Home Bed Bugs How to get Bed Bugs out of Carpet with Cleaner & Powder

How to get Bed Bugs out of Carpet with Cleaner & Powder

One of the main bed bug hiding areas in your house is the carpet. It would be extremely difficult to completely eliminate bedbugs from your house without cleaning the carpet. This article offers a comprehensive guide on how to get rid of bed bugs from your carpet as well as the preventive measures.

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Can bed bugs live in carpet?

It is not uncommon to find bed bugs in your carpet. Bed bugs travel a lot and they can move from your clothes to your mattress, then to your furniture and eventually in your carpet.

How to get rid bed bugs on carpet — bed bugs on carpet

In most cases, bed bugs hide in your carpet during the day before they can make their way to the bedroom at night. When getting rid of bed bugs in your house, you are advised never to leave the carpet out.

How to get bed bugs out of carpet

There are several methods that you can use to get rid of bed bugs from your carpet. Discussed below are some of the methods;

Use steam cleaner

The steam cleaner kills bed bugs by producing extreme heat that the pests cannot stand. It is the heat that kills the bed bugs. The bed bugs are suctioned into the machine. Ensure you heat the edges of the carpet thoroughly as that is where the bed bugs are likely to hide.

Apply insecticides

You can apply insecticides on the carpet to eradicate them. You must ensure that the insecticides you use are safe for humans and pets around your house. The most common insecticide used is deltamethrin. It is a pesticide safe for humans and animals. However, it is harmful to pet fish. This pesticide paralyzes bed bugs. It is combined with hydroprene in most cases so that the bed bugs are prevented from reproducing as well.

Cleaning Carpet with Vacuum Cleaner

Cleaning your carpet is one of the easiest ways to eliminate bed bugs. The steps you should follow when vacuum cleaning your carpet are as follows; Step1 Remove all items that are suspected to have bedbugs from your house. This includes your bed mattress and all furniture. Wash items that have bed bug infestation and discard items that cannot be cleaned. All this is necessary if you are to completely eliminate the bed bugs from your house. It would otherwise be a waste of time for you to clean the carpet and leave other parts of the room with bed bugs. Step 2 Once the house is clear with the carpet left, you should then begin the cleaning process. Vacuum the carpet repeatedly and pay attention to the edges of the carpet as that is where the bed bugs hide. The attachment hose on the cleaner will help you reach for the tack strips of the carpet next to the wall. Step3 As soon as you are done, empty the vacuum bag. This should preferably be done into a plastic bag. Seal the plastic bag tightly and dispose it far away into a trash can.

vacuum cleaning carpet kill bed-bugs — Vacuum cleaning

There are three things you must keep in mind when cleaning the carpet;

The vacuum cleaner you use must have disposable bags. Any other types of vacuum cleaners are very hard to empty.
Before beginning your cleaning, you are advised to first vacuum the carpet up with diatomaceous earth. When you are through with vacuuming process, the bed bugs during disposal mix with the diatomaceous earth and die.
When you are through with each session of vacuum cleaning, you must remember to dispose of the vacuum bag. If you leave it around after the process, some bed bugs may find a way to escape.
You must also remember to change the vacuum bag after each vacuuming session. Changing of the vacuum bag should always be done outside.

Powder Effectiveness & How to use

Among the most effective ways of getting rid of bed bugs from your carpet is the use of natural carpet powder. This powder is referred to as Cedar Bug -Free™ Carpet Powder. It has been used for a long period now as a solution to a home infested with pests such as bed bugs. This powder has been given preference over most treatment options since it is a non-toxic pest control product which comes in its natural form. This confirms the safety of the powder when used to kill bed bugs in your carpet. Developed about 20 years ago by a pest control company, Cedar Bug-Free™ carpet powder is non-toxic and does not contain any chemicals that are harmful to your health. The powder when used on your carpet eliminates all bed bugs and its effect is found to last for about a year. This means that, when used on your carpet, the powder ensures that your carpet and homestead at large id s free from bed bug re-infestation for up to a year. Cedar Bug-Free™ carpet powder constitutes of silica and Eastern Cedar Oil. The powder adheres very well to your carpet since it is electro statically charged. The powder is soluble in water and that is why it can be extracted once the carpet is shampooed. Some clients reported that the powder would last for more than a year but the Company advises that a reapplication of the powder be done after each year. How the powder works Most pesticides available in the market kill bed bugs by causing harm to their nervous system. This was however found to be dangerous because the nervous system of the people and animals around when the pesticides were used had their nervous system affected as well.

