How To Spot Bed Bugs
Tips from Members of the National Pest Management Association
Bed bug infestation has emerged as a new crisis for the developed world. Either one out of every five Americans has faced bed bug problems or they know someone who has. The situation has worsened over the years. Bed bug control works the best it possibly can if they are detected early. However, early detection is not an easy task.
Bed bugs are shy creatures and they live in dark crevices and corners. They are difficult to spot and an inexperienced eye may not be able to detect many of them even while they are crawling on the sheets.
To have a professional from Frame's Pest Control, Inc. come and inspect your property, call (419) 495-8283 or send us a message online.
Bed Bug Signs—Things to Look For
If you are looking for signs of bed bugs in your home, then you must start looking for droppings, skin peels, and blood smears. Bed bug droppings are black color specks on the seams of your sheets and mattresses. They are telltale signs of bed bugs. The tiny yellowish flakes are the skin peels of bed bugs; although, they are often difficult to detect. The most visible signs of bed bugs are blood smears on your sheets because as bed bugs feed, they leave trails of blood behind them.
Once you have made sure there are bed bugs in your home, the next step is to look for their hiding spots to get an idea of the size of your infestation.
Places You’ll Need to Inspect
Your Sheets & Mattresses
Your sheets and mattresses are the places you should begin. Look at the seams of your sheets and the ribs of your mattresses. The bed bugs will probably be on the underside of your mattress and therefore, you will have to look there.
Inside Your Pillow Covers
Pillow covers are a good hiding place for bed bugs. Slowly reverse them and look closely at the seam for black specks.
Inside the Box Spring
This is one of the most unreachable and darkest spots. Bed bugs breed and thrive in dark places, so you must look at the corners of the box spring and locate bed bug droppings.
Behind the Light Switches
Bed bugs crawl behind the light switches and come out at night to suck your blood. You can trace them back there too.
Behind Wall Paintings
Wall paintings are also a safe hideout for bed bugs. You should carefully look at the corners to find the black specks from their droppings.
Closets
Closets can also be a hiding place for bed bugs. They can hide at the edges of drawers and closets.
Stuffed Toys
Stuffed toys are another big target of bed bugs as they can hide in them safely. Kids keep moving the toys from one room to another and the bed bugs can get an easy ride to other places in your home.
Overall, bed bugs can be found in the seams, cracks, edges, crevices, and voids in the objects in your room. They love to stay in dark places which is why you must inspect everything closely.
Furniture
Just like how humans lay down in bed for extended periods, we also tend to spend a lot of time on living room furniture pieces like couches. In the same way that bed bugs are attracted to our beds, they’re also attracted to these types of large furnishings. Not to mention, some pieces like couches and recliners have numerous cracks and crevices for these insects to burrow in and get cozy. While it’s a bit disturbing to think that a bed bug population could be growing while you watch T.V., it’s just another reason why you should have a regular pest control check done on your residence.
Rugs
When bed bugs are in the process of moving from one household object to the next, they usually do so by traveling on ground surfaces. Although they can occasionally hitch free rides on small items like electronic devices, these disturbing insects are usually on the run inside the seams of floor mats or rugs. While keeping your ground surfaces clean can help keep bed bugs away, sometimes there’s only so much a vacuum and carpet cleaner can do. However, a trained pest control professional can assess your ground surfaces and advise you on the right approach to ensure these corridors are less attractive to insects.
Laundry Hampers
Just as we cover ourselves with sheets in bed at night, we also cover ourselves with all types of clothing garments during the day. This is why a lot of homeowners tend to find bed bugs in places where their dirty clothes gather. Bed bugs will journey to any place where there’s a trace of human activity. A laundry hamper leaves a significant trace of body heat for these bugs. And while it may not seem like a huge threat – dirty clothes go straight into the washer – it could pose a threat to surrounding objects (dressers, closet shelves, clean clothes hanging nearby).
Nightstands
Where will bed bugs travel after nesting in your bed? The nearest object. What’s usually the closest piece of furniture to your bed? A nightstand. While it may not seem like the worst place to find bed bugs, a nightstand infestation can lead to damaged goods in or around the nightstand. Once bed bugs invade your nightstand, they can transport via items like your phone, tablet, watch, etc. Shutting down bed bugs from sources like a nightstand can help eliminate the possibility of these insects appearing in other places.
Bed Bug Removal Requires Experience & Expertise
Bed bug removal is an even more complex job and is best suited for the experts. It not only requires proper identification of all their hiding spots but complete extermination. If the infestation is in its early stages, then you may not be able to see them at all. They only come out at night to feed and will hide quickly even at your slightest movement. Visual inspection is generally unreliable. If you have any bed bug bite marks, calling the experts is the best step.
Frame's Pest Control, Inc. has a combined experience of over 50 years and a team of well-trained and licensed experts to provide treatment. We guarantee we will kill any bed bugs in your home and provide you with complete freedom from the menace.
For service in Toledo or Ann Arbor, call us today at (419) 495-8283 or fill out our online request form.