Bedbugs in the house are a nightmare that many people have to deal with in real life.
To remove parasites, it is not necessary to resort to caustic chemicals. A steam generator will help solve the problem, but only if it is used correctly.
Our article will tell you whether a steam generator will help against bedbugs in an apartment, how to treat a room from insects, and which device is better to choose.
Does steam kill insects?
Bedbugs require certain conditions to reproduce. They actively increase their numbers at temperatures of +20-25 degrees. Insects feel comfortable in dry, shaded and warm places. Therefore, in city apartments they multiply very quickly.
They can be found:
- in upholstered furniture;
- under mattresses;
- between baseboards;
- in picture frames;
- in the joints between wallpaper;
- in the crevices of beds and more.
To stop the reproduction process of bedbugs, you need to take them out of their comfort zone. A steam generator is great for this.
Insects do not tolerate high temperatures well , and the device is capable of heating the affected area to +90-150 degrees. Bedbugs die within 15 seconds of continuous exposure to a jet of steam.
In order not to damage the item and remove parasites from it, it is enough to set the temperature regulator to 70-80 degrees.
This is enough for the protein component of insect cells to boil and curl. This is how their death occurs. The eggs laid by parasites will not survive under the influence of steam. Under the influence of high temperatures, their shell melts, which leads to the death of the embryo.
Habitat Features
A comfortable habitat for parasites is human housing. They grow and reproduce in moist places, hidden from sunlight. Pests seek out accumulations of debris to settle there and reproduce.
The optimal environment for survival differs depending on the type of parasite. Insects living on the fur of cats and dogs grow and reproduce at temperatures from 20 to 25°C. Peak functioning of animals occurs in the spring and summer. For parasites living in the basement, a comfortable temperature is 14-15°C. Optimal air humidity is 80% and above.
Parasites that reproduce during hot periods have a harder time withstanding frost. Pests living in the basement are less able to withstand the heat. Basement fleas are more resistant to physical impact. To destroy them, the animal is heated above 50 °C with thermal devices - this is the temperature at which adult basement fleas and their eggs die.
The average lifespan of animals is 2-3 months. This period depends on living conditions. During her life, the female lays 500 eggs, which is why the colony increases dramatically.
Increasing the ambient temperature to 35°C reduces the insect development cycle by 30%. Adults are larger than their predecessors. A decrease in temperature leads to a slowdown in development up to 1 year, and the pests grow smaller in size.
Pros and cons of the fighting method
Advantages of killing bedbugs using a steam generator:
- No chance of survival. If a stream of steam hits an insect, it will die with 100% probability.
Inability of bedbugs to adapt. Pests are able to develop immunity to some chemicals, but they are powerless against high temperatures.- No harm to human health.
- Disinfection of surfaces. In addition to bedbugs, fungi and bacteria will be destroyed in furniture treated with a steam generator.
- Highly effective in combating adults and their larvae.
- No unpleasant odor.
- Possibility of processing hard-to-reach places without harm to the product itself.
- Ease of transportation. The steam generator can be easily brought to the dacha or to another place where parasites have appeared.
- There is no need to move to another home during treatment. Children and animals may remain in the house.
To achieve uniform dispersion of steam, it is recommended to stretch a cloth over the nozzle . This will allow you to destroy the eggs rather than blow them away.
The high cost of the steam generator can be called its disadvantage. However, the versatility of the device overcomes this disadvantage.
The choice of steam generators is wide, so in a household appliance store you can find an inexpensive and practical device that will not take up much space in the apartment.
Disadvantages of using a steam generator to combat bedbugs:
The need to purchase a device with a narrow nozzle included. If you use only a wide sprayer, you will not be able to reach hard-to-reach areas.- Strict adherence to processing technology. If you bring the device too close to the surface of the furniture, you can simply knock the eggs into another place. They will not lose their viability.
- Compliance with processing time for each section. Prolonged exposure to furniture or wallpaper may cause stains.
- Be careful when using the device. High temperatures are required to kill insects. If safety precautions are not followed, there is a risk of getting burned.
- Inability to process some electrical appliances and sockets.
It should be borne in mind that it will not be possible to get rid of all insects at once. At least 4 treatments will be required at weekly intervals.
Critical temperatures for different types of fleas
Changing the temperature regime is more effective than using insecticides. A thin stream of spray may not reach the small larva. And unfavorable living conditions kill animals.
Such types of fleas as cat and dog fleas are similar in their structure and vital functions. Therefore, pet parasites are killed in the same ways. Pests are not resistant to frosts less than -10°C, at which the reproduction process slows down.
If the cold reaches -15°C, animals freeze within 1 hour - this is the temperature at which dog and cat fleas die.
