Bed Bugs -Quickly Becoming a Major Pest

The incidence of bed bugs in the United States is increasing to the point where they can affect anyone and anywhere. In the past few years, bed bug infestations have been increasingly observed the U.S. This increase has been attributed to the increases in immigration and travel.

For years when people talked about bed bugs the thought of run down, flea bag hotels came to mind. You know those cheap little places on the back roads or not so nice parts of town. Not now. It is not uncommon for a 4 or 5 star hotel to have a problem or two with uninvited guests or a homeowner who lives in a very nice and clean home.

Being familiar with bed bugs can help to avoid infestation, or at least prompt earlier intervention by a professional pest control expert to help get rid of the bugs..

Bed bugs are small, oval, brownish, flattened insects that belong to the insect family Cimicidae. Bed bugs feed solely on the blood of animals and humans. Other bed bug species prefer to feed on wild hosts, especially bats and birds. Sometimes people mistake them for ticks or small cockroaches. FYI…Bed bugs can’t fly.

Female bed bugs lay their eggs (1, 2 or more eggs per day and hundreds during a lifetime) and tend to hang out in tiny cracks in furniture, wicker furniture, walls, moldings, upholstered furniture and any other place they can squeeze into. Initial infestations tend to be around beds and bedding, since that is where the food is at. They especially like to get into mattresses, box springs, and bed frames.

Bed bugs pretty much sleep during the day and come out at night to feed when we are sleeping. They come out of the mattress or other hiding place. Many times bed bug bites may go unnoticed or be mistaken for flea or mosquito bites or other skin conditions.

Bed bugs don’t really make nests like ants, that would make it easier to find them, but they do congregate in their hiding places. Outside of seeing them, they are fast little bugs, look for areas are marked by dark spotting and staining, which is the dried excrement of the bugs, places like inside the night stand, base molding behind the bed or between the boxspring and bed frame. Also look for eggs and eggshells, the brownish molted skins of maturing nymphs and the bugs themselves.

Another telltale though less frequent sign is reddish blood smears on bed sheets or mattresses from crushing well feed bed bug. Very heavy infestations may cause an area to smell funny, but the odor is seldom apparent and should not be relied upon for detection.

Many people are concerned that a bed bug can transmit diseases. Bed bugs are not believed to harbor infectious microbes in and on their bodies. The main medical concern is infection if the bite area is scratched which is what we have a tendency to do when bitten. Antihistamines and corticosteroids may be prescribed to reduce allergic reactions, and antiseptic or antibiotic ointments to prevent infection.

Everyday we get calls asking “how do I get rid of bed bugs”. Bed bugs are challenging pests to control and getting rid of bed bugs is not an easy process. In the event it is a serious case of bed bug infestation you will require the services of a pest control expert.

Your local store, Home Depot or Lowes, carry some sprays, dusts, and aerosol insecticides that can be used to eradicate bed bugs. These types of products must be applied to all areas where the bugs are seen as well as spaces where they may crawl or hide. Think Small. Do not spray on the mattress even if they say you can.

Take apart the bed and bed frame, remove the drawers from the dresser, and caulk the cracks in the wall and molding. Use a stiff brush to get the eggs. Then vacuum really good paying special attention to the cracks and crevices. Put the used vacuum bag in a plastic bag and throw it away outside. Do not leave it in a trash can in the house.

Beds cannot be treated with insecticides. Cover the mattress, box spring and pillows in protective membrane bed bug mattress covers. These mattress covers are specifically designed with a membrane to protect against bed bugs and dust mites. They are designed so bed bugs can’t chew through the fabric or crawl through the zippers.

Once the mattress cover is installed and zipped shut, any bed bugs which happen to be inside are trapped and eventually will die from starvation. Don’t feel bad, you don’t want bugs in your mattress do you? Bed bugs can’t get into the covered mattress either.

In the event the mattress is heavily infested it is often necessary to throw it away. If that happens, cover your newly purchased mattress in a bed bug  cover as soon as you get it. This  will make it easier to spot and destroy any bugs that may be on the outer surface during follow up examination.

All bedding and clothes in the affected area need to be washed in hot water (120°F minimum) and then dried. Things like stuffed animals can either be put in the dryer or placed in the freezer for 24 hours.

Carpet should be steamed cleaned. If you take anything to a dry cleaners make sure you tell them what is going on. You don’t want to cause someone else to have a bed bug infestation.

Cleaning up a bed bug problems is not easy to do but it can be done. Just be ready to do a lot of hard work.

About the Author

Mike has been in the indoor environmental business for over 10 years. He has owned and operated and air duct cleaning and decontamination business, a water purification business, and is currently one of the owners of

The Allergy Store

. He makes his home in South Florida.

The Bird and the Bee – Man

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