Bed bugs: recognizing the signs and preparing for treatment

Key points.

1. A bite proves nothing: it is the stains, the shed skins and the insect itself that confirm.

2. In rental housing the tenant tells the landlord, and the landlord hires the exterminator.

3. The company must hold a C5 or D5 permit, and its employees a CD5 certificate.

Recognize before concluding

The Government of Québec describes the adult bed bug as a brown, oval, flattened insect the size of an apple seed, measuring 4 to 7 mm. Engorged with blood, its colour ranges from red to dark brown. If you see one, photograph it next to a reference object rather than trying to identify it from memory.

Bites look like mosquito bites and are not enough to conclude: the first ones may appear clustered or in a line, and some people do not react at all. Bites alone confirm nothing, they point.

References : Gouvernement du Québec ↗ · Gouvernement du Québec ↗

Know who does what in rental housing

What to do depends on your status, and the Government of Québec is explicit. As an owner, you contact an extermination company directly as soon as you find them. As a tenant, you inform the landlord immediately so that they contact the exterminator. In low-rental housing, contact your region’s municipal housing office.

In a multi-unit building, neighbouring units are part of the problem: ask how the intervention will be coordinated. Close cooperation between you, the landlord and the company is necessary to resolve the situation.

References : Gouvernement du Québec ↗

Choose the company and check its permit

In Quebec, pesticide application is governed by permits, and the requirements are named. The company must hold a category C5 or D5 permit, and the employees applying the products must hold a CD5 certificate from the ministry of the Environment. Both are verified in the public register under the Pesticides Act.

Ask for the permit number and the exact company name before you agree to anything. A logo on a truck is not a registration, and the check takes a few minutes.

References : Gouvernement du Québec ↗ · Gouvernement du Québec ↗

Prepare the home without spreading the problem

Preparation matters as much as treatment, and the Government of Québec puts numbers on what is expected. Declutter the rooms, empty drawers and closets, remove curtains and area rugs, then treat textiles with heat or cold using the benchmarks below.

Do not apply insecticide yourself. These products can be dangerous to health when misused, and they can make bed bugs more resistant to treatment. A mattress or piece of furniture too damaged to treat is thrown out, but not as is: make it unusable by cutting it open, wrap it in a cover or heavy plastic bag, and seal it tightly.

References : Gouvernement du Québec ↗ · Santé Canada ↗

What you should be able to describe on the phone

Your preparation checklist

Frequently asked questions

Do my bites prove I have bed bugs?

No. Bites look like mosquito bites, they may appear clustered or in a line, and some people do not react at all. It is the black stains, the shed skins and the insect itself that confirm. Gouvernement du Québec ↗ · Gouvernement du Québec ↗

I rent: who pays?

The first step is not a question of money, it is a question of delay: tell the landlord immediately, they are the one who must hire the exterminator. In low-rental housing, contact your region’s municipal housing office. Gouvernement du Québec ↗

Can I buy a product and treat it myself?

The Government of Québec advises against it: misused, these products are dangerous to health, and they can make bed bugs more resistant to the treatments that follow. Gouvernement du Québec ↗

Do I have to throw out my mattress?

Not automatically. If it is too damaged to be treated, the government describes how to dispose of it: make it unusable by cutting it open, wrap it in a cover or heavy plastic bag, and seal it tightly before throwing it out. Gouvernement du Québec ↗