Noticing that there is a presence of bed bugs in your home shouldn’t be taken lightly. Just the sight of these small critters alone should warn you that an infestation is possibly going on. You might not even have an idea on how serious the situation is.
Seeing a cluster of bites as you wake up in the morning is already a clear sign of a bed bug infestation. However, there are more signs that you should look for in your home. These signs will help confirm an infestation and be able to act fast.
Top Signs of Bed Bugs Living and Lurking in Your Home
There are a lot of bed bug problems that you’ll realize as soon as you confirm that they are already living with you and are feeding off you. Without a proper guide, you might mistake bed bugs with other insects. However, knowing more signs that you should look for, you’ll save yourself from confusion and prevent infestation from getting worse.
The following are signs that these pesky critters are indeed in your home:
- Red Itchy Welts
As these bugs feed on humans, they will leave red itchy welts that may even develop blisters as a reaction to bed bug bites. Though not everyone develops an allergic reaction to bites, there are times when people allergic to bites immediately develop blisters and other bite reactions.
- Sleepless Nights
Once you get bitten, you may react to bed bug bites by constantly turning and tossing at night feeling like there are tiny insects crawling all over your body. Also, if you’ve confirmed the having bed bugs, you might feel like scared of lying in your bed or even getting sleep anywhere in your home.
- Blood Stains
When these bugs are feeding on you, they would usually spill some blood when finding another part to bite. At times, you might end up crushing them as you turn over while they are feeding. So, unless you don’t have any cuts or wounds, small blood stains on your bed can be from bed bugs.
- Actual Bugs in Your Bed
If you are suspecting that you have bed bugs, you should inspect your mattress and box springs and also your box spring and mattress seams. You can spot actual bugs hiding in your bed and immediately confirm this nightmare.
bed frames
- Fecal Spots
Since these critters feed, they may also leave fecal matters as they digest the blood they just ate. These are small brown spots you’ll see on your bed or on areas where they are hiding.
- Shed Skins or Egg Shells
Given that bed bugs undergo several moulting stages, you should find skins as they shed their skin as they go from one stage to another. More skins and even shells mean that there are already a lot of bugs that were born and possibly reached adulthood.
- Musty Offensive Odour
A heavily infested room or home might have a musty odour coming from a certain space. Also, when you crush this insect, they also give off a distinct scent that confirms that you found a bed bug.
Finding out that these signs are in your home, it is necessary that you immediately create a pest management plan. If you think that the infestation is still controllable, you can always use pest control products that you can install and use on your own. There are even portable products you can bring with you when you travel and ensure that you won’t bring home bed bugs from your hotel rooms.