Jan 1, 2012 – Ozone and Bed Bugs
QUESTION:
Does ozone kill bed bugs, and if so who makes an ozone generator that will do the job?
ANSWER:
At the last NPMA Conference there appeared to be a single vendor showing his ozone generating system for bed bug control, and I spent awhile listening to his talk about how it is used. Interestingly he also sells electric foggers and liquid pyrethrum for treating after the ozone application is completed to, in his words, "kill any bed bugs that are still alive". This alone gave me less confidence in his approach with ozone. I also do not believe that fogging the air in an infested room is going to have much effect on bed bugs that are secluded within mattresses, furniture, or equipment and walls, so that also seemed to be a sign of uncertainty about his knowledge of bed bugs.
View past Ask Mr. Pest Control questions.
Does ozone kill bed bugs, and if so who makes an ozone generator that will do the job?
ANSWER:
At the last NPMA Conference there appeared to be a single vendor showing his ozone generating system for bed bug control, and I spent awhile listening to his talk about how it is used. Interestingly he also sells electric foggers and liquid pyrethrum for treating after the ozone application is completed to, in his words, "kill any bed bugs that are still alive". This alone gave me less confidence in his approach with ozone. I also do not believe that fogging the air in an infested room is going to have much effect on bed bugs that are secluded within mattresses, furniture, or equipment and walls, so that also seemed to be a sign of uncertainty about his knowledge of bed bugs.
There were a great many presentations and talks on bed bugs by our respected university researchers, and not a single session even mentioned ozone as a practical approach. However, I did ask one of the most involved researchers directly, while speaking with him, and when I mentioned ozone he just sort of rolled his eyes as a sign that he himself did not have much faith in this method. Perhaps this is because it is a very new idea that simply has not yet been independently tested, and perhaps ozone truly does kill bed bugs effectively, but until our university researchers study and embrace it I tend to be skeptical.
In a recent post on Bed Bug Central, which offers very up to date information on bed bug control, Cooper Pest Solutions stated that they have found current ozone treatments to be ineffective as a treatment of structures such as homes or apartments. The theory behind the use of ozone is that it seems to effectively kill many other kinds of living things, such as bacteria or even foul odors, and therefore it should also kill any insects. This may eventually turn out to be an effective technique, but for now the people I rely on for good information are not optimistic about the current technology.
View past Ask Mr. Pest Control questions.
