Bed bugs are one of the worst infestations that can happen in a home. They are remarkably hardy bugs that can live for long periods of time in any kind of soft furniture.
This often means that professionals have to come into a home and perform a treatment that is invasive and expensive.
Almost all who experience bed bugs will wonder why it is so expensive to have them removed, especially when they are so invasive and commonplace.
Here are 7 reasons why bed bug treatment is expensive enough to distress your wanton wallet.
1. The Size of Bed Bugs
Bed bugs are about the size of a small pebble and are often compared to lentils, which are incredibly small beans. When bugs get this small, they tend to hide much more easily than their larger counterparts.
Although bugs this size are also easier to kill when you can find and eliminate them, it requires having a sharp eye checking any possible place that bed bugs can hide.
Exterminators are more effective than the average person at finding bed bugs, but bed bugs can burrow for long periods of time, and evade detection. The more time and labor required to eliminate a pest, the higher the cost will become.
2. The Number of Bed Bugs
The number of bed bugs in an infestation can also add to the cost.
The turnaround time for a bed bug to go from a baby to being able to reproduce is only a few months.
One female bed bug can lay about 500 eggs in her lifetime. The speed eggs are produced is fastest when the temperature of the environment is around 70-82 degrees, the average temperature of a home.
Find out more about Bed Bug Nests in our complete guide.
When doing the math, it is highly likely that there are thousands of eggs laid and hundreds of bed bugs living in a home, so if you have any bedbugs, there is a good chance you have lots of them.
Getting rid of a few bugs is much easier than thousands, including tiny eggs.
Thus, costs become higher. The best thing to do?
If you see one bed bug, get everything treated before it becomes a large problem.
3. The Hardiness of Bed Bugs
Bed bugs also have many other characteristics that make them hard to get rid of. Bed bugs can survive almost a full year without eating.
They also have developed the ability to detect different chemicals and pesticides.
Unfortunately, they are resistant to many pesticides, temperatures, and environments.
Most of the techniques that would work for other bugs will not work for bed bugs. These bugs require expert tools and attention. This leads to an increase in the cost to remove them.
Nevertheless, we’ve read dozens of studies and checked 139 (!) remedies and found some that are good!
4. The Seemingly Limitless Number of Places Bed Bugs Can Thrive
Bed bugs can live in almost any place. Due to the flat shape and the small size of bed bugs, they often initially are found in soft pieces of furniture, clothing, or even pieces of luggage. They only need about a credit card’s width of space to be comfortable.
When bugs only need a minute amount of space to thrive, they can go anywhere and everywhere. Often, they like to nest where there is easy access to food, so near or in a bed.
However, they can hide in many different places, including behind wallpaper, in the carpet, behind electrical outlets, and deep inside soft furniture like couches.
The most annoying aspect of bed bugs is that they can infest other homes than the one they originally were in.
Exterminating an entire home is much more expensive than just one spot.
5. The Tools Required to Exterminate Bed Bugs
The tools that are needed to kill bed bugs are very specific, and expensive to purchase and use.
The primary way exterminators kill bed bugs is through a heat or steam method. Regardless of whether it is solely heat or involves steam, the goal is to get a room up to 120-130 degrees safely without causing a fire.
This can be especially difficult when taking carpet, hardwood, or other things into consideration.
On top of the heat treatment, good companies will also offer to spray down infected areas with a special kind of pesticide. The reason why it is special is that it is safe for people, pets, and babies to touch or accidentally consume while killing the bed bugs.
This requires a unique balance of chemicals that simply must be done right or there will be major consequences for the homeowners and the company.
6. The Way a Bug Exterminator Company Charges Customers
Different companies calculate the cost of bed bug removal in different ways.
Some companies calculate the cost by charging by the square footage of where they did the treatment.
Other companies will charge by the number of rooms that they treat.
Few companies will offer a flat rate. Flat rates are often the simplest to understand, but they can also be overpriced if a consumer has a small infestation.
Depending on the specific circumstance, it is best to know that the cost can increase if the infestation takes up more rooms or square footage.
7. The Number of Visits Required to Remove an Infestation
Treatments may only kill part of an infestation at a time, especially if nesting spots are not detected.
It is not unheard of that exterminators will need to come to a home two or three times to completely eliminate them. Even if they believe they killed the entire infestation, eggs could hatch within the next few days and require the professionals to come back.
They might also have to do multiple visits in order to accommodate the client’s lifestyle.
Now that we have discussed the reasons why the cost is so high, here is an average cost for one room to be heat treated: about 1-3 dollars per square foot or around 100-500 dollars per room.
This cost covers labor costs, the cost to use the equipment including their own electrical generators, travel costs, and many others.
With these seven reasons in mind, it helps the concerned consumer understand why they have to spend so much money to resolve a bed bug infestation.
Although this does not fix any money issues, it helps to understand the purchase and make the purchase worth the cost.
Conclusion
Bed bug infestations can be a nightmare for homeowners, and the cost of extermination can be just as distressing. From the tiny size of bed bugs to their hardiness and widespread infestation possibilities, there are several reasons why bed bug treatment is expensive.
Understanding these reasons can help you prepare for the cost of extermination and find the best deal for your situation. So, don’t let bed bugs bite your wallet, and take the necessary steps to eliminate these pests once and for all.
