CLEVELAND, Ohio - Cleveland is ranked as the 14th bed bug infested city by pest controller Terminix. The ranking comes based on call volume about bed bug infestations to the exterminator.

The ranking is one local exterminators say may be warranted. Steve Kmetz of Certified Pest Control says they get about a dozen calls a day on bed bug infestations.

Tuesday, Kmetz and his team were using a chemical-free thermal technique to eliminate bed bugs in a home in Painesville. The crew places furnaces throughout the house to heat it up.

"We'll bring that temperature up to about 125 to 135 degrees, we introduce fans to move the air through the house make it into a convection oven the whole house," Kmetz said.

Crews monitor the temperature using remote sensors throughout the house, moving each furnace and the fans over the course of about eight hours.

They also move the mattresses and box springs, clothing in dresser drawers, and furniture to ensure the heat hits everything.  The heat cooks the bed bugs, essentially drying them out, according to Kmetz.

Ohio's bed bug problem is growing, according to experts in part due to travel. Cincinnati and Columbus show the highest concentrations of infestations.

Kmetz says anyone who stays at a hotel, rides a bus or an airplane, or goes into a stranger's home where bed bugs are present can easily pick one up and carry it home.

Travelers should always check hotel bed linens and mattresses for any sign of bed bugs, which include tiny blood spots and droppings.

The thermal treatment is among the most expensive to eliminate bed bugs ranging anywhere from $2,000 to $3,000 depending on the size of a home.