Bed bugs are one of the most troublesome pests that you can encounter in your home. Their bites can cause extreme itching and also cause you to scratch the site uncontrollably. You know instantly that these bites are caused by bed bugs which puts you in a fix on how to get rid of them.
Before we go into the details of how you can get rid of them, we need to understand what are bed bugs and what causes the bed bugs in the first place. We will also describe how you can be sure that there is a bed bug infestation and eventually we will describe how you can get rid of them. This is discussed in the following sections.
What Causes Bed Bugs
Bed bugs are blood-eating insects. They literally live on the blood of other creatures without which they will not survive and will not be able to breed. They cannot fly like mosquitos, so they have to crawl towards their food source.
They also cannot live on a host like a tick, therefore they hide as near as a food source as possible. When the time comes, they move towards the source, feed on the blood, and eventually go back to their hiding place.
This is the reason why bed bugs live dominantly in the cracks and crevices of beds and mattresses. They hide there and when they sense that a person is asleep, they move towards them and feed on their blood. Bed bugs can also be found in sofas, mattresses, chairs, sheets, blankets, suitcases, cardboard boxes, cluttered areas, and other similar furniture items.
Some of the most common causes of bed bugs are described below:
Increased Travel
Travel is one of the biggest factors that causes bed bugs. When you move into a hotel or motel, there is an increased risk that bed bugs from there can hitchhike on you or your belongings and move back towards your home. When you travel through any mode of transport, there is an increased chance of bringing back bed bugs from there.
This includes aeroplanes, buses, trains, and ships. Bed bugs reside on the seats and upholstery in these transportation modes. In this way, you can bring bed bugs to your home when you travel through them.
Urbanized Living
Although bed bugs do not prefer rural or urban areas, there is a bigger chance of finding bed bugs in urban areas. This is because there is increased travel in those areas. Also, houses and other structures are much closer to each other in urban areas as compared to rural ones. This gives bed bugs a better opportunity to spread from one place to another. Hence, urbanized living is a common cause of bed bugs.
Population Growth
Since bed bugs live on human beings, it is only logical that with the growth in human population, bed bugs also increase.
How To Identify Bed Bugs
There are some simple ways through which you can identify bed bugs. These ways are listed below:
- Bed bugs can easily be identified by their shape. They are easily visible as their size is bigger than fleas or mosquitoes.
- They are a flat and rounded shape.
- They are translucent-type bugs which are sometimes red or blood. The red color indicates that they just feasted on someone’s blood whereas the brown color indicates blood which has been digested and is about to be excreted.
- They cannot fly or jump like fleas. They move from one place to the other by crawling.
- They come on the body and skin of humans only when they need food. After that, they move back to their hiding position and do not stay on a human body for too long.
- They lay tiny white eggs which can be seen in the cracks and openings on the bed. The eggs resemble rice grains but a bit rounder than those.
- They shed off their skin after some time which can be seen in their hiding places. It is a light brown mottled skin.
Symptoms Of Bed Bug Bites
There are a few symptoms which you might experience before you even see the bed bugs yourself. These symptoms are basically the bed bug bites. But one might mistake these bed bug bites with other types of rashes or insect bites. The things which distinguish bed bug bites from other types are described below:
- Bed bug bites usually manifest themselves as a bigger red spot.
- The red spot may be much darker in the middle.
- The spots are itchy and you are compelled to scratch them.
- Bed bug bites are often arranged in clusters or in a line which may indicate the path the bed bug took while it kept biting.
- Bed bug bites are normally located on the face, arms, hands, and neck of individuals.
- Some people may even develop an allergic reaction to bed bug bites. This may include severe itching, blisters, or hives.
How To Get Rid Of Bed Bugs
One of the most efficient and fool proof ways in which you can get rid of bed bugs is to employ the services of a professional pest control specialist.
You might utilize certain home remedies to control the bed bug infestation but you will not be able to get rid of them completely on your own. The professionals utilize their expert skills to provide the highest standards of pest control treatment against bed bugs.
Pest Off is a leading pest control specialist in Singapore that offers effective and long-lasting bed bug control services. The general procedure of treatment follows the following steps:
- The first step is to carry the process of inspection where the team of specialists examines the entire premises to look for any kind of infestation. The most common areas which are inspected include beds, mattresses, cracks, crevices, frames, and other probable hideout places of bed bugs.
- Once the locations of bed bugs have been identified, the treatment process starts. Using NEA approved chemicals, the entire area is flushed out.
- Various techniques of using the chemicals are utilized that include residual chemicals and space dispersion techniques.
- After the spraying of chemicals, it takes about two weeks for the bed bugs to start to die.
- For individuals who are allergic to chemicals or houses where there are small children, the use of chemicals may not be a good choice. In that case, heating techniques are used to kill the bed bugs once and for all.
Preventing Bed Bug Bites
There are certain ways in which you can prevent bed bug bites. These are listed below:
- Bed bugs usually bite on uncovered skin, so the more you cover up while sleeping, the better will be your protection against bed bugs.
- There are certain bug sprays that are available in the markets which can protect you against bed bug bites. The usual insect repellants will not be effective for bed bugs.
- Using mosquito netting which is further sprayed with permethrin pesticide can also help against bed bug bites.
Bed bugs can be quite a nuisance but with effective treatment, you can be assured that any kind of bed bug infestation will be dealt with effectively. Through tried and tested methods and the use of high-quality chemicals, professional pest control specialists can help you get rid of them effectively.
