- By Vil Malinoshevsky
- About bedbugs
Bed bugs, like any living creatures, require a comfortable air temperature for normal survival and reproduction. They can survive in a fairly narrow temperature range, and if the temperature gets too low or too high, they die.
A comfortable temperature regime for them is 25-30 °C. At the same time, they can live and remain active at a temperature of +10 ° C, but if it drops below -35 ° C, it kills them. First, the bedbugs fall into torpor, and the larvae stop hatching from their eggs. Long-term preservation of frost leads to their complete death. The same happens if the temperature rises above +45 °C. Moreover, the higher the temperature, the faster they die.
People use this feature of bedbugs when fighting them. For example, contaminated furniture is taken outside during severe frosts, things are washed in hot water, and apartments are treated with steam from a steam generator. Sometimes such measures are enough to kill bedbugs.
However, such insect control is not always effective. Sometimes it is not possible to detect all the nests of parasites and place them in the zone of extreme temperatures for them. Also, the reason for the survival of bedbugs may be a rapid change in temperature and its return to normal levels. For example, if the temperature lethal for bedbugs is maintained for a short time, they can withstand it and do not die.
We decided to conduct an experiment and check at what degrees and how quickly the bugs die. We also talked with exterminators who constantly destroy parasites using steam generators, and found out from them why residents themselves are not always able to kill insects using similar methods.
In literary sources, in particular Medical Entomology T.V. Vasilyevich says that adult bedbugs and larvae at +25-30 °C can survive up to 18 months without feeding. At plus 10 degrees, the parasites do not die; this only happens when the temperature drops to minus 17 °C. This temperature should remain for more than a day. Bedbugs die faster when the temperature rises. For example, at +45 °C they live no more than 45 minutes.
We checked the data in practice. If at +45 °C insects die in such a time, it means that with greater heating they should die faster.
Ideal living conditions for a bedbug
Bloodsuckers prefer to live at home. This means that room temperature is comfortable for them - within + 25°C. Minor fluctuations in both directions do not cause significant changes in the lifestyle of pests. They can easily tolerate temperatures within +20°…+28°.
In this case, a slight slowdown or, conversely, acceleration of the development of young individuals is possible.
In addition, insects need a normal level of air humidity. If the value of this parameter decreases to 40%, the offspring do not survive (dry out inside the eggs). When air humidity rises to the limit (90%), the protective functions of the parasites are disrupted. Bed bugs are exposed to fungus and die quickly.
Insects need to feed regularly (every 3-10 days, depending on environmental conditions and the stage of development of the parasite). But this does not mean that they will rarely bite people. As the population grows, the area of skin damage increases, since bites appear on the body every day. At the same time, bedbugs need constant access to humans.
When they stop feeding, the reproduction process also stops, since the female needs blood to lay eggs.
A bug infected with a fungus
Bedbug steam - instructions for use
Before processing begins you must:
- Set the temperature on the device to 70-80 degrees
- Turn furniture over or move it away from walls
It is important to start treatment from the places where there are the most bedbugs. Usually these are the places that are adjacent to beds and sofas where a person sleeps. Folds of furniture, mattresses, the bottom of sofas, places behind bedside tables - these are the areas where bedbugs and larvae sit during the day. Next, you need to steam over the baseboards, along the cracks in the floor in the bedroom, and over the places where the linoleum comes away from the floor.
Bedbugs like to settle and reproduce closer to the food source, that is, to humans, so they can often be found in the sofa
Then, using steam, you should treat bed linen, underwear, and other clothing where parasites may be hiding. Some surfaces will have to be irrigated with an aerosol, because they do not tolerate steam, and if there are any, you need to buy an insecticide in advance. In general, a combination of chemical disinfestation and steam exposure is most effective.
To destroy the eggs, but not scatter them around the apartment, you can stretch a piece of fabric over the steam generator nozzle. This way the eggs will definitely not be blown away.
