If you have been noticing little brown-colored bugs that are oval in shape and come out at night around your mattresses or on your couch you may have a bedbug infestation. They have flat bodies and are about the size of an apple seed. However, after they feed their bodies swell and their bodies become reddish in color because they live on the blood of animals and humans.
If you’re in need of an exterminator and you live in California, you can definitely count on Lincoln Pest Control. They can help you get rid of your bedbug problem in no time. To find out more on how to get rid of bedbugs keep reading below.
Where Bedbugs Hide
You can accidentally bring bedbugs into your home through luggage, clothing, used beds, couches, and other items. They have very flattened bodies that can fit into tiny spaces, just about the width of a debit card. They do not have nests like ants but actually tend to live in pretty decent-sized groups in certain hiding places. They initially hide in mattresses, box springs, bed frames, and headboards because that’s where they have easy access for people to bite while they are sleeping.
When Bedbugs Bite
Bedbugs are in fact active mostly at night and usually feed on people as they sleep. They are able to feed by piercing the skin and withdrawing blood using their elongated beak. They can feed for up to 3 to 10 minutes. Most of the time bedbug bites can be painless at first however, they usually turn into itchy welts later on. They will bite any area of the skin that is exposed to them.
Signs of an Infestation
You may have bedbugs if you wake up in the morning and have new itchy areas on your body. Particularly if you have a used bed or other used furniture that you’ve brought into the house around the same time you notice the itchy areas. Other signs can include the following:
- Blood stains on your pillowcases and or sheets.
- Rusty-looking spots that are bedbug excrement on sheets, mattresses, bed clothes, and walls.
- Fecal spots, shed skins, or egg shells in the areas that bedbugs hide in.
- An odor that is musty, comes from the bedbug’s scent glands.
Treatments
The best way to begin getting rid of bedbugs is by first, cleaning up the places where they live. The following include:
- Cleaning bedding, curtains, clothing, and linens in hot water and dry them using the highest heat setting on your dryer. Any other items like, shoes, stuffed animals, and other similar items need to be put into the dryer and run on the same setting on high for 30 minutes or longer.
- Clean the mattress with a stiff brush, especially in the seams to remove the bedbugs and the eggs before vacuuming the same areas.
- Vacuuming the bed and surrounding areas frequently. Afterward, put the vacuum bag in a plastic bag and place it outdoors in a garbage can.
- Put a tightly woven, zippered cover over mattresses and box springs, this will ensure that no more bedbugs will be able to get into the mattresses or box springs.
- Make repairs to cracks in plaster and make sure you glue down wallpaper that is peeling to get rid of places for them to hide.
- Remove all clutter from around the beds.
Other Information
Cleaning up infested areas can be helpful in controlling bedbugs but getting rid of them requires chemical treatments. But treating your bed and bedroom with insecticides can be very harmful to your health so it is very important that you use products that are considered to be safe in bedrooms. Don’t use products on your mattress or bedding unless it specifically says that you can use them on your mattress and bedding. The fastest and safest way to get rid of bedbugs is buying hiring a pest conrtrol professional like Lincoln Pest Control. They will know exactly what to do to get rid of your infestation.
4 Step Process of Getting rid of Bedbugs
There are a lot of different ways to get rid of bedbugs but this 4 step process seems to be the best option overall. It includes vacuuming, heat treatment, liquid chemical treatment, and dust treatment.
1. Deep Vacuum
This may seem like a very simple step, but it is very important that you don’t skip this step. You want to make sure you remove as many eggs and live bugs as possible and vacuuming can do just that.
2. Heat Treatment
Bedbugs are in fact very susceptible to heat. Within one minute at the temperature of 115 degrees Fahrenheit every bug will expire. Most exterminators will use a commercial 220-degree dry steam unit. They will focus the heat on the areas that most likely harbor bedbugs during the treatment. This step alone will kill up to 100% of the visible bugs and eggs.
3. Liquid Chemical Treatment
They will use an effective product that is best for this area. It will be a product that is only used for bedbugs. And will be a long-term control product that has an active residual of over 2 months.
4. Dust Treatment
The final step in the process is a dust treatment. It’s a product that when applied to bed bug areas gives you the longest control of infestation eradication.
In Summary
Bedbugs are definitely a nuisance, but they can be treated effectively and can be eradicated by taking simple steps in removing them through vacuuming, heat treatments, and chemical treatments. You’ll want to hire a professional to handle the chemical treatments so you and your family can stay safe from the powerful insecticides that are used to treat bedbugs. Sometimes you may feel like you’re never going to have your home back again but you can get rid of them. And Lincoln Pest Control in Lincoln, California can be the best pest control company to work with. Don’t live in fear of being bitten ever again and give them a call.
