Bed Bugs

Bed Bugs Appearance

Bed bugs are brown and reddish in colour, they can be 4 to 5mm long and up to 3mm wide, they are very flat and oval in shape. The younger bed bugs are usually lighter in colour, as they age they get brown when they have reached maturity. Bed bugs have six pairs of legs and are barrel in shape.

Bed bugs hatch from eggs and undergo five instar stages before reaching into a mature adult. The nymph eggs are so tiny they are almost impossible to see with the naked eye.

Where do they live?

These pests can happily survive in all different ranges of climates and temperature. They can transfer between hotels states and even countries through baggage. They prefer to live somewhere close to the main host, usually your bed. They live in tiny gaps in your bed frame and seams in your mattress and pillows and are usually not visible to the untrained eye.

What do they eat?

Bed bugs mostly consume human blood. They prefer soft accessible skin on a human while sleeping. Once they bite it will cause swelling, the area will then form a red spot. Next comes swelling and itchiness.

Bed Bug Reproduction

Female bed bugs lay eggs for up to nine months with 3 to 4 eggs every day. These number can rapidly add up when there can be 300 to 400 hundred females in the average unit infestation. Bed bug infestation is on the rise for many luxury accommodation facilities across Australia.

Where to look for Bed Bugs

• Along your mattress seams and tags
• Behind chipped paint and loose wall paper
• Inside personal belongings, stuffed toys, in the frames of pictures
• Behind headboards and baseboards
• Between the crease in the bed frame gaps

Treatment of Bites

Evidence of bed bug bites can lasts 1 to 2 weeks. The only treatment available is applying products to relive pain and swelling.

• Apply a cream called cortisone to affected areas to stop itching
• Do not scratch as a infection may occur
• If infection is present visit doctor for antibiotic
• Anti-histamines are a good help for allergic reactions

Natural bed bug control

Bed bug mattresses are a 100% effective solution that will stop bed bugs attacking you in your sleep. These bed bug mattresses and covers are usually installed after a treatment has been done.

Heat and steaming is also a successful way in killing bed bug infestations. In extreme cases bed bug control is only successful if chemical and natural treatments are combined.

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