The Ones That Change the Scope
1. How many beds are in the property
Not bedrooms — beds. Including bunks (which count as two), a sofa bed, a trundle, a cot, and any bed nobody currently sleeps in. It is the single number that most affects what an inspection covers.
2. Whether anybody has changed rooms in the last few months
The most valuable piece of history there is, and it is almost never volunteered because at the time it seemed unconnected. Include temporary moves — a fortnight in the spare room counts.
3. Whether anybody has been sleeping on a sofa
A sofa in nightly use is a bed and is harder to treat than one. It turns a bedroom job into a bedroom-and-living-room job, and it is far better known about in advance.
4. What has been moved between rooms
Furniture, bedding, bagged clothing, a mattress swapped between children. Each one puts the receiving room into the question.
The Ones That Change the Method
5. What the bed actually is
"Divan with two drawers and a headboard fixed to the wall" and "metal frame, no storage" describe two genuinely different amounts of work. Ottoman bases in particular are worth mentioning.
6. Children, pets, pregnancy, or any respiratory condition in the household
Raise these at the booking rather than on the day so they can be taken into account properly, along with anything about access or somebody in the property who cannot easily move around.
7. Whether the property is owned, rented or let
It decides who receives the report, who the preparation instructions go to, and in a block, who can get more than one flat looked at.
The Four People Leave Out
These are the ones that get held back, and every one of them is useful rather than incriminating.
- What you have already sprayed. It says what has been disturbed and what is on the surfaces. Nobody minds; everybody tries something
- That you deep cleaned before the visit. It means the evidence has to be rebuilt from what is left, and knowing that saves time
- That you have had a treatment before. Dates and which rooms. A recurrence is a different job from a first infestation
- That the property is difficult — a base that cannot be lifted, a room that could not be fully cleared, storage that could not be emptied. Planned for is fine; discovered on arrival is not
Nobody is being marked. Every household tries something before they call, most have moved something they should not have, and plenty have cleaned the room to a shine. None of it is a problem. All of it changes where somebody looks, which is the only reason to say it.
What To Have Written Down
- The date you first noticed anything — bites, marks, an insect
- The date you found physical evidence, and exactly where
- What you found: spotting, cast skins, eggs, a live insect
- How many beds, and in which rooms
- Who has slept where, over the last few months
- Anything sprayed, moved, bagged, cleaned or thrown out
- Any previous treatment, with dates
Seven lines. It takes two minutes and it is most of an inspection's briefing.
Pangbourne: Photographs Are Worth More Than Descriptions
"Black specks along the piping at the head end of the main bedroom mattress, top face" is a good description. A photograph of it, in place, with something for scale, is better — and a wide shot showing which item it is on is better still.
Send them before the visit rather than showing them on the day. It gets identification settled before anybody travels.
Say it before the visit, not during it. Information that arrives while somebody is halfway through a bedroom cannot change what was quoted, how long was allowed, or what was brought. The phone call is when it is worth the most.
Bed bugs in Pangbourne? Pest Control Specialists Berkshire treats bed bugs from £220 for the first room. Bed Bug Treatments in Pangbourne has the full detail, or call 0118 336 1366.