Tell ME! I need to KNOW! How to get rid of bed bugs, immediately por favor!
Bed bugs existence has been prevalent these days, and nearly everyone has encountered a bed bug infestation in some occasions. Bed bites are not only very irritating and conceivably hazardous to your health; it is also very challenging to absolutely get rid of the bed bugs without applying the services of a professional exterminator.
If you are one of those who falls victim to these parasitic bugs, the best way to eliminate the infestation is to gain knowledge of the different measures that you can undertake. Here you will find some techniques to get rid of these small insects for good.
1. Clean the headboard and bed frame thoroughly
In most cases, bed bugs dwell either in the bed frame or in the mattress. It is for this reason that is essential to begin cleaning from these places. Besides, there’s a reason why they are named “bed bugs”. It is due to the fact that they spend most of their lives in and around the bed area.
You can use two alternatives to wipe out the bugs from the box spring. You can utilize a vacuum cleaner to clean the mattress or you can use various moderate natural insecticides. If it turns out that your mattress is serving as haven for bed bugs, washing it would be ineffective. To make things worse, washing your mattress will turn it into a suitable setting for mold and mildew to build up, which are both more hazardous than the bed bugs. Furthermore, it is of best to make sure that all the eggs are eliminated, if not, the eggs will hatch and new bed bugs will again develop.
2. Use a natural pesticide
If you want to stay on the natural side without opting to use harmful chemicals, then natural pesticide is the answer to your problem. There are various natural pesticides that you can choose from and they are as effective as the commercial grade insecticides. Natural pesticides are non-toxic and affordable. The most commonly used intended for beg bug infestations is DE or diatomaceous earth.
Concisely, DE is a tremendously powerful and 100% all-natural powder that is composed of water plants. You can avail this product at most gardening stores. It effectively kills the bed bugs as well as their eggs. All you need to do is to carefully smear the powder all over the infested areas where the bed bugs dwell.
3. Lavender oil can do wonders
The use of essential oils has been used to handle pest infestation due to the fact the strong scent of these oils keeps the bugs away. With this benefit, it was confirmed that lavender oil serves as a natural and effective insect repellent as the bed bugs appear to detest the smell and taste.
Lavender oil also comes in concentrated form. To use this, just add a few drops of the concentrated oil across the corners of the bed frame. The lavender’s potent scent can last for days leaving a pleasant smell in your room as well as destroying the bed bugs and their eggs.
- Vacuum everything
Bed bugs normally hide in all places, particularly in dark and undisturbed spaces. They are usually found hiding in couches, carpets, soft furnishings, curtains, and mattresses. It is only fitting to vacuum everything you can get your hands on inside your house. Do this at least once a week and never leave a spot untouched.
5. Hot treatment
Extremely high temperatures can kill even the tiniest bacteria and microbes, and killing bed bugs with the use of this method will not be a problem. Intense heat is the best method to disinfect your clothing and bedding. After the heat treatment, thoroughly dry them and place them in clean plastic bags to avoid further infestation with bed bugs.
If you don’t want to do the heat treatment yourself, there are available licensed and guaranteed commercial heating services that can handle infested rooms. These heating services apply temperature to up to 140° to heat the room. The temperature is sustained for at least two hours to absolutely kill the bugs and their eggs.
Heat treatments utilize the use of fans and heating devices to treat the area to the prescribed temperature and retain that temperature for the time span of the treatment time.
Heat treatments are occasionally used when the infected area is much deranged and is impossible to clear out. This type of treatment is natural and is a good option for people who do not want to use of harmful pesticides. This technique uses chemical-free method and can be efficient at getting rid of the infestation.
6. Use steam in cleaning your fabrics and soft furniture
High temperatures cannot be applied to delicate items such as fabrics and soft furniture. You can use the vacuum cleaner as a better alternative but sometimes vacuuming alone doesn’t ensure total extermination.
