The keystone of any long lasting pest treatment in carpets and rugs is the Cedar Bug-Free™ Carpet Powder. Carpets and rugs are great hiding and breeding places for bed bugs, flea, tick, mites and other bugs. They burrow to the bottom of the carpet where they can lay their eggs in a protected environment. They crawl under carpet edges at the baseboards and wait until it’s time to come out to feed. This is why the treatment of carpets and rugs is extremely important in the elimination of bed bugs, fleas, ticks, mites and other bugs.
How to treat your carpets and rugs:Professional pest control companies use a specialized machine to apply the Cedar Bug-Free™ Carpet Powder but a homeowner can apply Cedar Bug-Free™ Bed Bug Powder using a 6 inch wide kitchen strainer and a broom. We like a push broom, but any broom will do. Although the ingredients in all our products are considered safe, the Bed Bug Powder will create dust in the air for a few minutes so I suggest you wear a good quality dust mask, such as an N-95 mask. These are inexpensive and can be found at any hardware store.
If you are very sensitive or if you have respiratory problems, you might consider a respirator, also found at any hardware store. If you have any health questions, be sure and consult your physician before using any product.
Tools: common kitchen strainer, push broom and/or hand brush, dust mask.
Preparation: Treat one room at a time. Pick up as much from the floor as you can. If you can clear out a room, do it! The more carpet area you can treat the more effective the treatment will be. You can always move furniture to one side of the room, treat the empty side, and then move everything to the treated side so you can treat the other side. Large and heavy furniture can stay but, if you can, move it so you can treat under the furniture and then put it back in its place. It is imperative that you treat under and behind beds, night stands and couches. Close windows and doors and turn off fans and air conditioners until you are done to prevent the powder from being blown about while you are applying it. You want to keep the powder from flying around the room when you are trying to get it into the carpets and rugs. Cover items that are dust sensitive or you don’t want to get dusty (computers, fax machines, some TVs and stereo systems, etc). Remember, you will be using a very fine powder that floats into the air and lands on everything. Yes, it will get dusty and you will have to clean afterwards.
Application: Fill the kitchen strainer about ¾ full with Cedar Bug-Free™ Carpet Powder, hold the strainer 2 to 3 feet above the carpet or rug and lightly tap the side of the mesh with your free hand to dispense the powder. Tapping the mesh with your fingers gives you more control than tapping the rim. You want a light but even layer of powder on the carpet (you can always add more!). Avoid clumps; they take more effort to brush into the carpet. Practice on a small area until you can sprinkle the powder evenly over the carpet. For carpets and rugs of average thickness, use about one pound of powder per 150 to 200 square feet. For thicker carpets and rugs, use more – about one pound of powder per 100 to 150 square feet. For thinner carpets and rugs, use less – about one pound of powder per 200 to 250 square feet. Don’t skimp! Try a small area first. You can tell how much to use by noticing how easily the powder disappears into the carpet. If you have to work hard to get the powder into the carpet (as with berber carpets and very thin carpets), then use less and make sure you spread the powder very evenly – you want to make sure you are covering as much of the carpets and rugs as possible. Pay special attention (and use extra powder) along the edges where the carpet meets the wall. It’s a good idea to sprinkle powder on the baseboards and leave it there; bed bugs will have to walk on it as they go up and down the walls.
Next you want to brush the powder into the carpet. Using the push broom or hand brush (push broom is much easier), work the powder into the carpet using short strokes. This is different than sweeping; you want to brush the powder down into the carpet, not across the carpet. When you are done, use the push broom or hand brush to gently sweep the surface of the carpet or rug – yes, now you sweep! The goal here is to cause any excess powder to disappear into the carpet. When you are finished with the brushing, you can open windows and doors and turn on fans. Wait until the air is clear before turning on any air conditioners (the powder in the air can clog the filters). The room will be dusty but it will clear out within 1 hour.
Once the powder has been brushed into the carpet, it will begin to adhere to the fibers of the carpet and will not puff back up into the air. The powder is electrostatically charged and is designed to adhere to the carpet fibers within 3 to 5 days after application. It’s best to wait 5 to 7 days before vacuuming because walking on the carpet helps to push the powder further in. If you must vacuum before the 5 to 7 days, don’t vacuum for at least 3 to 4 days after application. The first vacuuming will remove any excess powder that didn’t adhere to the carpet, so by waiting as long as possible before vacuuming, you will get the maximum benefit from all the powder in the carpet. If you used too much powder, this excess powder could clog your vacuum cleaner, so your first vacuuming should be a light one. It’s good practice to remove the bag after the first vacuuming, seal it in a plastic bag, and throw it out away from the house.
Clean-up: Use a cloth dampened with water or furniture polish to remove excess powder from your furniture. If you use a duster you will
cause the powder to float up into the air and land somewhere else.
CAUTION: AVOID CONTACT WITH EYES; if contact occurs, flush with water for at least 15 minutes. KEEP OUT OF THE REACH OF CHILDREN. In case of
ingestion consult a physician.