Fog Machine Instructions

Note that you should not use our fog machine with your own essential oils mixed with water. Oil requires a carrier agent. Oil and water will always separate, producing uneven results. Our cedar oil formula is mixed with an organic carrier agent made of melted quartz rock. That’s how the solution stays mixed. Our cedar oil is filtered and fractionated in small batches to remove impurities. That’s why it won’t stain. If you desire a machine to use with your own essential oils purchased from health stores, we carry oil diffusers. Diffusers have the power to repel insects from certain rooms, but they are not advanced pest control machines. If your problems are chronic or advanced, a fog machine is your best resource.

STEP ONE: Remove children and pets from the home, disengage smoke detectors, and turn off pilot lights to all gas appliances. Anyone who remains in the home should wear a breathing mask. People all over the world love the aroma of fresh cedar in normal doses, but you are about to bathe every cubic inch of your home with a highly concentrated dose of cedar oil. This can be overwhelming. For your comfort, we’ve included the easy breathing mask. If other adults plan to help you with the process, be sure they wear painter’s masks designed for protection against fumes.

STEP TWO: Unlatch the four easy clamps that hold the top segment of the machine into place. When you lift the top of the unit away from the base, you’ll see a long feeding tube hanging from the top of the unit. (The fogging solution comes into the reservoir through this feeding tube.) Note that the feeding tube has a round strainer screen attached to the tip. Always be sure the strainer is attached. Set the top segment aside to free your hands.

(Each gallon is capable of providing 2,000 square feet of coverage. For mite and bedbug treatment, use one gallon to cover 1,000 square feet. For advanced or chronic mite cases, fog twice in 72 hours. The second fogging is particularly important because pesticides can drive parasites out of protected cracks and crevices and stir things up.)

STEP THREE: Pour the desired amount of Dr. Ben’s Evictor into the reservoir. We suggest starting with a quart or two. Never put more than a gallon of solution into the reservoir at one time. (The more fluid you add, the more weight you will add. For ease of lifting and maneuverability, do not overfill.)

STEP FOUR: Replace the top segment of the machine and flip the clamps down to hold the top and bottom segments together.

STEP FIVE: Find the volumetric mean diameter valve. The valve controls the amount of solution that you release into the air. Your choices are off, low, medium and high. We recommend using the medium setting for almost all fogging applications.

STEP SIX: The fog motor draws air into the unit from the back and then pushes the air out of three individual turbines. Each turbine rotates in a different direction, thus creating a ten foot thrust of atomized solution toward the target site.

STEP SEVEN: Be sure the power switch on the unit is set to off before you plug it into an outlet. For extended range of movement, plug the fogger into a three prong extension cord. A 25-foot cord should do nicely.

STEP EIGHT: Move about the house, distributing a generous amount of fog into each room. Don’t forget to fog closets and crawl spaces. The fog should be so thick that you can barely see the other side of the room. (When fogging into closets packed with clothing, be sure to remove at least half the contents so that the vapors can adequately penetrate the space. See our section on the preliminary work that should be accomplished before fogging.)

Preliminary Work

What you do BEFORE fogging is just as important as what you do during the procedure. If your house is packed tight with clutter, it’s an excellent idea to scale down unnecessary possessions and throw away old or damaged items that you don’t need. Air circulation is a crucial factor in the fogging process. If your home is packed too tightly with junk, fog will just settle on top of the clutter. If your closets are packed tight with clothing, remove at least the items so that the fog can circulate between garments.

It’s important to perform direct spray treatment protocols before fogging, especially when it comes to chronic mite or bedbug infestations. Insects have a habit of migrating from room to room when offensive odors are released. Insects hiding behind protected areas may not get a sufficient shot of the product. To prevent re-infestation, direct spray treatment of the following areas should be considered mandatory:

Spray an even mist of Dr. Ben’s Evictor over the carpet underneath your bed. Refresh the treatment once a month to recharge repellent properties.

Spray BOTH sides of the mattress. Don’t forget to remove the thin fabric that covers the underside of most box spring units. Spray or fog into this area liberally to treat bed bugs or mites hiding within the bed cavity.

