Cold fog from bedbugs
Cold fog Lately, clients have been asking to treat bedbugs with cold fog (cold smoke, steam), this popularity of the method is due to the presence of good reviews and good effectiveness of this method of killing insects.
The effectiveness of treatment increases several times compared to treatment with a pump sprayer or treatment with dusts, due to the size of the sprayed particles of the drug. In this article we will try to understand the intricacies of treating bedbugs with cold fog.
How does hot fog affect bedbugs?
A fine aerosol fills the space in a matter of minutes. The room temperature rises to 45-50°C. The effect of the poison in a “foggy” state is enhanced several times. Due to their microscopic size, the chemical particles continue to hover in the apartment for up to 8 hours.
Along with the air, the heated insecticide penetrates into the farthest corners of the home: between sofa cushions, behind furniture, under wallpaper and in cracks. Under the influence of high temperatures, some pests die instantly - heating to +45°C is destructive for bedbugs and eggs.
During the cooling process, the poisonous cloud settles, covering the floor, furniture and other objects with an invisible film. Surviving insects receive a dose of poison and die over time. Flies, ants, and cockroaches have no chance of salvation.
How long do bedbugs live after fogging?
Adult individuals, one way or another, during the volatility of the clouds come into contact with the poison and die after a quarter of an hour. Hot toxic fog enters through the protective shell of the eggs and completely destroys them within 5-6 hours.
The duration of action and effectiveness of disinfestation is largely determined by the composition of the poison against bedbugs. Only a specialist can choose the reagent correctly. A professional takes into account many factors:
- Effectiveness of components;
- Harm to humans from use;
- Intensity and persistence of odor;
- Preparations and methods previously used to kill bedbugs in the house.
Bed bloodsuckers quickly adapt to poor conditions. If the previous removal of bedbugs did not give the desired result, then the surviving individuals have developed resistance to certain chemicals. This information must be provided to employees of the Sanitary and Epidemiological Station or representatives of a private disinfection service.
What is cold fog
Cold fog is an insect repellent treatment in which poison is mixed with water and sprayed onto the desired surface using a cold fog generator (CMG).
The mist ensures high penetration of the drug due to the small size of the sprayed particles. The drug gets into any cracks where insects may be located, allows you to treat hidden cavities of furniture, baseboards, and hard-to-reach places.
Cold fog generator (GCT)
HCT
There are quite a lot of cold fog generators on the market, they all differ in build quality, number of nozzles, length of the spray torch, as well as the size of the sprayed particles, and of course, price. Recently, there have been many Chinese cold fog generators on the market, the quality of which depends on the manufacturer.
Operating principle of the HCT
The mixed solution is sprayed by the HCT with the flow of generated air, forming fine particles in the form of a mist. When preparing solutions, it is recommended to take into account the amount of product and water, as well as the temperature of the liquid being poured. Generators allow you to regulate the size of the sprayed particles, allowing you to fog the room, and high air pressure delivers the drug to the required place.
How does cold fog treatment work?
On average, treatment without preparation takes place within 30 minutes. The client leaves the apartment during processing. The product is applied to the areas where bedbugs are suspected to be located and where insects accumulate. When processing, take into account whether the room is infested with bedbugs; in most cases, complete fogging of the room is not required.
In our work, the process of spraying the product itself is not as important as the preparation.
The quality of insect destruction directly depends on how the room is prepared.
Processing stages
Baiting bedbugs with fog is carried out in several stages. First, prepare an aerosol product, dilute the drug with water and fill the unit’s tank with it. After plugging in the generator, the premises are treated with cold fog against bedbugs. All objects in the room are sprayed: furniture, walls, floors, ceilings, baseboards.
A conventional garden sprayer cannot achieve the same results as when treated with a functional unit. A stream of solution leaves the unit under pressure and settles on smooth surfaces; insecticides have a detrimental effect on insects.
On a note! When carrying out wet cleaning 5 hours after treating the room with cold fog, it is recommended to wipe only those surfaces with which there is contact: door handles, tables, chairs. It is recommended to wait until wiping other items.
It is not always possible to get rid of ectoparasites in one treatment. Some insects die immediately, while there are individuals that live for another month.
Preparing the premises
Before processing, we prepare the apartment together with the client, inspect it completely, paying great attention to the details.
- We remove all breakable objects (paintings, vases, photographs, etc.)
