What are bed bugs?
Below is a quick list of bed bug basics that will provide helpful information about these common household pests:
- The sole source of nutrition for bed bugs is blood from warm-blooded animals.
- Bed bugs are external parasites; their preferred host is humans, but they also feed on the blood of birds, rodents, cats, and dogs.
- Bed bugs are primarily nocturnal, feeding on their hosts as they sleep.
- Bed bugs are about the size and shape of a lentil and the color of an apple seed (reddish-brown).
- After consuming a blood meal, the bed bug’s flat oval body swells and elongates and turns deeper red in color.
- Bed bugs are wingless.
Bed bugs live worldwide, and because we are their preferred hosts, they are closely associated with structures where people live and spend a lot of their time. Bed bugs are a pest problem that can pop up in any of our homes. If they do, you need to reach out to us for pest control in Round Rock and surrounding areas.
Are bed bugs
dangerous?
Sharing your home with bed bugs is unpleasant and unnecessary but not necessarily dangerous. Unlike other blood-feeding pests, bed bugs are not known to currently spread disease to people. Identifying a bed bug problem can be tricky because most people show no reaction to bed bug bites at all, and reactions that people experience look similar to bites from other insects. The longer bed bugs go unnoticed, the more difficult the infestation will be to control.
Why do I have a bed bug problem?
Bed bugs thrive wherever there are people. You can come into contact with bed bugs wherever large groups of people go to and from regularly. Apartment buildings, hotels, airports, hospitals, schools, and dormitories regularly experience problems with bed bugs. Bed bugs are exceptional hitchhikers and move from place to place on people or within personal belongings like luggage, bags, and secondhand furniture.
If these biting pests find their way into your home, you may notice some of the following bed bug signs:
- Discovering dark streaks or spots of blood on bedding, mattresses, pillows, upholstered furniture, or walls
- Finding piles of the bed bug’s shed skins, usually under mattresses or on the floor
- Smelling a sweet, musty odor inside your home
- Discovering live or dead bed bugs in your home
Where will I find bed bugs?
Bed bugs are active mainly at night. During the day, they stay out of sight in tight cracks and crevices that typically aren’t any wider than a toothpick. Bed bugs like to rest in places that put them near their sleeping hosts.
At first, bed bugs congregate in sleeping areas and hide in seams of mattresses and box springs, cracks in headboards and floorboards, and behind wall hangings. As time passes and the bed bug infestation spreads, they move into other areas of a home, hiding in upholstered furniture, electrical outlets, baseboards, and piles of clutter.
How do I get rid of bed bugs?
Bed bugs are pests that need to be removed from our homes with the help of an experienced pest control professional. These tiny insects hide in tight cracks and crevices; overlooking just one hiding bed bug can quickly lead to a re-infestation due to their breeding habits. Trust the professionals at EvoFoam Pest Control to provide you with bed bug treatments you can trust. We are committed to using the most effective and environmentally friendly products on the market to solve your pest problems and keep your family and pets safe.
Please call us today to learn more about our home pest control and commercial pest control services in Round Rock.
How can I prevent bed bugs in the future?
There are several simple steps that you can take to help keep bed bugs from becoming permanent members of your home. Try these tips:
- When spending time in public places, keep your belongings off the ground and away from other people’s things.
- Before bringing belongings into a hotel room or other rental, thoroughly inspect them for signs of bed bugs.
- After traveling, immediately wash and dry all clothing taken using high heat and clean out suitcases before storing them away.
- Vacuum your home regularly to pick up stray bed bugs.
- Inspect secondhand items for hitchhiking bed bugs.
- Bed bugs love to hide under piles of dirty laundry and other clutter; remove areas of clutter from your home.
- Seal your family’s mattresses and box springs in bed bug-proof covers to eliminate one of a bed bug’s favorite hideouts.
We are here to help you maintain a home or business free of bed bugs and other common household pests. Reach out today so we can start providing you with our effective residential or commercial pest control services!
