Inspecting for Bed Bugs
When inspecting for bed bugs keep one word in mind: thorough. Many times people have assumed a clean and tidy place means it’s also insect-free when in fact hundreds of tiny bed bugs are infesting mattresses, small wall crevices around pipes and wires, sofa cushion liners and other sneaky, hard to see places. Though not invisible to the naked eye, as urban legend would have you believe, bed bugs are very small, have flat reddish-brown color bodies and often travel and feed at night making it extremely difficult to spot these irritating wingless insects. Whether you are inspecting a home, apartment building, hotel or health care facility prepare for a thorough, fine-tooth comb search to ensure your dwelling is bed bug free.
Just like their name indicates bed bugs are often found in mattresses, mattress seams, bed frames, box springs and head boards. For individual bedrooms this will require a pair of rubber or latex gloves and time to fully inspect the entire mattress and bed frame which will involve lifting the mattress, stripping it of liners and ticking, turning it over and standing it up. Doing a quick spot check of the top side of the mattress is not enough to find bed bugs. These critters avoid light, hide during daytime and pick dark crevices for their hiding. Most likely bed bugs will be hiding underneath the mattress or in the seams and it may require a flashlight and even cutting the stapled fabric of the box spring underside to cover all possible hiding places.
Bed bugs are known for their hitchhiking ability and any inspection should include a full check of bedroom furniture including sofa cushion liners, the insides of dresser drawers and especially around the baseboards and carpeting. Mentally turn the room upside down and consider every dark corner and crevice and then carefully inspect these areas. Look for brown and dark red stains that could indicate the molted skins of maturing bugs, excrement and egg shells, all signs of bed bug populations.
Bed bugs travel well and if you have used furniture, luggage that’s been recently used for domestic or international travel or guest rooms then bed bugs are a possibility. Bed bugs eventually have to feed so if there is an infestation you’ll know by being bit or having tenants tell you they’ve been bit. If any bites occur inspecting the room and adjacent rooms is highly recommended. Bed bugs are not known to carry or transmit any infectious diseases but the bite is irritating and can cause itching, swelling and in some cases an allergic reaction as well as anxiety and insomnia in the human victim. Though relatively harmless a phobia of bugs is very common and the thought of insects crawling over your body is enough to cause sleepless nights.
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