Learning how to identify bed bugs around the home is a skill we all need to be adept at right now. The rising number of infested homes calls for it, and you will learn how to go about it in this article. Nobody wants a closet filled with bed bugs. The thought alone is scarring. Checking our clothes for signs of bugs regularly helps forestall a full-blown infestation. How do you check dwellings for bed bugs? Product Review…
Bed bugs and Our Closets
Bed bugs like warm environments. These places give them the optimum temperature to breed and multiply their population rapidly. As nocturnal insects, they love dark places. Our closets are dark, so bed bugs are likely to be found there. The fact that most closets are usually cluttered with all sorts of personal belongings add to the allure of these places to bed bugs. Again, it is very close to the bed, so, it provides a predictable pattern for the bugs. Feed on its victim at night, then hide out in the closet by day. It is definitely a win-win situation for the bugs. Product Review…
New studies show that bed bugs are attracted to items of clothing because they smell like humans. In the event that this is not the case, our clothes still provide the perfect home for bugs. There are pockets, seams, buttonholes, sleeves, cuffs and plackets for bugs to hide. We usually fold our clothes before placing them in the drawers of our closets. With this routine of ours, we’ve set up the perfect conditions for these bugs to thrive. Those bugs would be smiling right now.
Steps To Check For Bugs
You’ve had your suspicions all the while. The frequent bites on your skin these days lend credence to these hunches. But you need evidence. So, how do you check clothes for bed bugs?
- Prepare your closet for the search – You wouldn’t want to dive right into the search. You will be creating more room for the bugs to scatter and look for a new hideout. And if this happens, you might just be needing external help to fight your bed bug’s battle that is to come. Therefore, start by closing your doors. If your closets are full of stuff, you’ve not used in a long while, seal them and take them out.
- Gradually take your clothes out – This should be done one after the other. While doing this, keep your eyes open for any sign of living bugs, their eggs or excrements. The living bugs are small but can be seen. Look out for them.
- Check your empty closet – Check all the crevices and cracks of your closets. If the bugs aren’t in your clothes, then those cracks and crevices provide a good place to hide.
- All clothes should be bagged and taken outside – Bag all your belongings and take them outside. Even if you can’t find evidence of a bed bug infestation, your little search party provides an ample opportunity to steam-wash your clothes before taking them back in. Just in case you notice even slight evidence of bed bug infestation, discard those clothes and hire a bed bug exterminator. Bed bugs in closets are difficult to treat on your own.
- Treating bed bugs, yourself – While it is possible to treat a bed bug situation on your own, the process is quite tedious and complicated. You can use a spray can containing an insecticide, desiccant dust such as Diatomaceous Earth and Cimexa. Product Review…
These steps should be done regularly, even when an infestation is least suspected so that when you do have your suspicions you’re not left wondering in bewilderment – how do you check clothes for bed bugs? Read More…