Preventing a Bed Bug Infestation in the Workplace

No person wishes for bed bugs, but the threat of an infestation carries even more significance when it occurs at your business. The safety and well-being of your customers is, of course, of highest importance, and so to is maintaining a positive reputation in this digital age.

Whether you operate your own business or are trusted to manage a company, keeping the space free of pests is essential. This article explains how to prevent and eliminate an infestation in your work-site property.

Practise Prevention Habits

The best prevention habit is to know the signs of pest activity and to watch for their presence: eggs, rust-coloured stains, or the bugs themselves-brown and oval-shaped with ridges lining their backs. Train your staff to do the same.

Eliminate clutter wherever possible and check routinely for the places they are most likely to hide: areas of warmth, behind bubbling wallpaper or carpets, and in seat cushions, mattresses, and fabric.

Lastly, establish an open dialogue with employees so that if they experience an infestation at home, they can alert you to the possible threat without repercussion.

Make Use of Prevention Products

If you manage an inn, hostel or other accommodation, be sure to take advantage of the available prevention products. Covers for mattresses, box springs, and pillows offer a soft but impenetrable seal to help limit the spread of bugs brought in by guests.

Round, sticky interceptors can be placed beneath furniture legs to monitor pest activity in the workplace. The critters are caught when climbing up or down the furniture, and are a great tool for overnight monitoring in the hospitality and entertainment industries.

Pest-proof clothing bags are also available for business owners in any line of work. These can be used for dry-cleaning operations, sports teams and theatre productions, apparel shops, and other businesses.

Treating the Problem Immediately

Despite employing the best possible prevention efforts, bed bugs may still sneak into a premises. Should this happen, be sure to contact a professional removal company right away to inspect the building before the situation becomes a news story.

A trained technician will inspect the area before suggesting a course of action. One detection method may include the use of dogs. This canine inspection service offers the highest success rate-close to 90%-for which the animal will sniff out pest activity where the eye cannot see.

Once live activity has been confirmed, the technician will suggest an elimination plan that may include a combination of targeted heat treatment and insecticide spray. The technician may also use a vacuum to remove a larger population of bugs.

Business owners face a variety of challenges every day, but the fallout from a pest infestation can be detrimental. Be vigilant in preventing bugs in the first place, and be sure to contact a professional technician at the very first sign of a problem.