Everything You Need to Know About Bed Bugs

Dealing with Bed Bugs in Your Home?

Today we’re talking about:

How to minimize your risk, spot the signs, and get rid of them!

About Bed Bugs

Bed bugs are reddish-brown, wingless insects with flat bodies. Although many believe they are only found in beds because of their name, they often hide in carpets, furniture, floor cracks and other places. While bed bug do not transmit diseases, they feed on the blood of humans and pets. Their bites may even cause secondary infections.

Fortunately, the insect populations that are rampant in the warm, moist summer months decline when the cold weather hits, for example, mosquitoes and flies. However, there are several resilient critters that can outlast freezing temperatures. Do not assume that all pests hibernate or disappear in the winter. For instance, bed bugs can withstand temperatures as low as -25C . As a result, contrary to popular belief, they may appear in your home more frequently in the colder months when they have more warm bedding to hide. Considering that most of your time in the winter is spent indoors, it is worth hiring a bed bug exterminator in Vancouver to help keep your living space clean and pest free.

Fall is an excellent time to schedule pest control because while the weather will be cooler, most homes have not yet turned on the heating. Keep in mind that once the air in your home becomes warm, any bugs that found their way in already will not want to leave and are likely to breed more of their kind in a cozy, welcoming environment!

3 Tips to Avoid Bed Bugs

Keep your family and home safe this winter by taking proactive steps to prevent the appearance of bed bugs. Here are three useful tips to avoid a bed bug infestation:

1. Clean your House – If you live in a cluttered space, the first thing you need to do is a thorough cleaning of your house. Clutter creates an ideal environment for bed bugs to hide and thrive. To keep your home clean, use a strong mopping solution on your floors, dust your furniture regularly, and remove any garbage as necessary.
2. Wash your Linens – Bed bugs are predominantly found between bedsheets, blankets, and warm clothing. If you see signs that they have invaded your home, ensure you wash and dry all bed linens, blankets, and clothing in the highest temperature setting on your washing and drying machines. Additionally, in vacuum-sealed bags, store the clothing you don’t regularly wear.
3. Encase Your Mattress – Cover your mattress and box springs in zippered cases. These safe covers are made of high-quality fabric, resistant to tears, can be washed, and have no folds around the zipper. This can help you prevent the spread of bed bugs.

Even with protections in place, you should know the signs! Let’s look at

Four things you can do to determine if you have a bed bug problem:

1. Check the online registries. The Bed Bug Registry of Vancouver will tell you where the problem spots are in the city. Or try the Bed Bug Pest Control site. These registries will let you know if your street or apartment block has already made the news.
2. The “good” news. Bed bugs don’t carry diseases like other insects, so they are considered a nuisance rather than a health hazard. The bites can resemble those of a mosquito but can also look like a rash or hives. People react to them in different ways—in fact, some have no reaction at all! But if you wake in the morning scratching at bites you swear weren’t there when you went to bed, you could have a bed bug infestation.
3. Get out the magnifying glass. Bed bugs are tiny, dark oval insects and very flat. In other words, anyplace you can insert the corner of a credit card is a place a bed bug can hide. Start with your mattress and box spring. Look under the fitted sheet. During the day, bed bugs love to hide along piping, seams and tags. They can also be found under the plastic box spring corner guards. 
4. Look for secondary signs. If you don’t find a living specimen, you might be able to see the secondary signs. Tiny black or dark red spots that don’t flake off. You might also find rust-coloured spots on sheets and mattresses where bed bugs were crushed or tiny eggs and eggshells (about 1mm across). Other clues include little, pale yellow skins left behind as nymphs shed their exoskeletons.

Bed bug inspection and treatment

Even though bed bugs are tiny creatures that can hide in many tight spaces, a bed bug exterminator will know where to search for them. When they find their hiding places, they will use various integrated pest management methods to get rid of them.

You must ensure that the exterminator has access to the areas they need to treat. So, you must remove any excess clutter from your home. Even if you have noticed bed bugs in only one room, they often disperse throughout a building. Therefore, your bed bug exterminator will inspect the entire home and determine what other areas need treatment. We use a non toxic, environmentally friendly product called Aprehend. It is a fungal spore that attack the bed bug and kills them within 4 to 10 days.

Bedding and garments cannot be treated with insecticides. You will need to bag such items and have them laundered at high temperatures of at least 49⁰ C. Items that cannot be washed must be treated with heat or left below freezing points for at least two weeks.

Have Bed Bugs Claimed Your Living Space? It’s Time to Call for Pest Control

Call a professional bed bug exterminator if these stubborn pests have invaded your home. At Pest Detective, our team of certified professionals have the knowledge and experience to eliminate your in-home bug infestations. For over 30 years, homeowners in Maple Ridge, Vancouver, Fraser Valley, North Shore, and the Lower Mainland have trusted us to help examine and resolve all pest control issues.

Hire a bed bug exterminator in Vancouver today by calling Pest Detective at a location near you. You can also contact our team of professionals online to ask any questions you might have about pest control in Vancouver.