Looking for Bed Bugs Pest Control?
Sleep tight and don't let them bite tonight!
What are bed bugs?
Bed bugs are insects of the Order Hemiptera and Family Cimicidae, which has over 90 species around the world and 2 in Australia, the common bed bug Cimex lectularius, and the tropical bed bug, Cimex hemipteus.
Bed-bugs are wing-less, parasites that feed off the blood of animals.
The common bed bug (Cimex lectularius) is a pest of humans this species has recently become a problem in Australia and other countries all over the world.
Bed bugs have three basic life stages; egg, nymph, and adult. They begin as a very small but visible egg, hatch to become a first instar nymph or juvenile, which is 1 millimetre long or about the size of a poppy seed.
There are five juvenile stages, which feed on blood, moult and grow over time. The adult is about the size of an apple seed. Bed bugs tend to gather together in hidden and undisturbed places where a person sleeps, or sits for an extended period of time.
They are usually found in the bed, along the seams and sides of the mattress and box spring, the he
adboard, and bed frame, creating clusters of live bed bugs, shed skins, dark-coloured faecal spots, and eggs.
In heavily infested locations bed bugs can be found anywhere in the room. They regularly moult their skins, what is left appears to be droppings.
A faecal mark, looking similar to a black or brown stain may appear on surfaces of fabrics. Eggs are cemented to fabric, wood, paper, and most other surfaces as the female hides or wanders in search of a host.
Where did bed bugs come from?
It is unclear exactly why and from where bed bugs re-emerged as a pest in our homes, dormitories, hotels, and shelters, but the resurgence was noticed throughout the world in the late 1990’s.
Before World War II, it was estimated that nearly 30% of Australian homes had bed bugs.
From the 1950's a lot of residual sprays including DDT, chlordane and Dieldrin were often italicised inside dwellings, which although dangerous to health, slowed down the bugs' proliferation.
As such, BedBugs were nearly absent for 50 years in Australia. However, stories and reports indicate that bed bugs may never have truly disappeared in Australia but they were very uncommon, until recently.
What is the risk of having bed bugs?
Bed bugs must bite to feed on blood. They have pointed mouth parts, like mosquitoes, and feed for just a few minutes at a time.
They must feed to grow and although they primarily feed at night, bed bugs will bite during the day if necessary. Bed bugs have never been shown to transmit disease to humans.
The most common symptom of bed bug bites are itchy welts on the skin of most, although not all victims. Reactions vary widely from person to person and bites alone cannot be used to confirm bed bugs. Bites may develop secondary infections through scratching.
Anemia has been reported in the elderly and very young in cases where homes are heavily infested. Asthma has also been linked to the presence of bed bugs in homes, though not yet in Australia.
More risks can arise with the use of insecticides to treat bed bug problems in the home, particularly when individuals attempt to eradicate bed bugs without the help or advice of a professional pest manager.
People with no pesticide application experience are using surface spray, fly spray, and sometimes illegal products to attempt to control bed bugs in their homes. It would be easier buying bed bug mattress encasements, castor or a screw in barriers which have a sticky impassable barrier.
Bed bugs can be transferred among people, and that places a great deal of social, emotional and financial stress on sufferers.
Bed Bugs Control Sydney
Control is challenging and costly, and there is still a certain amount of social stigma attached to living with bed bugs. Having bed bugs may restrict the social lives of people.
Sufferers avoid visiting friends and family and often throw away belongings, at great cost, and minimal benefit. Rental disputes often occur over who is responsible for the infestation and re-location costs while treatment is taking place.
A1 Pest Control are experts at fast and low toxic control of these pests and this strategy helps resolve these types of problems.
Call Bruce on 0417 251 911 or email him at bruce@a1pestcontrol.com.au for more information & help with your problem
How to get rid of Bedbugs?
Pesticides alone, or the use of any single method, will not eliminate bed bugs. A strategy that includes a number of methods is absolutely necessary, especially in multiple unit facilities like flats, shelters, dormitories, medium density estates, and hotels.
