In the pest control industry, it can become overwhelming when trying to choose the best chemicals to kill bed bugs and their eggs. Bed bugs hide with expert skill; this is how they manage to survive and is one of the main traits that make these insects so difficult to get rid of.
Bed bugs also have superior systems that allow them to develop rapid resistance to commonly used chemicals—a trait that makes bed bugs a nightmare pest. You may frequently find that commonly used chemicals simply find these insects shaking the product off and continuing to flee right back to their hiding places.
All hope is not lost as there are many chemicals that will kill these elusive parasites and their eggs, and you do not always need to heat your home to hellish temperatures to destroy them.
The best chemicals to kill bed bugs and their eggs
Due to bed bugs preference for dark environments with lots of clutter—as well as their hiding capabilities that are aided by their narrow-thin width, a powerful residual chemical applied in all their harborage zones is the key to bed bug elimination.
This can be a complex and confusing conundrum, as bed bugs will typically hide in hard to reach places such as cracks and voids in the floor and behind walls. Cimexa and/or Delta dust are two products that can be dusted into voids to address this problem.
Since dusts have the longest residual component and can be less toxic than liquid chemicals, these products prove to be some of the most popular in combating bed bugs. Also, the more ubiquitous diatomaceous earth can always be relied upon to dehydrate bed bugs.
1. Chemicals Dusts
Cimexa Insecticide Dust
Cimexa insecticide dust by Rockwell Labs is one of the most popular and only a handful of guaranteed products to kill bed bugs as soon as they cross through its deadly path. Desiccants for bed bugs, along with heat, are the only two methods that can guarantee one-hundred percent destruction to bed bugs as they cannot develop a resistance to these methods.
Cimexa holds a distinction in the desiccant family as it utilizes tiny silica particles that when applied correctly, shred the waxy, outer coating of the bed bug’s shell, killing the bug within 24 hours from contact.
Like all desiccant powders, application is key and this product should be lightly dusted into all cracks and crevices and walking paths of bed bugs to avoid the insects simply walking over large clumps of the product; a dust applicator is the best method for applying any desiccant dust.
Cimexa is the perfect answer if you are ever stuck in deciding what chemical kills bed bugs and this product will last up to ten years if left undisturbed.
Delta Dust
Delta Dust by Bayer is a safe (for humans), waterproof, and deadly chemical that uses deltamethrin to attack the central nervous system of bed bugs. Unlike Cimexa or diatomaceous earth, Delta Dust is not a desiccant, meaning this product does not dehydrate bed bugs but rather destroys the nervous system leading to death.
Delta Dust is generally non-toxic to humans and non-aquatic animals, so there is the added benefit of not having to worry if this product will irritate the lungs. Another property of Delta Dust that distinguishes it from other dust is that this product is water-soluble and will not lose its effectiveness if exposed to water.
Delta Dust has an eight-month residual property and its non-toxic components make it a very attractive selection in the dust category.
Diatomaceous Earth
If you were to ask everyday consumers what is the best chemical to kill bed bugs—they would likely reply with diatomaceous earth.
This incredibly dry and natural product is made of microscopic, sedimentary compounds that work to strip the exoskeleton of bed bugs and completely drain the moisture from the insects.
Although this dust can be messy if overused, its popularity in the bed bug arsenal is well-earned due to the mortality rate if the bugs are exposed to it in the proper places. DE can take time to work at killing a colony, so even if you still see crawling bugs after days of administering the product, it is important to remember that DE powder can take upwards of two weeks to kill bed bugs and even longer if eggs are not dusted and new nymphs must also crawl through the product.
For the best results with DE powder, all areas of the bed and furniture where bugs must crawl to reach a host should be dusted with the powder. Simply wait and watch the number of bed bugs diminish over time.
2. Liquid Chemicals
Crossfire
Crossfire by MGK, is a state-of-the-art, one-of-a-kind insecticide formulated specifically for bed bug and their eggs. With a formulation of clothianidin, metofluthrin, and piperonyl butoxide, Crossfire mixes three potent chemicals together to attack the entire bed bug system and the results are both lethal and quick if the product is applied in the right places.
Crossfire through either direct contact or as a residual will kill exposed bed bugs within five minutes of exposure and will continue to kill bugs who cross through it for a full month.
Truly one of the best bed bug chemicals, Crossfire is the best chemical on the market for destroying bed bugs and due to the four-month residual of the product, all hatched nymphs will also be destroyed once they walk through the product seeking a blood meal.
This product is highly toxic, so precautions must be taken to avoid directly breathing in this potent mix and protective clothing and gear should be worn when administering it.
Deltamethrin
Deltamethrin is a pyrethrin spray for bed bugs that attacks the central nervous system of bed bugs. If using the powder version of this chemical (see Delta Dust) and it is not efficient, try using the liquid formulation with Defense-SC by CSI. This is currently one of the most effective deltamethrin insecticides for bed bugs.
