How Do I Know If I Have Bed Bugs?
Ways to Find Out if You Have Bed Bugs in Your Home
Have you recently been finding small bug bites on your body? You shouldn’t jump to conclusions assuming it’s bed bugs because in reality, it could be anything but it is important to think about the circumstances of the bites. If you are waking up in the morning with new bites, there is a good possibility they can be from bed bugs. But, the only way to know for sure if you have bed bugs is to find an actual sample of the bug and then have an exterminator come and properly eradicate the infestation.
How to Discover a Bed Bug Infestation in Your Home:
- Visually inspect your home
Do a careful examination of all the beds, couches and other upholstered furniture in your home. When looking for bed bugs on a mattress, inspect underneath the fitted sheets as well as near the edges of the bed closest to the mattress piping. To ensure a thorough inspection, then remove the mattress to check the box spring for bed bugs. They can be under the plastic piece on the corner of the box spring or even in the underside of the box spring. If there are any small dark stains on the mattress or boxspring, this can be a sign of dead bed bugs or bed bug excrements.
It is also important to inspect other upholstered furniture since bed bugs are usually only found in the bed when they are feeding. They can be found in chairs or couches as well. To inspect these pieces of furniture, check in the seams, between cushions and even between the folds of curtains. When not feeding, bed bugs can also be found in drawers, electrical sockets, under loose wallpaper and even in the space where the wall and ceiling meet.
- Use interceptive devices
There are inexpensive devices that can be purchased that actually capture bed bugs. These devices are placed under the legs of beds and other furniture pieces since this is where the bugs will have to travel to get from bed to bed and will then become trapped. You should check these devices every couple of days to see if there are any bugs in them and if not leave them there for a few weeks for this method to be the most effective.
- Use mattress and box spring encasements
Although these encasements are a little more expensive than the interceptive bed bug devices, they will help in early bed bug detection as well as protection. By covering the box spring and mattress, you are preventing the bed bugs from getting to their hiding places. This will make it easier to see the bed bugs during your visual inspection. These encasements will also keep your bed protected from any future bed bug infestations.
- Call an exterminator
Even though you can personally do a thorough inspection of your home, there is a very good chance that you’ll miss something and the infestation can go undetected. An exterminator knows exactly what to look for and exactly what the warning signs are. If an infestation is detected, an exterminator can also properly eradicate the problem in order to avoid any future bed bug problems.
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