Pest Control and Bug Exterminator Blog

Thomas Ballantyne ( @Thos003 ) interviewing Griffen Pest Solutions ( @griffinpest )

US Bed Bug Reports | InstectReport.org & bedbugregistry.com

Bed bugs are a hot topic for many U.S. cities. Fortunately most of the metro areas Bulwark Exterminating covers have not been red zones. But I understand Griffin is experiencing a lot of bed bug requests.

Where is Griffin located?

Griffin: Griffin Pest Solutions corporate headquarters is located in Kalamazoo, Michigan, plus we have service branches in Grand Rapids and Ann Arbor as well. We service most of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula and Northwest Indiana. Cities in our service area include: Detroit, Ann Arbor, Battle Creek, Lansing, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Battle Creek, Flint and South Bend, IN.

Thos003: New York has had several retail outlets like Abercrombie and Hollister close down for bed bugs. What areas/properties are targets for bed bugs?

Griffin: We have seen a significant amount of bed bug business from the greater Detroit and Ann Arbor areas. This is no surprise as Detroit has been listed by several national pest control companies as one of the top 5 most infested bed bug cities in the U.S. Our bed bug heat treatment service teams are booked two to three weeks in advance. As business continues to grow, we are anticipating adding a 3rd shift.

Our biggest customers for bed bugs this year have been apartment communities and hotels. However, we have also treated college dorms, homeless shelters, hospitals, assisted living centers, recreational facilities, housing commissions and a good number of residential homes. Clearly bed bugs are spreading, with no end in sight.

Thos003: There is a lot of doom and gloom around the whole bed bug topic. The products that nearly made bed bugs extinct 30 years ago are no longer allowed by the EPA. So controlling bed bugs now is a whole new ball game. We are having to re-invent a solution.

How do bed bugs spread from property to property? And from city to city?

Griffin: Bed bugs are known as hitch-hikers. They are easily transported on people and their belongings. Some of the most common ways of getting bed bugs include picking them up while traveling. By simply putting your luggage on the bed in a hotel, bed bugs could latch on, or crawl in your luggage and you can bring them home with you.

Thos003: Are there other ways for them to spread beyond them being carried by their hosts?

Griffin: If you live in multi-unit housing, such as apartments or dorms, where you share a common wall, you may get bed bugs from your neighbor. Bed bugs only have to travel about 6 inches, through your walls, ceiling, or floors to reach you. Unfortunately, there is not much you can do to prevent this from happening.

Adult Bed Bugs grow to 3/8 inch

Another common way to get bed bugs is to buy used furniture at garage sales, antique shops or resale shops. Furniture is rarely inspected and bed bugs can easily hide in furniture cracks. Once inside your house, the bed bugs will multiply. People need to understand that bed bugs are not a cleanliness issue. Bed bugs are a people issue.

Thos003: A lot of bugs go dormant during the cold seasons. What about bed bug?

Do you expect bed bugs to die down for the winter?

Griffin: Living in a cold weather climate, we typically see insect activity dramatically decline in the winter. However, with bed bugs we do not anticipate a drop in activity. Bed bugs are on the rise across the country and Michigan has just scratched the surface of the bed bug issue. With the cold weather, people will be spending more time indoors, where it’s warm. Bed bugs live where people live, so the cold weather does not affect them.

Thos003: Wow, Christmas coming up soon and a lot of travelers.  How will this affect bed bugs?

Kids are coming home from college; people are traveling to visit family and friends, and bringing bed bugs with them. We expect to see a spike in bed bug activity about 45-60 days after the holidays. This is about the amount of time it takes for bed bugs to multiply to a significant infestation level.

What can one do to protect themselves while traveling?

Griffin: When traveling, people need to be vigilant. If they’re staying in a hotel, inspect the room before you bring your luggage to the room. When doing an inspection, bring a bright flashlight. Look for insects the size, shape and color of an apple seed. Bed bugs also shed their skins as they grow, so you may see some casings. Pull back the bed sheets and check the mattress for small rust stains, bed bug excrement, about the side of a pencil eraser. Look under the mattress, inside the end tables and most importantly, behind the headboard. If you can take the headboard off the wall, do it. Hotels can change out bedding and mattress, but usually don’t switch the headboard. If there are no bed bugs behind the headboard, you can be reasonably sure your room does not have bed bugs. If you see any signs of bed bugs, ask for another room nowhere near the room you just came from…or check out of the hotel.

We also tell people not to place luggage on the bed or floor. Keep it as far away from the bed as possible. When traveling, our team puts luggage in the bathtub. We also travel with large zip-lock clothing bags and put all dirty and unworn clothes into the bag. When you get home, immediately dump the contents of the bag into your clothes dryer and turn it on the hottest setting for at least 30 minutes. Don’t overload the dryer though. You need the hot air to circulate. Vacuum your luggage and then store it in your garage or basement, away from where you sleep. Be sure to remove the vacuum bag, double bag it and throw it away. I know all of this seems excessive, but it is well worth the hassle. Getting rid of bed bugs can be very expensive.

Thos003: That is some great advice.  I’ve got some of my own precautions I use when traveling.  The bit about keeping the luggage away from the bed and floor is priceless. But honestly never considered placing it in the tub. Thanks!  I am sure there are lot of people searching the internet right now for some tips on controlling bed bugs.  Lot of good and some bad advice online as well.  Are there some other resources people should use online for bed bug advice?

