What have consumers been talking about online recently regarding pests? According to research from the National Pest Management Association, there were more than six million online conversations in the United States on the topic of finding bed bugs in April 2020 alone.
One in five Americans have encountered bed bugs in their home or know someone who has. So it should come as no surprise that people are talking about this most unwelcome and unsettling pest. Bed bugs can be found throughout almost every region of the world and in all 50 states. People in California and Nevada are certainly among those who have questions.
June 7-13 is National Bed Bug Awareness Week, and Clark, your neighborly termite, lawn care, and pest control expert, would like to help answer your bed bug questions:
Q: What do bed bugs look like?
A: Adult bed bugs are brown, about a quarter-inch in diameter, and they resemble a flat appleseed or lentil.
Q: Why are bed bugs such a problem today?
A: There has been a significant increase in bed bug infestations in recent years. While there isn’t one clear answer for their resurgence, many pest management professionals point to increased travel, lack of public awareness, and changing pest control products and methods.
Q: Where are bed bugs found?
A: Single-family homes and apartments/condos are the most frequently treated locations for bed bug infestations, but these annoying pests are not limited to any one specific type of dwelling. Clark has identified infestations everywhere, including hotels and motels, hospitals, schools and college campuses, office buildings, retail stores, movie theaters, libraries, and even public transportation.
Q: Are bed bugs only found in beds?
A: No. While bed bugs are most often found in bed parts, such as mattresses, box springs, and folded areas, they can also survive in alternative habitats. They prefer cool, dark places, and conceal themselves behind baseboards, wallpaper, upholstery, picture frames, and electrical switch plates, and in furniture crevices.
Q: What are some common signs of a bed bug infestation?
A: Telltale signs of a bed bug infestation include:
- Small red to reddish-brown fecal spots on mattresses, upholstery, or walls
- Molted bed bug skins, white, sticky eggs, or empty eggshells
- Very heavily infested areas may have a characteristically sweet odor
- Red, itchy bite marks, especially on the legs, arms, and other body parts, which may be exposed while sleeping
Q: Are bed bugs a health threat?
A: Fortunately, bed bugs – unlike mosquitoes and mites – have not been determined to be vectors, or carriers, of disease. That said, bed bug bites can be painful and can cause an annoying rash.
Q: Why are bed bugs difficult to eradicate?
A: Bed bugs are elusive, hardy pests that are easily transported from one place to another on articles of clothing, backpacks, furniture, or bedding. They are adept at hiding once they get inside a home, can live for several months without eating, and can withstand a wide range of temperatures from nearly freezing to almost 122 degrees Fahrenheit.
Q: How do you get rid of bed bugs?
A: Any effective bed bug control strategy starts with a careful, thorough inspection done by a licensed pest professional of all known and suspected spots where the bugs may be hiding. This is not a pest that can be controlled effectively with do-it-yourself measures. If bed bugs are discovered, the experts at Clark Pest Control will develop a customized treatment and control strategy depending on the extent of the infestation.
Clark, your neighborly termite, lawn care and pest control expert, wants reminds California homeowners that Clark Pest Control stands ready with the latest technology and service techniques to help remove and prevent a bed bug infestation from bothering you and your family.
If you have questions or concerns about bed bugs, call or text (800) WE-NEED-YOU (936-3339) or email Clark at clarkcares@clarkpest.com.
Until next time, I’m Clark, and thanks for helping me keep unwanted pests out of your home and yard.