After the procedure, you must follow these rules:
- Do not clean (wet) for 5 days if an insecticide was additionally used
- Wash the curtains (they must be removed before steam treatment)
- Closely monitor the appearance of new bedbugs and, if necessary, immediately carry out additional treatment
Life depending on conditions
Insects can develop faster; to do this, it is enough to increase the ambient temperature to +28°...+35°C. Then life expectancy will be reduced from 12 to 10 months. If the temperature in the room drops to +20°C, the parasites will exist much longer – 15 months.
A decrease in air temperature to +15°C causes inhibition of parasite development. If they are exposed to even lower temperatures (0°C), they go into a special state similar to suspended animation, this phase is called diapause.
In this case, insects cease to need food, do not reproduce and do not even show the slightest activity.
Pests look like dead ones. When looking at them, many people think that death has actually occurred.
In the cold, bedbugs enter a diapause phase
At what temperature do bedbug eggs die?
The protective shell helps protect the offspring. It prevents the onset of death even when extreme temperatures are reached, when larvae and adults do not survive: at +50°C and -20°C. For parasite eggs to die under such conditions, it will take several days of continuous exposure to sub-zero temperatures.
Instant death of the embryos inside the eggs occurs when the specified limits are significantly exceeded: +60°C and -27°C.
Eggs and adults
At what temperature do bed bug larvae die?
Domestic parasites in the early stages of development die at low temperatures - from -17°C or more. However, death in such conditions occurs within a few days. The rate of destruction of larvae depends on the duration of exposure to cold. But there is still a limit to survival. So, in temperatures down to -25°C, bedbugs die in a matter of seconds.
If the temperature drops to -20°C, it will take several hours to kill the parasites.
The opposite situation is also considered - when it is hot. It will also not be possible to unequivocally answer the question at what temperature bedbugs die. The trend towards changing environmental conditions should be taken into account:
- +45°C – slow death (after 30 minutes);
- +50°C – death occurs within a few minutes;
- +55°C – instant death (in a matter of seconds).
Parasite larvae
Life activity of bedbugs and sub-zero temperatures
A low reading on the thermometer does not mean the insects will freeze. The state of suspended animation or hibernation can last for quite a long time. All organs retain their viability, they only function in an economical mode. If conditions change for the better (temperature rises), then the bedbugs safely come to life and return to their usual routine.
The only way to get rid of pests using cold is cooling below 20 degrees below zero . But this guarantees the death of adults. Eggs can maintain their viability for more than a day even at this rate. Therefore, the time interval is also important. For bedbugs to die, the temperature must be maintained:
- minus 16°C for at least 80 hours;
- minus 20°C for at least 48 hours.
It is almost impossible to create such conditions in a modern house with steam heating. The only possibility is to freeze the bed, sofa or bedding. This is a completely accessible procedure if insects are found on these items. But you will have to keep things in the cold for at least two days. Freezing may have to be repeated to destroy any new individuals that have hatched from the preserved eggs.
Modern bedbug control services use dry cold, as well as special refrigeration chambers for household items.
Temperature control methods
To destroy insects by physical means (by changing environmental conditions), you need to choose the appropriate option.
Only one season of the year is suitable for this – winter. We would have to open windows and doors wide, and turn off the heating system. This method does not guarantee complete elimination of pests, but it can negatively affect the water supply (namely, communications). For this reason, it is better to use high temperature sources. There are a large number of methods and means.
Having figured out at what temperature bedbugs die, they determine the best option, which will not lead to damage to the surfaces being treated with boiling water or steam. The operating principle of this method: the air warms up, its humidity level decreases, which helps create intolerable conditions for parasites to live.
In addition, with a strong increase in temperature, the outer integument of the parasites also heats up. The bedbugs begin to die.
Freezing an apartment is not the best way to combat bedbugs
Thermal gun
This device received its name due to its external resemblance to a cannon.
