Click here to download printable document.
Examples of potential businesses, community areas, and “high-traffic” public areas that are suitable for Aprehend proactive bed bug services:
- Waiting rooms (e.g., health care facilities, government offices, police precincts)
- Public transport (e.g., buses, trains, airport terminals)
- Theatres/cinemas
- Court rooms
- Libraries
- Churches/houses of worship
Scheduling
Applications of Aprehend should be applied on a quarterly schedule. If monthly services for other pests are part of the contract, schedule proactive room service to make most economic use of technician time and travel. Work with management to ensure that rooms/areas scheduled for treatment are vacant for treatment and for at least 4 hours following the application.
Application of Aprehend
Strategy
For proactive treatments, the strategy for application of Aprehend is slightly different than for infestations. In this situation we are placing barriers at potential harborage sites to intercept bed bugs on introduction to an area. When introduced, bed bugs will seek a harborage close to the point of introduction. These areas are likely to be in cracks and crevices of chairs or other furniture where clients are present. Treating these areas will ensure that bed bugs encounter Aprehend before they are able to establish an infestation.
Seating areas
Aprehend should be applied as 2” barriers around the bottom perimeter of the seat of each chair and around each chair leg. Depending on chair design, apply Aprehend to upholstery crevices wherever bed bugs might choose to harbor if introduced. Apply barriers similarly to the rear side of the chair back and any potential harborage sites in the upholstery (Figure 1).
Figure 1 Green lines illustrate Aprehend barrier placement for various seating designs. Undersides and rear of seat backs should also be treated.
Reception desks and other furniture
Apply Aprehend barriers wherever bed bug harborages could be established. These areas include joints, screw holes, and any hidden crevices.
Pricing Structure
Initial estimates for the cost of treatment should assume 15–30 seconds per chair/furniture item. One technician can treat 100-200 chairs in 1 hour depending on the design of the chairs. The quantity of Aprehend required per chair will also vary according to chair design, but an estimate of 1/10th fl. oz. per chair is a reasonable starting point.
Estimated base cost of annual proactive service in a simple waiting room can be calculated as follows:
Labor = (number of chairs) X (seconds per chair) X (4 services per year)*
Product = (number of chairs) X (volume in fl oz of Aprehend per chair) X (cost of Aprehend per fl oz) X 4
Total annual cost = labor + product
*Remember to add the cost of travel time for each visit to ensure all costs are covered.
Warranty
In offering the contract service above, a warranty may be offered such that any bed bug sightings reported to management will be investigated by a trained tech within 24 or 48 hrs. Inspection will be conducted and observations reported back to the management. Technicians should be trained to distinguish between an introduction (i.e., a recently introduced bed bug from a guest) vs establishment of an early infestation. Introductions cannot be avoided, but Aprehend will prevent the establishment of an infestation. Assuming that the pro-active application of Aprehend was within the past 3 months, active infestation is highly unlikely. Either way, all visible bed bugs should be removed and placed in a Ziplock bag for verification of contact with Aprehend (refer to the Ziplock Test document for instruction here) and a touch-up treatment with Aprehend should be performed to ensure continuing protection for that area.
For the businesses signed up for annual proactive service, consider not charging for any additional bed bug servicing. This gives management a fixed and predictable cost for bed bug management, removing the financial uncertainty of a reactive treatments. Furthermore, the service contract will help provide protection from litigation since the management can demonstrate they have done everything possible to protect visitors from bed bug encounters.
Two other protocols, for hotels/motels and multi-unit housing, are available here.
See how other PMPs have used Aprehend in a variety of difficult situations in these Case Studies and suggested prep steps and proper equipment usage with these Training Videos .
Or give us a call at (800) 891-8610 and we can discuss how to integrate Aprehend into your current protocol, reduce call-backs, and eliminate the most difficult bed bug infestations.