South Florida Company Battling Bed Bugs
DAVIE (CBS) -- As the battle against bed bugs plays out nationwide, a South Florida company is doing something to help out homeowners struggling with the pesky critters.
South Florida resident Jessica Hahn was fed up with bed bugs. She began noticing red bumps all over skin. Hahn thought she had allergies, but what she has was a case of traveling bed bugs.
"We moved to another place and they followed us there. So then we moved to another place," said Hahn. "They followed us there and so we moved here and we still have them."
When she noticed that hundreds of them had taken over her home, she called in the professionals.
Guarantee Solutions pest control used to get a couple calls a month about people dealing with bed bugs. Now they get 6 to 8 calls a day.
"The bed bugs are opportunists and hitch hikers and when they see an opportunity they jump on it," said David Cogan of Guarantee Solutions.
The company uses an eco-friendly approach to ridding homes of bed bugs—they use heat.
Workers roll in powerful heaters and seal off rooms. They crank the heaters to about 130 degrees Fahrenheit and just sit back as the bugs slowly die.
Ten days later, all of the bugs in Hahn's home are dead.
This technique is so effective, the company shared it with the Miami-Dade County Health Department at a recently held symposium aimed at combating bed bugs.
Experts say homeowners can do their part at home to reduce the chance of a bed bug infestation. First, make sure to inspect items carefully after traveling, since many hotels are reporting problems with bed bugs. Second, look for reddish brown stains on clothing and mattresses. Lastly, reduce clutter to eliminate hiding places.