Sand insects are the smallest animals of their family and cause a disease called sarcopsillosis. Due to their small size, it is difficult to exterminate all individuals with insecticides. Therefore, it is necessary to know whether sand fleas are afraid of frost.
Animals are distributed in hot regions: India, Central and South America, Africa. Representatives of this type of flea like to live at high temperatures (30-40°C). Sand fleas die at low temperatures: less than -5°C.
It's not just frost that parasites fear. Heat and sunlight interfere with the reproduction and growth of insects. When the air is heated to 45°C, the condition of the animals deteriorates sharply - this is the temperature at which adult fleas and their larvae die within half an hour. The temperature for instant death of fleas is +50°C and above.
Instructions for exterminating parasites in your apartment
What you need to fight bedbugs:
- steam generator with a narrow nozzle;
- extension;
- insecticide in the form of a spray.
To remove bedbugs, you need to follow the instructions for their destruction :
Move the furniture away from the walls, turn it over so that nothing interferes with the upcoming processing.- Set the temperature on the device to at least 70 degrees.
- Direct the steam jet towards the treatment area. The distance should be about 25 cm.
- Take a ferry ride through hard-to-reach places. The maximum accumulation of parasites is observed in the folds and crevices of furniture, as well as from the bottom of sofas and beds. They lay eggs behind bedside tables, in dark and secluded corners of the apartment.
- Treat cracks in laminate, linoleum or parquet. There bedbugs hide during the daytime.
- Walk through the curtains. If possible, it is recommended to wash them or boil them at high temperatures. Be sure to steam curtains, carpets and all textiles in the house.
- Treat clothes and bedding.
Those fabrics that do not tolerate high temperatures must be disinfected using insecticides.
After steam treatment is completed, additional drying of items is not required . If there is high humidity in the apartment, you can get rid of it with short ventilation.
Temperatures are lethal for flea eggs
A prerequisite for exterminating pests in the house is the destruction of eggs. Their diameter is up to 1 mm, so it is not possible to destroy all eggs at once with an insecticide.
They are destroyed by frost and heat. Eggs die faster at high temperatures. When exposed to +50°C or more, insects die almost instantly.
To kill parasites with frost, it is necessary to apply cold temperatures of -20°C. It takes two days to destroy all the flea eggs.
Which device should you choose?
Which device is guaranteed to kill an insect? It is recommended to choose a steam generator with a power of at least 1500 W. Small devices may not be up to the task.
The most popular brands:
- Karcher.
- Phillips.
- Kitfort.
They are sold in hardware stores.
When deciding on the type of device, you need to opt for a steam generator designed for cleaning. Devices for steaming clothes will not cope with the task of killing insects .
Devices with a boiler can produce the maximum steam temperature. This is an additional guarantee that all bedbugs will be destroyed.
Hot fog generator
Treating rooms and areas with aerosols in the form of artificial fog is one of the most effective ways to destroy a variety of pests and parasites. A certain amount of disinfectants is introduced into the mist sprayed into small droplets, which are carried with droplets throughout the entire volume and penetrate into the smallest cracks and pores. Water ensures wetting and adhesion of the drug, and the substance itself provides an effective effect.
Cold and hot fog
There are two ways to spray disinfectants - cold and hot. They differ not only in the temperature of the resulting aerosol, but also in other parameters. This:
- Aerosol particle size is up to 50 microns in a cold state and no more than 30 microns (from 3) in a hot state;
- The penetrating ability of hot fog is 30 – 50% higher;
- Visibility of hot fog, allowing to eliminate gaps in processing;
- The effective action time is up to 4 hours for cold fog, and up to 8 hours for hot fog.
- A narrowed scope of use of cold fog to kill mainly insects.
At the same time, hot fog requires greater consumption of drugs. This increases the cost of processing, but significantly increases efficiency.
How hot fog is generated
The word “hot” is rather arbitrary. The aerosol temperature rarely exceeds 50 °C. But this allows the aerosol to spread almost instantly throughout the room or cover a certain area and deliver the necessary substances to their destination. The internal structure of the generator is quite simple:
- Carburetor;
- Tubes;
- Mixer;
- Resonator;
- Safety valve;
- Heating chamber.
During combustion, the fuel-air mixture releases the required amount of heat and forms a gas flow under a certain pressure. The disinfectant changes from a liquid state to a gaseous state, is carried away by the flow of warm air and is sprayed in the required direction. To increase the efficiency of wetting surfaces and the penetrating ability of disinfectants, liquids based on pure water or oily components are used.
According to the principle of operation, a hot fog generator (HMG) is a thermomechanical device. The working solution is injected into a stream of heated gas moving at high speed, entrained by it and sprayed onto a special head. When colliding with colder atmospheric air, the mixture condenses and forms a clearly visible stream of foggy suspension. Particle sizes are usually 10 - 30 microns, but this depends on the drug used and the type of working fluid.
