Bed bugs are some of the nastiest pests that could infest your living space. These small, brownish, oval-shaped insects, once introduced into your home will cause lots of sleepless nights, pain and anguish. Although they are not known to carry or transmit any disease, bed bugs can be a real pain — literally. They may not be able to fly (as they are wingless) but these pesky insects move very quickly on surfaces to avoid detection and stay hidden during the day.
Bed bugs are nocturnal parasites. This means that they will stay hidden during the day and only come out at night to feed. Their bite is mostly painless so you might not even know that these pests are sucking your blood as you sleep. Bites may cause itchiness and swelling resulting in reddened weals for some people, while in others they remain ‘invisible’. Their presence can be both distressing and highly irritating.
Jump To:
What Are The Characteristics Of Bed Bugs?
What Is The Life Cycle Of A Bed Bug?
How Bed Bugs Live?
Where Do Bed Bugs Hide?
How Do Bed Bugs Gain Entry Into Your Home?
What Are The Signs Of A Bed Bug Infestation?
How To Control A Bed Bug Infestation?
How to tell if you have been bitten by Bed Bugs?
It can sometimes be confusing to know if you have been bitten by bed bugs or another insect such as mosquitoes or flees. The bites might appear to be similar, however, there are some distinct characteristics to bed bug bites.
- The spot where you have been bitten may not appear for a few days and at the beginning can look like a mosquito bite. However, after a few days, the mark will appear to be more swollen and will become a lot more itchy and hot. A clear sign of inflammation.
- There will be more than just one bite. They will also appear to be in one line.
- The bites are often will be in a cluster of a few bites together.
- In the middle of the bite, you will see a raised part almost like a pimple.
- Flea bites will often be around ankles, where is bed bug bites are often around the back or chest.
What Are The Characteristics Of Bed Bugs?
Bed bugs have the following characteristics; they:
- are wingless
- are about 0.5 mm long
- are oval and flat-shaped
- are light brown in colour (the colour changes to rust-red once they have fed)
- are squat headed
- have large antennae
- have large mandibles
- have a complicated life-cycle with several stages of development
- can survive for months without feeding
- die as a result of extreme temperatures.
What Is The Life Cycle Of A Bed Bug?
After mating, females will lay oval-shaped white eggs into cracks and crevices with a single female laying up to 250 eggs in her lifetime. The eggs will hatch in as little as 6 days with the nymphs starting to feed immediately. Immature nymphs will shed their exoskeleton — a process called moulting– five times as they mature into adults, and will need to feed before each moult. In a single year, three to four generations of bed bugs can be produced. Immature nymphs can go for months without feeding while adults will survive for a whole year. A bed bug’s lives for about a year.
Due to their rapid reproduction and relatively long lifespan, a full blown infestation will happen in just a few months if this pest is not identified and dealt with early enough.
How Bed Bugs Live?
Bed bugs live on a strict blood-only diet. They have a preference for human blood, but will also feed from other mammals if need be. They find hosts by detecting their body heat and excessive amounts of carbon dioxide found in the air they expire. Common targets on humans are the arms and shoulders.
During feeding, the bugs pierce the victims skin with their proboscis injecting their saliva into the skin which causes skin irritation for some people. Once they have breached the host’s skin, these bugs go on to feed on the victim’s blood for five to ten minutes.
Where Do Bed Bugs Hide?
Due to their unique body shape, bed bugs are able to hide in a multitude of places. Some of these places include:
- Mattresses, especially along the seams
- bedding such as blankets and sheets
- under the wallpaper
- between cracks on furniture, walls and floors
- carpets
How Do Bed Bugs Gain Entry Into Your Home?
This might be hard to believe, but more often than not it is you who introduces these nasty bugs into your home. This is because bed bugs often hide in clothes and luggage. So once you are exposed to bed bugs while visiting places with high occupant turnover, such as hotels, hostels or motels, the bugs will hide in your stuff and then come out of hiding to invade your house once you place your things down.
What Are The Signs Of A Bed Bug Infestation?
Infestation is hard to detect especially in its early stages. It is therefore recommended that you do a thorough inspection every once in a while in the common hiding places, and especially when bites are visible on you or on family members. During inspection, you should check for:
- the bugs themselves
- blood stains on bedding
- dark or rusty spots from excrement
- a sweet musty offensive odour.
How To Control A Bed Bug Infestation?
The best kind of control is prevention. So always make sure that you isolate your travel luggage when you get home. Make sure you wash all the clothes and bags then dry them at the highest setting on your dryer for at least 15 minutes. If you have certain clothing material are not suitable for a dryer, place the clothing in the plastic bag and place them in the freezer for 3 to 4 days.
If you think there is a chance your luggage can have bed bugs, make sure to spray it with Natural Bed Bug Spray, place the luggage in a large plastic bag and leave it in the car and in the sun for a day. It is a sure way to make sure the eggs from bed bugs will not survive.
If the bugs have already created their home inside your home, Pestrol has created very effective products that you could use to eliminate bed bugs. They include:
- Natural Bed Bug Spray – is an All-natural ingredient formula that is used to treat bed bugs. The formula works by burning the outer shell of the bed bug, causing an immediate kill on contact. Use this luggage, around bed frame and clothing.
2. Bed Bug Treatment in a Can – Comes out as powder that can be sprayed around the skirting boards and bed frames, mattress, and carpets. Completely safe around other animals.
3. Lights Out Bed Bug Protector & Detector – This traps can be placed under the legs of your bed. Bed bugs cannot crawl or climb on a smooth surface so by placing them under your bed legs, it stops them getting onto the bed when they are in search of food (you). Highly effective interception device. Especially useful if came back from a holiday and bites and there is a chance they came with you.
4. Bed Bug Glue Traps– Very important for early detection and to check if you do have bed bugs in your home. Place the traps under your mattress and you will know within a few days if you have a bed bug problem.
5. Pestrol Bed Bug Steamer – This steamer will kill bed bugs and the eggs they have laid instantly without the use of toxic chemicals. It is safe to use on furniture, mattresses, and carpets.
6. Bed Bug Mattress And Pillow Protectors – Mattress protectors come in depths of 24 and 33 cm to cover mattresses of varying heights. These protectors create a barrier between you and the bugs and thus starves them to death.
The key to eradicating bed bugs is early detection. Kill them before they reproduce and spread to more areas. So keep checking and once you identify them, use any of the above methods to get rid of them — permanently.
Check out our range of products: https://www.pestrol.com.au/insects/indoor-insect-control/bed-bugs.html квику займзайм на телефонзайм быстро на карту
Shop By Pest
Health Solutions