How to Get Rid of Bedbugs Reviews by Wirecutter

Table Of Content

• Step 1: Identify all infested areas
• Don’t Let the Bedbugs, Mosquitoes, Ticks, or Ants Bite
• Not-So-Subtle Signs Raccoons Live In Your Attic—And What to Do About Them
• How to prevent bed bugs
• Step 5: Evaluate and prevent future bedbugs
• Boxes
• Where do bed bugs come from? Here's how they get in and how you can check for their presence.

Look for live bugs and signs of them such as small blood stains, bed bug excrement, and eggshells on your sheets or mattress. They can easily latch themselves to luggage, clothing, and even used furniture to reach your home. If you unknowingly slept in an infested place or brought infested stuff into your home, there’s a high chance that you might end up with bed bugs in your bed.

Step 1: Identify all infested areas

On the "Consumer 101" TV show, Consumer Reports' expert Haniya Rae explains how you can protect yourself against a bed bug infestation. Enclosing your mattress, pillows, and box spring with a protective cover can block bed bugs from reaching their favorite hiding place. It is important to understand what a bed bug looks like and know how to identify the tell-tale signs of bed bugs whenever spending time in a populated area. They respond to the smell of a sleeping host’s breath and are lured by the warmth and carbon dioxide exhaled in the air. Also, research shows that these bugs are not attracted to dirty environments per se, but are drawn more to the scent of humans, irrespective of hygiene status. Bed bugs are found across the globe from North and South America, to Africa, Asia and Europe.

Don’t Let the Bedbugs, Mosquitoes, Ticks, or Ants Bite

That means if your unworn clothes come into contact with any materials or surfaces which carry bed bugs, these pests have a chance to transfer over. And with bed bugs moving at up to four feet a minute, this won’t take long. Heating infested furniture or the entire apartment to a very high temperature—more than 100 degrees, in most cases—will kill bed bugs. Perhaps the most alarming feature of bed bugs is their fast-reproductive nature. Females lay 1-5 eggs per day, reaching up to 541 eggs in their lifetime. It only takes about 21 days for these nymphs to become adult bed bugs.

Not-So-Subtle Signs Raccoons Live In Your Attic—And What to Do About Them

They feed on our blood by piercing through our skin with tiny, saw-like mouthparts. They also numb the area with saliva full of anesthetic and anti-clotting chemicals to reduce pain while sucking the blood out. Bees and insects crisscross my yard searching for a sip of nectar, ferrying pollen between the golden poppies and California lilacs and bumbling across flower petals. Bedbugs’ small and narrow bodies enable them to squeeze into tiny spots, like the seams of a mattress or couch and the folds of curtains.

However, some humans never have a reaction to bites, making a bed bug infestation hard to identify. After times of extended exposure, it is possible for humans to reach a point where they no longer have a reaction or their reaction may become more severe. Adult bed bugs are visible to the human eye and can be detected by sight, especially within mattress seams and box springs. Bed bug nymphs can be harder to identify, as they are smaller in size and paler in color. Unlike many pests, bed bugs are not attracted to scraps of food. They are obligate hematophagous, meaning their diet solely comprises of blood – preferably human.

The first step in dealing with a bedbug infestation is to hire a reputable pest-control operator. Bed bugs are attracted to warmth, blood and carbon dioxide, not dirt. Bed bugs feed on mammals and birds and can leave a bite that resembles a typical insect bite, a rash or hives.

How to Keep Bedbugs From Coming Home With You - The New York Times

How to Keep Bedbugs From Coming Home With You.

Posted: Wed, 25 Oct 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

Step 5: Evaluate and prevent future bedbugs

If you’re not sure what type of bug you’ve found, bring it to an exterminator or entomologist to identify. Pet and wild bird food can cause rodent infestations at the points of food storage, and feeding. Mice and rats will easily sniff out poorly stored food, spilled food, and uneaten food left in food bowls.

However, low-level infestations are also much more challenging to find and correctly identify. Other insects, such as carpet beetles, can be easily mistaken for bed bugs. If you misidentify a bed bug infestation, it gives the bugs more time to spread to other areas of the house or hitchhike a ride to someone else's house to start a new infestation.

Thousands of bed bugs found in Arizona infestations - 12news.com KPNX

Thousands of bed bugs found in Arizona infestations.

Posted: Wed, 04 Oct 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

Animals are attracted to the warmth and protection that our houses provide. Possible entry points include holes or missing boards on the fascia or soffit, gaps between the fascia and eaves, gable or ridge vents without screens, and missing shingles. The best way to keep animals outside is to inspect these areas annually, and keep your roof in good repair. To keep your basement dry, check the grading and downspouts around your house to make sure that rainwater is draining away from, not toward, the foundation. Be sure to address other potential sources of leaks—including windows and sump pumps—as problems arise.

You may have to try a few different treatment methods to control the infestation. And if they still do not go away, you’ll want to call in a professional exterminator. To make surviving bedbugs easier to spot, place bedbug interceptors under each leg of the bed. These devices will trap bedbugs before they can climb up into your bed. You may need to keep checking the interceptors for a full year. Before you can ensure that your treatment has worked, you need proof that the bugs have moved on.

Although the bite is painless at the time of the attack, most people develop an allergic reaction to the saliva that is transmitted during the bite. This can be an indication that the bites are from bed bugs and not a different pest. Bed bugs are common in places with high turnover rates, such as hotels or hostels. If you stay in these places and do not inspect or take precautions with your luggage, it’s easy to inadvertently take some bugs home with you.

Bed bugs are most easily identified by small reddish-brown fecal spots on mattresses, upholstery or walls. Bites on the arms and legs are also a tell-tale sign of bed bugs. While these bites can be small, if they swell and become itchy, they are noticeable. It can take two to three days for these bites to appear, allowing the infestation to grow. However, bites alone do not indicate an infestation without other bed bug evidence. Although bed bugs can dine on many warm-blooded animals, they primarily feed on humans.

Keep papers organized, clean and dust regularly, and purge unused stuff. Inspect and seal these holes with silicone caulk to eliminate entry points for pests. Your attic is a great place to raise a family—just ask your neighborhood squirrels, bats, and mice.

“Mattress encasements can be useful to save your mattress and box spring, but they won’t solve your bed bug problem,” DeVries says. Two insecticides commonly used to kill bed bugs are becoming less effective against them, according to a study published today in the Journal of Economic Entomology. Identifying bed bugs is essential to ensure you avoid carrying them with you.

You may have to try a few different chemical and nonchemical approaches, especially if you have a large infestation. Mice, squirrels, raccoons, birds and other critters can easily enter the home through a chimney, so be sure to close the damper when it’s not in use. Install a mesh-covered chimney cap, and inspect it each spring and fall to make sure it’s in place and intact. Dogs and cats may be protected against fleas and ticks with preventative medication or collars, but that doesn’t mean they won’t bring bugs into the house.