Gasoline engines are used to generate heat and air flow, ensuring autonomy and high energy efficiency. The fog flow is usually supplied in a pulsed mode with a frequency of up to 100 Hz, but this again depends on the design of the apparatus.
What is a hot fog generator used for?
The main area of use of hot fog generators is the treatment of large rooms and areas with disinfectants. Some generator models provide drug delivery over a distance of 40 - 50 meters with a working solution flow rate of up to 50 liters per hour. It is convenient to treat warehouses, hangars, livestock farms, poultry houses, and workshops with hot fog. These are units for professional use and should only be operated by specially trained people.
Precautionary measures
GGTs are powerful and productive units that produce a large volume of fog enriched with active substances. After cooling, the mixture settles on surfaces and forms a disinfectant film, often unsafe for humans. The effect of the drugs can last for several days, which requires compliance with certain rules.
- Do not operate the generator if there are people or animals in the room;
- After processing, the facility is closed for several days;
- When operating a gasoline generator, it is necessary to ensure fire safety measures;
- Staff must use PPE.
Considering that the working mixture heats up, it is necessary to carefully select the drugs used. Some insecticides and disinfectants decompose when heated, which leads to both a decrease in the effectiveness of treatment and increases the risk of poisoning people. Only approved drugs can be used in strictly dosed quantities.
Feedback on use
Reviews about the use of a steam generator to combat bedbugs are mostly positive. Although it is not always possible to remove insects using a device alone.
The best results can be achieved by combining steam treatment and chemicals.
People who have tried to remove bedbugs with a steam generator indicate that they actually die under the influence of high temperatures. However, you need to steam all furniture and textiles without missing a single centimeter.
For some users, two procedures were enough to completely get rid of insects . Other people could not cope with parasites on their own. Therefore, they had to seek help from specialized services.
Reviews can be found here and here.
Effect of cold
Animal parasites function in the warm season, when the air is heated to 15-25°C - this is the temperature at which fleas live. If the thermometer drops below 0°C, pests will feel discomfort. They are unable to produce offspring.
The slowing down of vital processes begins at -5°C. During periods of frost from -10° to -15°C, they fall into suspended animation. This is an analogy to hibernation in mammals. Colds greater than -15°C are fatal to all types of animals. In such conditions, adult individuals die in 25 minutes - 1 hour.
Important Tips
To ensure that the fight against bedbugs is successful and without harm to health, you must adhere to the following recommendations :
To avoid getting burned, do not direct the steam stream at the skin.- It is recommended to work with gloves.
- After treatment, you should not do wet cleaning for 5 days. This rule is relevant when chemicals were used in addition to steam.
- Clothing used for treatment must be washed at high temperatures.
- When bedbugs reappear, the algorithm for their destruction is repeated again.
Operating principle
To understand whether a steam cleaner will help against bedbugs or not, you need to look at the basics of the parasite’s life. The optimal temperature for the full life of bloodsuckers is 20-25 ° C. Increasing it to 30-35°C will accelerate all processes in the life cycle of bedbugs. The ripening of the individual will accelerate and will not take 1.5 months, but 30 days. Accordingly, life expectancy is reduced.
On a note!
It has been experimentally proven that it is possible to remove bedbugs with steam if you apply a directed hot stream for 30 minutes. If the temperature reaches 50 degrees, it will instantly kill pests.
How to quickly get rid of bedbugs: methods and means
Steam against bedbugs can be considered as the fastest way to kill bloodsuckers. But to get rid of them completely, you will have to take a set of measures. You can supplement the heat treatment of your home with the following methods:
- Call a specialist to carry out professional disinsection treatment of the house with insecticides.
- Use of household chemical insecticides (aerosols, gels).
- Repels parasites with strong odors (herbs, essential oils, kerosene, ammonia, vinegar).
- Temperature exposure - washing items in hot water (+60 oC and above) or freezing them for several days at a temperature of -10...-15 oC.
What is a steam cleaner
A steam cleaner is a device for cleaning and disinfecting various surfaces with water vapor. The simplest design of the device includes a steam boiler, a heating element (heating element) and a hose with a control panel. The operating principle of the unit is as follows:
- Water is poured into the boiler.
- Thanks to the heating element, the water is heated to boiling point (100 degrees Celsius).
- As a result of boiling, water turns into steam.
- The steam creates excess pressure and, under its action, enters the hose, which is controlled by a person.
Since a steam cleaner converts liquid water into gas, it is also called a steam generator or steam generator.
Since the temperature of this steam is 100 °C, it kills most microbes: viruses, fungi, bacteria. It is used to treat various surfaces, except those that, under the influence of hot temperatures, can become deformed or lose their decorative or operational properties. Attention! Strict rules for operating the device. Read the recommendations for its use in the instructions for your model.