It is used on construction sites to speed up the drying of materials. Thermal gun also heats houses. It is designed simply: a powerful motor turns on a fan, which in turn promotes the circulation of air passing through the heating element. When choosing, you should take into account not only the electrical parameters, but also the serviced area of the facility.
To effectively treat a room with a heat gun when bedbugs have infested, you also need to take into account the air temperature. So, in this case, conditions are created for the instant death of parasites. The air heats up to +60°C. This allows you to quickly destroy all insects in your home. It is enough to remember at what temperature bedbugs die, then you can choose a thermal gun to destroy them.
But it is important to consider the dangers of working with it.
Due to strong heating, surfaces and objects can be damaged. During operation of a diesel or gas gun, effective ventilation of the room must be organized, since fuel combustion products are released. However, there are also less dangerous devices - electrical ones.
Treatment of housing with a thermal gun
Steam generator
The household appliance is safe (if you do not consider the possibility of contact with hot steam for now). There is no need to ventilate the room, since this type of steam generator operates from the mains and does not consume fuel. The device heats the liquid to the limit at which the water turns into steam. The ambient temperature gradually reaches +160°C. This allows you to kill bedbugs instantly.
Despite the fact that the temperature at the outlet of the steam generator nozzle decreases somewhat, the parasites still die.
Alisa, 33 years old, Ekaterinburg
I have a steam generator in my house. I've been using it for a long time. When bedbugs appeared, I immediately remembered such a device. It is not dangerous as long as the operating instructions are followed, as you can easily get burned. The steam generator works on hard and soft surfaces, but I’m not sure about the layer of varnish on furniture, I don’t think it will withstand it.
Oleg, 39 years old, Krasnoyarsk
You may not wash your clothes or use insecticides, but the parasites will still die forever. I checked it myself, hot steam will kill them at any stage, because the temperature of such an environment is very high even for humans. I recommend it to everyone I know, but so far no one except me has bought a steam generator to fight insects, because it’s a little expensive
Household steam generator
Wash
This is another control method that is guaranteed to kill insects. But it has a drawback - not all items can be processed in this way. Washing helps clean bedding, clothing and other textiles. Various options are being considered:
- handwash;
- automatic.
The first option is less effective, since it will be difficult to tolerate temperatures above +45°C.
You need to wash it by hand, and the leather cannot withstand exposure to boiling water. If you wash things at a temperature of +45°C, the insects will survive. You can try soaking the items in hot water first, hoping that a longer period of exposure will produce a different result. But in this case, the water may deteriorate, and the things in it will turn sour.
Automatic washing is the best option.
At the same time, the water heats up to +90 degrees. Furniture/linen bugs do not live under such conditions and die instantly. You can set a different washing temperature – up to +60°C. Insects also die quickly under such conditions, but this value is considered borderline, and therefore the slightest fluctuations in both directions can mean a decrease in the effectiveness of the method.
Washing contaminated laundry
Ironing
Modern irons heat up quickly. The temperature of the sole reaches +105°…+130°С.
If you iron an infected item where eggs could remain, the embryos inside the protective shells will immediately die.
It is not recommended to destroy larvae or adults in this way, as traces of insects may remain. In addition, the ironing method is used only for cleaning textiles exclusively on an ironing board. Treating upholstered furniture can cause damage to the upholstery.
Inna, 34 years old, Kerch
I could not find the reason for the re-infestation of the apartment. After disinfestation, the parasites reappeared. I ironed all the things at home. After that there was a lull, there were no more parasites.
Alexandra, 37 years old, Belgorod
It was much easier for me to wash my bed and clothes. An iron is for those who don’t have a high-temperature washing machine. I don’t like the fact that not all materials can be safely ironed; it takes a long time to sort through what is allowed and what is not.
Steam iron kills pests
Boiling water
Parasites are afraid of high temperatures, but they will not have time to run away if you pour hot water over their nest inside upholstered furniture. This method cannot always be used; the type of material and properties should be taken into account. There is another way to influence parasites with boiling water - infected things are “boiled” in a large container (basin, saucepan).
