Do you choose only the best hotels during your travels assuming that bed bugs won’t be a problem? Are you a bit OCD about the cleanliness of your home?
Believe it or not, you can still wind up with a bed bug infestation.
Luckily, if you catch the problem before it reaches epic proportions, you may be able to get away with using DIY bed bug removal tips. We’re going to discuss how best to treat the problem yourself before opting to spend money on professional treatments.
Keep reading for more information!
Prevention is Key
The price of a hotel does not indicate whether or not they have a bed bug problem. In fact, as of last year, 82% of hotels have been treated for this issue.
Other businesses such as hospitals, retail stores, movie theaters, and public transport can also fall victim to this pest problem. Basically, this nightmare problem can be found anywhere.
With this said, as soon as you walk into a hotel room, you will want to check the bedding for signs of bed bugs. Don’t bring your luggage into the room until you’ve done so, and even after, be sure to use the luggage stand to limit potential exposure.
You will want to look under the sheets, along the bottom of the mattress, under the mattress, and behind the headboard. You may also check the corners of the room as overlooked cobwebs may entrap the bugs.
Bed bugs are notoriously sneaky. Instead of looking for the actual bug, you will want to look for:
- Dark spots- these are from bed bug excrement and will look like someone used a marker to make dots on the mattress or box springs
- Eggs- bed bug eggs look like a grain of (uncooked) rice. They will be clustered together and somewhat sticky if you touch them
- Reddish stains- people who are unaware of a bed bug problem will sleep on an infested mattress, inadvertently crushing the pests. This leaves a reddish/dark orange stain
- Inexplicable yellow skins- as bed bugs grow from nymphs to adults, they will shed a light yellow skin
As gross as these issues are to find, you can choose to leave the property and prevent those bed bugs from coming home with you.
DIY Bed Bug Removal: Heat Treatment
Continuing with the idea of
preventing a full-on infestation, after you leave a hotel and head home, wash
and dry all of the items from your luggage. It is important that the
temperatures reach 117-120120-125 ºF to ensure all stages die.
If it happens to be a warm summer, you can simply leave your belongings in your car for a few hours. On most sunny days, your vehicle’s internal temperatures can reach 120° in 60 minutes or less. Once this temperature is reached, let things cook for another hour and a half to ensure full mortality.
Heat treatment is also effective for rooms that may have issues with these pests. You can purchase the equipment yourself or you can call a professional for help.
Vacuuming & Freezing
When you are dealing with a large infestation of bed bugs, it becomes overwhelming, and fast. A quick and effective way to remove the bugs, their eggs, and nymphs is by sucking them up into a vacuum with a HEPA filter.
Although if your home is deeply infested, this may only scratch the surface–and you must empty the filter or cyclone container outside.
Additionally, for the items that cannot be left in a hot car, placed in a dryer, or steam cleaned, freezing temperatures can do the trick. Keep in mind that temperatures must be extremely cold and there must be prolonged exposure for this method to be effective.
Non-Professional Chemical Use
There are numerous chemicals available for individuals to purchase that will aid in the extermination of bed bugs. Though these chemicals do kill bed bugs, nymphs, and eggs, the directions must be followed for maximum effectiveness.
Using these chemicals as a DIY bed bug removal tactic can and will work–if the infestation is minimal. Additionally, when combined with some of the other tips, you may see greater success.
Does Baking Soda Kill Bed Bugs?
While researching how to get rid of bed bugs, you may have run across tips that include baking soda, mothballs, talcum powder, and alcohol. Each one of these methods are said to work in a different way.
This information is false.
While baking soda may have some effect on bed bugs, there is no evidence to prove that this solution will kill them. Mothballs are shown to kill 44-60% of adult bugs, but eggs and nymphs were able to survive.
As far as talcum powder and alcohol go, these aren’t fully effective either. The theory that talcum powder will break down the bugs’ exoskeleton and cause them to dehydrate is not true. Rubbing alcohol may have some success but highly discouraged as is not successful at exterminating ALL of the bugs and can result in fire damage.
A Seemingly Impossible Task
Once you find out that your family has been exposed to bed bugs or that your home has an infestation, you will deal with many emotions–one of which will be stressed.
The stress will come from the questions of ‘where did the bugs come from,’ ‘does DIY bed bug removal work,’ and ‘how will this affect my family financially?’
You may feel as though you’ll never get rid of this problem or that you must throw everything you own away. These are false beliefs: you will get rid of the pests and you’ll probably be able to keep most items.
After you’ve processed these emotions, you will begin treating your home for bed bugs. If you still feel overwhelmed with this problem and would like help with the extermination process, contact us for a quote to ensure the complete eradication of these bugs.