Are you familiar with the rhyming creepy saying “Goodnight, sleep tight, don’t let the bed bugs bite”? Why such were told to the children? Are the bed bugs something that people should be really afraid of?
Sadly, the bed bugs are living creatures. They do not only exist, but they revive after a period of little activity worldwide.
In fact, you probably share the same bed with them every night.
In fact, what you can do about bed bugs?
1. Find Out About Your Enemy
Some facts about these creepy creatures:
- The adult ones are about 1/5-inch-long, have no wings, rusty brown in color, oval in shape, and look like a tick.
- They came into existence for thousands of years all around the world.
- In fact, they bite and use six times more blood than their body weight. They consume both animal and human blood.
- Their bite is similar to the mosquito bite.
- They hide throughout the day while appearing only at night.
- They could not only be found in nasty places but also in clean places.
- Most people are unaware of the presence of bedbugs in their homes.
- Bed bugs can hitch with people in vehicles, hotels, furniture, etc.
Wait a minute before you grab your mattress and want to throw it out.
- According to the CDC, bed bugs do not spread nor carry disease and do not pose a threat to your health.
- With some simple preventative methods, you will lower the danger of having these creatures in your house.
Steps in Bed Bug-Free Home
Although a tough issue, you can remove the bed bugs which are settled in your home. They grow in almost every condition available, can reproduce for a short period of time, and can starve up to 400 days.
One option to get rid of these creatures is by chemical extermination, but not all people would like to sleep in such sprayed rooms. Also, over time, these bugs become resistant to these chemicals and could not be exterminated even in this way. Tough, isn’t it? This is a world spread problem.
Here is a bed bug extermination plan
1. Carefully Inspect Your Home
Early detection and prevention of these creatures is the best method of how to prevent further infestation. So, start as soon as possible. You only need a mirror and a flashlight.
Bear in mind that these creatures are really small and they could not be seen with the human eye. However, most of them are found on bed frames and mattresses. So, start from these points.
1. First, thoroughly inspect the mattresses and box springs for each bed. Make sure you lift the mattress and check the underneath in all its cracks and seams.
2. Look for their excrement or brown spots or smudges that resemble dried blood.
3. Inspect all of the cracks and crevices of your bed frame. For a detailed inspection, you can take it apart.
If there are some signs of their presence, try these natural methods to fight them.
(If there are no signs of bed bugs, go on step 9)
2. Remove Those That You Can See
Flick the bed bugs out of their crevices with a business card, vacuum them up or catch them with some sticky tape. Do all the necessary things in order to remove them.
3. Wash the Bedding
Take everything that is in close contact with the bed that can be washed such as pillows, sheets, blankets, stuffed animals, and many others. When you do the laundry, dry them on a hot cycle because the heat will kill all the bed bugs and their eggs.
4. If You Can’t Wash It, Just Freeze It
Those things that can’t be washed, you can put into the freezer. As the high heat, the low temperatures will also kill the bed bugs and their eggs.
5. Vacuum Thoroughly
Vacuum the top and bottom of the mattress, carpet, bed frame, both of the sides, and crevices of the headboard. Do this on a daily basis with the most powerful suction option that you have. Make sure you throw the vacuum bag immediately.
6. Try Some Essential Oils
Try some cedar oil, tea tree oil, orange oil because they can harm the bed bugs. All you need to do is mix the essential oil with some water in a spray bottle and mist the treated areas.
7. Use Diatomaceous Earth
The diatomaceous earth has many advantages, especially when it comes to bed bugs. It’s being used by most professional exterminators. Just sprinkle the bed frames, mattresses, carpet with DE but make sure you wear a dust mask. Before you go to sleep, vacuum up the excess.
8. Remove the Clutter Around the Beds
As we have mentioned before, bed bugs also live in both nasty and clean places. However, if you eliminate the clutter under the beds you will reduce their hiding places. Treat these parts of your home with some of the above methods to get rid of bed bugs.
9. Little Prevention, Great Cure
The bed bugs treatment can cost you time and money but also stress. Follow these practices and you will prevent them from happening.
- Buy some bedbug-proof mattress encasements for each mattress in your home. They are a worthy investment that will reduce the bed bugs and dust mites and will provide a healthy life and sleep on your mattress.
- Fill all of the joints and cracks in the bed frames and headboards with sealant or caulk thus reducing the bed bugs hiding places.
- Place some bed bug traps under the bed legs. This is an easy, cheap, and effective solution that will detect and prevent bed bugs before they become a problem issue. Inspect the traps routinely and return to step 1 more often.
If you have some other methods that worked for you, you can share them with us.
Via EPA