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About the Resource:
Bed bugs are small, parasitic insects that feed on the blood of humans. They can be a significant nuisance due to their bites and the difficulty of eliminating them once they infest a home.
Identification
- Appearance: Adult bed bugs are small, flat, and oval-shaped, measuring about 4-5 mm in length. They are reddish-brown in color and become more elongated and darker after feeding. Nymphs (young bed bugs) are smaller and lighter in color, while eggs are tiny and white.
- Signs of Infestation:
- Bites: Bed bug bites often appear in clusters or lines on exposed skin areas. They can cause itching, redness, and swelling. Note: Not all people who are bitten by bed bugs have a skin reaction.
- Blood Stains: Small blood stains may appear on sheets or pillowcases.
- Fecal Spots: Look for dark, ink-like spots on bedding, mattresses, or walls, which are bed bug excrement.
- Shed Skins: Bed bugs molt as they grow, leaving behind empty shells.
- Musty Odor: A heavy infestation can produce a sweet, musty odor.
Behavior and Habits
- Nocturnal: Bed bugs are primarily active at night and prefer to feed on sleeping humans.
- Hiding Spots: During the day, bed bugs hide in cracks and crevices near sleeping areas, including mattress seams, bed frames, headboards, and even behind wallpaper or electrical outlets.
- Spreading: Bed bugs can spread by hitching rides on luggage, clothing, or furniture, making them a common problem in hotels, dormitories, and multi-unit buildings.
Control and Management
- Inspection and Identification
- Thorough Inspection: Start by thoroughly inspecting your sleeping areas, including mattresses, bed frames, and nearby furniture. Use a flashlight to check seams, folds, and cracks.
- Use Bed Bug Interceptors: Place bed bug interceptors under the legs of your bed to catch and identify bed bugs.
- Non-Chemical Controls
- Heat Treatment: Bed bugs are sensitive to heat. Dry bedding, clothing, and other infested items in a clothes dryer on high heat for 20-30 minutes. Temperatures at least 120°F will kill them.
- Vacuuming: Vacuum all infested areas thoroughly, including mattresses, bed frames, baseboards, and carpets. Dispose of the vacuum bag or wash canister with hot, soapy water.
- Encasements: Bed bug-proof mattress and box spring encasements may be used to keep old mattresses and protect new mattresses.
Chemical Controls
Insecticides: There are various over-the-counter insecticides labeled for bed bug control, however bed bugs have developed resistance to several insecticides.
Professional Pest Control: It’s often best to hire a professional pest control service with trained and licensed applicators to apply insecticides or perform heat treatments for bed bug management.
Prevention
- Secondhand Items: Inspect second hand furniture, clothing, and luggage carefully before bringing them into your home.
- Travel Precautions: When traveling, inspect hotel rooms for signs of bed bugs and keep luggage off the bed and floor. Upon returning home, inspect travel items, and store luggage away from areas where people sleep.
Challenges in Bed Bug Control
- Much of the population has no reaction to the bites of bed bugs, which makes it harder to detect a low level bed bug population. Bed bugs are resilient and can survive for months without feeding, making them difficult to eradicate.
- Factors that affect treatment success include the level of infestation and the amount of clutter. Reducing clutter reduces the places bed bugs can hide and earlier detection means a lower population of bugs to eliminate.