The following are needed for effective bed bug control
- Cooperation of landlord, management, and resident to focus on the problem
- Accurate identification to be sure it is a bed bug and not another pest
- Identification of the source (especially if bed bugs are moving from an adjacent room or apartment unit)
- Thorough inspection of the facility and identification of all possible hiding spots
- Cleaning and organization of the living area
- Reducing clutter in the home
- Bagging and removal of bedding and clothing from the affected area
- Washing sheets and blankets and drying on HOT setting
- Encasing the mattress in a zippered encasement
- Washing or treating the headboard and bed frame
- Cleaning and removing bed bugs from other items
- Isolating the cleaned (bedbug free) items until bed bugs are gone
- Careful and targeted use of insecticides, following label instructions
- Inspection and treatment of all surrounding adjacent units
- Follow up inspections and all other procedures as needed
Management of bed bugs should begin at the first sign of a problem. The longer an infestation is allowed to exist, the more difficult and expensive it will be to control. It may take several months to get rid of bed bugs if there is a large infestation.
There must be cooperation among tenants and the management staff in multiple dwelling facilities.
A bed bug management program must be coordinated for the entire building as well as the individual room or person, because bed bugs can go undetected for long periods of time and can spread very easily through walls, on electrical and plumbing conduits.
Cooperation from the tenant includes following the pest reporting procedures, cleaning and preparation of the room for treatment, and taking measures to avoid reintroduction of bed-bugs.
Building management must ensure that tenants are aware of these procedures and are provided with the necessary contact information they need to report a complaint.
Complaints must be addressed in a timely manner. Most building managers cannot deal with a bedbug infestation without the help of a pest management firm.
A pest control technician should be involved at an early stage. Professionals know how and where to look for bed bugs, and can thoroughly assess an infestation to ensure the right measures are taken.
Bed bugs are small but visible insects. There are three main life stages:
- The whitish egg (about 1 mm in length),
- 5 nymph growth stages (pale in colour) that are 1mm to 4.5 mm, and
- Adults which can be as long as 7 or 8 mm when fed.
The newly hatched nymph is very pale until it feeds. Then it looks like a tiny droplet of blood. Each nymph stage will feed and become filled with red blood. The adult is about the size and shape of an apple seed, and dark red to brown in colour and as flat as a credit card before feeding.
The first sign of a bed bug infestation is usually the appearance of bites on the arms, neck, torso, or legs.
One may also find live or dead bugs. Collect a sample for positive identification.
Clusters of small stains or droplets of dried blood on furniture and bedding may also be found. These stains are the bed bugs’ faecal droppings. They may be accompanied by shed skins, because bed bugs shed their outer skin, or moult, as they grow. Shed skins are amber in colour and resemble the shape of a bed bug.
There may also be live bugs and eggs where droppings are found.
DON’T mistake bed bug droppings for cockroach poo. Cockroaches drop little pellets, not round ones. There may also be Oothecas (egg cases) see belowor dead cockroaches nearby.
When searching for bed bugs it is important not to overlook the nymphs, which can be difficult to spot. Look for nymphs where droppings and stains appear, especially in crevices on fabric and wood surfaces.
A newly hatched bed bug is smaller than a poppy seed and the colour of a sesame seed. The stains from droppings can appear as rounded bumps or blackish, soaked-in stains.
This adult bed bug is waiting to feed on blood. Adults are very flat and fit into crevices as thin as a credit card before they feed. Nymphs are even thinner.
Once fed, they are longer and plump until they begin to digest the blood meal.
Bed Bug Bites
Bites are usually the early warning sign of a bed bug infestation. Bed bugs feed only on blood. Each life stage feeds, except the egg. They insert the fine stylets from their beak directly into the skin in search of a tiny blood vessel, and may move and bite repeatedly until they find the right spot.
At each point the beak releases saliva into the skin. The saliva contains proteins and enzymes that will cause an allergic reaction in many people.
This bite can leave small itchy red welts or white bumps, or sometime blisters or even pustules may result. Some people do not have any reaction at all, even though they are bitten the same amount of times in the same areas.
Not everyone in a residence will react the same way and many times only one person will show signs of bites, leading others to believe it cannot be bed bugs and just imagined by the sufferer.