Using pyrethrin for bed bugs is a gamble due to pyrethroid resistance in some strands of bed bug DNA and there is no guarantee that pyrethrin spray for bed bugs will work. However, this product earns points for its relative safety for humans and pets and is, therefore, a great opportunity to eliminate the parasites in a safe manner.
As with any of the best insecticides, choosing a product with a residual component is the best method for eliminating bed bugs; therefore, this product will work great as a contact kill in tandem with a residual such as Delta Dust. It is important to monitor the product’s effectiveness to ensure that the insects are not resistant to it.
Temprid FX
Temprid FX by Bayer combines the chemicals imidacloprid and b-cyfluthrin, which are neonicotinoids and work to disable the central nervous system of bed bugs.
This product is incredibly versatile and kills a wide range of insects in addition to bed bugs. Like other liquid applications, this product should be applied in all the places that bed bugs harbor, including the mattress, box spring, headboard, baseboards of walls and all surrounding furniture.
Temprid FX also has a long-lasting residual component that can last up to eight weeks. Bed bug chemicals need to be strong and potent to get the job done and this product fits that category well due to its central nervous system antagonist response, which proves to be lethal for insects.
Using pyrethrin for bed bugs is a gamble due to pyrethroid resistance in some strands of bed bug DNA and there is no guarantee that pyrethrin spray for bed bugs will work. However, this product earns points for its relative safety for humans and pets and is, therefore, a great opportunity to eliminate the parasites in a safe manner.
Related questions:
Which Bed Bug Chemical is the Strongest?
When deciding what insecticide kills bed bugs and their eggs, you will obviously begin to wonder what the strongest bed bug killer on the market truly is. There is no competitive answer to that question since all the above-mentioned products are power insecticides that can prove to be lethal to these insects.
Crossfire is probably the strongest bed bug insecticide available for home use; however, there are some states that prohibit its sale. Pyrethroids are the most skeptical insecticides due to the resistance that some bed bugs have developed towards it. The best scenario is to experiment with any of the mentioned products and see which are producing results.
Does Cypermethrin Kill Bed Bugs?
Cypermethrin is aimed more towards exterior pests in agricultural settings and bed bugs do not venture outside of the home unless they are deposited otherwise. Although the habitats are drastically different, Cypermethrin can, in fact, kill bed bugs if sprayed on them.
Cypermethrin is part of the pyrethroid family, which are some of the most widely used insecticides in the world and are a preferred interior-based insecticide.
If you find that you have Cypermethrin on hand, it may work well as a contact killer, but a more tried and tested bed bug chemical would be better utilized.
How Do I Apply These Products?
Application is key to destroying a bed bug population inside your home. For liquid chemicals, you will want to make sure that you mix the product accordingly as most of these formulations call for a mixture with water.
Bed bugs tend to congregate, hide, and lay their eggs near their host, so the mattress, box spring, headboard, and household furniture are their primary hiding spots. All these harborages should be liberally dosed with the preferred chemical and pay attention to the undersides of the structures and any areas featuring cracks and crevices. Additionally, the baseboards should be sprayed or dusted as these can also be harborage areas.
It is important to apply these chemicals to every possible spot where bed bugs hide and to any surfaces that require the bugs to climb up to reach their host. Contact sprays exclusively should be avoided due to the elusive nature of the insects; it takes time to destroy bed bugs and the residual components of these chemicals will eliminate the bugs over time.
Additional measures such as encasing the box spring and mattress and placing climb-up interceptors on bed and furniture legs should also be performed to address the bugs already infested inside of furniture. Learn the hiding spots and behavior of bed bugs and apply the chemicals accordingly.
In Summary
There a myriad of options to consider when deciding on what chemicals can be used to kill bed bugs, but the reality of the situation is that there are only a select few that will do the job with as much power as a professional pest control company.
The primary thing to remember about DIY chemicals are that when it comes to bed bugs, the magic is with the residual. You can spend hours and hours searching for bed bugs and spraying them on contact, but this is not addressing the elusive nature of the bugs and their deep and hard to reach hiding places. Bed bugs can also live up to a year without feeding, so relying on contact killers could be an exercise in futility.
Bed bugs are no ordinary, run-of-the-mill household pest—they are in fact an incredibly versatile creature whose small size is compensated by an incredibly smart ability to avoid being detected. When you are prepared to go to battle with them, it is best to have an arsenal that is just as serious as their means to avoid being eliminated from your home.
Pyrethroids may kill some bed bugs and then they may also be futile against a strain of bed bugs that have developed a resistance towards them. More potent chemicals can be dangerous, so the choice is entirely up to you.
