PackTite Portable Bed Bug Heat Treatment Device - Questions & Answers

There has been some research that indicates that freezing temperatures can kill bedbugs, but this method is not very effective. This research says that a deep freezer (big freezer chests only, regular household fridge/freezers do not get cold enough) can kill bedbugs, but the items must be left in the freezer for several weeks. Heat seems to kill bedbugs faster and more efficiently than freezing. Steamers that reach temperatures over 120 degrees are very effective for treating mattresses, box springs and other furniture. You can use any household dryer to kill bedbugs on clothing, shoes, stuffed animals and pillows. If you have a dryer with a rack inside, you can also place books, knickknacks and other items in the dryer to eliminate bedbugs (items must be left in dryer for about 30 minutes). We also carry the Packtite Portable Bedbug Heat Treatment device. The Packtite would enable you to treat just about any object that can fit inside of the device.

The PackTite can be used for books and other paper items with no problem.

It is not recommended to use the packtite to treat electronics.  The packtite is meant to treat items you would not want to launder or that can get wet in a washer, such as luggage, shoes, stuffed animals, etc.  Thee PackTite can heat up to 150 degrees when items are inside it.  When there is nothing in the PackTite it can reach up to 170 degrees.  For treating electronics such as laptops or other items you cannot heat or get wet, we recommend the Nuvan Pro Strips.

You should just wash and dry any dirty clothes in your luggage. Running clothes through a wash cycle and clothes dryer on high heat will kill all stages of bed bugs.  Baking the dirty clothes in the PackTite for a couple of hours may in fact "bake" stains and odors into the clothes.

The Packtite is made with UL listed parts, but the unit itself is still waiting for finalization on being UL listed.  The Packtite does come with a micro switch to turn the unit off if it exceeds 190 degrees.

Unfortunately, the PackTite only comes in one size which is 36L x 19W x 24H.  It is meant for items the size of a piece of luggage or smaller.  Your best option for treatment of a mattress would be to encase it in one of our bed bug proof mattress covers which will not let any bed bugs on or in the mattress out to feed. 

The Packtite can reach temperatures up to 150 degrees and at that temperature, most bacteria will die.  There are some bacteria that die at 165 degrees, but they are rare kinds.

We can not give you any advice on using your oven for bedbug treatments. The PackTite does not have an exposed heating element that could potentially catch your belongings on fire, which does indeed make it safer to use. Plus, it zips up closing in the objects and the bedbugs, which stops the bugs from escaping.

There are no chemicals involved. The PackTite heat treatment device is a safe, non-chemical bed bug treatment device that uses heat to treat bed bugs that may be found in personal items such as clothing, suitcases, books, cds, shoes, purses, luggage, pillows, and countless other items that you may not be able to treat with traditional chemicals.  The PackTite oven uses patent-pending technology that thoroughly heats your personal items to a temperature that is proven to kill bed bugs and their eggs in all stages of their life cycle, without damaging your belongings.

The PackTite Portable Bed Bug Heat Treatment Device is designed for treating personal items for bedbugs.  If you are treating indoors for fleas, you can apply the products in our  Indoor Flea and Tick Control Kit. Please take a few moments to review our treatment article on How to Get Rid of Fleas for more detailed information on how to implement a successful control program for these pests.