Bed bugs are a well-known household pest, with several yearly reports of infestations in the U.S. and abroad. They are found everywhere, from hotels to college dorm rooms, buses, homes, and various other places. Bed bugs get easily picked up from several places, and they’re known to travel considerable distances on people and pets alike. When they get into a new home, they find comfortable places to hide, breed, and, thereafter, spread into other rooms. Because bed bugs are tiny (adults have the size of a grain of rice, and the nymphs resemble sesame seeds), they are quite unnoticeable when brought into a home.
To detect their presence, you will need to watch out for some major signs, like; Blood-stained bedsheets and the red itchy mark they leave after biting. If you begin to notice these signs, you need to act fast and call professional Residential Pest Control Services in Houston Texas, before these pests spread into other rooms in your home.
Though bed bugs are nuisance pests because they only bite and do not transmit disease, their bites can cause serious allergic reactions. So it would be best if you contained and get rid of them as soon as possible.
In case you’ve detected their presence in your home, and you are searching for effective ways to keep them from spreading into other rooms in your home. Here are ways to prevent their spread;
Wash Your Bedding And Clothes
One of the ways bed bugs get into homes is through clothes; bed bugs can hitch a ride to a new environment by latching on to people’s clothes and suitcases. Therefore, make it a habit to always wash your travel clothes and the clothes you had on when you visit public places. Also, make sure to wash your bedding regularly. Endeavor to do all the washing and drying at high temperatures; use the high heat setting on your washing machine. This will help kill the eggs, nymph, and adult bugs on the clothes.
Clean up clutter
Always remove any beds, dressers, or other furniture that you no longer use and put it in storage. This will make the room look less cluttered, which is a good thing because bed bugs love to hide in clutter. If there are still some items lying around the house that belongs in storage, be sure to put them away.
Inspect your home
Look under cushions, in cracks and crevices, and behind the bed frame for signs of bed bugs. Check the seams on furniture and mattresses as well as any other areas where you store clothes or linens. If you find any shed skins or eggs on your clothing or sheets, place them into sealed plastic bags to prevent them from walking off. You can also wash them on high heat in your washer.
Encasements on mattresses and box springs
If you have a mattress and box spring, bed encasement can be the best way to protect your bed from bed bugs. The encasements are made of plastic or vinyl that covers the entire surface of the mattress and box spring. They are also designed to be breathable, making them comfy for sleeping. These bed encasements are particularly great because they prevent bugs from climbing and hiding in your mattress.
Vacuum carefully
Use a vacuum with a hose attachment to clean under beds, in corners, and along baseboards. Don’t forget to clean the mattress; bed bugs can hide in seams and folds on mattresses, so you should be sure to vacuum these areas carefully. After vacuuming, carefully empty the dirt into a plastic bag and dispose of it in the garbage bin outside your home.
Steam clean
Steam cleaning can be a great way to kill bed bugs. It’s not just effective on bed bugs, but it also kills other pests in your home as well. You’ll need a steamer that has a heat setting between 110°F and 120°F. This will help you kill any pests on your furniture or carpeting, including bed bugs.
Use An Insecticide Spray Product
Insecticides are another great way to kill bed bugs and prevent their rapid spread. Spray your mattress, box spring, holes on walls, and other potential hiding spots for bed bugs. It’s important that you follow all of the steps on the insecticide spray bottle carefully so that this method works effectively in keeping your home free of bed bugs.
All these techniques mentioned above are good, but the best way to prevent bed bugs from spreading is to contact expert bed bug exterminators. These experts have the experience and the right tools needed to carefully and effectively exterminate bed bugs and other pests from your home.