BED BUG CONTROL & TREATMENT

 

 


Bed Bugs can be very hard to detect so knowledge about how they look and behave can be very important to detecting them as soon as possible. Because they are flat and about the size of an apple seed, bed bugs can invade your home from almost anywhere. Drawn to warm, dark places near human hosts, bed bugs are also not simply relegated to living on mattresses and can be found in furniture, clothing, carpets and many more places. Furthermore, they can live for almost a full year in a home with a nominal temperature and adequate food supply. Add this to the fact that they can fully infest a house within 3-4 months and it's easy to see how bed bugs can get out of control. Other things to consider include: 

  • ​Bed Bugs can travel on bags, people and suitcases or transferred from used furniture. 
  • ​Bed signs can be dark spotting and staining on sheets, mattresses, pillows and clothing. The staining is from excrement and blood left by crushed bed bugs. 
  • ​A sweet musty smell is often associated with bed bug infestation. 
  • ​Most bed bugs come out for meals at night-time and feed exclusively on blood. Their bites on humans can feel and even look similar to a mosquito bite

How to Check for Bedbugs

 

Although bedbugs don’t usually require serious medical attention, they can cause a great deal of anxiety and restless nights. To find bedbugs before they find you (and your belongings), dermatologists recommend looking for the following signs near places where you sleep.

Signs of bedbugs: This step is important. If you have a bedbug infestation, you need to find out so that you can get rid of the bedbugs. Getting rid of the bedbugs is the only way to stop the bites.

If you have a large number of bedbugs, you may see the bugs. Most people, however, only see signs of bedbugs. To look for signs of bedbugs, check the places that people sleep for the following:

  • A sweet, musty odor. Take a deep breath. If you notice a sweet, musty in your hotel room, cruise-ship cabin, or other sleeping area, there may be a heavy bedbug infestation in the room. Bedbugs produce chemicals to help them communicate, although not everyone will notice the smell.

  • Specks of blood on bedding, mattresses, or upholstered furniture such as couches and headboards. Look carefully at your blankets, sheets, and mattress pads and then check the mattress and box spring. Are there specks of blood anywhere, especially near the seams? If so, there could be a bedbug infestation. You should also check for specks of blood on all upholstered furniture, including couches and headboards.

  • Exoskeletons. Bedbugs have an outer shell that they shed and leave behind. Do you see shell-like remains on the mattress, mattress pad, or beneath couch cushions?

  • Tiny, blackish specks. If you see blackish specks on the bedding, mattress, headboard, or beneath couch cushions, it could be bedbug excrement.

  • Eggs. After mating, female bedbugs lay white, oval eggs in cracks and crevices. Keep in mind that these will be small, as a bedbug is only about the size of an apple seed. The photo below shows a bedbug near eggs. The photo was magnified so that you can see the bedbug and eggs.

BEDBUG BITES

 

When bedbugs bite, you often see clusters of bites. Each cluster usually contains 3 to 5 bites that appear in a zigzag pattern.

You’ll seldom see bedbugs, so many people mistakenly believe that mosquitoes, fleas, or spiders bit them. Sometimes people mistake bedbug bites for a common skin condition such as an itchy rash, hives, or chickenpox.

 

 

To make sure you have bedbugs, you’ll need to look for signs of bedbugs.