Bed Bug Information for Tenants

Consult with Ottawa Public Health or a professional pest control operator to confirm that you have a bed bug problem. Once a bed bug infestation has been confirmed, try to work with your landlord and/or property manager to solve the problem.

The best method to deal with bed bugs is Integrated Pest Management (IPM), which combines a variety of techniques and products that pose the least risk to human health and the environment. After careful assessment, professional pest control services may be called in to apply pesticide spray.

The landlord, property manager or pest control operator may require you to do the following:

  1. Vacuum with a nozzle attachment to capture the bed bugs and their eggs. Vacuum all seams of your mattress, bed frame, baseboards and any objects close to the bed. It is essential to vacuum daily and then immediately discard of the vacuum bag in a tightly sealed garbage bag.
  2. Wash all your linens in the hottest water possible and place them in a hot dryer for 20 minutes. Consider covering your pillows and mattress with a plastic cover.
  3. Remove all unnecessary clutter to reduce the number of places bed bugs can hide.
  4. Prepare for the pesticide spray by removing everything from dressers, drawers, closets, shelves, cupboards and counter tops. Provide access to all baseboards, keep the floor clear and move all the furniture two feet away from the wall.
  5. Prevent future bed bug problems by sealing cracks and crevices between baseboards, on wood bed frames and in floors and walls with caulking. Repair or remove peeling wallpaper, tighten loose light switch covers and seal any openings where pipes, wires or other utilities come into your home (pay attention to walls that are shared between apartments).
  6. Monitor daily by setting out glue boards or sticky tape (carpet tape works well) to catch the bed bugs.
  7. Examine closely any items that you are bringing into your home. Furniture put out by someone else for garbage pick-up could be infested with bed bugs; use caution.

It is normal to see some living bed bugs for up to ten days after treating your home through IPM and/or pesticides. If you continue to see a large number of bed bugs after two weeks, contact a professional pest control service.

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