Staying Safe Around Pest Control

Bed Bugs: Tips For Identifying, Preventing, And Removing This Pest

People often think about getting bed bugs through staying in a dirty hotel room or being in a house that isn't clean. Bed bugs can actually come from anywhere, and even a clean home can have bed bugs in it. Bed bugs can attach themselves to you in public places and cause you to unknowingly bring the bed bugs to your home. These tips will help you identify, prevent, and remove bed bugs.

Bed Bug Identification

Want to avoid bringing bed bugs into your home? Then you must know how to identify a bed bug. The typical bed bug is about ¼ inch long, and their body is oval-shaped, brown, and flat. If a bed bug has recently bitten somebody and consumed blood, then it will be reddish-brown instead of the normal brown color.

You may run into a bed bug on public transportation, at work, or at school. If you do find a bed bug, be sure to take the proper preventative steps to stop them from infesting your home.

Bed Bug Prevention

Beg bugs can hide within your clothing and fabric fibers, so you should strip off your clothes in a place that doesn't have carpeting in it. A great place to do this is a garage before you even step foot into your home. You can shake off your clothes and hopefully see a beg bug fall down to the floor if it was on your clothing.

Keep in mind that those pests can really get into your clothing, and shaking your shirt or pants may not get them off the fabric. There is a possibility that the bed bugs are hiding, so put the clothing within a plastic bag that seals. This will help ensure the bug don't spread once the clothing gets into your home.

Bed Bug Removal

You could use a couple methods to kill off bed bugs in your clothing.

Heat is an easy method since it involves putting your clothes into the washing machine using the hottest temperature setting that your clothing allows. Once washed, put your clothing into the dryer with the highest heat setting. The washing process should get hot enough enough to destroy bed bugs that are hiding.

Coldness will also work at killing off bed bugs, but it can take more time. You'll need to put your clothing into a freezer that can get below 0°F. Keep the clothing in your freezer for about 4 days to kill off any bed bugs that are hiding. This method works better for things that cannot be washed, like shoes.

Work with a local bed bug exterminator such as Canady's Termite & Pest Control if the pests somehow found a way to spread throughout your home.


Share