How it works
Small bugs, mites and their eggs can't survive in temperatures above 55˚C. When subjected to instantaneous steam there is no time for their escape to cooler surroundings. A gradual temperature rise will only disperse the bed bugs and spread the infestation. At Exsteaminator, we kill and sanitise pest infested locations with 102˚C jets of low blast steam. This is to ensure they aren’t blown away by the colder air that precedes the lethal heated steam blast. Steam kills bed bugs, fleas and dust mites instantly, yet cools within seconds and if applied correctly, doesn't damage any surfaces or fabrics that they frequent. Why waste money throwing out bug inflicted furniture and bedding, still in good condition, when they can be de-bugged and sanitised back to new?
Bed Bug Eradication
The success of steam treatments of bed bugs is 50% dependant on the operator’s dedication and training and 50% on using steam machines capable of delivering vast quantities of continuous steam with the proper tools to disperse it with.
To guarantee success it is most important to administer steam at the correct levels and speed, dependant on the surface material, to every square inch of the treatment area. Special attention has to be paid to cracks and harbourages to ensure that steam penetrates throughout the cavity. The more cavities – the more care must be taken. It is recommended that pre-caulking of cavities preferably should be done before the bugs are introduced.
Steam must be applied in an orderly fashion on all furniture pieces and the full room perimeter so that disturbed bugs do not pass back onto the treated area. With experiences drawn from our many clients, Exsteaminator has devised many practical solutions on how to apply steam to eliminate errors and achieve a 100% eradication with the first treatment. If a nymphal stage bug or egg is missed, regular inspections, which should be done anyway, will locate the escapee and a less detailed follow-up treatment should finish of the breeding cycle. Particular attention is required with bed heads, mattresses, framed or ensemble bed bases, curtains, cracks and carpets. One great advantage with steam lies in the fact that bugs are not disturbed by the odourless steam as is the case with chemical odours.
We also recommend the pre fitting of bed bug shields to ensemble bases and mattresses to provide soiling protection, ease and speed of treatment and assistance for easy visual inspection.
We cover these procedures and specialized steam applications to other difficult furniture items such as lounge suites, power points, air-conditioning units fully in our training modules.
Pitted brick walls with cracked mortar and loosely fitted sheeting over stud framed walls are other problem areas.
If a room can be sealed easily with caulking agents, as is the case with most reasonably constructed buildings, other than through human error, you can expect total eradication of the breeding cycle of bed bugs.
Once a steam treatment commences it must be completed without major time delays. This is just one of the reasons we recommend a two person eradication team.
The time duration for a steam treatment of an apartment is dependant on various factors:
- A heavy infestation which is the result of advanced breeding cycles.
- A low infestation level such as in a recent introduction.
- Following a prior attempted chemical treatment. This can alter the bugs' normal habitat and repel them away from their feeding venue – the bed.
- Type and condition of building construction - cracks - non-rendered brick walls etc.
- Whether pro-active measures have been taken - such as pre-caulking and the fitting of bug shields.
- Furniture types, floor coverings, cupboard design, bed/bed base/ bed head types etc.
- The number of sleeping rooms, dormitory beds and lounges involved and more.
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Career opportunities in Bed Bug Eradication or Do-it-yourself Eradication.
Bed Bug FAQs
Mattress Sanitisation for Dust Mite & Mould Eradication
This minuscule creature has some similarities to bed bugs in so much that they reside close to their human host but instead of feeding off the host’s blood they feed of the shed skin. On taking up lodgings in a victim’s bed they tend to not roam as much as the bed bug. Infestations cannot be visually detected, as dust mites are invisible to the naked eye.
Pre vacuuming of a mattress with a powerful vacuum head to remove the dust mites, their eggs, their excrement and dead skin, prior to steam treatments is vital in the eradication process.
It is advantageous also to have a vacuum cleaner which collects and separates inhaled particles through water as the filtration medium. The use of water as a filtration medium also assures that vacuum (air flow) power-loss doesn’t occur as is the case with dust bag and hepa-filter type vacuum machines.
Exsteaminator's Power Head, with an effective vacuuming width of 30cm and weight of 1kg, is a recommended extra attachment that is necessary for dust mite treatments and carpet cleaning. This tool, with its brushing and pulsing action provided by a 240V motor, delivers a deeper vacuum result and is attached to the machine via a 4 metre light-weight hose and extension rods. This flexible hose permits the operator to take this lightweight tool to the mattress as against lifting a very heavy vacuum cleaner onto it.
An entire king sized mattress or the carpet under are reachable from just one location of the Liberty Professional.
More importantly, the mobility of the power head, also allows the sides as well as the top of a mattress to be deep vacuumed for dust mites.
Once the vacuuming is complete, joint steam and vacuum tools are inserted at the hose handle and the steaming process can begin. The 102˚C dry steam that is delivered, instantly kills any remaining mites and eggs that could be deeper in the mattress.
The steam application effectively removes and dissipates most smell sources. With our odourless process, not only are the dust mites and gaunine removed but the mattress cover receives a deep seated hygienic laundering.
The final process with mattress sanitising is to dry the slightly moist outer fabric with a blast of warm dry air via an exhaust hose which is attached at the rear of the Liberty Professional.
The multi purpose cleaning functions of a Liberty Professional steamer with vacuum, delivers many advantages over specialized mattress cleaning UV light machines – not to mention the massive price difference and its flexibility to clean any surface.
