Even if you keep your home in immaculate condition, a bed bug infestation is still possible. It is believed that these nasty critters were almost eradicated in North America, but now they are on the rise again.
However, just because you find critters crawling on your bed, doesn’t necessarily mean you have a bed bug problem. Bugs like ticks, mites, head lice, and fleas look similar to bed bugs, so it’s not surprising so many homeowners get confused.
Getting rid of bed bugs and keeping these nocturnal creatures out of your home for good can prove challenging. The first thing that you must do is find out whether you have a bed bug problem or not.
What do they look like?
Because bed bugs are small and brown, they look like a lot of other brown bugs. Adult bugs tend to have a slightly reddish color on their oval shaped body. After they have fed, you can expect them to look a lot bigger, but when they are yet to feed, they are normally flat. Just like ticks, bed bugs will feed on blood to survive.
Just because you don’t see any bed bugs in your house, doesn’t mean these creatures are not there. They are experts at hiding, and because they are so small, they can hide in tiny areas throughout your home. Most people who have an infestation in their homes never see a bug.
Instead of searching for them, keep an eye out for physical signs that these reclusive creatures leave behind. If you notice reddish-brown stains on your sheets or your bed, then there is a good chance that there is an infestation in your home. Also, look for bed bug feces. These tiny dark stains are often found on the homeowner’s bed sheets.
If there is an infestation in your home, visit the bed bug specialist London for professional advice.
Where do they hide?
Bed bugs are keen to travel, so they can be found in different areas throughout your home. Here are some of the common areas where bed bugs like to hide:
- Inside suitcases
- Under boxes
- Behind baseboards
- Behind mirrors
- Behind picture frames
- Inside electrical switch plates
- Under a mattress
Although bed bugs are known to feed during the night, they often look to feed during the day too. If your home is heavily infected, don’t be surprised if you spot bed bugs looking to feed anytime of the day.
It only takes five to ten minutes for bed bugs to feed. Once they have finished feeding, they will look for somewhere to hide. They will spend at least five days digesting the blood and laying their eggs. The bug won’t need to feed during this time, which is another reason why they are so difficult to spot.
What do their bites look like?
Experts believe that bed bugs don’t cause disease directly, however they can carry disease. It seems like they like to feed on human blood, but they also like to feed on rodents, cats, and dogs too. If it feeds on a diseased animal, it could potentially spread the disease onto others. Scientists claim that bed bugs can carry agents of harmful diseases such as typhus and yellow fever.
Because seeing bed bugs with the naked eye is difficult, you should keep an eye out for visible bites on your body. If you notice any of the following bites on your skin, you could have a bed bug infestation:
- Tiny discolored red dots on your skin
- Several bites in a row
- Zigzag pattern of small red marks
- Hives
- A reddish circle on your skin
However, not all bites show up after being bitten. It can take several days until you realize that you have experienced a bed bug bite.
Keep bites clean
Bed bugs are blood sucking creatures that can cause a lot of frustration.
If you have been bitten, it is of vital importance that you keep the bite clean to avoid getting a secondary infection. If you don’t clean it, the bite could get worse, which might lead to bleeding and swelling.
If there are young kids or elderly people living in your household, make sure that you clean and disinfect their bites immediately. Kids and elderly people tend to have weak immune systems, so they might struggle to recover after being bitten by a bed bug.
Conclusion
If you think you have bed bug problems, you should tackle the issue straight away. Each female will lay approximately 500 eggs throughout their short lifetime, so you should do whatever it takes to get rid of them before the infestation gets worse.
There are several home remedies that you can do to eradicate the bugs, and there are lots of specialists with the tools and the experience to keep the bugs out of your home for good.