Spray bed legs, bed frames and headboards. Remember that bird mites and bedbugs can’t jump or fly. They are most likely to reach you by crawling up furniture. Spray bed legs with cedar oil or cover them with double sided tape. Refresh the tape when it appears dusty or no longer feels sticky. For long term protection that’s more effective than tape, insert bed legs into plastic bowls filled with vegetable oil. Crawling insects can’t swim across the oil to reach you. Consider exchanging your wooden headboard for a sleek metal design without cracks and crevices where tiny insects can hide.

Use zippered mattress and box spring covers to prevent re-infestation. Choose durable waterproof mattress encasements that are certified for bedbug and dust mite protection. The seams and zippers on typical mattress encasements are not constructed to keep out mites. Excess space between zipper teeth could easily allow mites or bedbug nymphs to re-infest the interior of the mattress. (Certified bedbug encasements can be found at Bed, Bath and Beyond.)

Spray couches and easy chairs, paying special attention to crevices and cushion wells. Remove the flimsy fabric covering the bottom of your couch to gain access to the spring area. Spray or fog into the sofa cavity.

Spray baseboards, molding, and seams where walls meet with ceilings and floors. This will prevent parasites from crawling up the wall and across the ceiling where they can drop down onto the mattress. (Yes, people complain about this happening.)

If you don’t have a fog machine to help our product settle on walls, you may “mop” walls with a Swiffer pad saturated with Dr. Ben’s Evictor. Note that bedbugs are more apt to remain hidden, while mites will actually cling to walls and infest surfaces that are readily seen. Wall mopping isn’t necessary for bedbug infestations, but it’s an excellent idea for mite infestations. Be sure to check behind pictures hanging on walls, as this is a common place for both bedbugs and mites to hang out.

Purchase smaller blankets that won’t hang over the sides of your bed. Bedbugs are known to latch onto blanket corners that touch the floor. Mites can do the same.

Move your bed six inches away from the wall or nightstand. Any part of your bed that touches a piece of furniture becomes an open pathway for crawling parasites.

Spray inside drawers, especially those nearest your bed. Pay special attention to cracks, seams and beveled edges.

Vacuum your home thoroughly before fogging.  In addition to capturing many mites, Vacuuming may also help bring deeply embedded mites to the surface, so be sure to spray the carpet immediately after vacuuming. Discard the vacuum bag immediately after cleaning. No vacuum bag is completely air tight. Mites or tiny bedbug nymphs can easily escape the bag and re-infest your home.

Do not put your vacuum bag in the freezer. This is poor pest control advice distributed in many do-it-yourself blogs. Many micro tiny parasites can live through the winter. For example, bird mites are famous for shutting down their metabolisms to survive frigid temperatures. Springtails can also survive the cold quite well. I’ve seen video footage of springtails thawing out and coming to life after filtering through a half frozen riverbank. (Tip: Toss a couple moth balls into the vacuum bag. Traditionally, moth balls are made of cedar oil, but modern equivalents often contain chemicals. If you’re committed to a chemical free lifestyle, this is something to consider.)

After wide area carpet treatment, wait a few days to vacuum. Our product is not just a bug spray that can be used to destroy common household insects you see; it has residual effects to erode the exoskeleton of bedbugs that crawl through it.

Last but not least, be conscious of any environmental factors that could have caused or contributed to your infestation. For example, you may want to roll back the carpeting and check for mold when dealing with a springtail infestations. For bird mite infestations, you may want to remove nests from gutters or be certain that tree branches are trimmed away from the roof. For rodent mite infestations, it is necessary to get the rodent problem under control.

Consult our website at MiteTreatments.com for a discussion of the environmental factors that are linked to various types of infestations. If you believe your problems began outdoors, it may be necessary to soak your yard with our outdoor formula. In addition to controlling insect populations, our outdoor formula repels rodents and venomous snakes. If your mite problem began with a rodent infestation or new landscaping project, outdoor treatment is an excellent idea. If excessive numbers of birds visit your property to eat from bird feeders, remove their food sources and soak the yard with our outdoor concentrate.

If there’s an entry point outside the home acting as a gateway, re-infestation may occur if the entry point isn’t sealed properly. Call us for a free consultation to help determine where your infestation could’ve originated.