We’re supposed to sleep tight so the bed bugs won’t bite, but sometimes they do anyway. When this happens, you have to be prepared to go all out in eliminating them. Bed bugs are especially difficult to get rid of because of how small they are. They can be easily overlooked and reproduce rapidly. In order to avoid buying a brand new mattress, here are some tips on killing bed bugs and preventing them from coming back.
Find the Pests
In some ways, finding out you have bed bugs is the easiest part of the job. Bed bug bites are easily recognizable as small, red, itchy bumps. They’re usually found in a straight line across parts of the skin. The bed bugs themselves are a brownish red in color and no bigger than an apple seed. If you’re having trouble verifying the bed bugs, you might need to collect a sample to show to an expert.
If you find evidence of bed bugs, make sure to inspect the area surrounding where you first identified them. As mentioned before, bed bugs reproduce quickly and can spread just as fast. If you live in an apartment complex, contact your landlord as it’s possible other homes may be infested.
Prepping
Before you start treatment, you need to take steps to contain the infestation as best as possible. Put anything small in the infested area into sealed plastic bags to kill off any bed bugs inside them. This can take up to a year in some cases, but removing them any earlier could cause a resurgence. Dispose of trash and vacuum debris in sealed plastic containers and throw them out immediately. If something can’t be stored securely and is unsalvageable, dispose of it responsibly so that it can’t be accidentally taken in by someone else. Destroy or ruin furniture you need to throw out or, if able, burn it.
Once you’ve secured and disposed of furniture and items infested with bed bugs, it’s time to start prepping your home for treatment. The EPA has several tips on how to do this. Eliminating clutter, isolating your bed in the middle of a room, and covering any potential holes or cracks bed bugs can live in are some of these guidelines.
Treatment
While it is possible to defeat an infestation of bed bugs in Scottsdale on your own, calling a professional is much simpler and safer. If you wish to try for yourself, though, there are several ways to go about killing pests. Both heat and cold are able to kill bed bugs, though these can be hard to enact over large areas or pieces of furniture like beds. Pesticides and desiccants are another option, though you should only do so in a well-ventilated space with the proper safety equipment. Even after the initial treatment, you’ll need to check for new bed bugs every few days to ensure none of the eggs survived.
Future Prevention
If you can ensure that there are no more bed bugs in your home, then you should begin planning so that you don’t become infested again in the future. Keep your living space clean and safe to prevent creating a space for pests to live. Be mindful of any strange smells or sounds you might here and inspect bugs you find to ensure they’re not a harmful species. Overall, continue to be vigilant and you’ll be living free of bed bugs for a long time to come.
