Looking For A Treatment For Bed Bugs?

Are bed bugs giving you sleepless nights and nasty bites? If you need help and advice about treatment for bed bugs read on.....

Bed bugs are similar in size to the lovable lady bug - about 1/5th of an inch. They tend to be mahogany or a rusty reddish color. These creepy crawlies come out at night to feed - on blood and will hide away during the day in all sorts of places from small cracks and holes in the floor and walls of a room to the folds of bed linen and the creases of the mattress. When in need of food they can travel up to 100ft so don't be surprised if you find them in obscure places. The nasty bites which bed bugs inflict are quite often the first indication of a problem. The bites are usually red, swollen areas which are itchy and appear in lines of three. It is important that you ensure that the bites do not become infected - this can be painful and mat require medical attention. There are a minority of people who will develop a severe reaction to the bug bites and who will need to see a doctor urgently. Time is of the essence, the bed bugs must be eliminated as quickly as possible to prevent the infestation growing out of control. Treatments for bed bugs vary. The use of insecticides is still common and can be very effective but also very dangerous if used incorrectly. There are non toxic, natural alternatives available which can work equally as well and have the advantage of being safe if there are pets or children in the house. The first course of action should be to determine whether or not that it is indeed bed bugs which are the problem. This can be established relatively easily. Look out for blood spots on bed linen and possibly dead bugs which have been squashed during

the night. Check along the seams and in any folds or rips in your mattress not forgetting the box spring too. If bugs are present you will find dark fecal marks, the small white eggs and of course the live bugs. The whole room must then be searched carefully as these little pests can move around the room in search of food. When I say the whole room I mean drawers, cupboards, smoke alarms, picture frames. The biggest tell tale sign that bed bugs are in residence are the dark faecal marks that they leave behind. Chemical treatment for bed bugs is usually required to ensure that all the bugs are exterminated and that eggs and larvae are destroyed. Insecticides can be extremely dangerous and must be used with great care. Pets and children should be kept well away form treated areas. There are alternative non toxic options which can be just as effective and which are child and pet friendly. Treatment for the bed bugs cannot be applied until the room and all the items in it have been cleaned thoroughly. It is best done in a systematic and ordered fashion to ensure that there is no area left unchecked or cleaned. Six Tips To Get Started: 1. Strip the bed of all linen and remove all soft furnishings where possible. Place them immediately into a plastic bag and seal it tight. NB. do this in the room which is infested to prevent bed bugs getting into other areas of the house. Launder suitable items at a high temperature. 2. Items which are not suitable for laundering should be put into the tumble dryer on a high heat setting for around 10 minutes. Bed bugs cannot survive in extreme heat or cold so by placing items like for example shoes in sealed plastic bags and placing them outside in the heat or cold for a few hours will kill the bugs. 3. Clear out any little crevices and holes where the bed bugs may be nesting. Once the treatment for the bed bugs has been completed make sure that all of these are suitably filled in. 4. Remove any clutter which may be in the room. Bag and seal newspapers, magazines etc. and dispose of them.

5. Use the vacuum cleaner on floors, curtains, mattress and box spring - in fact anywhere you can get into with it. The benefit of this is that it will not only suck up bed bugs but eggs and larvae too which are more difficult to see. Be sure to seal and dispose of the bag from the vacuum cleaner immediately. 6. The chemical or non toxic equivalent spray can then be applied once you are confident that the room has been thoroughly cleaned. It is essential that the correct dosage id applied so ensure that manufacturer's instructions should be followed carefully. Infestations can be very large and may be impossible to get rid of using the by treating bed bugs using the treatment for bed bugs suggested here. In such instances it really is best to call in professionals who can apply fast effective treatments for bed bugs.