Neither the larvae nor the eggs will survive this procedure.
Bedbugs are afraid of boiling water
Ultra-violet rays
This method is suitable for exterminating bedbugs inside things and furniture. If ultraviolet radiation penetrates through the windows, this will not provide the desired result, because the rays are scattered and the heating temperature of the surfaces is lower.
It is recommended to take contaminated items outside.
The method of exposure to UV radiation is effective during the warm period, when the air temperature in the sun increases to +50°C in some regions.
Things in the sun
Freezing
The principle of the effect on bedbugs is similar to how ultraviolet rays work in the summer, only the treatment is carried out in the winter. You need to take things that might contain bedbugs outside. Moreover, they should be kept in the cold for as long as the temperature allows.
Larisa, 38 years old, Perm
At my dacha there was no furniture left inside the house in winter. She took out literally everything, but then the frosts were severe. I decided to save money on drugs this way. It seems to have worked out: the house is fresh, the furniture is clean.
Egor, 45 years old, Omsk
The frost didn't help me, or maybe I didn't take all my things out. There is another version: the bedbugs remained at home, I did not find their clutches. You can guess for a long time here, in fact. But I won’t act at random anymore; I’ll invite exterminators.
Bedbugs cannot tolerate frost
Hot air gun
This device is functionally similar to a thermal gun, but is more compact and differs in the design principle. Its advantage is heating up to +500°...+700°C. Parasites die quickly.
However, in domestic conditions this can cause damage to coatings and objects.
In addition, buying a hot air gun for a one-time treatment is impractical due to the high price.
A hot air gun kills insects instantly
Household steam cleaner
This electrical appliance is also effective in the fight against parasites. It is characterized by the ability to produce hot steam (temperature reaches +140°C). The steam cleaner is intended for cleaning surfaces at various objects, including at home.
It is important to first clarify whether it can be used to process upholstered furniture and other products and materials.
Steam cleaner kills bedbugs safely and effectively
What do the reviews say?
In general, it should be recognized that temperature methods of combating bedbugs can be effective, but they do not help get rid of parasites in all cases. Our readers often write about their successful and unsuccessful experiences of baiting bedbugs. If you analyze all the situations, you can discover a certain pattern.
Firstly, targeted removal of bedbugs does not allow you to completely get rid of them. When steaming baseboards and cracks in walls or taking sofas out into the cold, bedbugs can only die in these places. However, they are distributed everywhere in the house, therefore, it is necessary to treat the entire room. In reality, using thermal methods, an apartment can only be warmed up; completely freezing it out is impossible.
One of the main mistakes when doing self-disinfestation is that people do not treat all places in the apartment. First of all, attention is paid to beds and sofas, cracks in floors and walls, forgetting about places under cabinets and on mezzanines. Also, many nests simply cannot be found. As a result, bedbugs that could not be destroyed multiply and again spread throughout the apartment.
Secondly, when deciding to get rid of bedbugs using cold, many people do not take into account important nuances. For example, furniture is taken outside at a temperature of about -3-5 ° C and brought back after a couple of hours, counting on the death of bedbugs during this time. However, this temperature is not dangerous for parasites, and they survive safely.
Thirdly, in most cases, people do not approach bedbug baiting responsibly. For example, many people are too lazy to disassemble the sofa and only spray it on top. Skirting boards are almost never removed at all. However, when steam is blown out, only part of the bedbugs may die, while the other, living under the edge of the laminate and linoleum, may survive. You also need to remove the parquet, since it is almost impossible to blow steam under it. Built-in wardrobes should also be disassembled. Parasites may be behind it or under it. As a result of insufficiently thorough work, some of the parasites survive, gradually multiply and again infect the entire room.
