A chemical treatment’s main objective is to get direct contact of our products to every bed bug and bed bug egg. This is a very thorough process. Chemical treatments generally require about 4 treatments spaced out by 10 days each. We use desiccant dusts and modern dual active pesticides.
Quality. Trusted.
Bed Bugs
Thorn is on your side.
Bed Bug Elimination & Control in Utah
We are the leaders in bed bug detection and elimination.
It may feel like the world is coming to an end and you will never feel comfortable in your home again, but there are solutions. We can walk you through how to successfully eliminate bed bugs and help you feel comfortable in your bed again.
Dead Accurate Results.
Our Bed Bug Dog and Heat Treatments have a 95% success rate on complete and full eradication with one treatment. It is that easy!
Bed Bug Inspections
This is generally the first step.
Inspection is the first step to establish if you have bed bugs or not. We need to know where they are located as well as the severity of the infestation. Once we know those things, then we can design a plan of action.
Our specially trained bed bug dogs often help us with inspections. We consider our dogs as an additional tool to help us locate bed bugs and we always perform visual inspections as well.
Our bed bug inspections typically take 60 minutes and can be scheduled to fit your needs.
Bed Bug Heat Treatment
Kill all bed bugs and their eggs in a single treatment.
Our bed bug heat treatment procedure begins by heating the entire infested space to 135 degrees Fahrenheit using large heaters. Bed bugs and their eggs die at 122 degrees in under 60 seconds. We use fans to ensure that hot air is moving around the entire area. Thorn professionals enter the space about every hour to check temperatures using thermal imaging cameras. They will also rotate furniture and belongings to make sure everything gets thoroughly heated. As another tool, we also apply residual pesticides in bed bug harborage areas as well as wall voids.
Our heat treatments come with a 6 month warranty for commercial properties and a 1 year warranty for single family homes.
Preventive Treatments
We are strong believers in preventive bed bug treatments for hotels, apartments, and other locations that are at high risk for bed bugs.
For preventative treatments we often apply a light insecticidal dust to areas likely to contain bed bugs. This dust kills all bed bugs that it comes in contact with and stays in place for long amounts of time – keeping you safe from bed bug infestations! These treatments are effective and long lasting.
Preventive bed bug treatments can stop bed bug infestations at your property.
Bed Bug Dogs
We have bed bug dogs that help sniff out difficult-to-find bed bugs.
We have been working with specially trained bed bug dogs for the past ten years. They are amazing animals that allow us to locate difficult-to-find bed bugs. They sniff out bed bugs just like a bomb dog or a drug dog.
Meet our dogs.
Bed Bugs 101
Learn more about bed bugs.
When dealing with bed bugs or trying to prevent bed bugs, becoming educated on these pests is important. Bed bugs are incredibly interesting. In the last 10 years, these insects have gone from being completely eradicated to being found in almost every city in the United States. That’s a big comeback! Don’t allow bed bugs to take over your home. Arm yourself with knowledge.
Learn more about bed bugs here.
Chemical Treatments
We are not a one size fits all company when it comes to bed bugs. We protect your home through many different methods. In some situations, chemical bed bug treatments will be your best option.
Trainings
Training your team on bed bug behavior and how to respond to a bed bug infestation is critically important.
We provide important and engaging bed bug trainings to help you be proactive against bed bugs. Prepare your team by educating them on bed bugs and how to respond to issues.
Common types of bed bugs in Utah
There is only one species of bed bug in Utah and that is the common bed bug Cimex lectularius. There are however other insects in the same family (cimicidae) in Utah that look similar to a bed bug like the swallow bug, bat bug, and Mexican chicken bug. Most other cimicids are associated with birds and bats. Make sure your “bed bugs” are getting properly identified as treatments are very different for these insects. Bed bugs are invasive and typically much harder to control. Swallow bugs and bat bugs typically require removing or excluding the bats and birds and then a simple pest control treatment around entry points. Swallow bugs and bat bugs typically do not have the high resistance to modern pesticides like a bed bug and are fairly easy to control once their food source is gone. Just as a disclaimer, do not treat bats and birds/nests directly with pesticides. This is not necessary and may harm the animals.
How common is the problem in Utah?
Bed bugs are very common in Utah. We treat over 500 infestations here in Utah annually. Eliminating tens of thousands of bed bugs and helping Utahns sleep better. Bed bugs are a public health threat as they can have a major impact on your health and well-being like sleepless nights, paranoia, anemia, uncomfortable bites, and allergic reactions. Bed bugs are more prevalent in multi-family housing but they are found in single family homes as well. Bed bugs only live indoors and have to be brought in to a space. We also find bed bugs in offices, schools, and anywhere people spend a significant amount of time. Bed bugs want to be near their food (people).
What attracts bed bugs?
You. They feed on blood, so they are attracted to and are very adept at living with humans. That being said they are not coming from the outdoors and must be carried or brought in to a home or business. That can be on people coming to stay with you or being brought in on something like used furniture. Once they are in your home they are attracted to a few things like the CO2 that you exhale and your body heat. They use these cues to position themselves close to you in undisturbed areas like under your box spring, in your bed frame, or behind your headboard.
Most common ways that people get bed bugs
- Bed bugs are brought in by a houseguest that has bed bugs
- Used furniture is brought in that has bed bugs
- You travel and stay somewhere that has bed bugs
- Bed bugs coming from an adjacent unit in an apartment or multi-family housing
Signs that you have a bed bug problem
- Bites – Not everyone is allergic and people have different reactions to bed bug bites. You cannot identify bed bugs by just bites, but they are an indication and if you think you are getting bites from bed bugs you should hire an experienced pest control expert to provide an inspection.
- Black spotting on bed or furniture– Bed bugs leave a dark spot when they defecate. It is smooth and black. This black spotting is often found in cracks and crevices of a wooden headboard or bed frame, edges of a box spring, mattress, bed skirt, or the piping or edges of furniture.
- Shed skins – As bed bugs grow they shed their skin. They do this 5 times before they are a full adult. These shed skins may be difficult to find but they are definitely a sign that you have bed bugs. The sheds look like a shell of a bed bug and are light tan in color.
- Bugs – One of the most common ways that people identify that they have bed bugs is by finding a bug or multiple bugs. Bed bugs are very light tan when they first hatch and turn a rusty red color as adults. Adults are about the same size as an appleseed.
