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A traditional way to treat a mattress is to lay it under the hot sun and beat it repeatedly with a large stick.[http://web.archive.org/web/20090527194428/http://www.xelawho.com:80/bedbug.htm] Hanging bedclothes in the sun is also often recommended. Unfortunately, this method may disperse the bedbugs (they run away from high temperatures) without killing them, so they can come back later or move to a new dwelling place. If the mattress is sealed in a plastic bag to prevent this from happening, it is unlikely that the entire surface area of the mattress - even a thin mattress - will become hot enough to kill all the bedbugs, because they can move to whichever side is away from the sun.<ref>Journal of Economic Entomology 99(6):2132-2135. 2006: "Encasing Mattresses in Black Plastic Will Not Provide Thermal Control of Bed Bugs, Cimex spp. (Hemiptera: Cimicidae)" http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.1603/0022-0493%282006%2999%5B2132%3AEMIBPW%5D2.0.CO%3B2?journalCode=ecen</ref> | A traditional way to treat a mattress is to lay it under the hot sun and beat it repeatedly with a large stick.[http://web.archive.org/web/20090527194428/http://www.xelawho.com:80/bedbug.htm] Hanging bedclothes in the sun is also often recommended. Unfortunately, this method may disperse the bedbugs (they run away from high temperatures) without killing them, so they can come back later or move to a new dwelling place. If the mattress is sealed in a plastic bag to prevent this from happening, it is unlikely that the entire surface area of the mattress - even a thin mattress - will become hot enough to kill all the bedbugs, because they can move to whichever side is away from the sun.<ref>Journal of Economic Entomology 99(6):2132-2135. 2006: "Encasing Mattresses in Black Plastic Will Not Provide Thermal Control of Bed Bugs, Cimex spp. (Hemiptera: Cimicidae)" http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.1603/0022-0493%282006%2999%5B2132%3AEMIBPW%5D2.0.CO%3B2?journalCode=ecen</ref> | ||
Soap and water should kill bedbugs, but to be safe, wash and dry clothes and bedding at high temperatures, if possible | Soap and water should kill bedbugs, but to be safe, wash and dry clothes and bedding at high temperatures, if possible. Once sanitized, bedding should not be allowed to drape to the floor. Dry cleaning should also kill bedbugs, but bedbugs from unclean items in a dry cleaning shop (waiting to be cleaned) can move to cleaned items unless they are immediately sealed in plastic bags with no holes. There have been reports of people opening bags six months after dry cleaning and finding live bedbugs inside. | ||
An effective way to quarantine a protected bed is to store sanitized sleeping clothes in the bed during the day, and bathing before entering the bed. | An effective way to quarantine a protected bed is to store sanitized sleeping clothes in the bed during the day, and bathing before entering the bed. |