- removing clutter
- cover TVs and computers with a sheet or polyethylene
- disassemble and prepare furniture for processing
- lifting mattresses
- We take cats, dogs and other animals with us or lock them in the bathroom (you can seal the doors with tape)
- cover the fish with a blanket, turn off the air
- close the windows, vents
After the preparation procedure, the client leaves the apartment, we move on to the next stage
— select the drug used for treatment: neonicotinoids, PHOSES, pyrethroids, many component drugs. Recently, we have been working on bed bugs with multi-component preparations (the choice of the drug depends on the region of use and the resistance of the insects, and we have also previously carried out independent treatments or treatments by other organizations)
- mix in the required concentration
- apply the product to the required surfaces
- closing the apartment infuses (exposition)
Security measures
To avoid toxic substances entering the body, safety precautions should be observed. There should be no people or animals except the person directly carrying out the treatment in the room. The person spraying the insecticide must wear a protective suit, closed shoes, and gloves. Respiratory protection is required.
Means of protection
It is better to notify your neighbors about work being carried out in an apartment building so that they also close the ventilation ducts.
What to do after treatment
After applying cold fog, the client must leave the apartment for 4 hours; after the time has elapsed, it is necessary to thoroughly ventilate the apartment for 30-40 minutes.
- We wash the apartment with soap and soda solution, gloves on our hands, and a mask on our face.
- We wipe everything we touch with our hands (switches, sockets, headboards).
- We wash bedding at a temperature of 60 degrees.
- We sweep dead bedbugs into the toilet.
- We follow other recommendations of the master.
How to prepare a soap-soda solution
Soap and soda solution
The solution itself consists of three components: soda and detergent.
- soda Art. spoon
- detergent or grated laundry soap
- water 1 liter
Mix everything
Types and models of hot fog generators
There are several models of hot fog generators on the market today that are most suitable for indoor use. Here are examples of some of them:
- TF 160 HD “Jumbo” is one of the most powerful professional hot fog generators from. The device has a tank designed for 60 liters of toxic substance and consumes 9 liters of fuel per hour; in enclosed spaces it provides the best penetration of aerosol - up to 120 meters. To carry out the treatment, this equipment is installed on the floor, i.e. is largely stationary. Its cost is 492,000 rubles.
- Swinfog SN 50 is similar to Jumbo, but much more economical. Consumes 2 liters of gasoline per hour and is equipped with a shoulder strap. This generator is ideal for indoor applications. Its price is 70,900 rubles.
- The Airofog AR35 is also a small generator that can be carried on the shoulder. When armed, it weighs 14.5 kg. It should be noted that this equipment runs on gasoline no lower than AI92; fuel consumption is 2 l/hour. The price of the unit is 48,700 rubles.
Review
“After living in the apartment of representatives of southern nationalities, we discovered a lot of “interesting” things there. The worst thing was the abundance of bedbugs and cockroaches. At first, my brother tried to cope on his own, but after a month they decided to call the SES, especially since the neighbors also began to complain about the unpleasant neighborhood. They dragged a sort of “vacuum cleaner” into our apartment, filled the entire room with hot smoke, and left about an hour later. We had to wait a long time for it all to settle and disappear, so we spent the night with friends, but the result was excellent.”
Olesya, Moscow
Compared to installations that generate cold fog, hot fog generators are quite expensive; there are practically no household models among them. Hot fog generators belong to the category of professional equipment and therefore have higher efficiency, which, in turn, ensures their continued popularity among pest control workers.
5 rules for choosing a pest control service to kill bedbugs
How long after treatment do bedbugs die?
There is no clear answer to this question; it all depends on the drug used in the treatment against bedbugs, as well as on the resistance of the bedbugs. How well the apartment is prepared for processing depends on the experience of the specialist who carries out the processing. Whether people live in the premises being treated or not.
According to my observations, the first bugs die on average from 1 to 4 hours, some within a few days after treatment. Sometimes, during repeated treatment, semi-dry individuals were observed 2 weeks after treatment, but the bugs did not show activity.
It should be borne in mind that the products do not act on bedbug eggs, only with direct contact, some clients observe small bedbugs after 9-14 days, so we recommend our clients to re-treat to consolidate the result.
Hot fog treatment for bedbugs - advantages and disadvantages
It is almost impossible to destroy multiplied blood-sucking insects at once. Especially if you use sprayers or bulk insecticides. The small size of bloodsuckers gives them the opportunity to hide in small crevices and corners, and the high reproduction rate allows them to lay eggs in the most unexpected places. Therefore, killing bedbugs with fog becomes the most optimal option.
