Bed bug treatments in Slough
"We think that we may have bed bugs"
You may remember the phrase “Sleep tight, hope the bed bugs don’t bite” but how do you know if you have bed bugs and what exactly are they?
It is widely believed that bed bugs are over 115 million years old and were a parasite that lived off early mammals, we have been plagued with these insects ever since and without any shadow of doubt these are the one pest that sits on top of the yuk-o-meter for both the customer and the technician.
Where can you pick up bed bugs?
Bed bugs have a long association with our sleeping arrangements, and they can be easily picked up in hotels, hostels and other places where we sleep.
However, what many people fail to appreciate with bed bugs is that these insects have tiny claws at the end of each leg and they will hitchhike, travelling with us as we move around.
Combine this with our desire to travel, it means that you can pick up bed bugs from sitting on a train, a plane or even a taxi as easily as the bed in a hotel.
There is no connection between a dirty run-down hotel room as there are instances of people picking up these insects from luxury hotels; so the answer to the question “Where can you pick up bed bugs”? is “Just about anywhere”!
How do we know if we have bed bugs?
Bed bug bites
Bed bug bites leave a similar red welt on the skin like those from mosquitos and there is a tendency for bed bugs to bite in a line; how this occurs is due to the insect’s habit of feeding on the junction of skin and bed sheet or night clothes.
When bed bugs feed, they puncture the skin to find a capillary and our blood pressure then pumps blood into the insect’s stomach. If the capillary doesn’t supply enough blood or the bed bug needs to defecate, the insect will move and repeat the process. Lines of bites are a well known indicator of a bed bug infestation.
Blood spots
60% of our blood is made up of liquid which has no nutritional value to the insect, the bed bug only wants the solid particles in our blood, so they defecate during and after feeding. the liquid is discarded immediately, meaning that blood spots will appear on sheets, pillowcases and clothing.
Bed bugs are drawn to cracks and crevices as part of their breeding habits and these will have so many blood spots eventually the area turns black and you may even detect the iron like smell of blood.
Discarded bed bug skins
Bed bugs are insects that don’t have a lifecycle change, for example caterpillars change their body through pupation becoming moths and butterflies, bed bugs don’t pupate but are born as tiny versions of their adult selves.
In order to grow they will go through seven moults, shedding their smaller outer skin each time as they become bigger. Cockroaches will eat their discarded skins, but with bed bugs these skins are simply discarded and can be found lying on carpets and on bed frames. The skins are the outer skeleton and they have the characteristics and colour of bed bugs being an orange / reddish colour.
Smell
Bed bugs give off a distinct aroma, particularly when they congregate together in a confined space, along with their natural scent you may pick up a smell from the buildup of bed bug faeces as this matter is largely blood and attracts bacteria.
The smell of bed bugs is likened to that of a dirty damp sports towel that’s been left inside a bag for too long; sweet and musty - anyone with teenage children would recognize that smell.
Visible insects
In the beginning of the infestation you probably will not see any bed bugs, you will receive insect bites which are usually attributed to mosquitos, this is due to their secretive nature as the insects will hide away. Bed bugs are thigmophilic which means that they like to ‘touch’ their environment, so they squeeze into the smallest of gaps to rest. After a bed bug has expelled the waste liquid part of its meal, it has the cross section that is similar in thickness to that of a piece of paper. Unfortunately, this means that they are able to crawl up the smallest of gaps such as behind wallpaper, up between the plaster and the back of electrical sockets and in all the spaces between parts of the bed frame. As their number increase eventually you will find them travelling further afield to find a new hiding place, such as up the backs of curtains and behind pictures hanging on walls are all favorite places for bed bugs to move to when the numbers are high enough.
Professional bed bug eradication in Slough
How we work
Our bed bug treatments always start with some form of heat being applied to the affected area; bed bugs are slowly developing chemical resistance to many of the pesticides used in their control, so a treatment that relies solely on a chemical application may fail.
All insects and this includes bed bugs cannot withstand high temperatures; at a certain temperature called which is given the term; the thermal death point, these insects simply expire and so we include a steam treatment that combines with the application of a number of chemicals to deliver successful bed bug treatments in Slough.
We also have the option of using portable electric heaters to raise the entire room temperature to a high enough point to kill off any bed bugs inside.
The bed bug treatment process
Before we begin a bedbug treatment we ask if you could do some preparation to get the area ready, we will need to dismantle the bed to get the steam and chemicals into all the cracks and crevices, and so items stored underneath or within divan drawers will need to be removed.
As these may contain bed bugs always do this carefully and because bed bugs can survive for over nine months without feeding, thought has to go into what you are going to do with these items?
How to prepare for a bed bug treatment in Slough
Successful bed bug treatments do rely on the technician being as thorough as possible, some form of preparation is required to help deliver a positive result –
Remove all stored items from under or inside the bed; these should be quarantined and placing items like shoes or handbags inside a bin bag and then into a freezer is one easy method of dealing with any hidden bed bugs.
Arrange for any pets to be taken away for the day of the treatment, bed bugs will feed on cats and dogs so it may be worth giving these an additional flea treatment to kill off any bed bugs in their fur. Wash pet bedding on a high temperature setting; this must be a minimum of 60 degrees Celsius.
Thoroughly vacuum the rooms to be treated, this does two things – first it cleans the room and removes dust and secondly it may remove some of the bed bug population from carpets etc. Because these will now be in the vacuum cleaner, empty the machine outside of the house and seal the waste bag up – do not leave the vacuum cleaner with the bugs inside as they will spread to other previously unaffected areas. We also don’t want you vacuuming the treated room for up to six weeks after the treatment as the chemicals we apply have a long lasting residual capacity and by vacuuming you will remove the chemical from the area.
Steam and chemical application to kill off bed bugs.
Our technician will begin the steam treatment first and whilst that is going on you can stay in the affected area as we have not introduced any chemicals at this point.
Our technicians wear PPE for their safety during the chemical application and so you will have to vacate the area while that is being carried out and afterwards throughout the drying period.
Severe infestations will require more than one treatment and our technician will talk through the infestation and what the next steps are.
Bed bugs in Reading
"Outstanding service my elderly dad had a bad infestation of bed bugs and I needed his bed removed and single armchair. Tony and Debra were so helpful in making dad flat get treated and removed furniture as requested. They kept regular updates with me on the procedure and making sure dad was ok throughout as it’s traumatic for anyone elderly living with bed bugs. I highly recommend this company as not only did they sort the problem they gave outstanding support throughout to myself and my dad in resolving" .