It is always upsetting to find out you have bed bugs. But for some, it is just as upsetting to see what treatment entails. Chemical treatments need to be sprayed over every inch of your home, even if you only find one bedbug, and even heat treatments – which are far more eco-friendly and safe – still require 9 hours away from your home and some early preparation.
That’s why many people look for bed bug control strategies that they can do on their own, hoping that they can remove the problem and potentially avoid any issues with treatment.
Do It Yourself Bed Bug Removal
Unfortunately, there are no DIY treatments that you can do on your own for getting rid of bed bugs. Bed bugs are incredibly resistant to most chemicals, excellent hiders, great at finding places to move when they are threatened and often breed with eggs that are too small for the eye to see.
If you only recently came into contact with a potential infestation and you are worried you brought one home to you, you can try a bed bug trap. Bed bug traps attract bed bugs and trap them. You can try using a trap to capture any bed bugs that may have hitched a ride, and then wait to see if you get bitten over the next several months. But bed bug traps are best used for finding out if a home has bed bugs. They are not designed to be a bed bug treatment.
The most important thing that you can do is prevent bed bugs from coming into your home to start with.
How You Can Prevent Bed Bugs
To prevent bed bugs, you should always empty your luggage right away when you get home from a trip, in either a laundry room or garage. Check the luggage for signs of bed bugs. You may see the live bugs themselves, the exoskeletons that they shed frequently or evidence of their fecal matter, which appears as small black or rust dots in clusters.
Once you have emptied and checked the luggage, your luggage should be stored in a room that you do not frequent, such as the garage, utility room or basement.
Any clothing that you wore on a trip out of town should be laundered right away upon returning home. All clothes and linens should be washed in hot water and dried in the dryer for a minimum of 30 minutes to kill any bed bugs that may be hiding. If you have outerwear, you may want to consider putting that in your dryer for 30 minutes as well, just to be cautious. It’s a good idea to always store your outerwear in a utility room or hall closet away from sleeping areas.
Other Options for Home Prevention
Mattress encasement is an option to keep in your bed to prevent bed bugs from trying to live there. These encasements protect your mattress and have material that bed bugs do not like. Some can be specially treated to repel bed bugs and dust mites.
You should also check around any hotel room you frequent. Look for signs of bed bugs, because if you find any possible bed bugs and escape the room quickly, you are less likely to have a bed bug hitchhiker.
What To Do When You Have Bed Bugs
If you find your preventative measures have not worked and there does appear to be bed bugs in your home, you will want to contact a professional to help get rid of them. Canadian Bed Bug is proud to provide bed bug control services to areas like Vancouver, Whistler, Coquitlam, and more. If you are in need of bed bug removal, contact us today at 604.782.6843.
Canada Bed Bug
1281 W Georgia St #610B, Vancouver, BC V6E 3J7
(604) 239-1549
