy in the treatment of left-over or re-entering bed bugs. However, this is good since it does not leave a residual smell which may be irritating. There are smoke bombs of different brands including Fumite Smoke bomb, Insect Smoke Generator, Cluster Smoke Bomb among others as you may come across in online shopping platforms. Complains are based on their non-instance killer potential, its inability to reach hide-outs of bed bugs and their inefficacy in severe infestations.

Where to Buy or Get the Best

What should you consider when buying?

The ingredients should be in the quantities that have been stated in their website and marketing platforms.
Conduct a thorough research into the efficacy of the active components of the products and ensuring that while in the market, it has been approved.
Check to see that there are seals or logos of approval by relevant regulatory bodies.
Check to confirm that the instructions are stated and that you can understand them well.
Ask those who have experience with bed bug bombs to guide you. You can never go wrong with such advice.

What are the top brands and where can you buy them?

Ortho Home Defense Dual-Action Bed Bug Killer Aerosol
Hot Shot
Raid Bed Bug Bomb
Fumite Smoke Bomb
Insect Smoke Generator
Cluster Smoke Bomb

Further Reading