No. There is no scientific evidence that bed bugs transmit disease. Bed bugs are annoying and their bites may cause you to itch, but they will not seriously harm your health.

Bed bugs are small oval shaped insects that live in the fabric of bedding, furniture, clothing and almost any place they fit. They move from place to place by hitchhiking on fabrics and can walk from room to room. In hotels and apartment buildings, they can spread from unit to unit through the electrical conduits and through minute cracks between walls and floors. Bed bugs can live up to 18 months without feeding and breed at phenomenal rates. Additionally, many bed bug populations have also developed resistance to common pesticides.

The first thing to remember is DON’T PANIC. Bed bugs are difficult to eradicate, but you are in good hands with our expertise. We have created a series of free tutorials that show you, step-by-step, exactly how to get rid of them. Click here for our tutorials: 8-Step Approach

There has been a dramatic resurgence of bed bugs in recent years. There is no concrete evidence as to the reason of this influx, but some scientists believe it is due to the increase in international travel and the discontinued use of DDT.

Very. According to a 2011 national survey, 99% of pest control professionals indicated they had encountered a bed bug infestation within the last year. Source: http://www.pestworld.org/news-and-views/press-releases/2011-bugs-without-borders-survey-new-data-shows-bed-bug-pandemic-is-growing/

We believe an excellent prevention tool is the ZappBug Oven. Upon returning from a trip, we recommend that you strip off all of your clothes and shoes and put them, along with your luggage, inside the ZappBug Oven. The heat treatment cycle will kill 100% of any bed bugs that may have hitched a ride and prevent them from spreading into your home. A full list of tips for different situations can be found here http://www.pestworld.org/all-things-bed-bugs/bed-bug-prevention/

We believe an excellent prevention tool is the ZappBug Oven. Upon returning from a trip, we recommend that you strip off all of your clothes and shoes and put them, along with your luggage, inside the ZappBug Oven. The heat treatment cycle will kill 100% of any bed bugs that may have hitched a ride and prevent them from spreading into your home.

Household furnaces can’t get the entire house hot enough. If you bring in additional large electric heaters, you would need so many of them to get the house hot enough, that the power draw would blow the circuits. Propane heaters are a fire hazard and can produce carbon monoxide gas which is poisonous. There are professional pest control companies that use whole house heat treatment to kill bed bugs, and they do this by bringing in heaters and fans connected by cables to generators outside, so that they don’t blow the house’s circuits. When done properly, this is an effective option; but it is very expensive. More information on professional heat treatment of the entire house can be found here: https://www.zappbug.com/approach-2-professional-heat-treatment/

The ZappBug Oven can be used to kill bed bugs in items that you cannot put in the dryer. This means you will be able to save your shoes, electronics, books, bags, purses, artwork, delicate items and small upholstered furniture. If you have a full blown infestation in your home, the ZappBug Oven will be very helpful, but it’s important to realize that you must take additional steps to rid your entire home of bed bugs. We have created a series of free tutorials on how to do this. See: 8-Step Approach

Yes. People often inadvertently pickup bed bugs when they travel. Upon returning from a trip, we recommend that you place all of your clothing and shoes, along with your luggage, inside the ZappBug Oven. The heat treatment cycle will kill 100% of any bed bugs that may have hitched a ride and prevent them from spreading into your home.

The size is 39.5 in x 39.5 in x 28 in (100 cm x 100 cm x 71 cm).

It is critical that air is allowed to flow around and under objects in ZappBug. We include foam support blocks and a mesh support net to get objects off the floor of the oven to ensure proper air flow.

Using the blocks and/or mesh net, usable space is approximately: 37 in x 37 in x 24 in (94 cm x 94 cm x 61 cm).

The higher the temperature, the quicker bed bugs die. At 106°F (41°C) it takes over 1.5 hours to kill bed bugs. At 120°F (49°C), it takes less than one minute to kill bed bugs. We strongly suggest that you follow the industry standard of heating your items to 120°F for one hour to ensure that all bed bugs and bed bug eggs are killed. Here is a scientific paper from the University of Florida showing this research: http://entnemdept.ifas.ufl.edu/sepmc/Heat_treatment_paper_PereiraEtAl_09

In addition, at ZappBug we conducted our own experiment with killing live bed bugs at 120°F in one minute. We used a water bath to ensure proper control of temperature and shot a video of the experiment. You can see the video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QdNjOmbhTFU

The temperature inside the ZappBug Heater typically ranges from 120°F to 145°F.

No. Scientific evidence shows that bed bugs do not run toward convective heat sources. The ZappBug Oven blows hot air, which is convective heat, so bed bugs won’t try to run toward the heater. Additionally, if the heat is hot enough, bed bugs will immediately go into thermal shock and be paralyzed. The air coming out of the oven’s heater is so hot that if it were to blow directly on a bed bug it would immediately paralyze the bed bug and result in a quick death.

The time required to perform a successful heat treatment varies depending on the items you are treating and the room temperature. That being said, typical treatment times range from 3 to 6 hours.

Heating items in the ZappBug Oven is a lot like cooking a turkey in the oven. It takes time to cook the middle of a turkey no matter how high you set the oven. This is because it takes time for the heat to conduct through the bird. The ZappBug Oven heats your belongings with the maximum power possible at bed bug killing temperatures. The time required to complete a heat treatment depends on how many items are in the oven as well as the thickness of your items. If you have any questions please let us know. Also, be sure to check your user manual.

Yes. We include a wireless thermometer that you can put in the deepest, darkest part of your belongings that you treat in the ZappBug Oven. This will ensure that temperatures get to 120°F or above which will kill bed bugs.

No. Assuming the clothes you put into the ZappBug Oven are dry, then they will not shrink. The temperature inside the ZappBug Oven ranges from 120 F to 145 F, which is plenty hot to kill bed bugs, but is not hot enough to melt sequins or harm most electronics. Here is a video that we shot of the ZappBug Oven heat treating items, including a laptop. Notice that all the bed bugs are killed but the laptop works fine after heat treatment http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZfaMOhlBMA

No. The ZappBug Oven has an internal flexible steel wire frame and won’t fold small enough to let you put it in a washing machine or dryer. If need be, it can be easily wiped clean with a damp cloth.

Yes. We have a 30 Day Unconditional Guarantee. Try ZappBug risk-free for 30 days. If for any reason you are unsatisfied with it, simply return it within 30 days for a full refund, not including the cost of return shipping. View our return policy for more details.