How to Get Rid of BedBugs

Dealing with Bedbugs

Bed bugs are unwelcome guests, no matter where you find them. There is a fallacy that bedbugs are only found in unclean hotels and rundown motels. But, the reality of it is that bedbugs can be found anywhere from

A hotel room
A seat at the movie theatre
Public Transportation

or even from a guest visiting your home. The biggest problem is that bedbugs are sneaky, hard to find, and can pose major health problems for you and your family. This article will review what signs to be familiar with, how to get rid of bedbugs, and why working with a pest control professional is important to eradicate your bedbug infestation.

What Are Bedbugs

Bedbugs are tiny, oval, brown insects that survive on the blood of animals or humans. Bedbugs do not fly, but they can move incredibly quickly over floors, walls and ceilings, often undetected because they are only the size of an apple seed. Female bedbugs will lay hundreds of eggs, again, often undetected because they are the size of a speck of dust. In the best conditions, bugs can develop fully in one month and can produce three or more generations of bugs per year. Luckily, as annoying as the bedbugs are, they are not thought to carry disease.

Signs You Have Bedbugs

Bedbugs are brought into your home, undetected, through luggage, clothing, used beds and couches, and other items. Their flat bodies make it possible to fit into tiny spaces that are not visible to the naked eyes. Bedbugs do not nest, like an ant or bee, but they do like to live together. Common hiding places are mattresses, box springs, bed frames, and headboards. Therefore one of the most common signs of bedbug infestations are getting bitten at night.

Signs of Bed Bug infestation include itchy areas you didn’t have when you went to sleep that may have started after you recently added a piece of used furniture to your home. Other signs include blood stains on your sheets or pillowcases, dark or rusty spots of bug excrement on your sheets or mattresses, bed clothes or walls, bedbug fecal spots, egg shells or shed skins, or an offensive, musty odor from the bug’s scent gland.