Everybody is terrified of getting bed bugs. If you don’t identify them soon enough, they can spread throughout your home, and they can be notoriously hard to eliminate. If you think that you may have bed bugs, then you’ll want to schedule an inspection with a bed bug service right away.
Because there are a lot of misconceptions about bed bugs, the following are a few things that you should know about bed bugs and bed bug removal:
- Bed bugs can live anywhere. Although they tend to set up shop in the bed (hence their name), they can spread throughout the home and will live and nest in numerous areas. They are most commonly found in wood bed frames, wood furniture, mattresses, box springs, and upholstered furniture.
- Bed bugs are most active at night. Bed bugs will generally bite you during the night while you are asleep. This is why you may not see any bed bugs out in the open during the day. However, you can find bed bugs if you inspect the cracks and crevices of your bed frame, the folds in your mattress, or the underside of your box spring.
- Bed bugs leave behind traces. Even though you may not see bed bugs in your bed during the day, you can identify signs that they are present. If you think you might have bed bugs, you should check your bedding for fecal stains, egg, and blood stains.
- Bed bugs can come from anywhere. One of the biggest misconceptions about bed bugs is that they are only found in dirty places. In fact, you can carry bed bugs back to your home from all kinds of places. A five-star hotel is as likely to have bed bugs as a cheap motel. Bed bugs do not discriminate!
- Bed bugs live everywhere. Another misconception is that bed bugs are city bugs. However, bed bugs can be found in rural areas as well. There is a higher incidence of bed bugs in urban areas because of population size, increased mobility, and apartment living, all of which are factors that lead to rapid spread and breeding.
- Bed bug bites do not require treatment. Bed bug bites are painless. At most, they may cause some itching, which can be treated with an over-the-counter cream.
Bed Bug Removal Tips
The following are a few things you should know regarding bed bug removal:
- Don’t throw out infested furniture. One of the biggest mistakes you can make is throwing out an infested bed frame before it’s been treated. By doing so, you risk spreading the bed bugs further throughout your building or having them tracked back into your home. Besides, once your home is treated, you can continue to use your furniture.
- Heat treatment and steaming only work with direct contact. Attacking bed bugs with your hairdryer will kill those bed bugs—but there are likely more in hiding, which means your treatment isn’t very effective. For heat treatment to work, a professional has to apply it to the entire affected area.
- Chemical treatment may require several passes. The first treatment may kill most living bed bugs, but there may be eggs hidden that haven’t hatched yet. Several treatments are needed to eliminate a bed bug infestation.
These are a few things to keep in mind about bed bugs. If you think that you might have a bed bug problem, then contact Bain Pest Control to schedule a bed bug service today.