Question:
bed bugs??
Brittany
2006-08-14 11:16:11 UTC
no i don't have bed bugs..but how do you prevent them?? what causes them?
Seventeen answers:
Cindy
2006-08-14 11:28:37 UTC
Bed bugs are small, brownish, flattened insects that feed solely on the blood of animals. The common bed bug, Cimex lectularius, is the species most adapted to living with humans. It has done so since ancient times.



They are sometimes mistaken for ticks or cockroaches.



It often seems that bed bugs arise from nowhere. The bugs are efficient hitchhikers and are usually transported in on luggage, clothing, beds, furniture, etc. Outbreaks can often be traced to travel, especially in countries or cities where bed bugs are common. This is a particular problem for hotels, motels, and apartments, where turnover of occupants is constant. Bed bugs are small, cryptic and agile, escaping detection after crawling into suitcases, boxes, and belongings. The eggs are almost impossible to see when laid on most surfaces. Use of secondhand beds, couches, and furniture is another way that the bugs are transported into previously non-infested dwellings.



Bed bugs are challenging pests to control. They hide in many tiny places, so inspections and treatments must be very thorough. In most cases, it will be prudent to enlist the services of a professional pest control firm. Experienced companies know where to look for bed bugs, and have an assortment of management tools at their disposal. Owners and occupants will need to assist the professional in important ways. Affording access for inspection and treatment is essential, and excess clutter should be removed. In some cases, infested mattresses and box springs will need to be discarded. Since bed bugs can disperse throughout a building, it also may be necessary to inspect adjoining rooms and apartments.



Reducing clutter is a necessity. Belongings strewn about rooms afford many places for bed bugs to hide, and impedes inspection and treatment. Infested bedding and garments will need to be bagged and laundered (120°F minimum), or discarded since these items cannot be treated with insecticides. Items that cannot be laundered can sometimes be de-infested by heating for several minutes in a clothes dryer. Other items can be wrapped in plastic and placed in a hot, sunny location for at least a few days (the 120°F minimum target temperature should be monitored in the centermost location with a thermometer). Bedbugs also succumb to cold temperatures below 32° F, but the chilling period must be maintained for at least two weeks. Attempts to rid an entire home or apartment of bed bugs by raising or lowering the thermostat will be entirely unsuccessful. Most housecleaning measures are of little benefit in bed bug management. Site-specific vacuuming, however, can help remove some of the bugs before treatment with insecticides. Bed bugs (especially the eggs) can be difficult to dislodge. Optimum results will be achieved by moving and scraping the end of the suction wand along infested areas such as seams, tufts and edges of bedding, and the perimeter edge of wall-to-wall carpets. Afterward, dispose of the vacuum contents in a sealed trash bag. Steam cleaning of carpets may be helpful for killing bugs and eggs that vacuuming may have missed.



While the former measures are helpful, insecticides are important for bed bug elimination. Pest control professionals treat using a variety of low-odor sprays, dusts, and aerosols. (Baits designed to control ants and cockroaches are ineffective). Application entails treating all areas where the bugs are discovered, or tend to crawl or hide. Some bed bug species are parasites of bats or birds, and may bite people if the wild hosts are no longer available. If bat bugs or bird bugs are involved, roosting and nesting sites should also be treated and the animals excluded from the building.
R
2015-06-06 11:34:59 UTC
I would like to know if these bed bug critters will use your dog as a host ? I am getting bites that look like bed bug bites but they are always in the same area where the dog cuttles next to me. She gets a monthly flea treatment , but when the lights go out she starts digging. I cant find anything in or around the bed or mattresses. Nothing on her eighter. Any thoughts ? I have treated for bed bugs to no avail.
Studio C5
2013-10-30 07:27:42 UTC
Maintaining proper upkeep of your mattress and sheets is the best way to prevent bed bugs.

One suggestion for ongoing maintenance would be to vacuum your entire mattress at least once a month. Another way is to purchase a waterproof encasement that covers your whole mattress. You must keep your sheets clean and wash them/change them out weekly. One last thing to remember is to never put any type of damp clothing or towels on your bed. Just keep in mind that preventative maintenance is the best way to try and keep those pesky little bugs away!
Oron
2015-10-27 06:04:04 UTC
Usually any pest/bug infestation occurs due to lack of proper cleaning of garbage around us, so does the reason for bed bugs infestation too. For 100% bed bug control you need a professional bed bug exterminator from a reputed pest control company.
Curelover
2006-08-14 11:33:23 UTC
Mmmm...bed bugs are their own species, not ticks, lice, or fleas. Here is a good page that documents what they are, what they like, etc....http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/2000/2105.html



They are beoming more common, especially in hotels, as hotel management are not typically spraying for them anymore. However, there are telltale signs that they are in a bed, such as "rust" trails. If there is a bedskirt or fabric hanging down, they can climb up. However, if there is space around the bed, one can stop them by coating the bed legs with petroleum jelly-they can't crawl through it. Once infested, it is hard to get rid of them. Yum!
pup
2013-12-06 18:51:58 UTC
You can get little cups that your bed posts can sit in and put food grade DE in them. put DE in all light sockets and wall plugins and around your base boards. Put plastic covers on your mattresses and box springs that way the bugs can't nest in your mattresses or box springs. put some DE on the mattress and in the box springs then put some tape over the zipper parts of the plastic covers. Wash your bedding regularly and check your mattress regularly. motels have them they are going to be wherever people are.
the_ags
2006-08-14 11:36:59 UTC
nowadays (especially in the news), bed bugs refer to the bugs that live in the walls...they come out at nite from underneath the minute openings in the baseboard and floor...they are nocturnal and attracted to carbon dioxide (what humans exhale after inhaling some air)...the bed bugs don't eat skin, but suck blood...when they bite, they produce a numbing agent so they can suck blood until they become engorged with blood...then the bed bugs will head back to the baseboard in your room and reenter the wall until they get hungry again...some people are allergic to being bit by bed bugs...i got all of the preceding info from watching an episode of "nightmares" off the national geographic channel



as for getting rid of bed bugs, i believe that you have to get your house sprayed
have to know
2006-08-14 12:15:44 UTC
bed bugs are becoming a real problem with all the travel that people do these days. Here are some precautions.

