Bed Bugs

Cimex lectularius; from the family: Cimicidae

Introduction

There are many misconceptions about how you get an infestation of bed bugs in the home. A common belief is that a poorly kept, unclean house will naturally attract them, or that affluent people who live in luxury don’t get them, but the reality is Bed Bugs do not discriminate. They survive by feeding off human and animal blood – and they will simply go wherever the feeding is good and accommodation is dry. In domestic residences any infestation is usually centred on the sleeping areas.

Bed bugs are small wingless insects measuring no more than 6mm long, (about the size of an apple pip), when fully grown. They cannot fly or jump, instead they crawl, typically hiding in your luggage after being transported home. They range in colour from a light tan to a deep brown when fully engorged after taking in a blood meal. This makes them stand out and usually easier to spot.

Typically dormant during the day and active mostly at night, these blood sucking parasites prefer to feed in the early morning hours before returning to their hiding spots. Bed Bugs usually feed every 2 to 3 days, for 3 to 5 minutes at a time and can survive for long periods between meals.

When Bed bugs bite, they inject a mix of an anaesthetic saliva and anti-coagulant chemical into the feeding site to prevent you being alerted to their bite and to delay your blood from clotting. This allows them to extract your blood at will until they become fully engorged and finally withdraw. These insects usually test pierce your skin two or three times before settling in for a good five minute feed. Bed Bug bites are usually painless at first, but adverse skin reactions from their bites will develop as the anti-coagulant chemical makes the bite area highly irritable, and scratching the area can cause infection and even scarring to occur.

Treatment details, warranty & cost

Our Bed Bug treatment includes a complete spray treatment to all affected areas includes walls skirting’s and windowsills, all floor spaces and floor coverings & cupboards. We will also be inspecting bed mattresses as most bed bugs are found hidden in the mattress folds. All beds will need to be stripped of bed linen, and these items should be laundered in hot water and put in hot clothes dryer or dry cleaned where possible