If the bed bugs cling to fabrics and soft furniture, the best method to exterminate them is to use steam. It is proven that bed bugs as well as their eggs cannot tolerate the steam. One of the advantages of steam is that it permeates deeper into the fabric, reaching areas that are hard to reach such as small crevices and corners.
You can also employ the utility of a professional who has the most advanced, convenient steam cleaning apparatus. But if you opt to do it yourself, you can buy a portable handheld steam cleaner that emits a powerful vapor flow that comes with a plethora of various accessories that permits you to reach even the most unreachable parts. These tools form a fog-like steam that will instantly eliminate the bed bugs.
It is important to ensure that the steam is dry, regardless of the selected steaming method. Wet steam can damage the fabric or the soft furniture. Just like the ‘vacuum everything’ approach, in this case, it goes by the method to ‘steam everything’ you can get your hands on.
7. Tea Tree Oil
Just like lavender oil, other essential oils like tea tree oil are considered to be effective in eradicating bed bugs due to their scent. Compared to other essential oil, tea tree oil has the edge among them because of its strong antibacterial properties. It repels away the bugs and disinfects the areas at the same time. To use this, just add a few drops directly on the infested items such as bedding and clothing during laundering.
Furthermore, you can prepare a 2% solution consisting of tea tree oil and lukewarm water. Put the mixture in a spray bottle and spray all over the place particularly the beds, flooring, furniture and fabric. Repeat the procedure once a week or twice a month depending on the level of the bed bug infestation. Do this religiously and expect a sanitized and bed bug-free room with an aromatic, relaxing scent.
8. Fumigation Methods
Fumigants are usually applied if the infestation is already severe and heavy. Fumigation method includes burning sulfur that forms into sulfur dioxide and sulfur trioxide. This is done by putting the sulfur into a kettle, the kettle is then placed into a bigger container to trap the molten and avoid a fire. Do this at the center of the room. Add a cup of alcohol to the blazing sulfur.
Another alternative for this method is the more powerful hydrocyanic acid fumigation method. Although this is more effective, it is also more expensive and hazardous. When this potent process is being administered, all occupants had to be evacuated to prevent inhalation of the acid fumes. More importantly, this method should only be performed by professional exterminators.
9. Resurgence of DDT
DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) was initially intended to be exclusively used by the armed forces to safeguard soldiers from disease-carrying insects such as mosquitoes, flies and lice. It was also proven to be an effective and potent mechanism against bed bugs.
DDT is so powerful and has a long lasting effect; it has the ability to kill bugs even if it had already dried out on surfaces. Reports claim that the effect of DDT can last for at least six months. You only need one application of DDT to efficiently wipe out all the bed bugs and eggs. DDT is affordable and widely available for purchase.
However, there have been recent reports claiming that some of the bugs are turning resistant to DDT, particularly in tropical regions.
Due to these reports on DDT, the National Pest Control Association started to promote the use of Malathion as a substitute to DDT. Other options include lindane, diazinon and chlordane. Just like DDT, these insecticides only require a single treatment to take effect.
10. Seek the service of a professional
If nothing else seems to work and infestation still linger in your household after practicing every methods mentioned before, don’t raise the white flag just yet. You can still resort to seek the help of a professional exterminator. They can offer an efficient method that can be accomplished in just a few hours. Trained professionals are ardent on locating where the bugs harbor and also apply professional strength insecticides together with advanced technology to wipe out the pests right away.
They also will distinguish if the bedding or mattress can still be treated or discarded, based on the degree of infestation. Mattresses that have cuts and holes in them are usually cannot be treated and will require immediate replacement.
Exterminators will also conduct a follow-up appointment to re-inspect and re-evaluate the area. They will redo the treatment if needed. Adjacent rooms are also examined and treated if they found remaining bugs. If this is the case, it is usually better to hire a professional exterminator who can execute the appropriate procedures to rapidly and effectively treat the infected rooms.
Specially trained dogs that can sniff out the scent of bed bugs are also considered one of the most effective ways of detecting these pests. These trained canines come in handy under circumstances where visual inspections are not sufficient enough in determining an infestation.
.
