Everyone needs a good night’s sleep. Unfortunately, when bed bugs infest a home or bed, this is not always possible. As their name suggests, bed bugs are known to hide within the nooks and crannies of beds, and they come out at night to feed on a host. While bed bugs are most commonly found in mattresses and box springs, they will also make a home in other places, as well, as long as humans use that area.
Regardless of where bed bugs are in a home, you undoubtedly want them out as soon as possible. To help eliminate the bed bugs quickly, start by avoiding these top five mistakes homeowners make below.
1. Ignoring the Problem
Some people may see just one or two bed bugs, crush them, and think they have eliminated the problem. They then ignore it until an infestation has set in and simply crushing the visible bugs is no longer effective. Like most pests, when someone sees one or two bed bugs, it is likely there are many more, perhaps even hundreds more. As soon as even just one bed bug is spotted, people must contact a professional pest control company that can eliminate the problem quickly and effectively.
2. Removing Yourself or the Mattress
Many people think they can get rid of the problem by simply removing themself from it. Some people may try to sleep in a different bedroom, or they may move an infested mattress to the basement. These tactics do not work. Bed bugs are very mobile and when a food source is no longer available, they will simply travel to a spot where they can find one. If you have moved to another room in the house to sleep, you will not eliminate the problem. You will only spread it throughout your home because the bugs will come find you.
Likewise, if you place an infested mattress in the basement or in another location, the bed bugs will travel to wherever you are. Along the way, they may also take up residence in your couch or other furniture, thereby spreading the problem. Bed bugs can live for months without a meal so it is a misconception that they will starve before they find their food source.
3. Sleeping with the Lights On
Bed bugs are nocturnal creatures and they come out of their hiding spots at night to feed on their host. To combat this problem, some people learn to sleep with the lights on. This is not only uncomfortable and will deprive you of much-needed rest, but it is also ineffective. Like humans, bed bugs know when it is night by their internal clock, not the amount of light in the room. Due to this, sleeping with the lights on may hurt you, but it will not affect the presence of bed bugs.
4. Cranking the Heat
It is true that bed bugs do not respond well to heat. In fact, many professional pest control companies use thermal remediation, or heat therapy, to get rid of bed bugs in a home. This treatment raises the temperature in a home to over 120 degrees Fahrenheit, which is extremely hot. The heat extremity is necessary so the heat penetrates all areas of the home but does not damage the belongings within it.
The fact of the matter though, is that household thermostats simply cannot reach the high temperatures necessary to eradicate bed bugs. Even if the high temperatures do kill a few, there are always some left behind that will simply reproduce so you will deal with an infestation again much sooner than you thought. If you are interested in a heat treatment, speak to a professional before reaching for the thermostat.
5. Using Pesticides Incorrectly
It is not difficult today to find many pesticides on the market that state they will help you get rid of bed bugs. Unfortunately, most people do not know how to use these pesticides effectively and when they apply them to the infested areas, it can actually be very harmful to a person’s health. Pesticides are made up of very harmful chemicals that can make people in the home sick when they are applied incorrectly.
Call Our Professional Pest Control Company Today
If you are dealing with a bed bug problem, our pest control experts at Pointe Pest Control can eliminate them. We use only the safest and most effective solutions to get rid of bed bugs in your home and to keep them out once and for all. Call us today at (866) 633-1573 or fill out our online form to request a quote and get the help you need.
