One of the most common theories on bedbugs is that you have to live in a dirty home in order to get them. However, this is not the truth. Bed Bug outbreaks can happen anywhere and everywhere, and are very hard to rid your home of. Bed Bugs are becoming more and more common, and it is very important to watch for them, as it does take time to rid your home and family of them. Here are some facts about bedbugs that you may not even know to be true.
1.Bedbugs Can Be Found Anywhere
While bed bugs are thought to only inhabit your bed, they can be found anywhere. These pesky creatures tend to be found in your bed, as they do like for you to be still as they feed. However, if they are in your bed, they are also everywhere else in your home. They hide in your clothes; between the cracks in your floors, on your walls and everywhere else in between. If you need to treat for bedbugs, you must treat your entire home, multiple times.
2.Bedbugs Can Thrive In Clean Environments
Bed bugs can also thrive in clean environments. You can keep your home as clean as you want, but bed bugs don’t care. If you shower 3 times a day, deep clean your house regularly, and never have clutter, it doesn’t matter. You are still at risk for a bed bug infestation.
3.Not All Bedbug Bites Are The Same
Google is a popular way that people tend to ‘check their symptoms.’ However, not two bedbug bites will look the same. So, stay off of Google, and away from the “bedbug bites look like” threads, because bites on you may look different from even the person sleeping next to you. While bedbug bites sometimes resemble a 1-2-3 pattern, this is not always the case. Some people don’t react to bites at all, while others may tend to look more severe.
4.Bedbugs Most Likely Don’t Transmit Diseases
While research on bedbugs is not yet finished, it is said that they probably don’t transmit any harmful diseases. More so, they are just a pest that people cringe of when they hear of a bedbug discussions. Bed bugs are more of a mental health risk than a physical one. Once an infestation occurs, individuals will usually obsess over ridding their home and bodies of the insect. They may lose sleep and become extremely paranoid.
5.Bedbugs Can Be Active At Any Time
Bed bugs are NOT nocturnal. While they would rather feed at night, they will do so whenever suits them.
6.Dogs Can Be Trained To Find Bed Bugs
There is such a thing as a bed bug sniffing dogs. Really. Dogs can be trained to sniff out bed bugs, as they do bombs and medical needs.
7.Bedbugs Hide Very Well
When the infestation is at the lowest of levels, people may deny that they have them. Besides the itchy bites, they may not realize or even be able to see that they have bed bugs within their home. These sneaky little insects are very good hiders. Usually, it is important to hire a professional to check specifically for bed bugs, as they know where to look for them and what to look for. A couple things that they look for are fecal matter(causing black dots on the mattress or area) and insect skins, as bed bugs do shed skin. The bug itself may also be present, as the are a clear or rust colored insect. They are very small, and sometimes hard to see.
8.Your Clothes Dryer Can Kill Bedbugs
Heat is the number one killer of bed bugs. Therefore, here comes some good news: you DO NOT have to throw you out your belongings! Many people believe that you have to throw out your matress, blankets, bedding, and your clothing, and this is absolutely not true. Throwing your clothes and blankets in a dryer on high heat for 30 minutes will kill any bugs. There are steam cleaning and chemical treatments to use on your matresses to kill any bed bugs who reside there.
9.Hire A Professional
You should most definately contact a professional to do the job for you. Fumigating your home with foggers, or store bought products, will only make them scatter. This could lead them to infesting your neighbors homes. Each and every live bug, and her eggs, should be killed. Chemicals used by professionals will help you to do this.
10.Bedbugs Are A Frequent Problem
Bed bugs reproduce frequently and live for long periods of time. They can thrive in almost any type of environment, as long as there is a host. Therefore, bed bugs aren’t going away anytime soon. It is believed that they made a return in the 90’s, when travel began to peak, and they began to become tolerant of pesticides and insecticides. Therefore, prepare yourself for bed bugs at some point in your life. They aren’t going anywhere anytime soon.