It is also useless to poison bedbugs in one apartment if all neighbors have them. Using high or low temperatures and strong insecticides will only give short-term results. Very quickly, bedbugs will begin to enter the apartment again through cracks in the walls, gaps near pipes and hoods, gaps between the door frame and the door, through open windows and other paths known only to them. Therefore, it is advisable to destroy bedbugs in the entire house at once, but if this is not possible, you need to remove them from your home and eliminate as much as possible all the cracks through which insects can again enter the home. If you can’t deal with parasites on your own, contact the professionals from DesinCity - we know how to destroy parasites in literally three hours.
Survival and mortality of adult insects, life stages of bedbugs
Bed parasites go through several stages:
- eggs;
- larvae;
- nymphs;
- imago.
For bedbugs at different stages of development, except the first, the same conditions are created under which they die.
It is necessary to influence the eggs using more aggressive methods.
To understand which method is more effective, you should turn to statistics. The research results are presented below.
Pests die after exposure to low or high temperatures
Bedbug survival rate depending on temperature
Graph of bedbug death rate depending on temperature
At a temperature of 450C
At a temperature of 500C
Parasite after heat treatment
Survival chart for bedbug eggs depending on temperature
Graph of the rate of death of bedbug eggs depending on temperature
At a temperature of 450C
At a temperature of 500C
How to kill bedbugs using a steam generator
This method is very effective, especially since there are proven and effective algorithms that achieve 100% results. However, you need to take into account the most important point: how many colonies of bedbugs are in the apartment - just one or several.
How to destroy bedbugs with a steam generator if the number of colonies is unknown:
A steam generator is directed to an already identified bedbug colony. Hot steam will 100% destroy bedbugs that you have already detected. If there are suspicions that this colony is not the only one, you will need to go through all suspicious places - along the baseboards, along all the cracks, and treat upholstered furniture.
This will eliminate possible additional colonies of bedbugs. Why is it important? Because even one larva of a surviving bug can subsequently revive the entire colony.
Safety rules for wrestling
When treating rooms, objects or surfaces with sources of high temperatures, it is important to avoid contact with hot surfaces and parts of equipment. If necessary, you need to wear protective (thermal) gloves; even oven mitts will do. The face is protected with a special mask with a heat-resistant polymer transparent shield.
This will help reduce the risk of burning your facial skin as the hot steam rises.
When processing, personal safety precautions should be observed.
User reviews - experience in using the heat treatment method
Larisa, 49 years old, Omsk
I like everything eco-friendly. For this reason, I treated the parasites with a steam generator, which does not take much time, and the result is excellent.
Olga, 35 years old, Novomoskovsk
I didn’t consider the iron and the boiling method; I didn’t want to get carried away with different methods. I chose the steam cleaner option because I had one at home. But my device is rather weak, so I pointed it only directly at the sockets. The rest of the items still had to be washed in the machine.
Irina, 32 years old, Perm
I had a sad experience. I took my husband’s heat gun and thought I’d quickly spray the apartment while he was gone. I'll make a surprise. As a result, the covering on the chest of drawers in the nursery burned (film).
Inga, 45 years old, Tula
I didn’t like that I had to additionally pick out the remains of dead insects from the blanket and other things that I washed in the machine. But all the insects died, that’s a fact.
Anna, 35 years old, Magnitogorsk
At home, I took the sofa and mattress outside. Bedbugs freeze in about 2-3 days, depending on how severe the frost is. I wash the rest of my clothes at home in the machine. I also have a steam generator in the garage, so I take a thorough approach to the issue of treating any insects.
Washing contaminated laundry
Expert advice
Marinina Evgeniya Vitalievna, entomologist specialist, work experience – 16 years:
Marinina Evgenia Vitalievna
Entomologist, researcher. Work experience 16 years.
Ask a Question
• the most effective physical method of killing bedbugs is with hot steam, and it is better and safer to use a steam generator or steam cleaner for this purpose; • you cannot quickly process the room; you need to linger in each area for a couple of minutes; • unlike insecticides, hot steam does not provoke the development of resistance in parasites, so this method can be used when the need arises.
Hot treatment kills bedbugs quickly
