Sharing your bed with another person is not always easy. It is even harder if you are a light sleeper. It also matters with whom you share your bed. Sleep next to someone who snores or moves around a lot and you might find yourself more tired after waking up than when you fell asleep. Thankfully there are many ways people can cope with various sleeping problems. One sleeping problem that homeowners here in New York City deal with is bed bugs. If you have never taken a moment to research these pests and the ways they disturb sleep, here are a few things you should know.
DO BED BUGS LIVE INSIDE BEDS?
Bed bugs were given their name because of where they feed not where they live. This doesn’t mean bed bugs can’t live inside beds, just that this isn’t the only place these pests are found. When you are awake and moving around, bed bugs stay out of sight, hidden behind outlets, inside electronics, and within cracks and crevices throughout the home. When checking your living areas for these pests, keep in mind that they could be anywhere but they always do their best to stay out of view.
IDENTIFYING A BED BUG
Bed bugs are small parasitic pests that feed on the blood of humans to survive. You can identify one of these bugs by its reddish-brown, apple-seed-size, shield-shaped body. When engorged with a blood meal a bed bug can grow to be five times its normal size and takes on a bloated, blood-red appearance.
Bed bugs are also identifiable by the signs they leave around homes. To help you know these pests are around your living areas, here are a few signs to keep your eye out for.
- Bloodstains on bed coverings
- Bites in a zig-zag pattern or straight line on your skin
- Dots of reddish-black fecal matter around outlets, on baseboards, and around other areas bed bugs like to hide
- A musty odor in the air (only present in severe bed bug infestations)
- Molted skin near areas bed bugs live and breed
- Small cream-colored eggs
HOW DO BED BUGS GET AROUND?
Much like we use cars, buses, and planes to get around, bed bugs use items people carry to get from place to place. Although you are unlikely to notice them, these pests are constantly using backpacks, used furniture, clothing, electronics, luggage, briefcases, purses, etc to travel. In public spaces, bed bugs often hop off infested items and crawl onto other items nearby. For this reason, we recommend not setting down any of your belongings for more than 20 minutes when you are out and about.
HOW DIFFICULT IS IT TO ELIMINATE BED BUGS
There was a period of time when bed bugs almost went extinct due to a product called DDT. Although extremely effective at killing bed bugs, DDT was found to be toxic to humans and was banned. The bed bugs that survived this age, however, came out more resistant and with adapted behaviors making them much more difficult to treat. The only effective way to get these pests out of a home is with professional pest control services.
WHEN TO CALL A PROFESSIONAL ABOUT BED BUG PROBLEMS
At Broadway Pest Services, we understand bed bugs and have the industrial-grade equipment and treatments needed to control them effectively. If you suspect these sleep-wrecking pests are crawling around inside your New York City home, do not hesitate to get our team involved. We have been providing excellent pest control services since 1970 and are supported not just by our community but by our team of dedicated professionals.
Call us today to find out more about our residential pest control options.