When it comes to pests, bed bugs are near the top of the list of pests that you don’t want to deal with. Not only can bed bugs overwhelm your home in a huge infestation, but they also bite, making them even more aggravating. Not to mention that they are notoriously difficult to get rid of effectively as well!
The following are five signs that you are dealing with a bed bug infestation and what you should do to get rid of them.
5 Signs That You Have a Bed Bug Infestation
If you notice any of these signs, then there’s a good chance you have a bed bug problem.
- Bed bug bites — Bed bugs often make their home in the hidden recesses of your bed so that they can come out and feast at night. If you’re waking up in the morning with flat, red welts that are gathered in zigzag lines or in small clusters on your body, then you may have bed bugs.
- Blood stains — Bed bugs are basically little vampire pests, so take a look at your sheets, mattress, pillowcases and your pajamas for blood stains. These blood stains will be pretty small since bed bugs are pretty small, and they’re not exactly taking huge chunks out of you when they bite.
- Fecal stains — Since a large amount of the bed bugs that are dining on your blood stick around the bed area, they tend to leave fecal spotting on the bed sheets, mattress or pillow cases once the blood has been digested. You can identify fecal spotting by dark brown or black smears or stains.
- Bed bug exoskeletons — As bed bugs grow, they go through a process called molting, in which their exoskeletons are sloughed off. Look for exoskeletons in the same spots as you would blood stains and fecal stains.
- A strong smell — Bed bugs release pheromones, causing a scent that is quite strong if there are a lot of bed bugs. This produces a smell that can be musty, like a wet towel. Others have compared the scent to moldy shoes, ripe raspberries or even coriander.
What to Do If You’ve Identified a Bed Bug Problem
Once you’ve found one or more signs that you have a bed bug infestation, what are you supposed to do? The following are the steps that you should take to deal with a bed bug infestation.
Remove all bedding and clothes from the affected areas. Put them in a sealed plastic bag. By throwing them into a dryer on high heat, you should kill the bed bugs.
- Vacuum the affected areas very carefully. Vacuuming is an effective way to remove bed bugs hidden in your carpeting, mattress and floors. Make sure that you remove the vacuum bag once you’re done and that you seal it before throwing it out.
- Don’t throw away your furniture — one of the biggest mistakes people make is taking their furniture out to the roadside. First of all, you can still treat your furniture. Secondly, those bed bugs will find their way back inside or into another nearby building.
- Have an exterminator perform a heat treatment. The best way to kill bed bugs and their eggs is with heat. Trying to use a consumer treatment can kill some of them, but odds are it will just drive the bed bugs from the infested area to another area of your home.
- Look for these signs of a bed bug infestation and use these tips to deal with them. Contact us at Bain Pest Control to schedule an inspection today.