How to get rid of bed bugs is what we will be looking at today. Bed bugs are a very serious problem, as they feed on human blood and cause the skin to itch (and multiply within weeks).
They are very difficult to get rid of, but lucky for you, our viewers, we have come up with a four-step process that will guarantee you a 100% extermination of bed bug infestations.
The four-step process to exterminate bed bugs is listed below:
- Identification
- Inspection
- Control
- Prevention
Now we will be looking into all of the processes listed above.
Step 1: How To Identify Bed Bugs
The first step in the process is identification. What does a bedbug look like? Well, depending on the stage that you’re looking at, they may range from a pinhead size up to an apple seed size and be flat and brown.
They can be found where human activities are most frequent, such as in bedrooms or living rooms. They can be found crawling across floors, walls, ceilings, etc. Once they have had a blood meal, their bodies become elongated and turn red.
Step 2: How To Inspect For Bed Bugs?
The second step in the process is inspection. You may wake up one morning and have bites all over your body. These bites are raised areas on your body that kind of look like mosquito bites.
If you see any of this, that might be an indication that you have bed bug activity in your home.
The first place you’re going to want to check is your bedroom. Many will ask, Why the bedroom? well, because that is where human activity is more prevalent (that is, where you sleep).
Ensure to inspect the mattress by looking around the seams for faeces, dried blood, skin shells, etc. Finding any of these is a sign that you probably have a bed bug infestation.
Also, check the picture frame behind the headboard, ensure to look into all the electronics (TVs, clocks, radios), and check your dresser and your chest of drawers.
Bed bugs love to hide in cracks and crevices, so if you have positively identified bed bugs, you will want to inspect the rest of the house as well. Especially check those areas where you frequent a lot, such as the living room, dining room, and kitchen area.
Bed bugs are wanderers, and they are going to go wherever they can find that next blood meal.
Step 3: How To Get Rid of Bed Bugs Infestation (Control)
The third step in the process is “control.“. Since bed bugs are more prevalent where human activities are the most prevalent, it will be wise to start in the room.
Below are important steps to follow in order to properly control a bed bug infestation:
- Make sure to remove clothing and bedding material.
- Make sure to soak the bedding material in hot water and wash it.
- Dry the bedding material placed in a plastic bag and store it away from the room that’s being treated.
- Next disassemble the furniture, the Chester drawers, the dresser, the bed frame, etc.
All of these are very important so that we have access to the cracks and crevices of the furniture when it is time to treat them.
- Make sure to vacuum, and be very thorough with vacuuming the room; vacuum the mattress, and the box spring around your baseboards (very important).
- Once you have completed that dispose of it outdoors (if it is a bag vacuum cleaner), and if it is a canister type empty it outdoors and remove any eggs or immature stages that you may have picked up.
So now that you have completed the prep work, let us move on to chemical control.
To chemically control bed bugs, you will want to use a product called Flex 10-10. You can apply this product to your mattress by spraying around the seams, and buttons on top of the surface (if you have any).
Once you have completed that, you will apply a product called hydroprene (this is an insect growth regulator that prevents bed bugs from being able to reproduce).
Add this product directly to the Flex 10-10 and mix (this will be applied to the boxspring).
Below are the steps to follow when applying the mixture mentioned above:
- The first thing you want to do, though, is to remove the net on the bottom side of that box spring.
- Next, spray up into the cracks and crevices.
- Once you have completed that, you can go back and spray the entire floor area in the room. Also, go ahead and spray those floors that are adjacent to that room, just to prevent bed bugs from transferring from that room to another.
- Once the application dries, you are going to focus on the cracks and crevices of the furniture—the dresser, chest drawers, bed frame, etc.
Next, use an aerosol pirate. Pirate has a great quick knockdown to it as it comes with a straw that can be put inside the crack, allowing you to get good deep penetration in there.
This is very important because when bedbugs are not feeding, they are hiding in cracks and crevices.
Once you have completed that, you are going to use a dust defense. Applying the dust will help prevent bed bugs from moving from one room to another.
Below are ways to apply the dust properly:
- Apply the dust inside the walls by injecting it underneath the baseboard.
- Also, you can remove the cover off the outlet and inject it into the wall there as well. Prior to doing that, turn the circuit breaker to the electrical outlets inside that room off.
- You can also apply the dust to large voids in the cracks in the furniture.
The dust will last for months, and you should reapply every 6 months.
After carrying out all these steps, do not stop thinking that you have completely eradicated this pest from your home. Follow up by periodically checking for any bed bug activity.
If you notice a bed bug activity, then you may want to reapply the flex 10–10 and pirate every couple of weeks until the activity has completely ceased.
If you travel a lot or have visitors who are coming into town, make sure that you apply before or after they leave. This is very important because you do not want to reintroduce bed bugs into the environment.
Read more: How to Remove Bed Bugs Infestation Permanently
Step 4: How To Prevent Bed Bugs From Returning
The fourth and final step is prevention. One of the most common ways that we get bed bugs in our house is by travelling.
People go to hotels (it does not matter if it is a 1-star hotel or a five-star hotel) and become susceptible to bed bugs.
Since bed bugs are hitchhikers, they crawl into your suitcase, and you take them with you into the home.
So, how do you prevent these bugs from invading your home?
- Once you get inside the house, remove your clothes.
- Put the clothes directly into the washing machine.
- After washing, do well to dry them and put them away.
- Immediately vacuum all the seams of the suitcase and inside the pockets.
If you are using a bag vacuum cleaner, remember to dispose of it outside, and if it is a canister type, take it out and ensure you get rid of eggs that you may have picked up.
Conclusion
So, let us now recap the four-step process of how to get rid of bed bugs:
- Identification
- Inspection
- Control
- Prevention.
If you follow the four-step process, we at Pestclue give you a 100% guarantee that you will eliminate your bed bug problem.
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