Bed Bug
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What to Do if Your Rental Property Has Bed Bugs
Milwaukee is Notorious for the Pesky, Resilient Bed Bug. Don’t Try to Take Them On By Yourself.
If your tenants have called you to report red itchy bites on their skin in the morning, brown spots on bedding, or even a bed bug itself, your property is likely in the early stages of a bed bug infestation.
A bed bug problem can begin as an annoyance and turn into a disgusting health hazard in no time. Even one fertile female bed bug can produce hundreds of offspring. As a landlord, it is your responsibility to provide adequate living conditions for your tenants, and a bed bug problem is a sure way to scare off current and potential renters.
Battling these bugs can be an ordeal in a home, but in an apartment building things can be even more complicated. If you discover bedbugs in your apartment building or rental property, it is important to co-ordinate with your tenants and a qualified Milwaukee pest control company to deal with the problem before your entire building is infected. Ignoring the problem will only make it more expensive and difficult to deal with once it spreads throughout your building.
Contact a Qualified Milwaukee Bed Bug Exterminator
The first step is to contact a qualified Milwaukee pest control company to assess the situation. A-Landlords will thoroughly inspect the unit, looking at couches, bedding, and other known bed bug dwellings to assess the extent of the infestation. With more information, you can form a strategy to combat the problem with your exterminator.
Bed bugs are nearly impossible to wipe out thoroughly without professional help. Store-bought bug sprays and home treatments are rarely effective and usually just drive the bugs deep into hiding for a short period of time. Without a professional Milwaukee bed bug exterminator, your infestation will just flare up again. Using your on-staff maintenance and janitorial personnel is only advisable if they have the proper training and access to specialized treatments.
Contact Other Tenants
Bed bugs are a particularly tenacious pest and just because they entered the building in one unit doesn’t mean that’s where they'll stay. Every unit adjacent to the infected one should be thoroughly inspected by a qualified bed bug exterminator to ensure the problem is limited to one unit.
Communicate the situation to the affected tenants without causing a panic, as well as any other tenants in the building. Ask for their cooperation and advise them to remain vigilant for signs of bed bugs in their units.
Coordinate with Tenants to Prepare for Bed Bug Treatment
Dealing with bed bugs is never quick or easy, but by taking steps to prepare their apartments your tenants can ensure that exterminators have access to bed bug hideouts. In preparation for bed bug treatment, ask your tenants to:
- Tidy up: Bed bugs love to hide in clutter. By creating a clean and orderly apartment you deny bedbugs shelter.
- Deal with the mattress: Bed bugs in mattresses can be dealt with by encasing the mattress in a special bug proof bag, which is available at many big-box stores and online outlets.
- Wash all clothing and bedding: It is imperative that any potential bed bug habitat be thoroughly washed. Every sheet, blanket, clothing item, pillow, etc should be washed and put into a dryer on high heat for at least a half an hour. Exposing bedbugs and their eggs to that amount of heat will kill them.
- Vacuum: Every surface should be vacuumed to suck up living and dead bugs. Dispose of full vacuum bags outdoors in a sealed plastic bag.
Communicate with Tenants to Prevent Bed Bugs from Returning
For new tenants moving in, provide literature and information about how to avoid bringing home bed bugs. Make sure they understand the dangers of second hand furniture and discards found on the street. Educate tenants on bedbug identification and hazards so that any future infestations can be dealt with swiftly and early. Learn more here.
