Why Bed Bug Prep Is Still a Major Challenge for PMPs and Customers

Editor’s note: Included in the November issue of PCT is the 2025 State of the Bed Bug Control Market, sponsored by Envu. This special supplement provides a comprehensive look at the bed bug control industry, drawing on research conducted by PCT’s third-party partner, Readex Research, along with follow-up interviews with pest management professionals. In the accompanying online feature, PCT readers note that one of their greatest challenges in delivering effective bed bug control is getting customers properly prepared for treatment.

“It's probably the biggest obstacle. We really stand strong on it. They need to prep and prep properly and prep fully,” said Justin Causky, operations manager, Admiral Pest Control, Bellflower, Calif.

The control products are effective. Technicians are well trained and spend hours detailing cracks and crevices. But they can’t get 100% results without customers stepping up to do their part, he says.

“We're fine to walk away if they're not going to cooperate with what we need to solve a problem,” he said.

According to the 2025 PCT State of the Bed Bug Control Market survey, 93% of PMPs said customers must perform at least some level of site preparation before bed bug treatment can be performed. Significant levels of prep were required by 56% of service locations. Minimal or low levels of prep were required by 37%.

Sponsored by Envu, the survey was conducted in July 2025 by Readex Research, an independent market research company.

The level of preparation required can vary by infestation. Green Pest Solutions, for instance, doesn’t make residents clear out a hallway closet when there’s a low-level infestation in the bedroom.

At minimum, customers must provide access to the bed and nearby furniture. In extreme infestations, “that checklist can go all the way up to removing wallpaper” because bed bugs may be clustering behind it, said Dennis Guinan, quality assurance manager for the West Chester, Penn.-based company.

National Exterminating Co., Newport News, Va., requires a level of prep akin to “a strong spring cleaning,” said General Manager Scott Monds. This includes washing and/or drying items on high heat, then bagging them for two weeks or so. “They're okay with going through a little bit of inconvenience so we can get to the crux of the matter.”

As control products and industry knowledge of bed bugs have improved, prep requirements grew less extensive at Standard Pest Management, Queens, N.Y. Using a third-party bed bug canine helps the company narrow down what needs to be done. If the dog doesn’t alert to bugs in the closet, for instance, there is no need to clear it out.

“When people in apartments start emptying out closets, it just causes clutter in the areas you have to treat,” said President Gil Bloom. And then it’s possible to move bed bugs to previously un-infested areas.

If prep is not completed by the time technicians show up, companies may reschedule the service.

“It doesn't happen often, because we do a really good job of conveying the importance and the why behind it to our customers, but it does happen from time to time,” said Guinan.

Pest Management Systems, Inc., Greensboro, N.C., makes a “game-time decision” whether to go ahead with treatment or reschedule it, said Lucas Carnohan, vice president of technical and corporate development.

“We do have language to give them a charge for us hauling all of our stuff out there and then not being able to treat because of them not being ready. It's not fun to be in that position,” he said.

The reality is the prep you ask for and the prep you get “can be fairly different,” especially if the customer is physically or mentally unable to do the work, said Carnohan.

Pest Management Systems Inc. requires customers to perform mid-level prep that focuses on the bed and provides access to nearby baseboards and furniture. “If it's so severe that there's bugs all through their drawers, and it's not just on the bed, but they're on the ceilings and they're everywhere, then we're probably doing a heat treatment,” said Carnohan.

Admiral Pest Control uses fumigation for severe bed bug infestations. It’s also an option for customers who don’t want to perform the required prep for localized, conventional treatment and for those who can afford it.

“Bed bug prep for local treatment, it's intense. But with the fumigation, everything stays in the house just as it is. It’s super easy prep for the fumigation than it would be for the local treatment,” said Causky.

Getting multiple tenants to prep and cooperate makes bed bug control more difficult.

“Sometimes it's hard to get one person to work with you, but I think it's especially hard when there's multiple people involved,” said Bill Cowley, co-owner, Cowley’s Pest Services, Farmingdale, N.J. Like when a tenant in an adjacent unit of a multiple-family dwelling won’t let you inside to inspect.

For the most part, though, people are cooperative, said Cowley. “They're so freaked out, they'll do anything to get rid of these things.”