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If you have been facing the wrath of bed bugs, this post will help you relax.
Bed bugs are not only annoying but also harmful. Plus, if you have toddlers or babies in the house, the risks almost double. So, if your children’s clothes have been infested by them, you must do everything you can to exterminate them.
Here is a step-by-step guide to cleaning bed bugs from your kids’ clothes:
Step 1: Sort your clothes
First of all, sort the different kinds of clothes into different categories. For example, if you have clothes that should be dry-cleaned only, put them in one pile. Put the rest of the clothes in another pile.
Step 2: Soak the clothes
For proper bed bug extermination, it is recommended that you soak your clothes for about 24 hours before trying to clean them. This is important because soaking can kill almost all adult bed bugs and nymphs. Note, however, that this step will not kill any eggs.
Step 3: Seal the clothes
At this stage, seal the different kinds of clothes into bags. If possible, use zip lock bags so that you need not worry about the bugs infesting other good clothes.
Step 4: Clean the washing machine
In case you are living in an apartment and the laundry room is shared, it is a good idea to clean the washer first. To clean your washer, run a cycle using hot water without clothes. This should eliminate any bed bugs present in the washer.
Step 5: Run a cycle
Empty your clothes directly into the washing machine from the bag and run a wash cycle. Wash the clothes using the highest temperature possible for your particular clothes. If possible, keep the temperature at 60 degrees centigrade as that is the optimum temperature to kill 100% of the bed bugs. Also, note that it is best to use a cycle of at least 30 minutes.
Step 6: Dry-clean the rest
Put the cloth items which must be only dry-cleaned inside a dryer. This process can work as an insect heat treatment method, and in a large city such as London there will be plenty of reputable dry cleaners who are familiar with this issue. The reason is that dry cleaning usually kills all the bed bugs within a short period of time.
Step 7: Put everything back
Once cleaning is over, again seal your baby’s clothes inside different bags and store them. Sealing before storing is important so that bed bugs cannot infest your clothes again.