Have you ever seen a stowaway? If you have seen a bed bug, then you definitely have seen one. They enter houses by hitchhiking on luggage, furniture, boxes, clothing, and other similar items. Good hygiene actually has nothing to do with getting bed bugs. Everyone can have them, from the cleanest of homes to 5-star hotels, motels, and practically everyone can have them. If your house is full of clutter, though, the better for them because it can provide a very good hiding place for the bed bugs. If you have had some signs of bed bugs, like bed bug bites on the skin, then you may want to call in the best companies that can get rid of bed bugs for me, Go-Forth Home Services.
If you are not sure, though, how to know if you have these pests in your house, then we shall discuss in a little more detail the signs of bed bugs later in this article. Be wary, because once bed bugs get to your home, they can easily spread And once they do, it will be very hard and costly to stop them.
About Bed Bugs
Bed bugs are nocturnal creatures that are out for blood. They are small, wingless, biting insects that can multiply easily. They feed during the night as humans sleep. They are found in all parts of the world, save for Antarctica where they probably would not survive anyway. The adult bed bugs are about 5.5 mm in length, the same size as an Appleseed. Their bodies are oval in shape, with broad, flat bodies. Their heads are broad as well. They have dark brown bodies but turn red and bloat after a blood meal. They get a blood meal usually every 3 to 7 days.
The eggs are just 1 mm in size, hardly visible. These eggs are white in color, making it hard to distinguish them. If you see one you would not really know it was an egg from a bed bug. One reason it would be very hard to stop a bed bug infestation is that the female bed bugs can lay as many as 200 eggs in her lifetime. That would be 2 to four eggs a day. The eggs would hatch after 6 to 17 days.
They move from one place to another by hitching a ride on another object. They do not fly nor do they jump. They also cannot easily crawl on metal surfaces or polished surfaces.
Bed bugs are least likely to die of starvation. They are more likely to die because of drying out due to low moisture in the air. They thrive under cold temperatures.
Bed bugs were once thought to be annihilated during the mid-1900s due to the advancement of pest control methods at that time. They did bounce back in the mid-’90s and are stronger than ever. One of the reasons why bed bugs have made such a strong comeback in the United States is improved travel, which led to more Americans traveling. Americans who travel get to pick up bed bugs along the way, usually from hotels or other rented rooms they stayed in. Once they attack a house, they would be very difficult to treat. Another thing that helped the bed bugs increase their population is the lack of awareness and familiarity with these pests. Most people would not recognize signs of bed bugs even if they were staring at them.
Bed Bug Lifecycle
During their entire lifetime, bed bugs go through several stages. Bed bugs would start off as eggs. After that, they would become nymphs, wherein they will undergo 4 nymph stages. The last stage would be the adult stage, and the cycle would start all over again.
How Do They Eat?
Bed bugs would not be active until the evening comes. They will get a blood meal either from humans or from animals. This is why you would not be able to notice them right away. You also would not be feeling their bites while they are doing the deed, because they inject a form of anesthesia so as not to bother you from your sleep. How thoughtful of them! It takes around 3 to 10 minutes for a bed bug to feed.
Bed bugs prefer to stay in undisturbed places but are near the place where they could feed. Of course, the best place would be in the bedroom. Because they are flat, they can easily fit in small holes, cracks, and crevices. Aside from these, they can also hide behind wallpaper, inside electrical outlets, inside box springs, behind picture frames, and behind doorknobs.
Young bed bugs need to feed immediately, but adults can live without a blood meal for several months and up to a year and a half. Bed bugs can live up to around 10 months.
Bed Bugs As Pests
Bed bug bites are very itchy and unsightly on the skin. These bites would not appear until after 1 week to 2 weeks. When they do, it would feel and look terrible. Unlike mosquito bites, where their bites are usually scattered, bed bug bites are seen as a vertical line on the skin, making them more obvious. These bites are often in the face, arms, legs, neck, and chest.
Some people may have severe allergic reactions, some may only have a small sin reaction, while some may have no reaction at all.
While bed bugs themselves carry disease inside their bodies, they do not transmit them to humans. They do pose several health risks. Aside from their itchy and ugly bites, bed bugs are also high health risk pests, according to several government agencies like the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Center for Disease Control, and Environmental Protection Agency.
Bed bugs are reported to cause stress, insomnia, social isolation, and depression. As you can see, they affect mental health more than the physical health of humans.
Signs Of Bed Bugs
Bed bugs are real pests that are high health risks. As such, getting rid of bed bugs is very important. Not only do they bite, which would eventually turn into itchy spots on your skin, but they can also torment you mentally.
Bed bug bites, though the most obvious sign of bed bug infestation, should not be relied on, because their bites would only show up after 1 to 2 weeks. By that time it would have been too late and these pests would have spread already. It is best to find them early. Let us talk about the more accurate ways of detecting these bed bugs.
One of the signs you should look out for is the presence of a sweet, musty scent that bed bugs produce through the glands on the lower side of their bodies. Dark spots on mattresses which are bed bug feces can be another sign. It may also be crushed bed bugs as a result of them being crushed by a human.
You might also see their eggs and eggshells. Or pale yellow skins that were shed by nymphs as they grow larger and larger.
And of course, one obvious reason is if you physically find a live one. If you have seen one, there are probably more of them scattered around.
Places They Hide
Just as important in knowing how to detect them is knowing where to find them. Whenever they are not eating, they are hiding in several places around your houses. The first place to look for is around the bed, at the seams and tags of the mattress and box spring, and near the piping. They are also small enough to fit in the cracks and crevices on the bed frame and headboard.
When the infestation is heavy, the bed bugs may spread out to electric sockets, inside drawers, in drawer joints, in electrical receptacles and appliances, behind wallpapers, behind picture frames, in the seams and couches, between cushions, and in the folds of curtains.
Control Management
Now that we know how to identify these bed bugs and know where to find them, we can start to venture out and killing them off. Getting rid of them is hard work, but we have no choice but to try.
Infested mattresses and other items that cannot be washed can be steam cleaned. This will kill the bed bugs. Items that can be washed should be washed with hot water and soap. You may also put smaller items that are infested inside the freezer for four days to kill the bed bugs. If these items cannot be salvaged any longer, throw them out properly.
Use a vacuum cleaner and suck the bed bugs out of the mattresses, furniture, rugs, carpets, in cracks and crevices, and all places where bed bugs can be hiding. Throw away the vacuum bag placed inside a sealed white plastic bag properly. Why should it be white? Because then it would be easier to spot the bed bugs.
If all else fails, one of the best companies that can get rid of bed bugs for me in North Carolina is the Go-Forth Home Services that is always ready to help you out.