Bed Bug Detection For Your Home

By Jack Hanley

Bed bugs were not a problem for the sixty years following World War II. The introduction of DDT practically eradicated bed bugs in the United States. However with the banning of DDT, the problem started to grow again, and now you need to be careful that you do not develop a bed bug problem. There increase in population has made it imperative that you know about bed bug detection.

Bed bugs are approximately the same size and shape of an apple seed. The make their home in furniture, especially mattresses, but will live anywhere that humans are likely to sleep or nap. That is because you are their favorite midnight snack. When it gets dark at night, they like to come out to eat. Once they are full, they scurry back to their favorite hiding place so that you are unaware of their presence.

Bed bugs may migrate into you home by hitch hiking on used furniture, luggage or clothing from hotel rooms, or even your clothing as you visit a movie theater. One female bed bug lays hundreds of eggs during her lifetime. This can lead to infestation of your own home. It does not matter if you keep your home clean or dirty. Cleanliness has nothing to do with bed bug infestation. They only need blood to survive. If they cannot get your blood, the will settle for the blood of your pets.

Once a home is fully infested with bugs, you may note a foul musty odor. There are dogs that have been trained to detect bed bugs by their smell that are often used in hotels. There are also other signs that you can look for that will get the problem under control before it becomes a full fledged infestation.

Since bed bugs like to hide during the daytime, it is important that you check out cracks and creases on the bed. Look along rails and behind the headboard. Look for rusty or brown colored stains on mattresses and bedding to be sure that you do not have a problem with bed bugs.

Keep an eye out for egg shells or discarded skins from molting bugs. Remember that your box springs offer a multitude of places for bed bugs to hide as do ripped or torn mattresses.

If you find bed bugs in the house, take immediate action to get rid of them. It will be a difficult task and you may need to call an exterminator, although many are inexperienced in dealing with bed bugs. Your mattress and box springs may need to be encased in a plastic zipper bag to prevent the bugs from eating. They will die without blood.

If you choose instead to discard your mattress and replace it, remove all clutter from the room and be sure that there are no bugs present before bringing in new bedding. Otherwise, you will just be starting the problem all over again. - 30195

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