How to prepare your property for pest treatment?
Preparing your property correctly before a professional pest treatment is an essential step to increase the effectiveness of the treatment. Below, we provide a clear and practical guide to help you prepare each part of your home before the pest control team arrives.
Preparing your property for bed bug treatment
Wondering how to prepare your property for bed bug treatment? Below you’ll find a list of specific steps you need to take.
- Place all bedding and textiles from the beds into rubbish bags: duvets, pillows, covers, blankets, fitted sheets and similar items. Seal the bags tightly and take them to the bathroom.
- Vacuum the bed thoroughly (including all seams and gaps), the surrounding area and the skirting boards, then mop the floor — this will help increase the effectiveness of the bed bug treatment. After vacuuming, replace the vacuum bag and dispose of the used one, sealed tightly inside a rubbish bag.
- Remove the mattress from the bed and stand the bed upright.
- Take pictures down from the walls and leave them in the room, leaning against the wall.
- Pull furniture away from the wall by around 40 cm; the most important pieces are those close to the beds.
- Put away personal items.
- Remove the skirting boards.
- Roll up the rug/carpet and place it as far away from the bed as possible.
- If the treatment involves liquid products, protect electronic devices.
ADDITIONAL RECOMMENDATIONS AFTER CHEMICAL TREATMENT:
- After a chemical treatment, you must leave the property for 2 hours.
- When you return, ventilate the property for approximately one hour.
- For one week, do not vacuum, sweep or mop areas 20–30 cm from the walls or around the beds. It is also recommended not to clean surfaces that are not touched directly (e.g. behind and under furniture, near pipework and ventilation points, around skirting boards, etc.). Washing off or removing the product causes it to lose its protective and biocidal properties.
- We recommend cleaning food preparation and eating areas with a standard household detergent
AFTER EACH TREATMENT, WE RECOMMEND:
- Wash the items that were kept in bags before the treatment at 60°C.
Any questions? Call us
Preparing items for heat treatment – fast, safe and effective
Heat treatment in a chamber or thermal tent is one of the most modern ways to tackle bed bugs in personal belongings and household items. High temperatures work evenly and can reach places where insects or their eggs may be hidden.
To achieve the best results, it’s important to prepare items properly before the service. It isn’t complicated—just a few simple steps can make the treatment even more effective and safe.
1. Choose the items that should be treated
In practice, we recommend including any items that were close to the bed, the sofa, or in areas where bed bugs were identified. Even if there are no obvious signs, a single egg or insect can be enough for the problem to return.
Typically treated:
2. Make sure the items can withstand high temperatures
High heat is the key factor in this method, so some items should not be placed in the heat chamber. If you’re unsure, check with the technician before the treatment – this is the safest way to avoid damage.
Not recommended for heat treatment:
Any questions? Contact us and we’ll guide you step by step.
Preparing your home for an indoor cockroach, silverfish and ant treatment
Preparation should be tailored to the disinsection method being used. Not every technique requires the same steps: gel bait is applied in targeted points, whereas residual spraying and ULV misting/fogging treat surfaces and wider areas. Below you’ll find separate preparation instructions for each method.
1) Preparing for an insecticidal gel treatment (gel bait)
Insecticidal gel bait is commonly used indoors, particularly for cockroaches and ants. It’s a precise method: the technician applies small amounts in key spots where insects travel or harbour. For the gel to work properly, these areas must be accessible and should not be cleaned straight after treatment.
Before treatment:
Furniture, clothing and delicate items:
After treatment:
2) Preparing for a professional residual spray treatment (chemical spray)
Spraying is used to treat surfaces, skirting boards, cracks/crevices and insect travel routes. It’s an effective method, but it requires more preparation because the product is applied across wider areas.
Before treatment:
Kitchen and bathroom (key areas):
Furniture and textiles:
After treatment:
3) Preparing for ULV misting/fogging (micro-droplet application)
ULV misting/fogging disperses the product as micro-droplets, helping it reach hard-to-access areas and providing an even, uniform treatment. Because of the nature of this method, it’s particularly important to protect belongings and prepare the space properly.
Before treatment:
During and after treatment:
Most common mistakes before and after disinsection
Even a professional treatment can be less effective if basic mistakes are made during preparation or immediately after the service.
The most common issues include:
- Leaving the floor cluttered (boxes, clothing, bags): this restricts access to skirting boards, cracks/crevices and other key areas.
- Not preparing the kitchen and bathroom: in most cases, these are the main hotspots for cockroaches, silverfish and ants.
- Washing treated surfaces straight away: this removes the product’s residual effect and reduces the overall result.
- Leaving food or utensils out in the open: increases the risk of contamination and makes treatment more difficult.
- Ignoring the technician’s instructions on ventilation, re-entry time and post-treatment cleaning.
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Describe your pest problem
Have a pest problem at home or at your business? Our team is ready to help quickly and discreetly. Tell us what’s going on and we’ll get back to you.