Griffin: Yes. Be proactive before you travel, check out www.bedbugregistry.com and www.tripadvisor.com. On these sites, consumers report bed bugs. BedBugRegistry is straight forward. However, on TripAdvisor, you will need to search by city name and key words “bed bugs”, and then read the consumer comments. If a property is listed or a consumer comments about bed bugs, you may want to stay somewhere else.

Thos003: Awesome. And while these precautions may seem extreme, getting a bed bug infestation in my own home isn’t something I would ever want to experience. So again, great advice.  I would also add one more tidbit for the holiday season, send all of your new clothes through a dry cycle when you bring them home from your Christmas Shopping.

Learn more about bedbugs on www.GriffinPestSolutions.com webpage about Bed Bugs.

Related Bed Bug Articles:

Don’t let the Bed Bugs Bite, or ruin your mattress

The Beginning of the Bed Bug Epidemic

Genma Holmes

I love being social… but I think I am pretty much beat with Genma Holmes. And if you can’t beat em, join em. From fashion model to pest control super star, Genma Holmes is CEO of Holmes Pest Control in Nashville, Tennessee. She was a very fun interview and very gracious.  Enjoy!

Thomas: Well you are such an interesting person that I don’t know where to begin an interview! I heard you speak at the Green Conference in Dallas last year, so you are obviously promoting green services, let’s start there. What percentage of your customers are on an all natural pest control service?

Genma: All. I got into the business before green became a marketing idea. Green living is my way of life…not a marketing campaign.

Thomas: All of your pest control is done with 100% All Natural Pest Control Products? That’s fantastic! I am actually relieved. I was a little disappointed in the guys at that conference that were promoting green pest control as an undefined “wrap me in a green blanket and call me a safe treatment plan.” In fact, your candid clear cut views are probably what make you sparkle. Bulwark offers this option for those that want it but few ask for the All Natural Solution.

So you are 100% all natural pest control, for how many years?

Genma: From the day I met David Murphy of EcoSmart. We had been experimenting with it but did not have a pesticide that did the job that EcoSmart. It did not pass the smell test or the lick test in EcoSmart place. When EcoSmart first started my youngest children were in kindergarten.

Thomas: Very nice plug for EcoSmart, and yes they do offer great products. So Why Nashville?

Genma: I love this place. LOVE IT. I moved here from Mississippi. I thought I stepped off the bus into Rhinestone heaven! Everywhere I went I bumped into a REAL Opry star. No to mention the number of folks like me that stepped off Greyhound (or Southwest) and were millionaires overnight. No state income taxes, homes looking like McMasion with McRibs prices. Great place to raise your children. Economic opportunities on every corner and the most philanthropic people hands down.

Thomas: Yep, I love Nashville too. I graduated from Franklin High School. It is so beautiful there and full of wonderful people, like yourself. But my wife rules the roost so I won’t be back in Tennessee anytime soon. I get that you travel a lot for speaking engagements. How many events do you speak at per year?

Genma: Hmm, colleges are the hot spots. As I type I have 15 engagements scheduled before November. I did a road trip once pushing women in the industry angle….46 stops in 42 days. I nearly died but it was a great year! I am rarely asked to do industry events but then again, I didn’t cut my teeth talking to bug people (meaning I am not a “pest control industry” person traveling to “industry” events). Majority of my audiences are consumer driven marketplaces. I do not sell to the pest control industry. My audience are non industry folks mainly who buy my services and want to hear me talk about any and everything including my fear of brown recluse spiders. When I share that in a Women’s publication or a professional women group it is ok, talk about that in a room full of pest control guys and I sound bat crap crazy.

Thomas: Not only do I admire you as a pest professional, a great speaker, and a business savvy lady,  but you strike me as a mother that cares for her family.

Genma: I respect motherhood deeply. Thomas: How many kids do you have? Genma: 3! Franz (sports medicine) Cornelius (sports journalism) Alexis (sports marketing)…all would be 2nd generation PCOs!

Thomas: What’s your favorite question to be asked? Genma: How the hell did you get into pest control?

Thomas: You know that is a great question! So let me ask you… About your politics. =)
I know that your are politically active, do you take sides? Democratic, Republican? Liberal, Conservative?

Politics... Let's break that down for you... "Poli" Many & "tics" blood sucking creatures.

Genma: I vote my conscious. That’s not a wiggle out, that is the truth. Always have and always will. My grandfather’s taught me to think for myself. I don’t put campaign signs on my trucks. My business can not vote. I personally do not endorse anyone, because of my role at several newspapers BUT I throw some of the best parties in town to support a cause or a candidate. In the last year, I formed a group called POI…pissed off independents! Never met a Margarita we did not like!

Thomas: How does your political activism help and maybe hurt your business?

Genma:It doesn’t hurt or help. From the time I came out the womb, I was given a campaign sign from my granddaddy. Knocking on doors to get people to exercise their right to vote was his life story. He spent his life being a civil rights activist. Not the kind on TV spouting nonsense about nonsense but a man of the people who loved all people. I learned from him to have that fire in your belly for something that you believe in that works for the greater good..not lining your pocket! Vote for whoever you like..just vote damn it! See there goes that fire in me.

Thomas: Do you link religion, politics, and pest control?

Genma:All the time! I love my God, I am a citizen that votes in EVERY election, and I kill bugs. I can not get around any of that! But there are times and places for everything. I try not to push my beliefs on others but I am firm in my faith. if you don’t like my politics that fine, we live in a country that allow us to have differing views. I kill bugs and I am not shame of the work I do.

Thomas: Well you are wonderful.  Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions.  I look forward to following your tweets.

And I encourage other professionals to do the same.  Check her out here:

http://twitter.com/bugsact

http://genmaspeaks.blogspot.com/