Exterminating Bed Bugs
The war on bed bugs is heating up again. After nearly wiping out the wingless insects in the 1950’s with widespread use of the synthetic pesticide DDT bed bugs are making a most unwanted comeback in major urban centers and around poultry farms and processing plants. Light weight, tiny and mostly nocturnal bed bugs are difficult to detect and most people won’t know they have bed bugs until after being bitten. Bed bugs traditionally infest homes, apartments, youth hostels, dormitories and hotels and have the ability to travel in luggage and on clothing. To combat and wipe out bed bug infestations requires careful inspection, cleaning, treatment and maintenance of trouble spots. Today there are a number of chemical and organic extermination methods you can use to control and eliminate bed bug infestations.
The best defense against bed bug infestations is keeping bedrooms clean. Spot checks and surface cleaning will not be enough to keep bed bugs from infesting a bedroom and furniture because these critters stay away from the spot light and burrow down deep in corners and dark crevices for their hiding and breeding. If you are inspecting a room or have hired a pest control expert to service the home be as thorough as possible in cleaning beforehand to make the inspection a success. The inside drawers of dressers, the edge between carpeting and floorboards and the underside of bed frame box springs are just a few places you are likely to find bed bugs.
Another option for providing a sterile environment that will not be conducive to bed bug congregating is to thoroughly vacuum a bedroom before inspection. Vacuuming will remove eggs and dead insects and with a strong scraping motion you can clear the surface clutter of bed bug residue. This won’t clean the stains of excrement and it isn’t going to kill the bed bugs but it is the first step in a process that includes sterilization, isolation, quarantine and eradication.
OTHER INFORMATION PAGES: