Removing bed bugs from your Florida home can be a long, tedious process. These hitchhiking pests can infest homes quickly and without warning by traveling through our luggage and personal belongings. In this blog, we breakdown the common bed bug signs to lookout for and ways you can prevent them from entering your home in the first place.
Common Bed Bug Signs
- Bloodstains on your bedding: When bed bugs feed on blood, they will leave behind reddish-brown stains on your sheets and pillowcases. These stains are a result of crushed bed bugs or blood-filled fecal matter.
- Unexplained bites on your skin: If you wake up with itchy, red welts on your skin, this could be a sign of bed bugs in your home. Bed bug bites will often appear in clusters and found on exposed areas, including arms, legs, neck, and the face.
- Musty odor in your home: Bed bugs will release a sweet, distinctive, musty odor. If you notice this smell in your bedroom or other areas of your home, it could be a sign that bed bugs are present.
- Finding live bed bugs: The most obvious sign is finding them inside your home. Adult bed bugs are the size of an apple seed, reddish-brown in color, and oval shaped.
Preventing Bed Bugs
There are easy, preventative measures that you can take to ensure bed bugs don’t invade your home. Consider the following do-it-yourself bed bug control tips:
- Before bringing in secondhand furniture, always thoroughly inspect it for signs of bed bugs.
- Vacuum and clean your home regularly, especially areas around cracks, crevices, and seams in your furniture.
- Seal cracks and gaps in your home’s walls, floors, and furniture to prevent bed bugs from entering your home.
- Use mattress and box spring encasements to reduce hiding spots for bed bugs.
- After returning from travel, inspect all the luggage and personal items you took with you for bed bugs. Remove any clothing and wash it in hot water, drying in high heat.
- Store luggage out of the home, either in a garage, shed, or attic.
- When you’re traveling, inspect the bed and furniture in your hotel room you are staying in. Before checking out of your hotel, inspect your personal belongings for any bed bugs.
If you suspect bed bugs have entered your home, it’s best to call a Homosassa pest control company near you. These bed bug professionals will provide you with a thorough inspection to look for common bed bug signs and set up a treatment and prevention plan to avoid a future bed bug infestation.