The first step to dealing with bed bugs is to locate all of their hiding places:



Furniture, particularly bedroom furniture must be inspected carefully, even to the point of dismantling the bed for easier inspection and possible treatment. Check the mattress and boxspring carefully, particularly the seams and dust cover on the underside of the boxspring.

Check under and behind other pieces of furniture, such as chairs, couches, dressers, etc. It may be necessary to remove the dust covers on the undersides of chairs and couches. Pull drawers out of dressers, inspect them carefully and examine the interior of the dresser. Check under lamps on nightstands.

Remove and inspect objects, such as pictures, mirrors, curtains, etc., that are hung or mounted on walls.

Check obvious cracks and crevices along the baseboards, particularly the back framing pieces.

Inspect torn or loose wallpaper and decorative borders.

Check clothing and other item stored in areas where bed bugs have been found.

If you have traveled recently, even in the last few months, carefully check your luggage as well as the closet/storage area where luggage is kept.

Check attics, eaves and roof overhangs for signs of bat or bird activity. Remove old nesting material. If you have bats roosting in your attic, contact a pest control company or wildlife damage control company in your area for assistance.

The next step is to treat the possible daytime hiding places of bed bugs. Such applications are best done as a "crack and crevice" treatments to gaps around baseboards and other such items. Insecticidal dust formulations provide long residual in these locations. Pesticide applications to furniture, particularly mattresses, should be limited (and perhaps done by a pest control professional). Use products that are labeled for application to carpeting and furniture. Many times the first application does not seem to give complete or immediate control. Additional treatments may be necessary in 1 to 2 days. Examples of such pesticides can be found in the NC Agricultural Chemicals Manual . Always read the label and follow directions and safety precautions.



Wash bed linen in hot soapy water and dry in a clothes dryer set to the highest settingthat will not damage the items.

If you're concerned about stuffed toys concealing bed bugs, they can be put in the clothes dryer for 30-45 minutes. Do not apply pesticides to children's toys.

For infested mattresses and boxsprings, a possible non-chemical alternative is to have the mattress sanitized. Contact your county health department office to find out if there is a certified mattress sanitizer located in your vicinity.

Keep bed headboards away from the wall.

Don't allow bed linen and covers touch the floor providing bed bugs with additional access points to the bed.

Put double-side adhesive tape or a one-inch band of petroleum jelly around the legs of beds (about 2" up). These barriers will help trap bed bugs that might crawl up the bed legs from nearby areas and may indicate that you need to do further investigation of nearby areas.

If you decide to discard your mattress, wrap it in plastic first so you can prevent bed bugs from crawling onto you while you carry it. Take the mattress and boxspring to a landfill or make sure that they are picked up quickly by your trash collection service. Mattress sets that are left besides dumpsters or out on lawns to be picked up may actually be picked up by someone else who then inherits your problem.
2006-08-14 11:29:17 UTC
People carry them on clothing, in suitcases and stuff. Places that have a lot of people in and out have been having a high incidence lately. They are on the rise. Places where they are likely, hotels, especially lower end hotels, college dorms, anywhere where quite a few people sleep and are in and out. they come out at night to feed and many times you don't feel them eating you, then in the AM you see little red welts on you. Little red spots where they were eating.
vinca53
2016-02-24 16:53:24 UTC
We had 'em..... Heat treatment was very effective. And very expensive (4K). The bugs are difficult to control with spray/powder. The best idea is not to get them in the first place!!
marketing
2016-06-25 15:04:59 UTC
Bamboo bedding can naturally keep bugs away.
fed001001
2006-08-14 11:22:15 UTC
bed bugs are little mites live in your bed and eat the skin that falls off you to prevent them just wash your bed sheets once a week and spray it with an air freshner
Joshua
2016-05-29 09:14:36 UTC
No one knows how to prevent them
purplewingduck
2006-08-14 11:23:17 UTC
Lice and ticks were considered bed bugs. Orginally people had straw beds and bugs would live in the straw. They would say sleep tight dont let the bed bugs bite, which simply ment to wrap your covers snuggly to provent bugs from getting in. If you dont have a straw bed, dont worry about them, unless you have an animial that sleeps on your bed(Dog, Cat, Duck...) in which case remove the animial or live with it.
*
2006-08-14 11:21:26 UTC
Keep your bed clean and wash your sheets. They're there for skin cells.
latennighter
2006-08-14 11:22:19 UTC
put a whole bunch of spiders or june bugs in your bed that should get ride of the bed bugs
2006-08-14 11:19:50 UTC
head lice is bed begs!!!


This content was originally posted on Y! Answers, a Q&A website that shut down in 2021.
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