Cedar oil used in making the Cedar bug-free powder has no impact on the nervous system. When the powder is poured on the carpet, its aroma overwhelms the breathing system of the bed bugs and in response to this, the bed bugs die following closure of their breathing pores which cannot reopen. In addition to that, the powder adheres to the outer skin of the bed bugs dehydrating them. The powder clogs the respiratory system of the bed bugs and as a result, they suffocate to death. As already mentioned above, the powder has electrostatic charges and hence adheres to the carpet ensuring the vacuum cleaner cannot easily remove it from the carpet. Since the powder stays in contact with the carpet for long, it continually kills any bed bugs that hatch or any bed bugs that travel from other parts of your home to the carpet. Eventually, all the bed bugs that were in your carpet get killed. How to use the powder In the case where you hire professional pest control companies to apply the powder on your carpet, the professionals use a specialized machine in application of Cedar Bug-Free™ carpet powder. That may be a little bit expensive and so you may opt for the do- it- yourself option. Once you purchase the powder, you are advised to use a kitchen strainer with a width that is about 6 inches, a regular or a push broom, and a hand brush. During the application, you are advised to use a respirator or dust mask. In preparation for application of the powder, remove all the furniture that is in the house to leave the carpet free. Remember, you need to cover all parts of the carper for the powder to be 100% effective. The powder is light and may cause all items to get dusty. You are advised to cover all items that are dust sensitive such as; computers, some Tvs, fax machines and stereo systems. Close all windows and doors to prevent the powder from being blown away. You need to do that until the powder adheres to the carpet.[1] Procedure

Put the powder into the kitchen strainer until it is 3/4 full.
Hold the strainer about three feet above the carpet and using your hand, tap the side of the mesh lightly. This is done in order to dispense the powder. Ensure that the tapping is gentle for even application of the powder on the carpet. You are advised to avoid clumps since they are hard to spread on the carpet.
When applying the powder, observe how easily the powder disappears into the carpet as that gives you a guide on how much of the powder you should use on the carpet. You should also pay attention to the edges of carpet that come into contact with the walls.
Using your hand brush; spread the powder on the carpet in small strokes. This ensures the powder adheres to the carpet. When you have brushed through the carpet, sweep the carpet using your broom for the powder to be completely absorbed into the carpet.
You can now open the windows and doors and turn on the fans. Wait until the air is clear before you can turn on the air conditioners.
Using a damp cloth, wipe the surfaces that have the powder covering them. You should not use a duster since it will spread the powder further instead of getting rid of it. If you must use a vacuum cleaner around your house, you are advised to only do so after about a week on the carpet. [2]

Tips to prevent the bed bugs to get in your carpet

Preventing bed bugs from getting to your carpet is a great way of cutting down on expenses that come with eradicating the bugs when they get into the carpet. Below are some tips of how to protect your carpet from bed bug attack;

Reduce the items placed on the carpet. This is so as to reduce the hiding options for bed bugs.
Clean your carpet regularly. You should not just wait for your carpet to be infested with bed bugs before taking action. Vacuum cleaning regularly gives bed bugs no opportunity to infest your carpet.
Pour a pesticide that kills bed bugs along the wall and on the edges of the carpet to prevent bed bugs from moving from the wall to the carpet. The powder works as a barrier.

Sources [1] http://www.cedarbugfree.com/product_pages/indoor_bugs/carpet_powder.html# [2] http://www.cedarbugfree.com/product_pages/indoor_bugs/apply_carpet_powder.htmlv Further Reading