It is critical to confirm bed bugs in the sleeping or living area through inspection to be sure that bites are caused by bed bugs and not by other pests.
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We have Bed-Bug Detectors for commercial hire, and also sell mattress encasements that they can't escape from, saving your current mattresses! Call us on 0417 251 911 for more info. For Canberra residents, you can contact my sister company A1 Pest Control Canberra (Yes, she really is my sister!) for Bed Bug control Canberra.
Bed bug bites can often look like mosquito & flea bites. If you have some bites, look out for the following signs of bed bug infestation:
- Bed bugs tend to feed on exposed skin, but can feed under loose clothing.
- Bed bugs primarily feed at night in the dark, in a typical situation.
- Under stressed conditions bed bugs may feed during the day.
Stressed conditions include:
- Bed bugs have no access to hosts because people are not sleeping nearby
- When bed bugs are disturbed by cleaning or pesticides they may move to other areas
- As the numbers increase, bed bugs may spread due to overcrowding
- Bed bug bite reactions can take a few minutes or as many as 14 days to appear
- If bed bugs cannot be located in sleeping areas after multiple inspections, other biting pests must be considered
- If local temperatures are over 25° C and the individual is outdoors or has unscreened windows open, mosquito bites must be considered.
Mosquitoes may breed in water in subfloors or sinks, disused toilets, indoor drains, pans in the refrigerator, dog/cat water bowls, pot-plants, or unused fish tanks. A thorough inspection will identify and uncover these environments.
Pets or wildlife, including foxes, squirrels, rabbits, and rodents may carry fleas that bite humans, especially in warmer months.
There are other causes of bites and lesions aside from bed bugs. While bites can vary, the activities of the person bitten may help determine the cause.
- Mosquitoes – Generally, mosquitoes feed at dawn and dusk, but at least one species bites during the day. In most people, a wheal and flare reaction is common and occurs quickly. Mosquito bites are usually associated with warm weather and being outdoors. A torn or missing window screen allows mosquitoes into the living area.
- Head, body, and pubic lice – Lice live on the human body, feeding by penetrating the skin. Head lice live on the scalp among hairs, body lice live in clothing and feed on adjacent skin, and pubic lice feed among the hairs of the pubic region. Look for signs of lice and their eggs (nits) in the hair and clothes.
- Ticks – Most often associated with outdoor natural areas, such as grassy areas and forests. Ticks insert their mouth parts into the skin and remain attached to feed on blood.
They usually remain attached for a long period of time (1 to 3 days), become greatly engorged with blood and are much more noticeable for these reasons. - Fleas – Flea bites are usually associated with the presence of animals serving as flea hosts, such as pets and occasionally wildlife. Fleas usually produce lots of bites in the region of the arms and legs.
- Bird and rodent mites – Associated with birds, rats and mice nesting in or on the building. Bird mites are usually spotted when young birds and their parents leave the nest.
- Mites may be seen on windowsills or air conditioning units. Most mites do not live long off the host but will bite people, if they get onto the skin. They do not cause serious bites or transmit disease. Mites should be cleaned up with soap and water.
- Birds should be discouraged from nesting on the building or in AC units. Rodents should be exterminated from the building and access points permanently sealed.
Trapping rodents helps remove the source of mites, unlike rodenticides, which result in dead rodents within walls, which can attract other pests. - Scabies – Scabies is a mite also known as the human itch mite. Its a parasite that immerses itself into your skin, producing little welts which contain mites and their eggs.
Scabies is transferred among humans by close contact. This is a medical problem that should be confirmed by a doctor and treated with cream or lotion applied to the body.
Scabies are not a pest management issue, and do not require treatment of a room or home, however bedding and clothes should be laundered at high temperatures for sanitation reasons. - Spiders – Spiders have paired mouth parts, like jaws and leave behind one or two puncture wounds when they bite. Bites are usually associated with some localized pain
Is YOUR home protected from Bed Bugs? Remember A1 for your home's complete bed bug control and pest management systems.
Call Bruce on 0417 251 911 or email him atbruce@a1pestcontrol.com.au if you have a problem with bedbugs.