Bed bugs are a big problem in Dallas-Fort Worth. Instead of sneaking into your home through open windows and unsealed cracks like other insects, a bed bug will latch onto your clothing or into your bag when you are in a public place and hitch a ride back to your house. At Lonestar Safe Pest, we have been providing comprehensive pest control in Dallas-Fort Worth for many years. Keep reading to learn what to do if you see a bed bug inside your Dallas-Fort Worth home.
How To Tell If It's Bed Bug Infesting Your Home
Bed bugs are tiny insects that are not easy to spot unless you have a severe infestation. However, there are a few telltale early warning signs that you can look for, which include:
- Bloodstains on your sheets: Bed bugs have small, flat bodies. But their bodies swell into little round balls when they feed on blood. Their bigger size makes them easy to crush. If you see small, rust-colored blood stains on your sheets, there is a good chance that you accidentally squashed a few bed bugs while sleeping.
- Bed bug eggs: As long as a mated female bed bug has a constant blood source, she can lay between one and seven eggs daily. Bed bug eggs look like tiny, white grains of rice. Bed bugs can lay eggs anywhere in your home, but they are more likely to lay their eggs under your mattress, bedding, furniture joints, headboards, electrical outlets, or any other place where they are less likely to be disturbed.
- Bed bug skin and eggshell casings: As a young bed bug grows, it will shed its skin. A bed bug usually molts five times before it reaches full maturity. If you see several translucent casings around your home, there is a good chance that you have a bed bug infestation.
- Dark smear marks: Bed bugs are known to leave droppings behind. The droppings are dark brownish-red and are about the size of a marker tip. Bed bugs drag their bodies over the droppings, creating small, irregular-sized smear marks.
- Red bumps on your skin: Bed bugs live off of the blood of humans, which means they need to bite people to survive. They will leave tiny, red bug bites on your skin. A bed bug bite can resemble a mosquito bite. However, if your skin was bite-free before you went to bed and then covered in bites when you woke up, there is a good chance that the bite mark came from a bed bug.
If you have bed bugs in your home, you may also notice a musty smell. Many think bed bugs smell like a pile of old wet towels. The more bed bugs you have in your home, the stronger the scent will be.
How Dangerous Is It To Have Bed Bugs In My House?
Bed bugs in Dallas-Fort Worth are not known to carry or spread diseases, but that doesn't mean they are completely harmless. A bed bug bite can be extremely itchy. If a person scratches their bite too much, it can cause it to become infected. Extreme itchiness could also cause you to lose sleep, which could be harmful to your mental and physical health.
Why You Can't Get Rid Of Bed Bugs On Your Own
Bed bugs are one of the most challenging pests to get rid of. Some of the reasons why most people struggle to get rid of bed bugs include:
- Bed bugs can go a long time without eating. It is estimated that a bed bug can go about a year without having a food source. This means they could thrive for a long time in a home without occupants.
- Common insecticides don't work on bed bugs. Many pesticides you can buy in stores are not powerful enough to kill bed bugs. Most of the time, when a person sprays insecticide, the bed bug will go to another room while the spray is wet. Once it dries, the bed bugs will return.
- Heat is known to eliminate bed bugs. However, the average person is not able to get their home to a high enough temperature to harm the bed bug. Most of the time, when untrained people try to use heat as a bed bug treatment, they damage their home or their property.
It is almost impossible for an average person to get rid of bed bugs. Pest control specialists must undergo specialized training to learn effective techniques to eliminate these pesky insects.
Turn To The Professionals As Soon As You See A Bed Bug
The best way to get rid of these pests in your home is to call a bed bug control professional in Dallas-Fort Worth. At Lonestar Safe Pest, we have decades of experience successfully eliminating bed bugs from homes in Dallas-Fort Worth. Call us today for a free inspection.