The effect of the method, treating an apartment against bedbugs with hot fog, is based not only on the spraying of toxic substances, but also on the direct effect of high temperature on insects. Bedbugs die at temperatures of 45°C and above, and this temperature has a detrimental effect on the pest in any phase of its life.
The treatment is carried out with special generators that heat the insecticide solution to 90°C and push a stream of steam through the bell. Fog generators are heated by liquid fuel and are therefore quite massive. Floor-standing, mobile versions of the Jumbo type can be used, consuming up to 9 liters of fuel per hour, or portable ones of the Airofog type, weighing 14 kg and with a consumption of 2 l/h, can also be used. The cost of exterminating bedbugs in Moscow using hot fog will depend on the area of the room being treated.
What is good about disinfecting bedbugs with hot fog:
- steam microparticles measuring 5-25 microns, like air, penetrate into any pores and cracks;
- after 5-8 hours, in all places where the hot fog has penetrated, a film of a toxic substance remains, remaining active for 15-30 days;
- it is possible to select several insecticides depending on the degree of damage to the room and exclude products previously used in the treated area;
- The price for hot fog against bedbugs is affordable, and the effect of killing insects reaches 95%;
- residential buildings are treated with safe means;
- settling steam particles do not damage the coatings of furniture and finishing materials.
The disadvantages include:
- hot treatment against bedbugs is carried out only by trained specialists equipped with equipment and personal protective equipment;
- the need to leave housing for a time sufficient for the fog to completely settle;
- Thorough cleaning of open surfaces after completion of the procedure.
If there are allergy sufferers in the family, you can use hot steam treatment of the household without adding chemicals, but in this case, a repeat procedure may be required. On the other hand, if you have a strong desire to quickly get rid of insects and the high efficiency of hot fog treatment for bedbugs, the price no longer matters. Consumers who have used such methods of getting rid of bedbugs note a long period of its effectiveness - up to six months or more.
Which is better, hot or cold mist, pump spray for bedbugs.
Hot fog generator (GGT) for bedbugs
Hot fog generator
Pros
- Hot fog is of course more effective, because... particle size when sprayed is smaller than that of a cold fog generator
Minuses
- Using it in apartments is dangerous and prohibited. Instead of bedbugs, if you poison your neighbors, you could get a criminal case. Therefore, it is not worth the risk.
- When working with a hot fog generator, not all means can be used, because... the solution heats up slightly.
- It is quite expensive for one-time, independent treatment, like HCT.
- Experience with equipment and training required
- Greater danger to the operator and others
Cold fog generator
pros
- Cold fog, when used correctly, is safe and effective at killing bedbugs.
- Good result
- Unlike a pump sprayer, HCT provides drier treatment of the room, while the surfaces being treated will not be damaged.
- HCT can deliver the insecticide to hard-to-reach places, hidden furniture cavities, and under the trim. The processing speed is many times higher than that of a pump.
minuses
- high price, for one-time self-processing
- Experience with equipment required
Pump sprayer
pros
- Low price
- Quite effective when used correctly
minuses
- high consumption of the drug
- high humidity, danger of damage to things
- It is difficult to apply the solution to hard-to-reach places
- if not battery-powered, then large physical costs
A short video of cold fog treatment.
Killing bedbugs using hot fog generators
The procedure for killing bedbugs with hot fog is divided into three stages.
- Preparing the room for processing. It must be taken into account that the aerosol should settle freely on baseboards, in all corners of the room, and on the back surfaces of furniture. Particular attention should be paid to beds and sofas, where bedbugs most often hide during the day. When preparing the room, you need to move furniture away from the walls, roll up carpets, remove bed linen and remove mattresses, close windows and doors. All people and pets must leave the area being treated.
- The actual processing. Despite the ability of fog to penetrate hard-to-reach places, the generator also carefully treats door frames, beds and sofas, and baseboards, and also additionally distributes the aerosol throughout the entire space in the room. After this, the room is closed and kept for 6-7 hours.
- After the insecticide has settled in the apartment (or any other room), a general wet cleaning is carried out, during which all surfaces are thoroughly washed if possible.
If the treatment is carried out by the pest control service, the owners of the premises take part in this process only at the stage of preparation for the destruction of bedbugs, and after that they restore order. It is worth noting that today some services offer, for an additional fee, their employees to prepare the premises for processing, and then clean it.
If the processing will be carried out by the residents themselves, then they should familiarize themselves with the features of this process in advance, read reviews and, of course, worry about the means of protection and safety of the processor.
