Bedbug Control Barkingside

The Furniture Stays Where It Is

This surprises people: for both treatments we ask for beds, wardrobes and chests of drawers to stay put. Moving them spreads bedbugs across the room and into the hall. So the part you are most worried about is the part you do not need to do.

What does need doing is lighter work: bagging bedding and clothes, clearing things off the floor, and, for heat, taking out a short list of items that heat can damage. All of it can be split into small jobs and shared out.

What Can Be Handed to Someone Else

Think of the preparation as a list you can give to a helper, whether that is a relative, a friend, a neighbour or a carer who already visits:

• Stripping the bed. Bedding goes into a bag in the room and straight to the washing machine or a launderette.
• Emptying the floor. Shoes, bags, boxes and piles are lifted into sealed bags or plastic tubs.
• Laundry. A hot wash or a run in the dryer, then clean items sealed in fresh bags.
• Heat-sensitive items. Medication, aerosols, candles, some electronics and plants taken out of the rooms for the day.

If you have nobody who can help, ask when you ring and we will talk through what is possible for your home. If you rent, your landlord or housing provider should be told in writing; who arranges and pays depends on the tenancy and the cause.

Which Treatment Asks Less of You

Heat asks for a single burst of preparation and usually one visit. There is no need to keep things bagged and floors clear for weeks afterwards. It costs more than chemical. The heat treatment page for Redbridge explains what the day involves.

Chemical costs less but usually means two or three visits about 10 to 14 days apart, and the bedding and floor work has to be repeated before each one. If your helper can only come once, that is worth weighing up. The Redbridge chemical treatment page sets out the visits.

On the Day

You will need to be out of the treated rooms while the work is done; for heat, out of them for most of a day. If moving around the house is difficult, tell us which rooms you need to use and we will plan around that where we can. Follow the instructions given on the day about when to go back in.

Keep sleeping in your own bed until then. Moving to a chair or the sofa because it feels cleaner often means a second place to treat. For people in Barkingside who spend much of the day in one chair, mention it when you ring, because that chair may need treating too. Not sure it is bedbugs? Our guide on whether bedbugs bite every night explains why the bites come and go.

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