How to Identify Bed Bugs?

Bed bugs are hard to see, as they know how to hide and their eggs are even harder to find. Their eggs are only one millimeter in length which can be extremely difficult for the human eye to see. On the other hand, a bed bug can be up to 4-5 millimeters long when they are fully grown. Adult bed bugs tend to have a flat body and their skin colour is either rust brown or a deeper red brown. Because of their flattened bodies, bed bugs can easily hide in small places such as baseboards,  cracks in floors, underneath carpets, behind loose wallpaper, bed frames, sofas, behind picture frames and many small spaces.

What To Do If I Find Bed Bugs?

If you suspect that you have bed bugs, it is best to double check. After bed bugs feed, they will leave behind small spots of reddish-black fecal matter on your bedding, mattress or box springs. They will lay their eggs in dark crevices near their feeding areas. 

Bed bug bites can often be mistaken for other bites or sores, however, bed bugs will bite in threes. 

If you detect an infestation it is important to stop using the room further.Contact a professional Pest Control Company immediately to help you inspect the room and provide treatment options for the severity of the infestation. Do not take any items from the suspected room that may be infested with bed bugs. This will only spread the bed bugs to other parts of the home. 

Bed Bugs Spread Quickly!

Once established, bed bugs tend to stay put but can spread due to any of the following:

• Being disturbed by disassembling furniture or incorrect pesticide application
• A food shortage (ie. no host) may cause them to migrate to neighboring rooms in the home
• A shortage of harbourage spaces may cause them to migrate to neighboring rooms
• Infested furniture that is moved down a hall, or passed on to other rooms in the home
• Vacuum cleaners used for multiple rooms
• Commercial laundry machines

What to Do if You Find Traces of Bed Bugs?

• Do not disturb the room further. Leave the room untouched and The Spider Guys will help diagnose the problem.

• Take any items out of the room. You do not want to continue the spread of bed bugs.

• You must stop using the room you find traces of bed bugs in.

• If the room is currently occupied, work with the landlord or management to move guests to a new room.

• Contact a professional pest control company immediately in order to inspect the infested room and/or pre-treat rooms to which any guests might be moved. 

How Can I Prevent Bed Bugs?

You can prevent bed bugs by protecting mattresses and boxsprings with certified bed bug encasements. You can use light coloured sheets to spot any stains, check all of your furniture near sleeping areas, look around the seams, crevices, and folds. Make sure to seal cracks in your walls, trim and even your bed frames. However, the best way to get rid of bed bugs is to get expert help from a pest control company.

How Can I Prevent Bed Bugs?

Bed bugs undergo gradual metamorphosis (growth) from egg to nymph and then to an adult. Nymphs are smaller versions of the adults and will go through several sheddings until fully grown. 

Typically, females will lay 200 to 500 eggs per lifetime, 10 to 50 at a single time, on rough surfaces. Eggs will hatch within 6 to 17 days, with adult bed bugs having the ability to survive over 1 year without feeding on a host.