Some people feel embarrassed to admit they have bed bugs in their home, but they don't signal poor hygiene practices and can get into your home from a number of sources. For example, you could bring them back with you from a hotel stay, or if you purchase a used bed or sofa you could be unlucky and bring these pests back home.
Bed bugs don't have wings and have flat, oval bodies and thick legs. They are brown and range from 5-10mm, so if you do a thorough check for them and they are present you should be able to spot at least one or two. They can lay hundreds of tiny cream eggs every month. So how do you know if you have a bed bug problem and what can be done about it?
Tell-Tale Signs You Have Bed Bugs
Bed bugs bite and leave red, raised bite marks that will be itchy. The bite marks tend to present in a straight line and small droplets of blood may stain your bed sheets after you're bitten. Bed bugs also shed their skin periodically, and you will often find the discarded skin in mattress crevices and corners. Beg bugs don't exclusively live on your bed, and you may find adult bed bugs or clusters of their eggs hidden behind bedside furniture.
Calling In Pest Control
If you think you are dealing with a bed bug infestation, a pest control company can come to your home and carry out an inspection. They will recommend a course of treatment based on the severity of their findings. The main treatment options are pesticide application and heat treatment. Pesticide application may be enough to eradicate your unwanted guests if they are caught early enough. However, pesticides don't always reach into every crevice, so a couple of treatments may be necessary.
Heat treatment allows you to avoid the use of chemicals and involves running a special heater in your home to raise the temperature to around 50 degrees C. Since the heater will generate dry heat, you don't have to worry about increased moisture levels in your home. Bed bugs can't survive extreme heat and they will quickly die off no matter where they are hiding out.
If you think bed bugs have made their way into your home, act quickly and contact a pest control company. They will ensure you're no longer being used as a midnight snack and if you need some reassurance, they can even come back after carrying out treatment to confirm your home is free of bed bugs.
Share23 June 2021
In the warm weather, it can be hard to keep control of the mosquitos in our yard. We have a really beautiful water feature and fishpond, but the water does not tend to move quickly enough to keep the mosquitos out. Every year we get the pest control guy to help us out by spraying the yard so that there is no spot for the mosquitos to build up. This means that we can get outside and enjoy the weather in our own yard. This blog is all about pest control for your yard, especially if you have water features.